I had never had blueberries, and someone got me a box of them from a farmers market as a present. Now those of you who know me may rememeber that I am not very enthusiastic about eating fruit, but I tried blueberry muffins when Babson was serving free breakfast during orientation fee, and they were so good! So I decided to bake a blueberry cake, and gift it to the hostess at a dinner I was invited to that night. Thankfully, it turned out absolutely beautiful! Here's the recipe I used, which is originally from Elise of SimplyRecipes. So far, no recipe of hers has ever disappointed me. <3 br="">
You have to know, I never try a recipe exactly the way it is given. Firstly, I don't like using butter too much. It's because back home, oil is so much cheaper. When I was first learning to bake, a lot of my cakes would be absolute disasters, and I hated using expensive ingredients and then having to feed the mess to my pets. Now I'm just used to it!
I also had oranges, and I love oranges! So I threw in Orange zest, and instead of lemon juice, used the juice from half an orange!
You've also got to remember, here in the US the normal sugar is what in Pakistan is 'fine' sugar. Not icing sugar, but just somewhere in between. So if you have normal, large crystals of sugar in Pk, give it a few zings in the grinder.
Combine 1 cup of flour with baking powder and salt, and whisk together. Or sieve together. What ever you feel like doing.
Using a mixer, beat the butter on medium high speed for 2 minutes. Then add the sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy. Throw in the eggs and beat some more, until well incorporated. Also add the orange zest, if you're using it.
Beat in the flour mixture, with the electric mixer or a spoon/spatula.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. It's going to be quite thick, and you'll think you've made a mistake and re-read the recipe. That's what I did. But just spread the batter in the pan using a spatula or spoon if you have to. It will be fine. At least it was for me.
Combine the berries with the remaining teaspoon of flour and the lemon juice (or orange juice) in a bowl. Spoon the berry mixture over the batter.
Bake on middle rack in oven for 1 hour at 350°F, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully slide a thin knife around the edges of the cake to release it from the pan. Transfer the cake to a platter, berry side up. Dust the cake with powdered sugar before serving.
I had to keep it in my room all day before I took it to dinner in the evening. It smells SO good, it was hard not to just cut out a slice for myself!
You have to know, I never try a recipe exactly the way it is given. Firstly, I don't like using butter too much. It's because back home, oil is so much cheaper. When I was first learning to bake, a lot of my cakes would be absolute disasters, and I hated using expensive ingredients and then having to feed the mess to my pets. Now I'm just used to it!
I also had oranges, and I love oranges! So I threw in Orange zest, and instead of lemon juice, used the juice from half an orange!
You've also got to remember, here in the US the normal sugar is what in Pakistan is 'fine' sugar. Not icing sugar, but just somewhere in between. So if you have normal, large crystals of sugar in Pk, give it a few zings in the grinder.
- 1 cup all purpose flour plus 1 teaspoon of flour (plus more for prepping cake pan)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 oz / 1 stick / 8 tbsp unsalted butter, softened, or 6 tbsp oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 large eggs
- Orange zest. Or not.
- 2 cups blueberries, rinsed and drained (if using frozen blueberries, thaw and drain first)
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice OR the juice from half an orange
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Combine 1 cup of flour with baking powder and salt, and whisk together. Or sieve together. What ever you feel like doing.
Using a mixer, beat the butter on medium high speed for 2 minutes. Then add the sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy. Throw in the eggs and beat some more, until well incorporated. Also add the orange zest, if you're using it.
Beat in the flour mixture, with the electric mixer or a spoon/spatula.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. It's going to be quite thick, and you'll think you've made a mistake and re-read the recipe. That's what I did. But just spread the batter in the pan using a spatula or spoon if you have to. It will be fine. At least it was for me.
Combine the berries with the remaining teaspoon of flour and the lemon juice (or orange juice) in a bowl. Spoon the berry mixture over the batter.
Bake on middle rack in oven for 1 hour at 350°F, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully slide a thin knife around the edges of the cake to release it from the pan. Transfer the cake to a platter, berry side up. Dust the cake with powdered sugar before serving.
I had to keep it in my room all day before I took it to dinner in the evening. It smells SO good, it was hard not to just cut out a slice for myself!
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