Besides being tasty, blueberries are good for us, containing vitamins, calcium and iron.
Blueberries are native to North America and in different areas are known by different names — Bilberry, Deerberry, Whortleberry and Hurt Berry.
Frozen blueberries are exported from Canada to Europe and Japan, and some go to the United States. British Columbia is the major producer of cultivated blueberries in Canada.
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Blueberry Shaker Pudding
2 tbsps. butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
1 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 tbsp. butter
In a medium bowl, with an electric beater, cream together 2 tbsps. butter with 1/2 cup sugar. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and milk. Beat together then pat into a greased 2 1/2 quart casserole. Note: the batter will be quite thick, more like a biscuit.
In a medium saucepan, bring the water and 3/4 cup sugar to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add blueberries and 1 tbsp. butter. Return to a boil, stirring often and continue boiling for three minutes.
Pour blueberry mixture over the batter. Bake at 375 degrees F for one hour.
Serve warm or cold with ice cream.
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Spicy Blueberry Cake
1/2 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs, separated
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsps. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup blueberries, dusted with flour
Topping:
4 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cloves
1 tbsp. orange juice
1 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tbsps. water
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Stir dry ingredients together. All alternately with the buttermilk to the creamed mixture. Start and end with the dry ingredients.
Beat the egg whites until stiff and then fold into the batter with the floured blueberries.
Spoon batter into a greased 9 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 60 minutes. Remove from oven.
For the topping, measure 2 cups of the blueberries into a saucepan. Add the sugar, cinnamon, cloves and orange juice. Bring to a boil. Dissolve cornstarch in the water and add to the blueberry mixture. Stir and simmer until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in remaining berries.
Serve the sauce over the hot cake. Or allow sauce to cool then serve with cooled cake. Makes 9 servings.
Joyce Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net.
