Buying more blueberries than needed, I decided it would be a good idea to bake a cake with them. However, I didn’t want to just add them into a cake batter, but rather, have them in a sort of separate layer in the cake.
To do that, I cooked them separately into a jam-like mixture, thickened with a bit of cornstarch, and flavored with lavender and lemon.
I then mixed a cake batter, with a tangy addition of sour cream, and flavored it too with lavender and lemon.
The two mixture were then layered in the pans, and, while baking, the two layers created a beautiful marbled effect.
The cake was very tasty and moist, with wonderful lavender-lemon fragrance and a distinctive fruity layer in it. Try it and enjoy.
Notes:
* For best results, make sure to use culinary grade dried lavender buds. They can be found at the spice section, or online.
* Lemon oil is more concentrated than lemon extract. If you can’t find, it, use 1 tsp of lemon extract, or increase the amount of lemon zest.
Makes: 2 loaf pans
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
For the blueberries layer:
1 lbs (455 grams) fresh blueberries
½ cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1 tsp culinary grade dried lavender buds, lightly crushed (see notes)
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 Tbs water
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
¼ tsp lemon oil (see notes)
For the batter:
1 stick (115 grams) butter, soft
½ cup sour cream
3 L eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp culinary grade dried lavender buds, lightly crushed
1 tsp vanilla paste
2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
¼ tsp lemon oil
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
2 cups flour
1 Tbs baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1. Place the blueberries, sugar, water and lavender in a medium pot. Mix and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to medium and cook, mixing occasionally, for about 7-8 minutes. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with the water, lemon juice, lemon zest and lemon oil, and mix until smooth. Mix into the pot, and cook for 1-2 minutes, mixing, until the mixture thickens. Cool to room temperature.
2. Brush two loaf pans with a bit of butter and dust with flour. Keep in the fridge until using. Preheat the oven to 340F (170).
3. Place the butter, sour cream, eggs, sugar, lavender, vanilla, lemon zest, lemon oil and lemon juice and whisk together. Add the flour, baking powder and salt, and whisk briefly to a smooth batter.
4. Divide ¾ of the batter between the prepared pans. Divide the blueberries mixture between the pans, and top with the rest of the batter.
5. Bake for 40 minutes, until the cakes tops are golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the dough part comes out almost clean. Let cool to room temperature in the pan, on a rack, before releasing.
Ooooo – nummies! Blueberries. They freeze so well – I scarf up all I can find when the price drops at the end of the season. This looks like a good snacky cake for afternoon TEA!
We spent a few months in the midst of the lavender fields in the northeast corner of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington, and EVERYTHING was lavender EVERYWHERE! Even the restroom at the campground had plug-in deodorizers that were lavender “flavored”! ARGH!
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Thank you Judi, I’m glad you liked the cake. It’s definitely suitable for an afternoon tea, though I happened to snack on it in the morning as well.
I can see why the lavender theme was overwhelming, though I would always prefer lavender deodorizers in restrooms, even artificial ones, over the natural aromas… 🙂
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I have never cooked with lavender but this sounds delicious!
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Thank you, I’m glad you liked the cake. Lavender works great in baking. 🙂
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Mmmm… this is very very good looking cake!!! Beautiful 🙂
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Thank you Chika, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty. 🙂
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Love the addition of lavender to this blueberry cake Ronit! It must taste devine!
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Thank you Shy, I’m glad you liked the cake. Lavender works so well with blueberries and lemon. Worth trying! 🙂
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Everything to love in this combination, wow😋
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Thank you Richa, I’m glad you liked the cake. This combination indeed worked so well. 🙂
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Love the lemon and blueberries in the cake together. The final picture of the slice looks just perfect!
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Thank you Nisha, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty. 🙂
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A cup of tea and a slice of your cake would be a delicious way to start the day.
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You got that right Karen! 🙂
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What a wonderful looking cake! Will be giving this a try as soon as I can locate some culinary Lavender. Have never cooked with Lavender and I don’t think I have ever had the pleasure of eating anything made with Lavender but this sounds lovely.
