I volunteered to bring a dessert for a ladies group that meets in my home town. I was going to make my Applesauce Muffins, but then I got my latest magazine of Cooking Light and stumbled across a recipe for Blueberry Coffee Cake that was loaded with blueberries and I was hooked! Made a few minor changes and served it up to family for testing. It was well received.

Blueberry Coffee Cake with Almond Topping

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 2 cups fresh blueberries (if you use frozen, bake a bit longer)
  

  Blueberry Coffee Cake

• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats.
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 1 Tbsp. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp. butter, melted
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 Tbsp Safflower oil (or other light oil)
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Put it All Together

1. Heat the oven to 375.
2. Wash the blueberries and drain thoroughly.
3. In a small bowl mix 1 Tbsp flour, cinnamon, sliced almonds, and rolled oats. Pour the 2 Tbsp. butter over the dry ingredients and mix. Set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the 2 cups flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Remove 2 Tbsp. of the flour mixture and toss with the blueberries. Set the blueberries aside.
5. In a large bowl, place the granulated sugar, 1/4 cup of butter, and safflower oil. Beat until well mixed. Add the egg and beat well.
6. Add the buttermilk and flour mixture alternately to the sugar mixture. Begin and end with flour mixture. Stir in the lemon zest and juice.
7. Coat a 9 inch square pan with cooking spray. Place 1/2 the batter in the pan and spread out with a spatula. Evenly put 1/2 the blueberries on top. Add the rest of the batter mixture and then top with the rest of the blueberries. Sprinkle evenly with the brown sugar-almond-oatmeal mixture from step 3.
8. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean. You may need to use the outside edges as there are so many blueberries that the toothpick always comes out pretty messy :-). I use the outside edges for the toothpick and then bake a bit longer to accommodate for the middle of the pan.
9. Cool in pan for 10-15 minutes on a wire rack. Loose around the edges with a knife and remove from pan if you wish.

I haven’t tried it yet, but did think that substituting raspberries or blackberries would also be good — or even a mixture of berries. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream if you wish. Hope you enjoy this as much as we do!