Blueberry Crumb Cake

I've already started planning my must-bake holiday dessert list. Although this blueberry crumb cake is not a Christmas dessert, it's always nice to have a crumb cake for breakfast. 

Ok, this cake is really delicious but there's one bad thing which you might have already noticed. 

Why did my blueberries sink??!  I was quite shocked after I saw this. Well, it didn't really matter because it tasted good anyway, but that's strange. I did everything correctly except for... flouring the blueberries. I don't know if this could be the reason but I don't have any other explanation. So if you decide to make it, do FLOUR the blueberries.

 

Blueberry Crumb Cake

 

Recipe from food network.

For the streusel:
1/4 cup/50g granulated sugar
1/3 cup/70g light brown sugar, lightly packe
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 stick/113g unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cups/167g all-purpose flour 

For the cake:
6 tbsp/85g unsalted butter, at room temperature 
3/4 cup/170g granulated sugar
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
2/3 cup/150g sour cream
1 1/4 cups/156g all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup fresh blueberries (I used frozen)
Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling (optional)

1) Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Butter and flour a 23cm/9-inch round baking pan.

Make the streusel:
2) Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and then the flour. Mix well and set aside.

Make the cake:
3) Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until light. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream. 

4) In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Fold in the blueberries and stir with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.

5) Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out with a knife. With your fingers, crumble the topping evenly over the batter. 

6) Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely and serve sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

Fall Recipe Collection

Fall has already gone and I thought it would be great to make a small collection with brief summaries of my favourite fall recipes. It wasn't easy to choose just a few but these recipes surprised me the most and they are definitely the keepers which I will be making again and again in the future, I'm sure.

So, the first in the list is Ricotta Gnocchi with Browned Butter Garlic Basil Sauce recipe. I was amazed by the flavours of this dish. The gnocchi were soft, pillowy and crunchy outside. The brown butter sauce made the whole dish divine! 

The second is  Apple Cake. I chose this because it's probably the easiest dessert I've ever made and still so incredibly delicious. I love this because it's also different. There are more apples in this cake than batter. This makes the cake taste very light and somehow reminds me a little bit of a pudding. It is definitely a perfect fall dessert - it's cheap, easy to make and tasty.

A Pumpkin Cake! Oh my Lord, this is a wonderful cake! I never thought I could love a spicy cake so much. But believe me, this could be called a Pumpkin Fall Cake. It's infused with all the best fall flavours. This will be a tradition to make this cake every year, for sure.

Next is Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares recipe. These bars are so perfect. A buttery base, creamy in the middle with a crunchy top.

And finally, how can a fall dessert list be without a Pumpkin pie? This is easy to make, not too sweet or spicy. If you haven't found your favourite pumpkin pie recipe, I encourage you to try this. It might become your favourite.

That's it! I hope you like my favourite recipes. If you do, then check out other recipes or look in the gallery and find your favourite dishes.

P.S. Happy winter! Hopefully we'll have some snow before Christmas. It's time to start planning the Christmas must-bake dessert list! Have a nice weekend.

Vegetable Stew

This is an easy, heartwarming and delicious stew which is perfect for cold, windy winter evenings. I wasn't a fan of lentils but in this stew they taste perfectly and makes the stew rich. What is more, this is really easy to make. I recommend using a pressure-cooker but of course every pot will work. It will just take more time to cook. You may vary on the amounts of ingredients. I think next time I'd add some more mushrooms and tomatoes (mine were small). It's up to you!

1 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves gralic, chopped
1 carrot, cubed
10 medium mushrooms, cubed
5-6 tomatoes, chopped
100g lentils
1 eggplant, cubed
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground sweet paprika
500ml vegetable stock

Heat the oil in a large pressure-cooker. Add onion and saute for a few minutes. Add garlic, carrots, spices and some vegetable stock and cook for another few minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook for 35-45 minutes until all vegetables are fully cooked.

Enjoy!

Creamy Avocado Pasta

It's a quick, simple and delicious dish. Perfect for the days when you don't have time for preparing stews or casseroles. I really enjoyed this but I regret I didn't have any fresh basil. I believe this is an essential ingredient for this pasta and dried basil can't replace the fresh one.

Yield: Serves 1

1 medium sized ripe Avocado, pitted
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste 
1/4 cup Fresh Basil, (I used 2 tsp dried basil because I didn't have any fresh)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 serving your favourite pasta

1. Cook your pasta according to the directions.

2. Meanwhile, make the sauce: place the garlic cloves, lemon juice, and olive oil into a food processor. Process until smooth. Now add in the pitted avocado, basil, and salt. Process until smooth and creamy.

3. When pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse in a strainer and place pasta into a large bowl. Pour on sauce and toss until fully combined. Serve immediately.

Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares

 

 

I am so happy that I've discovered these bars! Buttery base, creamy in the middle and crunchy on the top these bars are amazing. The lemon flavour isn't too sweet or too tart. You must try these! I promise, you will not be disappointed.

Ingredients:

1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup/113g butter, lightly softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup oats

1 can (14 ounce/397g) sweetened condensed milk

½ cup/120ml lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.

Mix butter and brown sugar until well combined. Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Add oats and flour to butter/sugar mixture and mix to combine. Press half of oat crumb mixture into the bottom of a 20x20cm pan. 

Mix together condensed milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Spread onto the bottom layer of the crumb mixture. Mix the other half of the crumb mixture and knead together with your hands so that the butter that you added gets incorporated then crumble on top of lemon layer but don’t press.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Allow to sit on counter for 30 minutes after baking. Refrigerate for couple of hours or overnight and cut into squares.

Serve cool. Makes 16.