My mother Rose was a wonderful baker. And while I have made some good pies and cakes in my time, I have always thought that hers were better. You could mark the seasons in my mother’s kitchen: fragrant walnut orange cakes at Christmas; heart-shaped coconut cakes in February; lemon cheese pies in the spring; and luscious strawberry pies topped with whipped cream in June.
Then in July, there were blueberries. My father worked with someone who grew a prolific crop of blueberries in a large backyard garden in the country. Every summer, we purchased from him (at a very reasonable price) more berries than we could use and turned them into pies, preserves, muffins and pancakes. We froze the extras, laying them out one by one on cookie sheets, and stored them in little baggies for safekeeping, little treasures to be eaten on a cold winter day.
Aside from her cinnamon- and nutmeg-scented blueberry pies (and we couldn’t imagine a Fourth of July celebration without them), my mother’s favorite blueberry treat was her sour cream blueberry cake. It was a type of pound cake or coffee cake that could be served at breakfast or brunch or as an after dinner dessert with vanilla ice cream.
After my mother passed away and our family home was sold, I carefully gathered up some of her favorite cookbooks to keep. Her most beloved one of all was an original version of the “Betty Crocker Cookbook,” now falling apart with its pages dog-eared and torn. There are little notes scribbled everywhere (some to me signed “Love Mommy”), recipes written on small index cards and, as I had hoped, the recipe for her sour cream blueberry cake. She had taken the now-yellowed page from an Aug. 2, 1970 Parade Magazine. I am happy to share it with TheBurg readers.
SOUR CREAM BLUEBERRY CAKE
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom (or substitute nutmeg or cinnamon)
- 2 cups blueberries
- ½ cup brown sugar
Recipe
- Cream the butter and sugar in an upright mixer (like a KitchenAid or a hand-held mixer).
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Sift all the dry ingredients together. You can use a sifter or a fine mesh sieve.
- Gradually add the dry, sifted ingredients to the egg mixture alternating with the sour cream (end with the dry ingredients.)
- Stir in the vanilla and cardamom and gently fold in 1 cup of the blueberries.
- Pour half the batter into a well-greased and floured 9x13x2 cake pan.
- Cover the batter with the remaining cup blueberries.
- Sprinkle with the brown sugar and top with the remaining batter.
- Bake in a pre-heated, 325-degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. (Watch carefully and check at 40 minutes.)
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then turn the cake onto a wire rack. Allow the cake to cool completely.
- To serve, cut into 12 pieces and top with good vanilla ice cream.
My mother used to say, “Berry season is so short.” Indeed it is. The blueberries of July are worth turning into something special. Enjoy her special cake.
