Blueberry Buckle
by Roy Finamore
from Tasty: Get Great Food on the Table Every Day
(Houghton Mifflin, 2007)
Makes one 8-inch cake

"Buckle" is a good word, isn't it? And what this is, is a giant and tender muffin, bursting with blueberries and topped with gently spiced crumbs. If you can find tiny wild blueberries, by all means use them.

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1. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter an 8-inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment.

Make the crumb Topping
1. Stir the flour, sugar, spices, and salt together in a bowl. Add the butter and work it with your fingers, pinching and rubbing, until it is completely incorporated and the crumbs hold together when you pick up a handful and squeeze it.

Make the cake
1. Cut the butter into pieces and drop them into a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for a minute or two, until light. With the mixer running, pour in the sugar and continue to beat until very light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat well.

2. Combine the 2 cups flour, baking powder and soda, and salt in a bowl. Whisk well to distribute the leavenings. With the mixer on low, mix in a third of the flour, then half of the sour cream, then another third of the flour and the rest of the sour cream. Mix in the remaining flour and the vanilla, turn the mixer to medium-high, and beat for about 30 seconds.

3. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 2 tablespoons flour and fold into the batter. Scrape into the springform pan and smooth out the top.

4. Pick up a handful of the crumbs and squeeze, then break them into larger and smaller bits over the cake. Continue until you've used up all the crumbs and covered the cake.

5. Slip the cake into the oven and bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes. The tips of the crumbs and any exposed crust should be golden brown, and a cake tester should come out clean, though a crumb or two is fine.

6. Let cool on a rack. When the buckle is cool enough to handle, release the sides of the springform. Lift the buckle up off the base and peel off the parchment. You need to balance the cake in your hand and juggle it a bit, but that should not be a problem. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 

[Valerie Peterson] The recipe is simple, accurate, and yields tasty results. Not too sweet, with great blueberry-to-cake and cake-to crumb proportions, this buckle would be excellent for a brunch or a teatime snack. A great addition to the "blueberry season" repertoire.

[Nancy Castagnet] Overall this cake was heavenly. The buttery crumb topping was delicious and the cake texture was dense with blueberries and very moist. It was easy and relatively quick to make and certainly filled the kitchen with a mouthwatering aroma. I would definitely make it again — but I’d experiment with the baking time and the proportion of crumb topping to cake. I shared the cake with friends, who gave it rave reviews.

[Susan Hillery] This is a wonderful "coffee cake" that is even better the next day. Fast and easy, this makes the perfect night-before preparation for the next day's breakfast/brunch. So delicious and moist. Try it, you'll love it!

[Anonymous] This was very easy to prepare and I liked the idea of using a springform pan for baking. It was easy to unmold the cake and cut into individual servings. The cake was moist and delicious. The only thing that I found odd was the height of the cake: It exceeded the 3-inch rim of my 8-inch springform pan!

[Cindy Chang] The cake had a nice crumb. Because it used an entire pint, each bite was bursting with blueberries. The crumbs stayed golden and retained their crunch after a couple of days.

[Holley Atkinson] This was a gorgeous, perfect cake. Nothing wrong, except just a little bit blah. Some salt and lemon juice and zest would really make this perfection. We loved it! I served it with a homemade lemon ice cream and a homemade blueberry sorbet, and it was really divine.

[Andrea Calhoun] Really pretty easy, with on-hand ingredients except for the fresh berries. Had a great texture and got a thumbs-up from the hubby. Would make again, but I think it could use a bit of nutmeg as well.