Food For Thought

Lisztomania – Phoenix

A while back when I was going through my blogroll, I noticed a cake on a site frequent regularly.  Not only did it have blueberries in it (my absolute favorite fruit) but it was simple, fast and versatile.  I bookmarked it and went about my life always knowing that it was there, but never really having a reason to make it.  So last week, I was sitting in my kitchen with Jen, my roommate, and we started talking about what we should do for dinner (are you seeing a trend yet??).

[Sidenote: I try to spend time, or get all of my roommates to spend time together, because we rarely see each other for more than 10 minute intervals during the day.  While I know we’re only in college and we’ll all be moving apart in a year (whoa, sad) I want it to feel as family-like as it possibly can.  That or so we at least know what’s going on in each other’s lives.]

So that night, Jen and I made the most amazing pizza ever, and this wondrous cake.  Not wanting to let my habits from summertime and the Weight Watchers crew back home die away, I set to work taking out some unnecessary fats and sugars, and adding some heart healthy whole grains.  What I ended up with was a moist, but dense cake, which was sweet (and I do have to say, from sugar to “natural” sugar substitute, you can taste the difference.  Unless you’re planning to eat the whole thing yourself, go ahead and use real sugar, or half sugar and half substitute) and had little blueberry shaped pockets throughout.

The combination of lemon and blueberry, while classic (and some even say boring) is one of my favorites.  Of course, this can be changed to any fruit and citrus combination, or hell, the base can even be changed to something completely sweet, like chocolate and caramel chunks – that one I got from a friend who brought caramel brownies to rehearsal today. Now that I’m typing this, I think that might be on the agenda for tomorrow.

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Cake

Adapted from Smittenkitchen.com

Serves 12-16 depending on size of slices

[Conversions were made, so I’ll put the original measurements and ingredients in italics so the conversions are obvious – plus then you can make your own concoction.]

1 5/16 cups whole wheat flour –or- 1 ½ cups All-Purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

25 packets Truvia –or- 1 cup + 1 Tbsp sugar

¾ cup egg substitute –or- 3 large eggs

2 teaspoons lemon zest

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup vegetable oil

1 ½ cup fresh blueberries

1/3 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray a 9”x 5” loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.  Whisk together until combined.  In another large bowl, whisk the sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and oil together.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet in batches, until just combined.  Toss the blueberries in about a tablespoon of flour – this helps them not to sink in the batter when it bakes.  Fold in the flour and blueberries until just combined.  Pour the batter into the loaf pan, and bake on the center rack for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let completely cool on a rack, then remove from the pan and eat the whole damn thing.