This is a classic flavour combination that I’ve never attempted in this form; it’s a lemon and blueberry drizzle cake.
We usually have a bag of blueberries stored in the freezer; in the winter, we love a bowl of blueberry porridge for breakfast and in the summer we love them in a refreshing smoothie. Just make sure that they’re defrosted before they go into the batter otherwise they may affect how well the cake cooks in the middle.
The resulting cake is sweet, moist and delicious; made even more moist with the addition after baking of the lemon syrup.
175g/6oz unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
175g/6oz caster sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons, and juice of 1
3 eggs
175g/6oz plain flour
1tsp baking powder
150g/5¼oz blueberries
3tbsps granulated sugar
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Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas mark 4
Grease a 20cm/8" round cake tin and line with baking parchment or cake tin liner
Beat the butter and caster sugar with an electric whisk/stand mixer for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy, then beat in the zest of 1 lemon
Beat the eggs together in a jug with a fork, then slowly mix into the batter, adding a spoonful of flour if the mixture starts to curdle
Sift together the flour and baking powder before folding into the mixture until just smooth
Spoon a thin layer (about 1cm deep) of the mixture into the tin
Set aside a handful of the blueberries, then fold the rest into the remaining cake mixture and spoon into the tin
Scatter the reserved berries on top
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean
Cover it loosely with foil if it starts to brown too much on top
As soon as the cake is removed from the oven, pierce the top all over with a skewer
Mix the lemon juice and remaining zest with the granulated sugar and spoon all over the top
Cool completely in the tin before removing and serving
Notes
This cake can also be made in a 900g/2lb loaf tin. Bake for 1 hour, covering loosely with foil after 45 minutes if it begins to brown too much on the top
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H is for Home Harbinger https://hisforhomeblog.com/
I always like to have a bag of frozen blueberries in the freezer. I often use them in porridge, over pancakes and in smoothies. Today, I used them to make blueberry ice cream.
I used the basic vanilla ice cream recipe that I posted some time ago – simply adding a little blueberry sauce that I made beforehand.
The colourful blueberries made a pretty ‘ripple’ effect through the pale ice cream. That evening, we each had a couple of scoops topped with little Amaretti di Saronno biscuits – a perfect pairing!
300ml/10½ fl oz/1½ cups heavy (double) cream, well chilled
1tsp vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract), to taste
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Instructions
In a small saucepan warm the blueberries and caster sugar over a low heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has completely dissolved, there's a little bit of syrup and the bluberries have just begun to pop out of their skins
Set aside and allow to cool completely (put it into the fridge if necessary)
In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer or a whisk to combine the milk and granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved (about 1 to 2 minutes on a low speed)
Stir in the cream and vanilla to taste
Turn the machine on, pour the cream mixture into the freezer bowl, and mix until thickened (about 20-25 minutes). The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture
Decant into a lidded freezer container, pour over the cooled blueberry sauce and fold in gently through the ice cream using a spatula
Notes
Once churned and spooned out into a lidded container, put it into the freezer until firm. It takes about 2 hours for it to 'ripen'
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H is for Home Harbinger https://hisforhomeblog.com/
Justin saw Nigella’s recipe for lemon tendercake online somewhere and immediately submitted a request for me to make one.
I’d never heard of a tendercake before, so I searched the internet for other versions – I couldn’t really find anything else.
The recipe is three separate stages – the cake batter, the coconut yoghurt topping and the blueberry compote.
There isn’t a lot of flour in the batter recipe – it’s quite runny. But don’t despair, that’s what makes it a tendercake; the texture is melt in the mouth.
And, quite unintentionally, this cake is 100% vegan – no eggs, no butter, no milk!
In my opinion, the amount of coconut yoghurt topping and blueberry compote is a bit much. The quantities can probably be reduced by about a third; I shouldn’t have put it all on top of the cake. What I should have done was combine the excess into home-made blueberry yoghurt for breakfast!
And Justin’s verdict? Very nice indeed! He says the coconut yoghurt topping tastes just like the frosting you get on a carrot cake (which is a good thing, in his book). There’s a nice balance of sweet and the slightly sour. A great-tasting and attractive cake. It will undoubtedly be revisited in the future.
