Blueberry buckle

A not-too-sweet dessert or breakfast treat!

Growing up, I loved this dish which we typically had as a dessert but which I later realized makes a great breakfast or brunch treat as well. I found the name ‘buckle’ amusing yet baffling, until my grandmother explained that it comes from the way the cake batter literally buckles around the fruit as it bakes. Because the cake is relatively thin and there are so many blueberries (little nutritional powerhouses) on top, this is actually a fairly healthy dessert. This is a great recipe to make with your favourite gluten-free flour blend and while it’s great as-is, you can also top it with whipped cream or ice cream.

Ingredients

Cake:

• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup (76 g) butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (64 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (56 g) whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 g) ground cardamom (or cinnamon)
• 1/4 teaspoon (1.5 g) salt
• 1/3 cup (90 mL) milk
• 2 teaspoons (4 g) lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• 3 cups (570 g) fresh blueberries

Topping:

• 1/3 cup (57 g) packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (32 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 g) ground cardamom (or cinnamon)
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) very cold butter
• 1/3 cup (23 g) sliced almonds

Method

• Preheat oven to 350F. Line the bottom of a 9 inch (22.5 cm) springform pan (or an 8 inch / 20 cm) square cake pan with parchment and grease the sides of the pan. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, cream together granulated sugar, butter, egg and vanilla.
• In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
• Add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir to combine. Stir in milk, lemon zest and lemon juice then add remaining flour mixture, stirring to make a thick batter.
• Spread batter into prepared pan then scatter blueberries evenly on top.
• Make the topping. In a small bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Grate or cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over blueberries.
• Bake 35 – 40 minutes, until crisp and browned on top and a tester inserted into the centre comes out clean.
• Serve warm or at room temperature; refrigerate any leftovers for up to 3 days.

Serves 6.