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Blueberry Johnnycakes

I recently told my mom that one of my favorite dinners growing up was when we’d have ‘breakfast for dinner.’ Typically, it was warm scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese, pancakes, or waffles. The novelty of it, and the fact that syrup was involved, made it delightful. My mom laughed, because she made this meal at the end of the month, when there wasn’t much money left to grocery shop.

It just goes to show you, kids are often oblivious to budget issues, especially when it comes to food. Because of my fond childhood memories, we frequently have breakfast for dinner. It’s fun, simple,  as an adult, I can attest that it is friendly on the wallet. I served these blueberry johnnycakes (cornmeal pancakes) with a fruit smoothie and some bacon brushed with maple syrup.

Blueberry Johnnycakes
makes 18-25 small pancakes

1/2 cup plus 2 T cornmeal
1/3 cup flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 T brown sugar
pinch salt
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cups milk
2 T butter, melted
1 1/2  cups fresh blueberries

1) Whisk cornmeal through salt in bowl. In separate bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla, and milk together. Add wet ingredients to dry, and stir until just combined. Add melted butter, and stir until incorporated.

2) Heat skillet until a drop of water sizzles on the surface. Grease with a little butter, or bacon grease if feeling extra decadent. Drop small amounts of batter (about 1/8 cup), and cook for about 15 seconds. Sprinkle a few blueberries and lightly press in with spatula. Flip after a minute or two (first side should just be beginning to brown on edges.) Cook second side for 1-2 minutes, until brown on edges.

3) Serve warm with maple syrup.

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Posted 17 July 2010 | blueberries   breakfast   comfort food   kid stuff   seasonal   simple dinners | Comments (4) Tagged: , , ,

Blueberry Boy Bait

With a name like Blueberry Boy Bait, how could anyone (male or female) resist? Although with two sons, a husband, two boy cats and a boy dog, boys are the LAST thing I need to lure to my home. I’m full up on boys. Maybe I can lure a nanny or housekeeper? Perhaps Mary Poppins would like some nice blueberry cake. Mmmm….Blueberry Nanny Bait.

The folks over at Cook’s Country called this ‘possibly the best coffee cake’ they’d ever tasted. Whoa! Those guys don’t mess around when it comes to cake, so I had to try it. I have to be perfectly honest – I’ve had one other coffee cake that I liked better, but this was VERY good. And it makes a full 9×13 pan, so it is bountiful enough for a family brunch.

This recipe was runner up in the 1954 Pillsbury Grand National Baking Contest – Junior Division. I think that’s adorable.

Blueberry Boy Bait slightly adapted from Cook’s Country America’s Best Lost Recipes (which I now own, thanks to a generous gift-giver on my birthday.)

Cake

2 cups plus 1 tsp flour
1 T baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup blueberries

Topping

1/2 cup blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13 baking dish.

2) For the cake: Whisk together 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugars on high until fluffy. Incorporate eggs one at a time. Add in the flour mixture and milk alternately in two batches, and stir until just combined. Toss the blueberries with the remaining teaspoon of flour, and then carefully fold into batter. Pour batter into prepared dish.

3) For the topping: Stir the cinnamon and sugar together. Scatter the blueberries over the top of the batter, and then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.

4) Bake 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick stuck in the center of the cake comes out clean.

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Posted 12 July 2010 | baked goods   blueberries   breakfast   dessert   seasonal   vegetarian | Comments (2) Tagged: , ,

Blueberries ‘n’ Cream Ice Cream

As promised, here is the first of several blueberry recipes. This was enjoyed alongside a lovely cake for my birthday. I would have used all buttermilk in the recipe below, but sadly, I was a little short.

Blueberries ‘n’ Cream Ice Cream inspired by Strawberry Buttermilk Ice Cream via A Little Yumminess, who found it at No Recipes

2 cups buttermilk
1 cup milk
1 cup cream
1 1/2 cups blueberry puree
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1) In a blender, puree blueberries until very smooth.

2) Whisk all ingredients together, and chill for several hours.

3) Freeze in ice cream maker, following manufacturer instructions.

