I first had Blueberry Crunch Cake when I began dating my husband back in 2000.  It was a favorite of his that his mother had been making since he was a kid.  I had never been a big fan of blueberries growing up, so I was a little skeptical to try some. One bite and I was hooked.

Soon after we got married, we moved from Virginia to the Seattle area in Washington.  My husband eventually missed his Blueberry Crunch Cake, and luckily his mother was very generous to share the recipe with me!  I have been making it ever since, mostly in the summer when we can get delicious fresh blueberries.

I made a few minor changes to her recipe and now, not only do I like eating Blueberry Crunch Cake, I also like blueberry muffins!

First, cream the butter and sugar.

Mix in the egg and add the vanilla.

Gradually add flour mixture and milk.

Spread into your baking dish.

To make the topping, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, and butter.  Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

Sprinkle the topping over the cake batter and bake.

Bower’s Blueberry Crunch Cake

Ingredients:

Cake:

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 cups fresh blueberries (about a pint)

Topping:

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 butter, well-chilled, cut into tiny pieces
1 tsp cinnamon

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  To prepare a 9 x 9 inch baking dish, spray with cooking spray.

2.  To make the cake:  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder.  Stir with a whisk until combined.  Set aside.

3.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a hand-held mixer), beat the butter and sugar on medium-speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add the egg and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Stir in the vanilla.

4.  Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, 2 times, beginning and ending with the flour mixture  (i.e. flour, milk, flour, milk, flour), until just combined.  Do not over mix.  (Hopefully this is not too complicated.)  Gently fold in the blueberries.  Spread evenly in the prepared baking dish.

5.  To make the topping:  In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and cinnamon.  Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal.  (If you don’t have a pastry blender, you can use a fork or 2 knives to cut the butter in.)  Sprinkle all over the top of the cake batter.

6.  Bake 35-40 min or until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.

Tips and Thoughts:

I enjoy this cake best served warm with vanilla ice cream.  My husband’s family often serves it in a bowl with cold milk poured around it.

I have tried this cake with frozen blueberries and feel that it works best with fresh.  I would not recommend using frozen, but you could always give it a try.  Maybe it will work out better for you than it did for me!

My mother-in-law’s original recipe said to bake for 25-30 minutes, but I have found that it takes longer for mine to bake. (It could just be my oven.) I would recommend watching it closely to make sure it does not over bake.   In the oven in my new house, it recently took about an hour to fully bake (The middle would not cook! It seems like cakes always take longer to bake in there.) so you might have to find the time that works best for your oven.

Since it is summertime, there is always an abundance of fresh produce just waiting to be eaten and I had some extra zucchini ready to go.  I’ve been bookmarking various dessert recipes using zucchini that I have been wanting to try, and this one was calling my name with all of its chocolately goodness!  I made a few minor changes and fell in love!

As you may have noticed, I like dark chocolate!  And any dessert made with loads of chocolate, I just can’t resist.   The Triple Chocolate Banana Bread I made a few months ago is another example.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread is so moist, it is more like cake than bread.  You wouldn’t even know it has zucchini in it!

First, shred some raw zucchini.

In an electric mixer, combine the wet ingredients.

Gently mix in the zucchini.

After gradually adding the dry ingredients, fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour into a loaf pan and bake.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups shredded raw zucchini
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, not Dutch processed
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs (large)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan, by greasing or using cooking spray.

2.  Shred zucchini using a medium or small grater and set aside.  In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon, if using).  Stir with a whisk to combine.

3.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine oil, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed until well blended.  Gently mix in zucchini.  On low-speed, gradually add flour mixture and mix until just combined.  (Do not over mix.)  Fold in chocolate chips.

4.  Pour batter into prepared pan, and cook for about 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, remove from pan and cool completely before serving.

**As always, I’d love to hear any of your comments!  Please feel free to leave one.

I hope you enjoy the Chocolate Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread!

Adapted from Joy of Baking (JoyofBaking.com)

Granola Bites are an easy, healthy snack, perfect for all ages.  These are great to have on hand, especially if you just need a quick healthy snack.

