Blueberry Buckle: The Recipe

So I thought somehow that the photo of my recipe book would be legible to anyone interested, and it seems that it was not.

Here's the recipe I used:

Blueberry Buckle

1/2 c. shortening (I used unsalted butter, softened)
1/2 c. sugar (not reduced as per my usual)
1 well-beaten egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. milk
2 cups fresh blueberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (325 if using glass pan). Grease a 11 1/2 x 7 inch pan. (9x13 is okay, but the buckle will not "buckle"...)

Thoroughly cream shortening and sugar. Add egg and mix well. Sift flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Pour into well-greased pan (pour?!? the consistency of my batter had me "patting" the dough into the pan). Top with blueberries. Sprinkle "Cinnamon Crumbs" (a.k.a. streusel) over blueberries. Bake 45-50 minutes or until done (possibly less if you're using a larger pan).

Cinnamon Crumbs: Mix 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (okay, I used 1 t.). Cut in 1/4 c. unsalted butter until crumbly.

Here's what it looked like before baking, in a 9x13" glass pan.

The after picture is here.

This was delicious, especially when warm and topped with fresh whipped cream. Next time I will try to make the "crumbs" more crumby (maybe the kitchen was too warm and so the streusel effect was lost?) and try a smaller pan (perhaps a 9 or 10" square metal pan?) to get the effect of "buckling" from the cinnamon layer, now that I know why it is called a Buckle. My friend who lives in Georgia recommends mixing up the fruit -- she uses blueberries and nectarines. Could one do blueberries and pomegranate seeds, or would that be too crazy?

Summertime Blueberry Buckle

I am in the midst of creating a personal cookbook -- trying to organize my recipes in some fashion that is both useful and attractive.

For a number of years I have been carting around a 3 ring binder with file folders stuffed into it: Breads and Muffins, Soups and Salads, Ethnic Recipes -- you get the drift. But now I am hoping to rewrite all the recipes I've been saving into my New Improved Book.

The problem? I'm actually fairly attached to the recipes as they are. I remember, for example, writing out one of my Russian recipes on the back of an orange flyer advertising George Kalbouss's Russian 522 course ... in about 1996. My friend Sara and I were planning a Russian feast. So looking at that recipe reminds me of the apartment where we held the feast, the guest list, the menu... How can I give that up?

I have recipes cut out of newspapers (including my Chocolate Roll Cake from St. Louis circa 1997 or so, when I was there for the AAASS conference in November); recipes handwritten on notebook paper or other random scrap paper; recipes cut out from magazines; recipes typewritten or handwritten on recipe cards, by myself, my aunt, my grandmother; recipes printed from epicurious.com or other recipe websites...

There is even a certain serendipity. Which brings us to the Blueberry Buckle recipe. My mom sent me her cornbread recipe, copied out from her new Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, but she also sent me the page from her old cookbook, and on the reverse of that page is the Blueberry Buckle recipe. And it's summer. So I copied it into my new book, and then prepared it -- for the first time. (I will adapt and change it in future -- stay tuned!)

Leaving room on the left for my Aunt Em's
Oatmeal Muffin recipe, the tastiest ever because made with sour cream!

I learned several things, about the Recipe Book project and about the recipe itself. First of all, by writing in ink I am guaranteeing that my book has "character" -- already I smeared the ink when preparing the first recipe! Secondly, this BH&G recipe makes word choices that don't necessarily reflect reality. For example, there is no way I could have "poured" the batter, since it was quite stiff. Instead I "patted" the dough into the pan. Third, though I only had a 9X11 glass casserole, that worked fine. No need to be hung up on exactitude! I admit, too, that I am doubtful about the "Cinnamon Crumbs" -- just a way to get more butter and sugar into the dish, since the texture did not live up to the name: there were no "crumbs" involved. Perhaps because it was too warm in the kitchen? I'll experiment some more in future to see if I can justify the BG&H vocab.

I got to thinking that adding basil to this recipe might be really nice. My daughter says no -- she thought adding chopped pistachios on top would be better. My son says that if I never make this recipe again, he will have no reason to live. So I guess I'll do it again next weekend when we have guests, as long as the blueberries are still in season.

Delicious -- especially with fresh whipped cream!

The designation "Buckle" seems so old-fashioned somehow, so I thought I'd better investigate. To quote this recipe site, "A buckle is an old-fashioned single layered cake interspersed with berries and with a streusel-type topping that “buckles” as it cools. Not sure mine did that -- maybe this is why I needed the smaller pan?

Finally, as I copied out this recipe and made the dish I was thinking of my stepdad. Over the holidays I accidentally overheard him talking to my mom about something I had baked (not even sure what!) and commenting that Angela should learn that sometimes sugar can be a good thing. (Generally I cut the sugar in all recipes in half, with the result that nothing I bake is particularly sweet!) So this time I did not reduce the sugar, and I agree -- it was tastier. Thanks, Allan.