My sister-in-law sent this to me yesterday after texting me and telling me that she had made it and it was simply wonderful. She says the streusel just makes it and the flavor is just so good. She even liked it better than one of the lemon pound cakes we make often. So here it is. Hope you enjoy it as much as she did. Will be making as soon as I get to the store for more butter. I went through about 5 lbs of it this week.
Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9″ cast iron skillet with cooking spray.
In a small bowl, whisk 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour and a pinch of kosher salt. Add 3 tables melted unsalted butter and stir until crumbly with some large pieces still intact.
In another medium bowl, whisk 2 cups all purpose flour, 1 1/2 teas baking powder and 1 teas salt. In a large bowl (yes, I know, the dishwasher will be full after making this, but she tells me it is worth all the dirty bowls.), beat 1/2 cup (8 tables) unsalted butter, which should be at room temperature for 1 min or until smooth. Add 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar; beat 2 minutes or until fluffy. Stop to scrape sides down on bowl and beat in 2 large eggs. (remember eggs should always be at room temp to get the full volume they need to be), 1 large egg yolk and 1 tablespoon vanilla. In 2 additions, beat in 1/2 cup whole milk or buttermilk and flour mixture, alternating between each. Gently fold in 2 tables lemon zest, 1 tables lemon juice and 2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries (or frozen, tossed with 2 tables flour). Scrape mixture into prepared skillet. Sprinkle top with the brown sugar mixture.
Bake about 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and top is light golden brown.
Transfer the skillet to a wire rack; cool for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl (yes another bowl), combine 1 cup powdered sugar with 2 tables lemon juice; stir until smooth. Drizzle over cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.
(Janece did not use the lemon or the glaze. She said the streusel topping was all the cake needed. And with the tables of vanilla, she omitted the lemon zest and juice.)
Some sweet ladies came to our house for a brunch a couple of weeks ago. Because I had talked about sausage gravy over biscuits at water aerobic class, a couple of the ladies expressed a desire to have some, as they had never experienced this wonderful southern dish. While others in the class are talking about how this class is helping them feel better and building muscle strength, we are at the other end of the pool planning our sausage gravy biscuit brunch. One of the ladies said that she would bring some watermelon so we would have one healthy food item, while yet another said that she would bring a coffee cake. Well, this is the pastry she brought and everyone had a hissy (I’ve been dying to see that word)fit over it. We had such a grand time that morning. The night before, I got this great idea to type out questions to pass around the table and let everyone pick out one a the bowl was passed around. Here are some of the questions that got us talking and getting to know each other a little better. So before I post the recipe a little further down, why not think about having some ladies over that you would like to get to know and use this idea to start the conversation flowing. IT was a really nice morning and we had some really nice memory sharing among us.
Chocolate Castles as wel 