Even though I used to make a version of these when I was a child, with just oats, honey, and peanut butter, I can not take credit for this more sophisticated version that incorporates coconut, ground flaxseed, and mini chocolate chips.  I found these on the blog, Smashed Peas and Carrots.  (I prefer to call them Granola Bites.)  I saw this recipe circulate around Pinterest many times, and I knew it I had to try it.  My sister shared some that she made, and then I had to make some for myself as well.

I love that you can try various add-ins, much like these other tasty granola bars, to suit your personal tastes.  Most of the ingredients are ones that I always have on-hand.

Granola Bites

Ingredients:

1 cup oats
1/2 cup peanut butter (any nut-butter will work)
1/3 cup honey
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup ground flaxseed meal
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir until well incorporated.  Chill in the refrigerator at least 30 minutes.  Roll into small balls and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

*Feel free to mix in other things that you like such as dried fruit, small chopped nuts, etc.  Keep in mind you might need to add a bit more honey or nut butter if you add several other ingredients to keep the mixture from becoming too dry.

Source: Smashed Peas and Carrots (No-Bake Energy Bites)

One of my friends in Seattle introduced this delicious drink to me last summer (You know who you are–Thank You!) and I had to know how to make it!  I looked up some recipes and here’s what I came up with.

This drink is the perfect way too cool off on a hot summer day, especially with this hot summer we have been having, and a great way to use up any leftover watermelon that needs to be eaten.  Plus, it only has a five ingredients!

Watermelon Ginger Limeade

Serves: 8

Ingredients:

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
8 cups cubed seedless watermelon
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 4-5 limes)

Method:

1.  In a small saucepan, combine water, sugar, and ginger.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.  Strain the ginger syrup into a small bowl (or pitcher) and allow to cool.

2.  Place the cubed watermelon in a food processor and pulse a few times until smooth.  (I say “pulse” because this process can get quite messy!)  Pour the puree into a strainer set over a large bowl.  Press the juice out of any seeds or pulp that remain in the strainer.

3.  In a pitcher, combine the ginger syrup, watermelon puree, and lime juice.  Chill until ready to use (stir before serving).  Pour into glasses filled with ice and enjoy!  Garnish with additional watermelon if desired.

Tips and Thoughts:

This drink is also good if you add some club soda to make it a little bubbly (or lemon-lime soda).  I also used it to make what I call a “Watermelon Palmer,” which is half Watermelon Ginger Limeade/half Lemonade.

If you do not serve it all immediately, you will find that it will begin to separate.  Just give it a quick stir before serving.  (Keep chilled in the refrigerator.)

Source:  Food & Wine, April 2005

Shrimp and Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce is a simple, yet tasty, dish you can make year-round, but it is especially nice to serve in the summer when you want to spend as little time in the hot kitchen as possible.

This dish comes together very quickly, so make sure you have all of your ingredients ready to go!

FYI:  This recipe does call for a somewhat uncommon ingredient, sweet (red) vermouth.  I could imagine most people don’t have a bottle sitting around in their kitchens, but it really does make all the difference in this recipe.  Believe me, I’ve tried it with dry vermouth and it’s not quite the same!  Go out and buy yourself a bottle.  It doesn’t cost all that much and it will last you a long time.  Plus, you can use it to make this recipe over and over and over!

Shrimp and Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb peeled large shrimp
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup sweet (red) vermouth
1 (14-15 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 lb angel-hair pasta (or thin spaghetti)

Method:

1.  Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, according to package directions.  Drain.

2.  While the pasta cooks, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.   When the oil shimmers, add shrimp, garlic, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook, turning once, until golden.  Stir in vermouth and tomatoes.  Add cream and simmer about 1 minute.  Stir in lemon juice.

3.  Serve pasta topped with shrimp and sauce.  (*The sauce in this dish is somewhat thin, so if that’s how yours turns out, you did it right!)

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, April 2008