What's Baking: Blueberry Crumble Bars

With less than a month to the official start of summer, I'm starting to put some important dates on my calendar -- that is, the start of the strawberry, cherry, and blueberry seasons -- so that we don't miss any opportunities to pick our own. Last summer, D and I had a great time road-tripping across the state on the weekends to seek out fresh berries. Some were eaten fresh, some were canned as pie filling, and a whole lot ended up frozen whole in the freezer.

The blueberries that star in this crumble bar recipe were picked last summer in Bayfield, Wisconsin. (We will definitely be making a return trip to Blue Vista Farm this summer.) The berries freeze beautifully, and with no need to thaw, make this recipe a breeze to bake.

I made these blueberry crumble bars to share at a recent gathering of friends and they were quick to disappear from the potluck table. I'd say that's a pretty good sign that these little bars taste just as good as they look.

I made a double-batch to accommodate a large crowd, but this recipe is easily halved if you have fewer mouths to feed. It's also easily adaptable to any fruit you have on hand, though you may have to adjust the cooking time for firmer fruits such as apples.

Bring on berry season! 

Blueberry Crumble Bars (printer-friendly version)

makes 24 bars

2 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups (plus up to 2 tablespoons more if necessary) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
4 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen), divided
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13-inch baking dish with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, brown sugar, and salt. Stir in the melted butter until small clumps form. If the crumb mixture seems too damp, stir in an additional two tablespoons of flour. Reserve 1 cup of the crumb mixture. Press the remaining crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepped baking dish.
3. Spread two cups of blueberries over top the crust. Sprinkle with cornstarch, lemon juice, lemon zest, and 1 tablespoon sugar. Then add the remaining blueberries and top with the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar. Sprinkle evenly with the reserved crumb topping.
4. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and fruit is bubbling. Remove from the oven and let cool. Chill in the fridge for slightly crisper bars. Cut into squares with a sharp knife. Store any leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator.

What's Baking: Blueberry Crumb Cake

It snowed again last night, and while the tree branches caked with snow admittedly do look kind of lovely, I am so ready for spring to arrive and stay for the long haul.

So, instead of basking outside in the warm sunshine of spring, I am getting my springtime fix in the kitchen by baking this blueberry crumb cake and reliving memories of picking blueberries last summer in Bayfield.

For me, coffee cake is quintessential weekend food. My love for blueberry coffee cake can be traced back to the Sunday morning breakfasts of my childhood. While my Dad cooked up eggs ("a little bit leaky" for me, please!) and hashbrowns, I would help my Mom make a blueberry coffee cake. My job typically involved making the crumble topping, which I took very seriously. Particularly since, after the coffee cake was baked, I would attempt to surreptitiously pick off and eat all the giant crumbles. 

I still love those giant cinnamon-sugar crumbles, but I try to restrain myself from picking them off the top of my freshly-baked coffee cake. In addition to a tasty crumble topping, this cake is generously studded with juicy blueberries and gets a zing of citrus flavor from a generous amount of fresh lemon zest.

The cake tends to get moister as the days progress, but it is best eaten within three days of baking. 

Blueberry Crumb Cake (printer-friendly version)
makes 8-10 servings

For the topping:
5 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

For the cake:
2 cups minus 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
zest of 1 lemon
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup organic 1% milk
2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9" springform pan with butter or cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with a parchment round. Set aside.
2. To make the topping, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Use a pastry blender, two forks, or your fingers to incorporate the butter into the flour mixture until large crumbles form. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the sugar, lemon zest, and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg until combined. Then beat in the vanilla.
5. Reduce the speed to low and stir in about 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by about 1/4 cup milk. Repeat, finishing with the flour mixture. Beat until just combined. Gently fold in the blueberries.
6. Spoon the batter into the prepped pan, and use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula to smooth out the top. Sprinkle evenly with the crumble topping.
7. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
8. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then insert a knife around the edge of the pan to gently release the cake from the sides. Carefully flip the cake over to remove the pan bottom and parchment paper. Set the cake right-side up on the wire rack and allow to cool completely.

