Make-Do Mondays: Make-Do Birthdays

August 31, 2009 By 5 Comments

makedomondays

see below for alternative button

At Make-Do Mondays, we discuss how we’re simplifying, downsizing, repurposing, buying used, and using what we’ve got.

It’s a carnival celebrating creative problem-solving, contentment, patience and ingenuity. To participate, share your own make-do solution in the comments or write up a Make-Do Mondays post at your blog, then return here to link via Mr. Linky. Enjoy others’ ideas by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking on people’s names.

Here’s a mini-tutorial on Mr. Linky:

Click on the icon and a separate page will pop up. Type in your blog name and paste in the url of your new Make-Do Mondays post. Click enter and it should be live. If it doesn’t work, just include the link in the comments.

To visit people’s posts or check that yours worked, click on Mr. Linky and when the page comes up, click on a name. You should be taken right to the page provided.

Make-Do Mondays with Ann

Birthdays are almost always make-do events for us.

As you may recall from Food on Fridays, my son wanted to offer several different desserts for his birthday party in lieu of cake.

So I made a humble pumpkin pie, which became the pie of honor.

birthdaypie

The crust wasn’t very artistic, but it tasted fine.

I made a coffee cake, which we renamed “crumble cake.” This was for marketing purposes, because some family members wouldn’t touch a dessert if a speck of coffee could be found in it. But I started preparing it a little too late in the morning. I mixed and assembled it, but didn’t have time to bake it before we had to leave.

The cake was transported to my parent’s house in batter form inside a cooler. I baked it upon arrival, but the crumble topping had already sunk into the cake. The surface looked something like an anthill.

birthdaydessert2

I’ve never made a berry pie before. I watched my sister-in-law make a berry tart one time, so instead of making a pie, I used this tart recipe and made one for the first time ever.

birthdaydesserts

Again, it wasn’t spectacular, but it was okay.

I did my best to create per the requests of my little boy, and he was pleased.

In fact, he ate two pieces of pie.

As we were in the car driving to my parents’ house, I started to worry I’d forgotten something that he’d requested.

I reviewed our plans. “We have the pies and crumble cake, we have the gifts, we have swimsuits for swimming,” I said. “Are we forgetting anything for your birthday? Anything you had in mind?”

He paused for a moment, then replied, “We’re forgetting how great it is that Grandma and Grandpa are hosting this today! We’re forgetting the love!“

For all those who make-do on birthdays or any day, please … don’t forget the love.

How do you make do?

If the main button is too big, try this one:

makedomondays

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Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: children, family, Food, frugality, Make-Do Mondays, motherhood, parenting, simplicity

Food on Fridays: Happy Birthday Pies

August 27, 2009 By 14 Comments

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(alternative button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome. Recipes are enjoyed, but you can write about your favorite international food or link to a canning video on YouTube.

In other words, the Food on Fridays parameters are not at all narrow. I think of it as a virtual pitch-in where everyone brings something to share; even if the content of one item is unrelated to the rest, we sample it all anyway and have a great time.

When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or the new smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.

Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).

You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.

Please note: I return when possible during the day and update this post by hand to include a list of the links provided via Mr. Linky. If I can’t get to the computer to do so, you may access them all by clicking on the Mister Linky logo.

Food on Fridays Participants

  1. Premeditated Leftovers (broiled cherry tomatoes)
  2. e-Mom (outrageous cupcake art)
  3. Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker (home canned salsa)
  4. At Home ‘N About (ham ‘n cola)
  5. Feels Like Home (sandwich ideas)
  6. Kitchen Stewardship (packing a reduced waste lunch)
  7. Inside the White Picket Fence (fried ice cream)
  8. Hoosier Homemade (freezing sweet corn)
  9. Hoosier Homemade (blueberry cupcakes)
  10. Cook with Sara (hot fudge sauce)
  11. Finding Joy in my Kitchen (ratatouille)
  12. Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free (simple oven-baked brown rice)
  13. Twirl and Taste (Kennedy irish potato cakes)
  14. Newlyweds! (sangria)
  15. the Finer Things in Life (crescent taco bake)
  16. Heart ‘N Soul Cooking (glazed pear shortcake)
  17. A Welcoming Heart (Mexican pot roast)
  18. Not the Jet Set (peach syrup)
  19. Leftovers On Purpose (easy sausage & cheese balls)
  20. Unfinished Mom (make your own yogurt)
  21. Jean Stockdale (Watergate salad)
  22. Frugal Homemaking (chicken chow mein)
  23. Katrina’s Home (Anzac biscuits)
  24. Gathering Manna (God speaks through fountain drinks)

