Blueberry Coffee Cake

[Coffee cake à la myrtille]

At La Pommeraie, the fruit farm where we picked a large amount of blueberries earlier this week, they gave out little leaflets about the different kinds of fruit they grow, giving out instructions on how to keep them, and a few, wonderfully straightforward recipes -- tarts and compotes, clafoutis and jams. This is how I learned that in fact, you should let blueberries sit for a couple of days somewhere cool for them to develop their full flavor -- who would have thought?

The number one priority with our crop of blueberries was a tarte aux myrtilles, and number two was this coffee cake. This is my favorite cake recipe, with its particularly moist cake base and deliciously crunchy top. The original recipe called for a plain batter with a walnut and cinnamon topping, but I have found it to be very versatile and have made many successful variations, using chocolate chips and candied chestnuts, white chocolate and coconut, apricots, or here, blueberries.

It's a wonderful cake for anytime of the day, breakfast, brunch, dessert or tea. In fact, I am seriously considering going on a blueberry-coffee-cake diet. Only -- how would cheese fit in?

Oh and by the way, does anyone have the recipe to Hobee's famous and fabulous blueberry coffeecake?

Blueberry Coffee Cake

- 200g (1 2/3 cup) flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- a good pinch salt
- 115g (1 stick) butter, diced, at room temperature
- 200g (1 cup) white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 240ml (1 cup) plain yogurt or fromage blanc or sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 500g (3 cups) blueberries, fresh or frozen (no need to thaw)
- 40g (1/4 cup) brown sugar

Preheat your oven to 180°C (360°F). Grease a 22-cm (9-inch) cake pan, preferably nonstick with a removable bottom.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a food processor, mix together the butter and white sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Add the yogurt and vanilla, and mix again. Add the flour mixture, and mix again until just combined.

Pour half of the cake batter in the cake pan. Pour half the blueberries over the surface. Cover with the rest of the batter, top with the remaining blueberries, and sprinkle evenly with the brown sugar.

Bake for an hour, until the top is golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack, let stand in the pan for ten minutes, then unclasp the sides of the pan and let cool completely before serving.