(lightly adapted from this Smitten Kitchen recipe)

What's For Dessert: Skillet Apple Cobbler

D and I were invited over to a gathering last night, and I knew whatever I'd bring along to share for dessert would involve apples, as we still have quite a few of them in the refrigerator left over from our apple-picking trip to Blue Vista Farm in Bayfield, Wisconsin.

I pored over apple recipes, trying to decide what to make. I knew I wanted something that would use up a lot of apples but an apple pie was out of the question as I wasn't in the mood to deal with a fussy pastry crust. (Making pie crusts still makes me nervous.)

I came upon a few recipes for apple cobbler and decided that would be the winner. There are many different styles of cobbler crusts -- some recipes have you drop rounds of dough over the fruit, while others have you pat the dough over the entire top of the cobbler. I decided to do a hybrid of the two by rolling out the dough and cutting out fluted biscuit circles to cover the top of my cobbler. I covered the entire cobbler, but I think it would look just as nice if some more of the fruit was able to peek through.

Baking the cobbler in a cast-iron skillet makes for a great presentation, and of course, this crowd-pleasing dessert wouldn't be completed without a little scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.

Skillet Apple Cobbler (printer-friendly version)
makes 6-8 servings

For the apple filling:
2-3 pounds (8 cups) apples, cored, peeled, and sliced (1/4-inch thick)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch

For the cobbler dough:
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
3/4 cup cold heavy cream, plus more for brushing
sanding sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a large oven-safe skillet, add together the apples, butter, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and salt and cook over medium heat. Continue to cook for several minutes until the apples are just beginning to caramelize and have softened slightly.
3. In a small bowl, stir together the lemon juice and cornstarch. Pour the mixture onto the apples and stir to combine. Remove the skillet from the heat.
4. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until combined. Add the butter cubes and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal, and just a few pea-sized butter pieces remain. Add in the heavy cream and pulse a few time until combined.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Pat the dough into a round and then roll out until about 1/2-inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out 12-15 dough circles. Place the biscuits on top of the apples in the skillet in a circular pattern. Brush each biscuit top with heavy cream and sprinkle with sanding sugar.
6. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown and the fruit is bubbling. Pro-tip: place an aluminum-foil wrapped baking sheet on the rack below to catch any drips from the skillet above. Serve warm or at room temperature.

What's Baking: Apple Cinnamon-Sugar Crumble Muffins

When you pick 20 pounds of apples, that means you gotta eat 20 pounds of apples. We picked Liberty apples at Bayfield's Blue Vista Farm. Liberties are good apples for storing -- according to ye olde Internet, this variety is good to store for up to three months, and happily, the flavor gets better as time goes by. 

Thus far I've used the apples in salads, as a pizza topping (recipe to come), in a mini dessert (another recipe to come), and in these delicious apple cinnamon-sugar crumble muffins.

I made these muffins this past weekend to share at brunch with a friend and her two children. Long story short, these apple-filled muffins were a hit among both the over-30 and under-3 crowd. Though the ingredient list may be a bit long, don't be intimidated. These muffins come together rather quickly and bake up in a jiffy. And, they make a great breakfast (or second breakfast!) served warm alongside a large cup of coffee.