Food on Fridays with Ann

My little boy is turning eight years old very soon.

He’s been planning his birthday for months. His top concern? He wants all of the family members who are coming to have a very good time. He doesn’t want anyone to be left out of anything. He wants everyone to be happy.

One of his cousins isn’t crazy about chocolate or cake, so the birthday boy has been trying to come up with a dessert that everyone will enjoy.

He loved the coffee cake I made, so he wrote a letter to his eight-and-a-half-year-old cousin (even though he could have phoned or sent an e-mail) asking if that would be a good option. “Do you like coffee cake?” he asked.

The cousin wrote back a cute note and added at the very bottom of page two, “p.s.s.s. I like pie.”

The birthday boy was ecstatic. “Pie!” he exclaimed, waving the letter. “He said he likes pie!” Now the birthday boy is confident he can serve a dessert that will make his cousin happy. It’s a birthday wish come true—the potential for happiness all around at his party!

He is so relieved! Now everyone can have something they enjoy!

This means, however, that I have to make three different desserts.

But, you know, he asks for so little.

His biggest birthday hope is that everyone will be happy. If three different desserts can increase the odds of that happening, I’ll be honored to spend a few hours in the kitchen this weekend preparing some coffee cake and pies.

The final dessert menu for his birthday party:

  • Coffee cake: half with blueberries; half without (the birthday boy is not fond of blueberries)
  • Pumpkin pie (the birthday boy’s favorite pie)
  • Berry pie. I might make this blueberry pie, though I have a bag of frozen raspberries and could do a mixture. Thoughts? Advice? Winning recipes? What’s the happiest berry pie you’ve ever made?

(a slightly smaller Food on Fridays button)

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Filed Under: children, family, Food, Food on Fridays, motherhood, parenting, simplicity

Learning to See

August 27, 2009 By 4 Comments

In our fast-paced world, our days speeding past in a blur, we’re in danger of losing the ability to truly see.

magnifiedpinecone

I don’t want to lose that skill, that gift.

Or if I have temporarily lost it because I have instead trained my eye on the time or the speedometer or the packed pages of my daily planner, I want to regain it.

In spite of having physical eyes that function quite well, I am sometimes guilty of missing a lot—so much that I might as well be blind. I want to see both physical beauty and that which is beyond it; I want a glimpse of deeper realities. Though I’m blessed to have my physical eyesight, I long for more.

Wouldn’t it be something to have the privilege given to Elisha’s servant, when Elisha prayed “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see” the reality of hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around to fight on their side? (2 Kings)

But even if I never see chariots of fire, I don’t want to squander my everyday sight. I don’t want to blunder through my days like a blind woman.

On busy, blurry days, I can feel like the blind man whose story is told in Luke 18. He called out to Jesus, “have mercy on me!”

Jesus came near and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord,” he answered, “I want to see.”

Lord, have mercy on me … I want to see.

Yes. I, too, want to see!

I don’t want to miss the good stuff, the real stuff, the hard stuff, the beauty, the life, the needs, the truth. I want to see all that I need to see.

Jesus granted the blind man his sight.

I pray He’ll grant sight to these eyes, as well; I turn to Him that I might have eyes that see.

And as I start to look around, I’ll start small.

Pausing, I’ll give something my full attention.

A butterfly.

A seed pod.

A metaphor.

A turn of phrase in the last line of a poem.

