Vegetarian Recipe: Blueberry Boy Bait

Every week on the Good Food Blog we celebrate Meatless Monday by sharing a vegetarian recipe from our archives.

Chris Kimball, founder and editor of Cook’s Illustrated and host of PBS’ America’s Test Kitchen, finds over 150 unforgettable heirloom recipes in America’s Best Lost Recipes. In a nationwide contest, people submitted over 2,800 recipe entries that told a narrative, chronicled an immigrant family and served as a connection to another cook of long ago. The result is 300 classic American recipes inspired by convenience, great names or family recipes. He first shared this recipe for Blueberry Boy Baiton Novmeber 3, 2007.

Keep reading for the full recipe…

Blueberry Boy Bait

(Courtesy of the Editors of Cook’s Country Magazine, America’s Best Lost Recipes)

Serves 12

Cake

2 cups plus 1 tsp all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 tsp salt

16 Tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup milk

½ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (If using frozen blueberries, do not let them thaw, as they will turn the batter a blue-green color.)

Topping

½ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (see above)

¼ cup granulated sugar

½ tsp ground cinnamon

For the cake: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 13- by 9-inch baking pan.

Whisk 2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and sugars until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until just incorporated. Reduce the speed to medium and beat in the flour mixture and the milk alternately in two batches until incorporated. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 1 teaspoon flour. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the blueberries. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

For the topping: Scatter the blueberries over the top of the batter. Stir the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl and sprinkle over the batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan for 20 minutes, then turn out and place on serving platter (topping side up). Serve warm or at room temperature. (The cake can be stored at room temperature up to 3 days.)