Apple Cinnamon-Sugar Crumble Muffins (printer-friendly version)
makes 12 muffins

For the muffins:
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
dash of ground allspice
1 1/2 cups peeled, cored, and finely chopped (about 1/4" pieces) apple (I used Liberty apples, which are a slightly tart variety)

For the crumble topping:
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes, at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. I find that spraying the liners lightly with cooking spray ensures the liners peel off easily after the muffins have baked.
2. Melt the butter on the stovetop or in a microwave. Set aside to cool.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice. Pour the cooled melted butter into the flour mixture and stir to combine.
4. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture. Stir to combine, but do not overmix. Fold in the apples. Divide the batter (it will be thick) evenly into the prepared muffin cups. (Each muffin cup should be filled to the top.)
5. In a small bowl, stir together the sugars, flour, cinnamon, and sea salt with a fork. Use the fork or a pastry blender to incorporate the butter into the sugar mixture, forming pea-sized crumbles. Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over top the muffins.
6. Bake the muffins in the oven for 18-20 minutes, or until the muffins are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the oven and let cool in the tin for 5 minutes. Then remove the muffins from the tin and let cool completely on a wire rack. Any remaining muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days, though they are best eaten the day they are baked.

(lightly adapted from this recipe by a farmgirl's dabbles)

What's For Dinner: Baked Whitefish Tacos

This past weekend, D and I, along with his parents who were in town for a visit, travelled up to Bayfield, Wisconsin, a small town located along the shores of Lake Superior. The goal of our trip was to pick some blueberries (goal achieved!, post to come) and we spent the remainder of the afternoon exploring Bayfield's cute downtown area.

When it came time for dinner, I had a serious craving for whitefish tacos. We found a little hole-in-the-wall place that had several whitefish options on their menu, but alas, the fish tacos were fried (not my favorite preparation). I opted instead for the grilled whitefish sandwich (which was quite delicious), while D ordered, and thoroughly enjoyed, the whitefish tacos.

I decided to recreate our Lake Superior dining experience at home (sans the Pac-Man machine, sadly) and made whitefish tacos for dinner. D requested breaded fish, so I added a breading before baking the fish. (Personally, I think it would be just as tasty (maybe even moreso), without the breading, but I was too lazy to make separate portions for the two of us.

I used frozen whitefish (from Bodin Fisheries, which actually hails from Bayfield), and my quick-thawed fish had a little bit of a fishy odor. I had recently read a tip about soaking fish in milk for 20 minutes to remove the fishy smell, and the trick worked well for me. (You can watch a short video about this technique from America's Test Kitchen here.) Note: if your fish is both smelly and slimy, it has probably seen better days, and your best bet would be to toss the fish and order some takeout instead. :)

The jalapeño-lime-cilantro marinade gives the fish plenty of flavor and pairs perfectly with the coleslaw recipe I featured recently. While the view out my window may not be quite as blue as the one from Bayfield, if I close my eyes as I eat these tacos, I can almost hear the water lapping against the shoreline. I think another trip to Bayfield is in order -- apple season, here we come!

Baked Whitefish Tacos (printer-friendly version)
makes 2 servings

1/2 lb whitefish fillet
1 cup organic milk (whole, low-fat, or skim) [optional]
fine sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lime, juiced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 jalapeño, seeds and ribs removed, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I used whole wheat, but panko or white bread crumbs would work just as well)
4-6 white corn tortillas

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray, and set aside.
2. If your fish is fresh (i.e., it smells like the sea and not "fishy"), you can skip this step. If you have thawed your fish from frozen or it has a fishy smell, place the fillet in a shallow dish and cover with milk. Set in the fridge for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, drain the fish and pat dry. (Rinse out the shallow dish so that you can reuse it for the marination step.)
3. Place the fish fillet back into the rinsed shallow dish. Season both sides of the fish with salt and pepper.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, chili powder, jalapeño, and cilantro.
5. Pour the marinade mixture over the fish and place in the fridge to marinate for 20 minutes.
6a. If you prefer to not bread your fish, move it directly onto the prepped baking sheet.
6b. If you do want to bread your fish, place the breadcrumbs on a large plate. Coat each side of the fish fillet evenly with the breadcrumbs, then place the fillet onto the prepped baking sheet.
7. Bake the fish for 10-15 minutes (or until the fish is flaky and the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees).
8. Serve with coleslaw (and your favorite taco toppings, such as crumbled cheese, sliced avocado, or salsa).



(adapted from this food comas recipe)