A Little Blue for Memorial Day — Blueberry Ricotta Cake

A recipe comes to someone in so many ways and often with several degrees of separation.  This one comes from my mother, Carol, via her friend in San Mateo, CA via Bon Appétit 5.10 via the Huckleberry Bakery & Café. WHEW!  How’s that for attribution?  By popular demand for my FB and Twitter friends - it’s back!  And just in time for your Memorial Day weekend party.  This cake is super outdoor friendly and a sure crowd pleaser! Happy Memorial Day and enjoy.

Special Equipment

10in. springform pan w/ 2 ¾ high sides 
3 medium size bowls 
1 large bowl

Ingredients

3 C fresh blueberries 
2 Tbls for blueberries 
1 1/3 C all purpose flour  
2/3 C yellow cornmeal 
2 tsp baking powder 
2 tsp baking soda 
6 Tbsp vegetable oil 
2 large eggs 
1 Tbsp vanilla extract 
1 tsp honey 
10 Tbsp (1 ¼ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature 
¾ C plus 3 Tbls sugar, divided 
1 ½ tsp salt 
1 C ricotta cheese 
½ C yogurt, plain (I love the richness of Greek yogurt) 
Nonstick vegetable oil spray 

Process 

Preheat oven 325° 
Spray springform pan with non-stick oil. 

Place blueberries in a medium bowl.  Sprinkle 2 Tbls of flour over and mix gently until blueberries are lightly covered.  Place in a sieve and jiggle over sink to gently remove any excess flour.  Set aside.   
Whisk first flour, cornmeal, baking powder and soda in a medium bowl.  Whisk oil, eggs, vanilla and honey in another medium bowl.  With electric mixer, beat butter, ¾ C plus 2 Tbsp sugar and 1 ½ tsps salt in large bowl until creamy.  With mixer running on medium gradually add egg mixture; beat to blend.  Beat in flour mixture just to blend. Add ricotta and yogurt; beat on low speed just to blend.  Add floured blueberries and fold into mixture.  Sprinkle remaining sugar over batter.  Place in oven and bake cake until golden and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.   

Yields 12 servings 

Note:  Crusty on the outside and super moist & dense on the inside. 

Tip
* Prior to mixing into the batter always flour fruit pieces a bit that the fruit does not sink to the bottom of the pan when baking.

Peach Tart - A Texas Hill Country Summer Dessert Recipe

Oh the blessing’s of a Texas summer!! Thanks to my fab neighbors & a very wet spring, there were piles upon piles of sweet baby peaches to be had; right here in my hill country hood. These luscious tarts were made for a Chardonnay tasting I catered last week.

The recipe seems lengthy but is really quite simple just a few steps; plus you can buy your tart shells at your local gourmet market. Yip!

For the Peaches

3 medium size peaches, halved/pitted 1tsp white or brown sugar ½ tsp salt 1tsp extra virgin olive oil for the honey cream 2 8-ounces cream cheese, room temperature 6 ounces of golden honey Pinch of salt (optional) 1 package small to medium tart shells (a package of 12 works great for size) ½ jar of peach preserve peach prep.
Place prepped peaches into a medium size bowl. Drizzle olive oil over the peaches and mix so that the oil surrounds the peach halves entirely. Evenly sprinkle salt and sugar over peach halves. Heat a grill pan to high. Place peaches flesh side down, turn heat down to medium and cook until flesh becomes somewhat soft; about 2 minutes. Turn peaches over and cook until just soft. Peaches should be slightly charred and soft to touch but not falling apart. Take off heat and set aside on a sheet pan or tray. Cool completely. Once cool, slice the peach ½’s into ¼’s then 1/8’s then 1/16’s. These slices should be pliable but not falling apart. Set aside.

Honey Cream Prep

Place cream cheese in a mixing bowl and mix on medium with a paddle implement until smooth. Add honey while continuing to mix. Stop mixing and scrape down bowl. Continue to mix until all honey has been poured. Scrape down sides and place in a container that has an airtight seal. Set aside. tart shell prep Unwrap tart shells and line them up. Place up to 2 TBSP of honey cream into each shell. Spread honey cream evenly inside the shell with an offset spatula. putting tart together Place peach slices on top of the cream beginning from the inside outer edge of the tart circle.
Continue this process working from the outer edge in – overlapping the peach slices slightly until you come to the center. Take a small piece of peach or cut a small piece and fill in the center. It will eventually look like a peach rose. Set aside. glaze prep In a non-reactive saucepan, over low-heat, heat peach marmalade until just soft. Take off heat. With a wide brush – pastry brush, dip in marmalade, brush off excess on side of pan and gently brush over the peaches on each tart. Cool completely. Cover tightly and refrigerate tarts until needed. Take out up to an hour before serving and bring to room temperature.

Serve as is or with freshly whipped cream topping…maybe a little fresh mint from the garden. Eat with pleasure. Serves 8-12.