It's the time of year I have been longing for! And I don't mean back to school, although I am quite happy about that too. The blackberries are finally ripening!!! It seems like it has taken so long this season. Maybe it's not. Maybe this is the exact same time as every year. But it seems to me that I have been staring at bare bramble, tiny white flowers, little green berries and sort of reddish berries for far longer than anyone could stand. In past years weren't we already risking life and limb, throwing ourselves into the thorny towering giants- reaching for the perfectly ripened berry just out of reach- long before August 30th?
Never mind. They are here now. Ken and the kids picked two large bowls full a few days ago and of those we ate lots, made blackberry muffins but mostly discovered Blackberry Cornmeal Cake. This little gem of a recipe has been laying around our house since September 2005 when it arrived via mail in my Everyday Food magazine. We ignored it for so long. We were so so wrong. If you also have billions of blackberries all around and you want to try something other than cobbler or pie (maybe we're the only ones who fall into that rut) give this a shot. I really love the texture that cornmeal adds to desserts (I made a corn meal pie crust a few weeks ago that I loved too). The blackberries were all snuggled down into the cake and the sugar on top was crackly. Give it a try. If you aren't over run with blackberries or you're not up to doing battle with the thorns, frozen berries work just fine.
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
from Everyday Foods September 2005
1 1/4 c flour
1/2 c cornmeal
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 c + 2 T sugar (plus 1/4 c for sprinkling)
1/2 c low fat buttermilk
2 large eggs
7 T melted butter + 1 T for skillet
10 oz blackberries
1. Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In a 2nd bowl mix together the wet ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into dry. and whisk to combine.
2. In a 10 inch skillet (I didn't have the right pan so I used a small cast iron baking dish with good results.) heat the remaining 1 T butter in the oven until melted and the skillet is hot (about 5 minutes). Remove from oven and swirl butter around pan. Pour batter into dish, scatter blackberries and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 c sugar.
3. Place in oven (on a cookie sheet to catch the drips) and bake 45-50 minutes. Cool 30 minutes. Serves 8
Never mind. They are here now. Ken and the kids picked two large bowls full a few days ago and of those we ate lots, made blackberry muffins but mostly discovered Blackberry Cornmeal Cake. This little gem of a recipe has been laying around our house since September 2005 when it arrived via mail in my Everyday Food magazine. We ignored it for so long. We were so so wrong. If you also have billions of blackberries all around and you want to try something other than cobbler or pie (maybe we're the only ones who fall into that rut) give this a shot. I really love the texture that cornmeal adds to desserts (I made a corn meal pie crust a few weeks ago that I loved too). The blackberries were all snuggled down into the cake and the sugar on top was crackly. Give it a try. If you aren't over run with blackberries or you're not up to doing battle with the thorns, frozen berries work just fine.
Blackberry Cornmeal Cake
from Everyday Foods September 2005
1 1/4 c flour
1/2 c cornmeal
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 c + 2 T sugar (plus 1/4 c for sprinkling)
1/2 c low fat buttermilk
2 large eggs
7 T melted butter + 1 T for skillet
10 oz blackberries
1. Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In a 2nd bowl mix together the wet ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into dry. and whisk to combine.
2. In a 10 inch skillet (I didn't have the right pan so I used a small cast iron baking dish with good results.) heat the remaining 1 T butter in the oven until melted and the skillet is hot (about 5 minutes). Remove from oven and swirl butter around pan. Pour batter into dish, scatter blackberries and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 c sugar.
3. Place in oven (on a cookie sheet to catch the drips) and bake 45-50 minutes. Cool 30 minutes. Serves 8
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