After weeks of reading doom and gloom forecasts and receiving "severe weather" emails from campus public safety, I am ready to hop on a plane and eschew my citizenship to live somewhere guaranteed to be warmer and sunnier. Despite being surrounded by snow and ice, lately I've been reminiscing about one of my favorite summertime activities: blueberry picking. During mid-late July, when the blueberries are big and ripe, me and my family members tend to pop these like m&m's.
While home from winter break, I was surprised to see a box in the fridge and was immediately transported back to warmer days. Naturally, my cake-baking senses began tingling, although I did leave all my baking supplies, with the exception of a loaf pan, on campus. (That explain why these most recent blog posts feature loaf-shaped foods - like this chocolate coconut cake.) This blueberry vanilla cake is relatively simple to make, and the berries add flavor and tartness, not to mention beautiful hues of purple. However, I always encounter difficulties with getting berries not to sink in the batter, and on top of that, I kind of over-saturated this cake with berries, which probably didn't help. Whoops. Regardless, the cake is a tasty snack and breakfast. :)
While home from winter break, I was surprised to see a box in the fridge and was immediately transported back to warmer days. Naturally, my cake-baking senses began tingling, although I did leave all my baking supplies, with the exception of a loaf pan, on campus. (That explain why these most recent blog posts feature loaf-shaped foods - like this chocolate coconut cake.) This blueberry vanilla cake is relatively simple to make, and the berries add flavor and tartness, not to mention beautiful hues of purple. However, I always encounter difficulties with getting berries not to sink in the batter, and on top of that, I kind of over-saturated this cake with berries, which probably didn't help. Whoops. Regardless, the cake is a tasty snack and breakfast. :)
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| Missing summertime & feeling as blue as these blueberries ;( |
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| Trying to scoop coconut oil from a solid block is my favorite pasttime. |
Challenge #2 As you can see from the photo above, the blueberries sunk. Despite coating them with flour, the blueberries "capsized", creating a purply-blue, slightly soggy bottom. I have yet to uncover the secret, fool-proof method to achieving perfect blueberry buoyancy & dispersal.
On the bright side, I'm really liking coconut oil and the light, fruity scent it adds to cake. I think it pairs well with and actually enhances vanilla flavors. It's quickly becoming my favorite dairy-free replacement for butter. Baking dairy-free has never been easier!
blueberry vanilla cake [dairy free]
1 + 3 Tbs cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup white granulated sugar
2 Tbs orange juice, at room temperature
1/2 cup milk (I used almond), at room temperature
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup water, warmed up
1 egg, at room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
topping
1 1/2 Tbs white granulated sugar
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, beat the egg and sugar together until the sugar is mostly dissolved.
2. Mix in the vanilla extract, orange juice, coconut oil and warmed (not hot) water.
3. In a small bowl, toss the 3 Tbs of flour with the 3/4 cup of blueberries, making sure to coat the blueberries well.
4. In a separate bowl, mix 1 cup flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
5. Fold the wet and dry mixtures together until well moistened.
6. Fold in the blueberries.
7. Pour batter into a greased pan.
8. Sprinkle 1 1/2 Tbs sugar over the batter surface. Maybe take a fork, toothpick or chopstick and swirl it in a little bit. Have fun with it.
9. Bake at 350 F for 42-45 minutes, or until inserted toothpick/fork/chopstick comes out clean.
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