Summertime Blueberry Crumble Cake

With the grocery stores practically giving blueberries away this time of year, I decided to buy four pints and then figure out what to do with them. Even if baking isn’t really your style, give this recipe a try. It’s basically an assembly job, with some buttery sugar crumbled on top before sliding it into the oven and leaving it alone for forty-five minutes. Eat it hot right out of the oven with some whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, or grab a slice with your morning coffee. With all those healthy blueberries, it’s a totally acceptable breakfast choice. I’ve adapted this from the Barefoot Contessa Blueberry Crumb Cake, with about four times the blueberries she suggests. Trust me, it’s exactly what you want to eat in the sweltering days of late summer.

 

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

 

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (3/4 stick)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• Grated zest of one lemon
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 cups fresh blueberries

 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 16x12 inch baking pan, or line it with parchment paper. (Don’t stress about the pan size- work with whatever you’ve got on hand!)
• For the streusel: Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and then the flour. Mix well and set aside. It should look like damp sand.
• For the cake: Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until light and fluffy.
• Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until just combined. Turn the mixer off and fold in the blueberries, and stir until combined.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it as evenly as you can, making sure to work it into the corners.
• With your fingers, crumble the streusel topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until a knife comes out clean.
• Let the cake cool for a few minutes- then dig in!