TCS: Shenandoah Valley Blueberry Cake

 

We have a winner!

I made this cake for my sister when she came to visit a few weeks ago for breakfast. And despite the fact that I did not as usual wait long enough for the butter to soften properly it still turned out wonderfully moist and very nearly addictable. It was just one of those cakes where after eating a piece, you cut yourself a tiny sliver more, nibble on the rest and then throw restraint to the winds and just dive on in.

No doubt I would make this again but only if I had guests as I could see myself eating way too much of this. I'm very happy about how well this turned out especially as I had actually been concerned about how good this would taste considering how simple the ingredients and instructions were. The only thing that would have made this absolutely perfect is if I had had whipped cream on top... however my sister in a flash of brilliance suggested adding a scoop of peach ice cream on top which I will love her forever for.

Shenandoah Valley Blueberry Cake

(Recipe from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)

Ingredients
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
¾ cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)

Method

Heat the oven to 375F and generously grease a 9 inch square or round pan.

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and stir with a fork to mix well. In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugar and beat with a mixer at high speed until well combined. Add the egg and beat well for 1 to 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the bowl until the mixture is smooth and light.

Stir in half the flour mixture then half the milk, mixing just enough to keep the batter fairly smooth and well combined. Add the remaining flour, then the rest of the milk, mixing gently. Stir in the blueberries.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake at 375F for 30 minutes or until the cake is golden, springs back when touched gently in the centre and is pulling away from the sides of the pan.

Serve a square of cake right from the pan, warm or at room temperature. If its round, let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack or folded kitchen towel for 10 minutes and then turn it out to cool, top side up.