one, two, buckle my shoe.

A buckle is a buttery, dense single-layer cake peppered with fruit (usually blueberries) and topped with a streusel. A lot like a coffee cake. And I love streusel. I think I am going to make it my new mission in life to put streusel on more things. This cake was a HIT! I made this cake for brunch before I started cooking New Years Day supper, and it was completely gone in just several hours. Awesome right out of the oven, but nothing to turn your nose up at when room temp either. 

The batter is extremely tight and really hard to mix the berries into and spread into the pan. Do not fret. Thats how it should be. Other than that its really simple to make. Heres how I did it:

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Blueberry Buckle

Recipe from Cook's Illustrated

Streusel

1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

pinch table salt

4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cubed into 8 pieces, softened but still cool

Cake

1 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour

1 1/2 tsps baking powder

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened but still cool

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp table salt

1/2 tsp grated lemon zest

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temp

4 cups fresh blueberries, picked over for twigs and and bad berries

For the streusel- In a standing mixer fitted with a flat beater, combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, and salt on low speed until well combined and no large chunks of brown sugar remain, about 45 seconds. Add butter and mix on low until mixture resembles wet sand and no large butter pieces remain, about 2 1/2 minutes.

Transfer streusel to small bowl and set aside.

For the cake: Adjust oven rack to lower middle position; preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter 9 inch round cake pan; dust pan with flour and knock out excess.

Whisk flour and baking powder in small bowl to combine; set aside. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, cream butter, sugar, salt, and lemon zest at medium high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes; using rubber spatula, scrape down bowl. Beat in vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds.

With mixer running at medium speed, add eggs one at a time; beat until partially incorporated, then scrape down bowl and continue to beat until fully incorporated (mixture will appear broken).

With mixer running on low speed, gradually add flour mixture; beat until flour is almost fully incorporated. Take bowl off of the mixer; stir batter with rubber spatula, scraping bottom and sides of bowl, until no flour pockets remain and batter is homogenous. This batter is extremely heavy and thick and is really hard to stir. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in blueberries until evenly distributed. This part is really tough. Don't freak out if you break a couple of blueberries and the batter gets a little purple looking in spots.

Transfer batter to prepared pan; with rubber spatula, using a pushing motion, spread batter evenly to pan edges and smooth surface.

Squeeze handful of streusel in hand to form a large cohesive clump; break up clump with fingers and sprinkle streusel evenly over batter.

 Repeat with remaining streusel.

Bake until a deep golden brown and wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 55 minutes.

Cool on wire rack 15-20 minutes. Cake will fall slightly as it cools. Run paring knife around sides of cake to loosen. Take cake out of pan and let cool just until warm or to room temperature, at least an hour.

Cut into wedges and serve.