Every now and again, or maybe more often than that, you just need a little afternoon sweet to pick you up. Especially on Wednesdays, when the week’s list of To-Do’s is hardly accomplished, and the mountains of errands, laundry, work, kid activities, etc. seems insurmountable, I find I am desperate for a tea break. It doesn’t have to be grand, but I crave just a few minutes to recharge, reconnect with my sanity, and remember that the bustle makes the calm that much sweeter.

This blueberry almond tea cake is the perfect treat for such moments of stolen peace. It’s very easy to put together, it relies on pantry friendly ingredients, and the sweet, tender crumb paired with the bright lemon drizzle make for an uplifting and just-rich-enough cake that’s perfect for pretty much any time of day.

In this recipe I call for frozen, wild blueberries because that’s what I had on hand, but you could certainly use fresh berries instead. Either way you just want to be careful to fold the blueberries in last and very gently. This will prevent the juices from bleeding too much into the batter and keep your berries better intact. For the drizzle make sure your cake is completely cool and ready to be iced before you mix it up as it will harden fairly quickly. To keep cleanup light and achieve a pretty drizzle, I simply used a glass measuring cup with a basic pouring spout as both my mixing cup and my pouring vessel. Use a steady hand and pour slowly but consistently in a zigzag fashion and you’ll accomplish that same lovely effect.

Blueberry Almond Lemon Drizzle Tea Cake - Makes 1 9in. Cake

Equipment:

• 1 9X5 in. loaf pan

• Stand mixer (optional)

• Parchment paper

• Aluminum foil

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup + 2 TBS. unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 lemon, zest and juice

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

• 3 large eggs, beaten

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 tsp. baking powder

• 1/8 tsp. kosher salt

• 3/4 cup + 2 TBS. fine almond flour

• 2 cups frozen wild blueberries, unthawed

• 1/2 cup + 1 TBS. powdered sugar

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Grease the loaf pan liberally with butter, and line the bottom with parchment paper.

2. Measure out the flour, baking powder, salt, and almond flour in a medium bowl and sift them together well with a fork. Set aside.

3. Place the butter, sugar, zest of the entire lemon, and vanilla in the bowl of the stand mixer fitter with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs in three parts, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl in between each addition, and mix for a couple more minutes. Then add the flour mixture a third at a time, mixing on medium speed in between each addition and scraping the bottom and sides down with a rubber spatula as needed. Finally, remove the bowl from the stand mixer, and gently fold in 1 1/2 cups of the frozen blueberries (reserve the remaining 1/2 cup of blueberries for topping). Only mix until the blueberries are evenly distributed in the batter.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spread the batter out evenly, and bake for 15 minutes. Then remove the pan from the oven, and top the cake evenly with the remaining 1/2 cup of blueberries. Return the pan to the oven, and bake for another 15 minutes, until the cake is turning golden but is still not fully cooked. Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil, and bake for another 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove the pan, and allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan. After 10 minutes, remove the cake from the pan, and leave it to finish cooling on a wire rack. Cool the cake completely before making the icing.

5. When the cake is completely cool, make the icing. Whisk together the powdered sugar and 1-2TBS of lemon juice (to your desired pouring consistency) until smooth. Steadily drizzle the icing over the cake in a zigzag fashion. Allow the icing to harden for a few minutes before cutting the cake. Store the cake in an airtight container or wrapped in foil in the refrigerator for several days.

Recipe adapted from Ottolenghi Simpe: A Cookbook