ChezCindy: Blueberry Buckle

Blueberry Buckle

I do quite a bit of recipe research, either with a specific ingredient in mind or to help clarify an idea.  When I come upon a recipe by Gail Gand, much acclaimed pastry chef, I generally stop right there.  Chef Gand is recognized as Outstanding Pastry Chef by The James Beard Foundation.  She is a cookbook author, television personality, and restaurateur.  Her recipes range for complex to traditional.  From my experience, they are always a success. Today I was researching recipes for Blueberry Buckle, an old-fashioned blueberry coffee cake, and found a great recipe from Chef Gand.   

A "buckle" is a single layer cake with fruit and a streusel topping, which gives it a buckled or crumpled appearance.  The texture on this cake is so very light; a perfect balance of sweetness from the streusel topping that seems to heighten the taste of the blueberries.  Simple to make.  Quick to bake.  Below is my recipe as inspired by Chef Gand.

Blueberry Buckle
1 cup sugar
1 stick softened unsalted butter
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of fresh nutmeg
1/2 cup milk
2 cups blueberries

Streusel Topping
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts, toasted
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Butter and flour a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. 
Cream the sugar and butter together in a mixer.  Add the egg and mix well.  Sift the dry ingredients together, then add them to the creamed mixture, alternating with the milk.  Batter will be very thick.  Fold in the blueberries.  Spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan. 
Topping:  Combine all ingredients into a small bowl.  Using a pastry cutter, combine the ingredients into a crumbly mixture.  Sprinkle evenly over the batter. 
Bake for 25-30 minutes.