A friend on the phone.

A sculpture.

A blob of oil paint on canvas.

A daughter walking hand-in-hand with me to the park.

A sunflower bobbing over the fence.

I don’t mean to simplify something subtle and spiritual by being overly practical, but when I launched a series at NotSoFastBook.com about how to practice “seeing,” I offered art as an entree.

It’s a little lesson in seeing.

Seeing is much more than learning to appreciate shadow, shape, and color on canvas.

Detail from "The Circus," George Pierre Seurat (Louvre, Paris)

But it can slow us down and remind us that there is much more than meets the eye.

Don’t miss a word: It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: change, creativity, lifelong learning, self-discovery, simplicity, Slow Movement, slowing Tagged With:

Make-Do Mondays: Reusing Plastic Bags

August 23, 2009 By 9 Comments

makedomondays

see below for alternative button

At Make-Do Mondays, we discuss how we’re simplifying, downsizing, repurposing, buying used, and using what we’ve got.

It’s a carnival celebrating creative problem-solving, contentment, patience and ingenuity. To participate, share your own make-do solution in the comments or write up a Make-Do Mondays post at your blog, then return here to link via Mr. Linky. Enjoy others’ ideas by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking on people’s names.

Here’s a mini-tutorial on Mr. Linky:

Click on the icon and a separate page will pop up. Type in your blog name and paste in the url of your new Make-Do Mondays post. Click enter and it should be live. If it doesn’t work, just include the link in the comments.

To visit people’s posts or check that yours worked, click on Mr. Linky and when the page comes up, click on a name. You should be taken right to the page provided.

Make-Do Mondays Participants

  1. Home…With Purpose (toy storage)
  2. Not the Jet Set (outlet cover makeovers)
  3. sunnydaytodaymama (make-do birthday)
  4. Hopeannfaith (Summertime Crock Cooking)

Make-Do Mondays with Ann

There was a time, years ago, when I was made fun of for doing this:

bagdryer

I’ve been switching over to glass storage, but sometimes plastic bags are the ideal container for a particular situation. And so to reuse my plastic storage bags, I continue to wash, rinse, and hang them on my kitchen utensils to dry.

How do you make do?

If the main button is too big, try this one:

makedomondays

Don’t miss a word: It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: Compacting, Food, frugality, home, Make-Do Mondays, simplicity, The Wimpy Environmentalist

Not So Fast in the Wall Street Journal

August 22, 2009 By Leave a Comment

What’s this?

Not So Fast is in The Wall Street Journal? Really?

Unfortunately, my book Not So Fast was not highlighted on page W3 in the Wall Street Journal.

But an article that happened to be entitled “Not So Fast” got a huge spread, and the author, John Freeman, wrote about the speed of communication in our fast-paced world.

So it’s related.

And I couldn’t resist sharing pieces of Freeman’s article with you. Over at www.NotSoFastBook.com, I wrote a response, summarizing his key points and quoting some passages that stood out to me.

To read my response to The Wall Street Journal’s “Not So Fast,” visit my website Not So Fast.

CLICK HERE

Don’t miss a word:

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: simplicity, Slow Movement, slowing

Food on Fridays: State Fair Food

August 20, 2009 By 22 Comments

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(alternative button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome. Recipes are enjoyed, but you can write about your hidden stash of chocolate (come on, I know it’s around there somewhere!) or snap photos of your kids’ mud pies.

In other words, the Food on Fridays parameters are not at all narrow. I think of it as a virtual pitch-in where everyone brings something to share; even if the content of one item is unrelated to the rest, we sample it all anyway and have a great time.

When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or the new smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.

Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).

You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.