If you don’t have Buy Me a Pie! app installed you’ll see the list with ingredients right after downloading it
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/350°F/Gas mark 4
Grease the sides and line the base of a 20cm/8" spring-form cake tin with baking parchment
For the cake
Combine the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt in a mixing bowl large enough to take all the other ingredients later
In a large measuring jug (or another bowl), whisk the oil, sugar and coconut milk together, followed by the lemon zest and juice and the vanilla extract
Pour the jug of liquid ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients, whisking to combine, then pour into the prepared tin and bake for 30-35 minutes, by which time the top will be golden brown, the sides shrinking away from the tin and a cake tester should come out clean
Transfer to a wire rack and leave the cake to cool completely in its tin. It may sink slightly as it cools, but this need not concern you in the slightest. While you're waiting, you can get on with making the blueberry compote
For the compote
Put the blueberries, lemon juice, caster sugar and the 50ml/3 tbsp of cold water into a saucepan and bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer, stirring gently every now and again, for a couple of minutes until the blueberries have softened in the now garnet-glossy liquid. Remove the pan from the heat
In a small cup, slake the cornflour with the 1½ teaspoons of cold water and stir this paste into the pan of blueberries, making sure you scrape every last bit out
Stir together, put the pan back over the heat and stir gently for about 30 seconds, by which time the sauce will have started bubbling again and will have thickened. If you feel it has become too jammy and thick, simply add a little more water and stir it in over the heat
Pour the compote into a small heatproof bowl or jug to let it cool. It will set once cold
Do not assemble the cake until just before serving. So: unclip the completely cold cake from its tin, unmould it and turn it over (so the underneath is now on top) onto a cake stand or plate
For the topping
Mix the coconut milk yoghurt and vanilla extract together, spoon the icing sugar into a tea-strainer, then sieve it over the yoghurt and stir it in, too, before spreading and swirling this soft mixture over the top of the cake
Thrash the blueberry compote a little with a fork to loosen it, and gently spoon it on top, leaving a gleaming white frame
I’ve had a slow-cooker for ages and, like most people, don’t make use of it nearly enough. It sits lonely in my kitchenette waiting patiently for its opportunity to shine. Last week, I saw a slow-cooker recipe for a cherry Bakewell pudding and decided to convert it into and almond and blueberry sponge pudding.
It’s a real no fuss, straightforward recipe. I swapped cherries for blueberries; however raspberries, strawberries, redcurrants or blackcurrants would work just as well.
I highly recommend these reusable silicone pot covers as a green alternative to cling film. They come in six graduated sizes from 3-8 inches so fit containers ranging from ramekins to medium-sized mixing bowls. I use them all the time for storing food in the fridge and heating things in the microwave. I’ve now discovered that they’re perfect as a slow-steaming pudding lid!
If like me you like a bit of a crispy texture, you can stick the pudding under the grill for a couple of minutes at the end of its cooking time.
We served our almond and blueberry sponge pudding with custard. The flavour combination of almond sponge and vanilla custard with a touch of fruity sharpness from the blueberries is a real winner.
If you don’t have Buy Me a Pie! app installed you’ll see the list with ingredients right after downloading it
Instructions
Grease a 1.2-litre pudding basin, including the lid if it has one In a small saucepan, heat the blueberrries and the 3 tablespoons of sugar until the sugar dissolves and the fruit begins to burst and the juice is released. Remove from the heat before the fruit collapses. Set aside
Cream the butter and the remaining sugar together until light and fluffy
Beat in the eggs one at a time until the mixture is loose and airy
Add the almond extract and combine
Fold in the flour and ground almonds
Add in the milk and combine gently. The batter should have a light texture
Put 100g of the blueberries in the bottom of the basin and pour the batter over the top of them. It won't fill the basin, but don't worry as this will give it space to expand as it cooks. Reserve the remaining cherries until later
Cover the basin securely with the lid and set it into the slow-cooker crock
Pour boiling water into the crock to come halfway up the side of the basin
Put the lid on the slow cooker and steam on high for about 4 hours. It will rise, becoming a light, fluffy sponge
Turn the pudding out onto a plate, piling the reserved cherries on top, and allow the blueberry juice to drizzle down the sides of the pudding before spooning into servings
