Blueberry Almond Buckle

As mentioned before, my dad has had a bumper crop of berries from his blueberry bushes. As he shared the bounty, I tried blueberry recipes old and new. This one is slightly adapted from a recipe in Hannaford Supermarkets' Fresh magazine. I tried to link to the recipe, but was not able to, so am trusting they will not mind my using it.

Blueberry Almond Buckle

Topping:
6 Tblsp. melted butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup flour

Cake:
1 -1/2 cups flour
1 -1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1- 1/2 cups fresh [or frozen, not defrosted] blueberries
1 Tblsp. flour
6 Tblsp. softened butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1/2 cup milk
Sliced almonds for top

For topping, stir together ingredients in a small bowl until crumbs form. Set aside.

Heat oven to 325º. Grease an 8-inch square baking dish with butter or cooking spray.

Sift together the 1 1/2 cups flour, the baking powder and salt; set aside. In a medium bowl, toss together the blueberries and 1 Tblsp. flour; set aside.

In large bowl, beat together butter and sugar with electric mixer at medium speed for 1 minute. Beat in the eggs and extracts until blended, about 2 minutes. Add half the flour, and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Add milk, mixing on low speed until blended. Add remaining flour and mix on low speed until smooth. Batter will be thick. Use a spoon to stir in the blueberries. Spoon batter into the prepared baking dish and spread it evenly in the dish. Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture evenly on top and sprinkle the sliced almonds evenly over crumbs.

Bake the blueberry buckle for 30 to 40 minutes at 325º, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan about 2 hours or until completely cool. Cut into squares and serve at room temperature.

The first time I served this, I added scoops of blueberry pomegranate frozen yogurt to the servings.

The second time, I served it with whipped topping -- the frozen yogurt was all gone. I sprinkled a few fresh blueberries on top, just for fun.

The blueberry buckle would also be good with vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt or real whipped cream. It is also good plain, of course!

It makes a great dessert but would also be good for breakfast!