Food on Fridays Participants

  1. Twirl and Taste (Wine & Cheese Tasting Supper)
  2. Cooking during Stolen Moments (Spinach Artichoke Dip Casserole)
  3. At Home ‘N About (Shrimp on the Barbie)
  4. Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker (Ranch Chicken Salad)
  5. Hoosier Homemade (Back to School Cupcakes)
  6. Feels Like Home (eat the rainbow)
  7. Earth-Friendly Goodies (Lime: the key to the fountain of youth)
  8. Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free (Parmesan Quinoa with Summer Veggies)
  9. Sentiments by Denise (Freezing Corn)
  10. Cook with Sara (banana blueberry coffee cake)
  11. Finding Joy in my Kitchen (corn dogs)
  12. Girls to Grow (Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins)
  13. Not the Jet Set (fresh eats)
  14. Passionate Homemaking~Becoming P31 (Making your own specialty coffee)
  15. Kitchen Stewardship (Packing a Healthy Lunch)
  16. Momtrends (Summer Chicken Salad)
  17. ButterYum (Make your own sun-dried tomatoes)
  18. Lavender *Sparkles* (Tomato Pie)
  19. Unfinished Mom (Purple Hats)
  20. The Beautiful Life (Meet Edward)
  21. Frugal Homekeeping (Black-Eyes and Dirty Rice and Orange-Sugared Pecans)
  22. Prudent and Practical (TVP Red Beans and Rice)
  23. Christian Frugal Mama (Coffee Drink)
  24. Outward Expression (Healthy (er) Zucchini Bread)
  25. A Welcoming Heart (Orange Sweet Rolls)
  26. Sweet Willow Cottage (Chocolate-dipped Macaroons)

Food on Fridays with Ann

May I take you on a tour of Indiana State Fair junk food?

The kids all wanted an elephant ear and funnel cake. The elephant ear was consumed long before I thought to photograph it, so I took a picture of the stand.

elephantearstand

Later the kids shared a funnel cake with the Belgian Wonder, and I did get a snapshot.

funnelcake

I was too full to eat any funnel cake because I had just finished of one of my State Fair favorites: corn on the cob. Roasted on the grill, dipped in butter, coated with salt.

cornoncob

Later we stopped at the Dairy Barn for milkshakes and a cup of milk.

dairybarn

Stands sold the usual deep-fried Twinkies and fried Pepsi, but the weird offering this year was the chocolate-covered bacon.

Sorry to disappoint you, but we didn’t sample the stuff.

pigsinmud

Moosh in Indy has some nice State Fair food photos to accompany an article at Visit Indy with Kids.

She also posted on her blog a photo she took last year of a farmer named Jim who looks like so many of the men I remember from my childhood. I grew up on a farm in a rural area of Indiana. My dad would take me to the local diner, and while I finished my beef manhatten, he would stop by a table and chat with farmers just like Jim.

Well, Moosh in Indy returned to the fair this year and found Jim again. He raises “pastured poultry,” both chicken and turkeys, on “Promised Land Farm.” And since we’re today’s topic is food, keep in mind that it’s not too early to think about Thanksgiving turkey. Click over to appreciate the great photos of Jim, then phone him to place your order for a “Promised Land Turkey.”

Though he may not be home at the moment. It seems that he’s sitting next to his ox, Jerry, at the Indiana State Fair.

(a slightly smaller Food on Fridays button)

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Filed Under: Food, Food on Fridays

Hm…where in the World Wide Web is Ann Kroeker *today*?

August 20, 2009 By 2 Comments

whereinwww

1.  Today I’m chatting with Chele at The Bona Fide Life. Pop over for a visit HERE. And … you could enter another giveaway!

2. F.I.R.S.T. (Fiction In Rather Short Takes) selected Not So Fast as its Wild Card book tour. Here are some participants (most have simply posted the basic info; a few offer a few words of review):

3. Also, Rachel Anne at Home Sanctuary has interviewed me for her Company Girls newsletter. The entire interview appears at NotSoFastBook.com today.

(Photo credit: stock.xchng)

Don’t miss a word: It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: books, children, family, simplicity, slowing, writer, writing Tagged With: ,

Where in the World Wide Web is Ann Kroeker?

August 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

whereinwww

My friend Jane invited me to record a podcast and submit a guest post for her Only By Prayer blog.

