Magnolia's Blueberry Coffee Cake with Vanilla Glaze

As many of you know, my husband brought home the Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook from the library and immediately set to work tabbing which recipes he wanted me to make.  But of course the first one that grabbed my attention was the zucchini cake (I promise to post another time!)  Which was delicious, except that Jeff doesn't like zucchini.  So, it being fall, I made another cake...the Pumpkin Bars.  Also delicious, but Jeff doesn't like pumpkin.  So I finally fulfilled my matrimonial obligations with this Blueberry Coffee Cake with Vanilla Glaze.  Twice.  And Jeff will now let me get the book for my very own.  Because he knows he will get this cake again.

This cake is easy to make, but plan ahead because it needs a lot of time to cool before you can slice it.  Make it the day before and it keeps beautifully.

Ingredients:

2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt (preferably kosher..its a chemical composition thing, not a jew thing.)
2/3 c canola oil
1 c sugar
2 large eggs at room temp (nifty hint:  put eggs from the fridge into a bowl of warm water for 10 min or so to get room temp eggs!)
1 c milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c fresh blueberries, lightly coated with flour (so they don't sink in the cake)

Glaze Ingredients:

1 1/4 c. confectioners (i.e. powdered) sugar, sifted
1/4 c heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease and lightly flour a 10 inch tube/bundt pan.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt into a small bowl. 

Beat together in the mixer the oil, sugar and eggs for about 3 minutes until light and thick.  Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla, beating until smooth.  Fold in the blueberries.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 60-70 minutes.  Let the cake cool in the pan for one hour.  Remove from pan.

Make the Vanilla Glaze:  In a double boiler over barely simmering water, combine the sugar, cream and vanilla and stir for about 2 minutes until well blended.  Once the cake is completely cool, drizzle over the cake.  Allow the glaze to set for one hour before slicing.

Blueberry Nectarine Crumble Adapted from Chez Pannise

The point of my putting the recipes on Facebook is to get dinner on the table, not to showcase dessert, which can be satisfied on a weeknight by pulling the ice cream out of the freezer. But this dessert is so simple and so Summer in a Nutshell that I would be doing you a disservice if I failed to let you in on it. Prep is simple and it cooks while you are eating dinner.

The Stuff you Need:

½ cup almonds
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
a pinch of salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter

5 ripe nectarines, pitted and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup blueberries
¼ cup sugar
3 tablespoons unbleached flour
zest of one lemon, chopped fine
1 tablespoon aged rum (optional...I didn't do it.)

For the Topping

Preheat oven to 375 F. Toast the almonds until they smell nutty and are slightly more brown, about 7 or 8 minutes. Chop the almonds to a medium to fine consistency (I used the food processor.) Combine the flour, the sugars, the salt and spice in a mixing bowl (or, add to the nuts in the trusty food processor.) Add the chilled butter in pieces and mix with your fingers until it becomes mealy (or blitz in the food processor a few Pulses until mealey.) Add the nuts (if you didn't use the food processor) and mix until the flour mixture holds together when squeezed. Put aside. (The topping can be prepared up to a week in advance and refrigerated).

For the Crisp

Mix the fruit in a medium-sized bowl and then add the sugar. Dust the flour over the mixture and stir gently. Spoon the topping into a small cooking dish is just big enough to hold the fruit. Mound a small amount in the center of the dish. Then, gently add the crisp mixture on top. Lightly push the crumble on top of the fruit mixture.

Place a cookie sheet on the middle rack of the oven (to catch any overflow juices) and put the crisp dish on top. Bake in the oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and the fruit juices are thickened and bubbling. The delicious smell of baked fruit will help you know when it's close to being ready.

Serve with rum flavored whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Finish the ice cream with a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt. Yeah, I didn't do this...I just did fresh whipped cream with a bit of sugar because I had it in the fridge.

www.thereareworseobsessions.blogspot.com for the archive.