Today would have been my mum’s 82nd birthday. Sadly, this is the first birthday she’s not with us to celebrate and I’d be lying if I said it isn’t a hard day for us all. Mum was the baker, the cook in the family and she relished this role. It wasn’t a chore to cook for everyone or have baked treats for us to enjoy at the end of the school day – she loved working with food and I’m so glad I’ve been able to inherit a bit of that talent and love for creation.
Since she died, I’ve been working with my dad, teaching him how to make a handful of dishes so that he isn’t having to rely on takeout or frozen dinners all the time. For context, mum did ALL the food prep during their 59 years of marriage, he quite literally hadn’t cooked a dish from scratch (other than bacon and eggs) until January of this year. And to his credit (and, if we’re being honest, to all our surprise!), he’s doing a great job.
Cooking doesn’t come naturally to a lot of people so what, for me, might be a simple dish that takes 30 minutes, might take others twice the amount of time and cause a lot more angst. For beginner cooks, following the recipe to a T seems like the only way to work so as I work through different recipes, I’m trying to show dad some shortcuts and substitutes so he doesn’t have to get all hung up on having the *exact* ingredients for a recipe. Learning how to be flexible in the kitchen is a skill that is learned through trial and error but I’m happy to report we’ve only had a couple of misses (and none of them were inedible) so far. Dad’s got a handful of great recipes he knows how to make along with a couple of sweet treats, as he does enjoy a little something sweet with his evening cup of tea. When mum was alive, there was ALWAYS something sweet, most likely home-baked, hanging around so it’s been nice to teach dad how to bake some of those for himself.
For today, I’ve come up with a simple loaf cake – he’s just about managed to master putting parchment *neatly* into a loaf pan but that has not stopped him from making the Apple Snacking Cake from French Food for Everyone: le goûter (after-school snacks) a bunch of times (his neighbours love him!). This is blueberry and lemon; most definitely not to rival Ottolenghi’s Blueberry Lemon Cake which mum used to make often, but a small way to honour mum – by creating a recipe that’s do-able for dad that he will enjoy eating.
This loaf doesn’t look like much but it’s lemony with bursts of blueberries and it feels like comfort. Best of all, it’s pretty easy to make with fridge and pantry staples – I think I need to get dad on Zoom soon so I can show him how!
Lemon Blueberry Loaf
A simple lemon loaf studded with blueberries
Ingredients
- Butter, for greasing the pan
- 1 cup (around 115g) fresh blueberries (+ 1/2 tablespoon flour to coat the berries)
- 113g (1 stick/ 8 tablespoons) salted butter
- 100g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
- Zest of two lemons (about 2 heaping tablespoons)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 113g (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F (175˚C). Generously butter a 9 x 5-inch (23 x 13 cm) loaf pan. Line the pan with parchment, leaving some overhang along the long edge. You will use this as “handles” to pull the cake out of the pan when it’s cool.
- Rinse the blueberries and drain them in a colander. When most of the water is drained off, toss the 1/2 tablespoon of flour over the berries and shake to coat. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a small pot over low heat or in the microwave. Set it aside to cool slightly.
- Rub the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingertips until the sugar is yellow and fragrant.
- Beat the eggs and vanilla with sugar with handheld electric beaters on high speed until thick and pale in colour, approximately 2 to 3 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
- Use a rubber spatula to mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just incorporated.
- Pour in the melted, cooled butter and gently mix with a rubber spatula until completely combined.
- Gently fold about 3/4 cup of the blueberries into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the remaining blueberries on top, pressing them in slightly.
- Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake pan from the oven, place it on a wire cooling rack and allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan.
- Use the parchment overhang to lift the cake out of the pan and set the cake on the wire cooling rack to cool completely before slicing and serving.
Notes
You can store this in an airtight container or well covered with plastic wrap at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Beyond that, it might be a little dry, but you can pop it in the microwave for a few seconds to warm it up, then slather it with butter!
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons and Measuring Cups Combo -
Ozeri ZK14-S Pronto Digital Multifunction Kitchen and Food Scale
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Tovolo Flex-Core Wood Handled Spatula
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Cuisinart 5-speed hand mixer
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PaperChef Natural Release Coated Non-Stick Culinary Parchment Paper
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USA Pan Nonstick Standard Loaf Pan
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Cooling Rack Baking Rack Twin Set
Happy birthday mum. I’ll enjoy a slice of this with my morning coffee and I promise I’ll teach dad how to make it too.
xo
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