Blueberry cake

Among other items, Nada had brought a box of blueberries when she came down to India. Jeshalama had sent it through her. We tasted a couple of them. Though they tasted good, they weren't the type type of fruit you would want to nibble on through out the day. So into the freezer went the berries, and it hibernated in there till yesterday morning, when I, Nada and Hiba dada, 3 jobless teens, decided to make something out of it. Nada quickly went online and chose a blueberry cake recipe, that looked awesome(link added). We decided to prepare it, copied down the recipe, checked if all the ingredients were at home, and that was it. Our energy had drained out and we kept saying that we'll do it after sometime. Finally we began the preparatons at 8 in the night. We had a fun time working together. Finally the batter was ready and we poured it into the square pan. We realised that the batter had formed a thin layer in the pan, which meant the pan was too large. "Don't worry. The cake will rise and become fluffy" said Nada in a confident tone, which set us into fits of laughter. Next, we sprinkled blueberries. Then came the streusel topping. Frankly seaking, none of us had any idea as to what does it mean. We simply sprinkled pea-sized portions of the topping all over the cake and popped it into the oven. After half an hour, when took a look at the half-baked cake ,I couldn't help exclaiming "WOW". The streusel topping had melted and looked amazing. The cake was ready by around 10:40 and the pan was empty by 11:15. Heehee, that must be a record time. Everyone enjoyed the cake, the soft and spongy cake, topped by sweet n' sour blueberries and a crisp streusel topping...what more could you ask for?

Ingredients:

Streusel Topping:

1/3 cup (45 grams) all purpose flour
1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup (56 grams) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces (I used salted butter)

Cake Batter:
1 cup (130 grams) all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt (I used salted butter and thus did not use additional salt)
1/4 cup (56 grams) (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup (80 ml) milk
2 cups fresh blueberries (I used 1 1/2 cups)

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Butter an 8 x 8 inch (20 x 20 cm) square pan or an 8 inch (20 cm) round cake pan or line it with parchment paper.
For streusel topping: In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and ground cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a fork until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside while you make the cake batter.
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Add the flour mixture, alternately with the milk, and beat only until combined. Spread the batter onto the bottom of the prepared pan, smoothing the top with an offset spatula.
Evenly arrange the blueberries on top of the cake batter and then sprinkle with the streusel topping.
Bake for about 40 - 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool slightly.
Serve warm or at room temperature.