Note: You can eat this immediately, but homemade ice cream is typically pretty soft right out of the machine. However, I think homemade ice cream is best enjoyed the day it is made, perhaps just after a few hours in the freezer to set a bit. I find that if left overnight, it gets a little hard (but still tasty.) My ideal schedule is to mix the ice cream the night before I want to eat it, chill in the fridge overnight, freeze in the ice cream maker mid-morning, and enjoy in the afternoon.

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Posted 09 July 2010 | blueberries   dessert   kid stuff   seasonal   vegetarian | Comments (9) Tagged: , , ,

When a blueberry is more than a blueberry…

My most joyful afternoons this summer have been spent picking blueberries with my two-year-old son. We head outside when we are least likely to get attacked by mosquitoes, each with a container to fill up. Funny, the result is the same each time. We return to the house with my large container 3/4  full, and my son’s container completely empty. (Note: my container would be full, but after my kiddo is tired of picking blueberries for himself to eat, he just parks himself by my bucket to facilitate the scooping of Tremendous Handfuls.)  Remind you of anyone?

If you’re a fan of Robert McCloskey (and blueberries), it reminds you of Little Sal.

This is an enchanting story of a little girl and her mother (and a little bear and his mother) and their adventures picking berries on Blueberry Hill. Each has the goal of picking (or eating) enough berries to sustain them through the winter.

Much to my delight,  my son adores the book, and now that it is daily read, picking blueberries is even more fun for both of us. He giggles when I call him ‘Sal’, and thinks it’s hilarious when I tell him to “run along and pick your own berries – I want to take my berries home and freeze them for winter.”

Having our own blueberry bushes, and a lovely story about harvesting them, reinforces the power of gardening, literature, and family time to influence a young person’s food attitudes. Sure, my son liked blueberries out of the carton from the grocery store – but these little blue orbs have now been elevated from simple snack fare to magic and memories. The magic will continue this winter, when we bake blueberry muffins or pancakes together on weekend mornings.

What I’m trying to tell you is it’s blueberry season! Stock up on berries from your local farmers market to enjoy now and through the winter. They freeze beautifully (wash, freeze single layer on cookie sheet, and then store in freezer safe container.) Stay tuned for a slew of ways to use your fresh berries.

And if you have the opportunity, take your little ones along for the picking (or the purchasing), and perhaps stop at the library or bookstore on your way home for a magical story about the food you are about to enjoy.

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Posted 07 July 2010 | blueberries   gardening   kid stuff   seasonal | Comments (1) Tagged: , , ,

Whoopie Pies

My darling son recently turned 2. He was thrilled about his upcoming birthday, and the impending gifts, food, and grandparents. He loves to look through my cookbooks, so I let him pick out his own birthday treat. I thought he’d go for a cake, but he was more innovative than that – whoopie pies!

Now these are not as familiar as I imagined, so in case you haven’t had the privilege of eating one, it’s essentially a chocolate cake-like cookie, with a lovely vanilla buttercream/marshmallow fluff filling. Absolutely perfect for a kid’s birthday – and bonus, you can make the cookies, the filling, or the entire assemblage up to three days ahead and store them in the fridge. They actually are better served cold, as the filling sets up nicely after a few hours of chilling.

These were perfectly set off with strawberry buttermilk ice cream, from A Little Yumminess. This is an easy and delicious ice cream recipe, and can be adapted for many different fruit flavors.

Whoopie Pies from Cook’s Country America’s Best Lost Recipes
makes 6 pies

Cakes

2 cups flour
1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
8 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling

12 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff

1) Cakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment or a silicone baking sheets.

2) Whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together.

3) With a mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Mix in egg and vanilla. Mix in flour mixture and buttermilk alternately in two batches.

4) Scoop 1/3 cup batter onto baking sheets, 6 per sheet. Bake until cakes spring back when touched, 15-18 minutes. Cool cakes on baking sheet for at least an hour.

5) Filling: Beat butter and powdered sugar together until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and salt, and then mix in marshmallow fluff until completely mixed. Chill for at least 30 minutes before assembling pies.

6) Put about 1/3 cup of filling on the flat side of one cake, top with flat side of another cake and squish together. Repeat with remaining cakes, making 6 pies.

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Posted 05 July 2010 | baked goods   cookies   dessert   kid stuff | Comments (7) Tagged: , , ,