June 30M
I have to admit, I get really stumped and slightly stressed when I have to make food for other people. Last week, we were going to a BBQ and other than knowing I wanted to make something sweet (I love sharing my sweet creations with other people so that the two of us don’t have to eat a whole cake, tray of cookies or tons of cupcakes in their entirety) I wasn’t sure what to pull together. I decided to go through the archives of some of my favourite blogs and landed on a blueberry and lemon cake from Green Kitchen Stories. Not only did it look delicious but I had tons of blueberries and lemon sitting around, so it was pretty much a perfect treat.
There were a number of dilemmas when I was making this cake. First, I made a few adjustments. I didn’t have a couple of the ingredients that the original recipe called for so I just decided to use my best judgment and make a few changes. I hope that someday, I have enough baking experience that I can just ‘tell’ when a batter looks right or wrong and how to make replacements and adjustments, but I’m not there yet. So, I was crossing my fingers that it would turn out ok or I would have had to resort to a grocery store fare.
I was also freaking out because I had to pour the yogurt glaze over the cake and I was fairly convinced that it would go soggy sitting around with the yogurt on top, and that the yogurt would go rank in the hot sun. The moral of all of these worries is that I have to relax. None of my worst fears came true. In fact, everyone enjoyed the cake thoroughly and I was very pleased indeed.
In the end this is a very lightly sweetened cake, filled with poppy seeds, burst blueberries and lemon. It is the type of cake that I would actually serve at a brunch if I wanted to go down that route. The ingredients aren’t too indulgent and if a cake could be healthy, this is on the brink of that. The ground almond also gives the cake a pleasant bite to it. The yogurt sauce is definitely necessary because it gives the cake some moisture and extra lemon flavour. I am thrilled to report that it doesn’t make the cake soggy at all: even after sitting on it for a few hours! Although I would say that it is best to keep the cake in the fridge until serving because it keeps the yogurt more firm. The fresh blueberries are also a lovely addition and reminds you that it’s summer, when you can be generous and stuff cake with fresh berries, top it off with fresh berries and then eat more of them by the handful.
Adapted barely from Green Kitchen Stories
To make your own ground almonds, pulse almonds in a blender or food processor until they are finely ground but haven't turned to a paste yet.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Place yogurt (for the topping) in a mesh strainer to drain while you prepare the cake. Set aside.
Combine spelt flour, almond flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl and set aside.
Heat up coconut oil and maple syrup in a small pan until just combined.
Grate the zest of both lemons. Reserve two tablespoons of the zest (for the topping) and add the majority of the zest (about 2 tablespoons) to the oil/maple syrup mixture.
Add juice of 1 1/2 of the lemons (about 3/4 cup) to the oil/maple syrup mixture.
Combine the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon, until just combined.
Lightly beat the eggs and fold them, as well as the blueberries into the cake batter.
Line a 9 inch square baking tin with parchment paper. Pour cake batter into the baking tin and bake for 30 minutes.
While the cake is cooking, combine the drained yogurt, maple syrup, vanilla extract, poppy seeds, reserved zest and juice of the remaining half a lemon in a large bowl. Store in refrigerator until needed.
When the cake is golden brown and cooked through (test with a toothpick), remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
Once the cake is cool spread the yogurt topping on top and cover with blueberries.
http://mysecondbreakfast.com/blueberry-and-lemon-cake-recipe/Blueberry and Lemon Cake was last modified: June 29, 2015 by