Lovely Blueberry Loaf

July & August in Quebec is the height of blueberry season.

We usually try to go to at least one of the many local Autocueillette/U-pick spots available during the season; they make for a perfect summertime date activity. However, this leaves us with tummies and baskets full of blueberries ... sometimes way more than we know what to do with!

This is a tried and true recipe - resulting in a flavourful, fluffy cake that is the perfect pairing with your morning coffee. If you have a couple of loaf pans like I do, you'll be making these in batches and passing them out to your neighbors to share the blueberry love.

 Here is what you'll need:

• 1+1/2 c Flour

• 3/4 c Sugar

• 1/2 tsp Salt

• 2 tsp Baking powder

• 1 Egg

• 1/3 c Vegetable oil

• 1/3 c Buttermilk

• 1 c Blueberries

For the topping, cut together 1/4 cup Butter with:

• 1/2 c Brown sugar

• 1/3 c Flour

• 1.5 tsp Cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees farenheit. 

2. Butter your loaf pan thoroughly

3. In a bowl, mix together your dry ingredients - flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Set this bowl aside.

4. In a separate larger bowl, mix together your wet ingredients - egg, vegetable oil, and buttermilk, until just combined.

5. Add your dry mixture slowly into the wet mixture until everything is combined. I like to fold everything together with a spatula; you may be using a stand mixer and that's fine, but take care not to overmix. If you find the batter to be dry or sticky, add extra buttermilk in 1/8 cup at a time until it's closer to a thick, brownie batter type, consistency.

6. Finally, fold in your blueberries. This step must be done with a spatula or something similar, take care to not squish the berries. In the off season, frozen blueberries work as a replacement for fresh - I recommend adding them into the batter while they are still frozen. For an extra step, rolling your frozen berries in a bowl of flour to coat them evenly tends to keep their juices from bleeding into the dough or creating wet spots.

7. Pour this mixture into your buttered loaf pan.

8. Cut together your cold cubes of butter along with the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. I use a large fork, but there are tools made just for this - we are looking for the mixture to sort of resemble dip n' dots - little chunks of evenly combined, crumbly topping. You can add all types of things to your topping - crushed nuts & oatmeal are both good ones I have tried.

9. Add your topping mixture into the loaf pan and pop the pan into the oven.

10. Bake for 45mins - 1 hour, or until the edges are browned and a knife comes out clean.