Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Yesterday was B and my 17th wedding anniversary. I can hardly believe we have been married that long. It really seems like only yesterday that we walked down the aisle together. B gave me (very unexpectedly) a beautiful bouquet of a dozen red roses last week. We don't usually do much to celebrate our anniversary but with D around he likes to celebrate. On Sunday morning, D made a special effort to bring me breakfast (not in bed but at the kitchen table) and he sat and ate with me. I mean he actually sat at the table and ate with me and didn't run off before I was done. It was a really nice treat. On Sunday afternoon, we had my parents, my sister and her husband and my nephew S and his wife over for cake. I had decided to bake Sara Moulton's Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake because my sister gave me a box of blueberries she had in her fridge for a while. She was going away to her high school reunion for the weekend and figured they would go bad if someone didn't use them. I rose to the challenge and did some baking. Fortunately, she was home in time to celebrate with us on Sunday afternoon. The cake came out great as usual. This is one of the recipes I have made several times. I saw Sara Moulton make it on the Food Network probably eight or nine years ago. I am not sure if she still has a show on Food Network. No matter. This recipe is wonderful. You will definitely enjoy it. She suggests using fresh blueberries rather than frozen. I used only 2 cups of blueberries rather than 3 because that was all I had. It really tastes better with the full 3 cups of blueberries in it. It was still very good, though. My nephew S can testify to that. He ate 2 pieces at my house and took some home. Thanks S! I also made Chocolate Buttermilk Cake which I will share with you tomorrow.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Filling

12 ounces Cream cheese; softened
1/3 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 tablespoon Fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Vanilla

Streusel

1 stick unsalted butter; softened
1 cup Sugar
2/3 cup Flour
1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt

Batter

1 stick unsalted butter; softened
1-1/4 cups sugar
2 Eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups Flour
1 tablespoon baking powder; plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Milk
3 cups picked-over blueberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and butter a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish. Do not use a metal baking dish.

Make filling: With an electric mixer, beat together cream cheese and sugar. Add egg, lemon juice, and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Make streusel: In a small bowl blend together streusel ingredients until crumbly.

Make batter: In another bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla and beat on high speed until light and fluffy. In another bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt and in batches slowly beat into butter mixture alternately with milk. Fold in blueberries gently but thoroughly.

To assemble cake: Spread 2 1/2 cups batter in bottom of baking dish and spread filling evenly on top. Drop spoonfuls of remaining batter on filling and spread evenly (be careful not to mix layers). Sprinkle streusel evenly over batter.

Bake coffeecake in middle of oven 1 hour and 5 minutes, or until golden and a tester comes out clean.

Cool coffeecake completely in baking dish on a rack.


By: Sara Moulton, Gourmet Magazine 1989

Supper Swap Girls

It is a shame that very few people give dinner parties anymore. They seem to be passe these days. We're all too busy rushing our kids to sporting events, lessons, parties, etc. I have only one child but he is involved in several activities. D does karate, cub scouts, plays in his elementary school band and has religious ed. This keeps us all very busy. Dinner parties but a dream. When I read the article in my local newspaper about the Supper Swap Girls and their Fuss-Free Dinner Party Plan, I thought, "maybe this could work." They have a simple framework for a fun evening with friends.

THE PLAN

1. Invite three couples over for a four-course meal.
2. Each couple is in charge of one course with wine. The host makes the main dish. Go ahead and get out that wedding china you never use, because each couple also is in charge of washing the dishes from their course.
3. Divide up the menu and email the recipes. It's a surefire win.

Click here to check out their blog for all the details. They also stress that you can't worry about whether or not your kids are asleep or your house is clean. You should just go ahead and "do it." It does sound like a great plan. Now if only we knew 3 other couples with a free Friday or Saturday night. I have a feeling we would have to plan several months in advance. It would be worth it though to give me a chance to make one of the great recipes I've assembled for a bunch of friends.

The Creative Cook