So that’s where you’ll find me today on the World Wide Web–at Only By Prayer. Education is the topic she’s focusing on this month, so I wrote about it with a “slow-down” focus.

Actually, I veered a bit from the education theme and headed more toward the greatest commandment. Well, you’ll see…

To read the post, CLICK HERE.

Drop by, leave a comment, and you’ll be entered in a drawing to win a copy of Not So Fast.

(Photo credit: stock.xchng)

Don’t miss a word: It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: children, family, motherhood, parenting, simplicity, Slow Movement, slowing, writer, writing Tagged With: ,

Make-Do Mondays: Spontaneity and Flexibility at the State Fair

August 16, 2009 By 6 Comments

makedomondays

see below for alternative button

At Make-Do Mondays, we discuss how we’re simplifying, downsizing, repurposing, buying used, and using what we’ve got.

It’s a carnival celebrating creative problem-solving, contentment, patience and ingenuity. To participate, share your own make-do solution in the comments or write up a Make-Do Mondays post at your blog, then return here to link via Mr. Linky. Enjoy others’ ideas by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking on people’s names.

Here’s a mini-tutorial on Mr. Linky:

Click on the icon and a separate page will pop up. Type in your blog name and paste in the url of your new Make-Do Mondays post. Click enter and it should be live. If it doesn’t work, just include the link in the comments.

To visit people’s posts or check that yours worked, click on Mr. Linky and when the page comes up, click on a name. You should be taken right to the page provided.

Make-Do Mondays Participants

  1. Homesteaders’ Heart (Make-Do Yarn Holder)
  2. Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter (Make-Do Baby Blanket)

Make-Do Mondays with Ann

Last week I wrote on NotSoFastBook.com about flexibility and spontaneity in our schedules.

Maybe I’m stretching my concept of making-do, but I think spontaneity and flexibility free us to make the most of opportunities that arise. I hope that fits into Make-Do Mondays conceptually, because that’s what I’ve written about.

We decided to head to the Indiana State Fair this weekend. Already that was a spontaneous decision.

Upon arrival, we formulated a rough plan of what we wanted to see, do and eat.

While there, however, we learned that the Department of Natural Resources offered free fishing lessons, which three of the kids were eager to try. Fishing lessons were not part of the original plan, but they turned out to be unexpectedly delightful–one of the highlights of the day because the man-made pond was well stocked with voracious fish and each kid caught three in a row.

fish

Then we ran into some friends–one was recording artist Carmen D’Arcy.

carmensign

We met the real Carmen, but I thought I’d let you see her big banner.

As it turns out, Carmen was scheduled to play at a nearby pavilion about an hour later, so we stayed flexible and watched them perform.

carmenreal

Here’s Carmen warming up.

carmenatkeyboard

Here’s Carmen performing.

After the concert, I chatted with Carmen’s husband, Bill, who is the voice of Indiana Youth Institute’s informative “Kids Count … on You!” radio spots. We talked about kids using (or not using) cell phones, Facebook, texting and “sexting.” I’ve never been good at small talk.

After the concert, we enjoyed several fair foods, which I shall do my best to chronicle on Friday for Food on Fridays.

Then we found ourselves at a good spot to enjoy a parade with several floats, bagpipers, a calliope, a clown band, and a long line of vintage tractors.

tractorparade

At the end of the evening, we were heading to the parking lot and realized the evening music was about to begin: Heart was opening for Journey, so the Belgian Wonder let the kids climb on top of the minivan to listen and watch. The parking lot offered a partial view of the stage, but the lights could be seen turning and changing for the show.

We wouldn’t have bought tickets to see Journey, but thanks to some flexibility and spontaneity, the kids enjoyed a fun make-do concert.

How do you make-do?

If the main button is too big, try this one:

makedomondays

Don’t miss a word: It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.

Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

Filed Under: family, Make-Do Mondays Tagged With:

Food on Fridays: Blueberry Coffee Cake

August 13, 2009 By 18 Comments

fof

(alternative button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome. Recipes are enjoyed, but you can write about the Indiana State Fair’s chocolate-covered bacon or link to a post about how to freeze zucchini.

In other words, the Food on Fridays parameters are not at all narrow. I think of it as a virtual pitch-in where everyone brings something to share; even if the content of one item is unrelated to the rest, we sample it all anyway and have a great time.

When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or the new smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.

Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).

You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.

Food on Fridays Participants

  1. Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker (Yoplait Giveaway–ends Friday night!)
  2. Twirl and Taste
  3. Passionate Homemaking … Becoming P31 (Mocha Freeze Mini-Cheesecakes)
  4. Stretch Mark Mama (10 Summer Recipes)
  5. At Home N About (Quick -n- Easy Baked Beans)
  6. thoughtsfromovertherainbow (Spinach Salad)
  7. Inside the White Picket Fence (Zucchini Recipes)
  8. Newlyweds! (corn dip)
  9. Cook with Sara (lemon blueberry zucchini cake)
  10. Kitchen Stewardship (Sausage Zucchini Bake–many ingredients from Farmers’ Market)
  11. Home Ec 101 (Homemade Noodle Tutorial)
  12. Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free (Healthy, Five-Minute Blueberry Banana Ice Cream)
  13. Hoosier Homemade (Zucchini Cupcakes)
  14. The Byrd House (Versatile Pastry Dough)
  15. The Prudent Pantry (Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup)
  16. Gravity of Motion (An Original Recipe)
  17. Earth Friendly Goodies (Organice Blueberry Kefir Pancake Recipe)
  18. Coping with Frugality (Yummy Soup–Needs a Name)
  19. Hopeannfaith (Summer Tea)

Food on Fridays with Ann

I wanted to serve a friend something special with tea the other morning and found this Blueberry Coffee Cake recipe that I modified slightly. I’ll Annotate the recipe below.

blueberrycoffeecakecut

Oops. I cut into it and started to serve, but my guest stopped me. “Get a picture!” she exclaimed. “For your blog!”

Excellent advice.

But even a piece that’s been cut looks appealing to me.

blueberrycoffeecake

Blueberry Coffee Cake

Ingredients

Streusel topping (Note: I made only half of this)

  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup butter (I had to make-do with oil, and it was delicious–can’t wait to make this with butter)

Cake

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (Note: I left out about 1/2 C flour, because people on Allrecipes recommended doing that so that it would be more moist—an excellent decision, in my opinion)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup butter (again, I was out of butter and substituted oil–can’t wait to try butter)
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 cup fresh blueberries (Note: I used frozen)
  • Almond slivers (optional Ann addition)
  • 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar for dusting (I didn’t use that much sugar to dust it; and my kids laughed hysterically when I said I was going to be dusting the cake)

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a Bundt pan well with cooking spray.
  2. Make the streusel topping: Mix 1 brown cup sugar, 2/3 cup flour, and cinnamon in a medium bowl (or half of that, like I did). Cut in 1/2 cup butter or margarine; topping mixture will be crumbly. Set aside.
  3. For the cake: Beat 1/2 cup butter or margarine (or oil) in large bowl until creamy; add 1 cup white sugar, and beat until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Whisk together 2 cups flour (or 1/2 cup less), baking powder, and salt; add alternately with the milk to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition (this was really thick and hard to spread, but it worked).
  4. Spread half the batter in the prepared pan. Cover with berries (I poked them into the batter individually, then topped with half of the streusel topping), and add remaining batter by tablespoons. Cover with streusel topping (some streusel is on the inside, and some on the top, which will become the bottom when inverted after it’s baked; then I tossed on a few almond slivers, which browned slightly as it cooked and added a wonderful texture and flavor—who knew I could be so fancy?).
  5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 55 to 60 minutes, until deep golden brown. Remove pan to wire rack to cool. Invert onto a plate after cake has cooled (oops–I inverted before it was cool, and it was fine), and dust with confectioners’ sugar.

I thought it was amazing.

(a slightly smaller Food on Fridays button)

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