Thankyou Ronit for another ‘must make’. :))
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Thank you Mary, I’m glad you liked the cake. Lavender adds a nice floral fragrance to fruit cakes and other desserts. I hope you’ll enjoy the cake and experimenting with it. 🙂
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Oh I love anything blueberry based, but with a hint of lavender it takes it up a notch! 😊
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Thank you Hannah, I’m glad you liked the cake. Blueberries pair so well with lavender. It’s worth trying! 🙂
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Absolutely, a grand suggestion! And you are most welcome, your posts are a pleasure to read 🙏
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I love blueberries in cakes! The added lavender sounds interesting, I have never tried it before!😋
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Thank you Ursula, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Lavender pairs so well with blueberries. I quite sure you’ll enjoy experimenting with it. 🙂
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Simply amazing.. looks so great.
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Thank you Ruchi, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty. 🙂
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I am sure 😍😍
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Hello. How common an ingredient is lavender in cooking?
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Hi Neil,
while lavender is not most common in cooking, it’s part of the “Herbs de Provence” dried herbs mix, and is used in quite a few dishes – both sweet and savory.
You can find more ideas for using it if you’ll check it in the search box.
I also recommend checking the following link, for a blog that has many tasty recipes using it:
https://cookingwithauntjuju.com/?s=lavender&submit=Search
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Great looking cake and like many here I need to try lavender as it sounds like a good pairing with blueberries 🙂 x
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Thank you Carol, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty and fragrant. Blueberries and lavender indeed pair beautifully. Worth trying! 🙂
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I will have to try and get some… do you use the flowers or powdered or an extract ?
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Thanks for noticing. I use culinary grade dried lavender buds, but can see now that I didn’t specify it enough. I’ll correct it. 🙂
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That’s ok , Ronit it’s just not having used it before I wasn’t sure ..but what made me smile…I have a weird sense of humour was
3 L eggs…Have a lovely week 🙂 x
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It was good to clarify it, so thanks for asking.
As for 3 L eggs, I had to google it. Funny indeed! 🙂
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I think you know this is my kind of cake – 3 favorite ingredients, blueberries, lemon and always lavender. I have dried a bunch of lavender buds to use throughout the year – it keeps really well 🙂
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I figured you’d be on board for this combination Judi. I’m sure your home grown lavender smells better than what I have.
I actually added a link to your blog posts using lavender, to a comment above, asking about the use of lavender in cooking. You have such a great selection. 🙂
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Thanks so much Ronit – I do love lavender and have so many recipes yet to try😊
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You got me curious! 🙂
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Blueberries and Lemon are great partners..adding lavender is pure genius. 🍃💜
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Thank you Gail. It is indeed a great pairing, and lavender suits it perfectly. 🙂
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Yum! Seems the cake made with cooked blueberries is tastier than with fresh ones…
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Thank you, I’m glad you liked the recipe. I’m both for fresh and cooked, but no doubt cooking the blueberries definitely created a unique flavor. 🙂
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Superb Ronit.
A slice of cake, perfect for Breakfast, evening snack
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Thank you Tina, I’m glad you liked the cake. It is indeed such a tasty treat any time of the day. 🙂
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Be still my heart! Lavender and lemon plus beautiful blueberries! How could this not be exquisite! I love the way the swirl formed. Yum, yum, yum.
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Thank you Dorothy, I’m glad you liked the cake. This combination is indeed a winner. The marbling effect was even more noticeable in other slices, but they were gone so quickly, I didn’t have a chance to take more photos! 🙂
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Ah! What our family refers to as a dish with “no keeping quality!”
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Precisely! 🙂
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Delicious! I didn’t used to like lavender but it’s been growing on me for the past few years. This looks so beautiful and fresh.
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Thank you Jin, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty and fragrant. Lavender can be overpowering, so it’s important to use it sparingly. 🙂
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This looks unbelievable!
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Glad you liked it Blaine. It was very tasty. 🙂
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Do you have a lot of room in your freezer? You need to start saving me a portion of EVERYTHING you cook. I’ll make a trip there every month or two to pick up my share. At least, that’s what a nice person would do. 🙂
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lol That’s quite a plan! I’m afraid I’m too nice, so there’s a long waiting list. I’ll keep you in mind, and update once there will be any vacancies. 🙂
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I see,,,,,, 😠
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Hang in there… 😀
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Looks very tasty! I love the combo of lemon and blueberry flavors and lavender is so good.
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Thank you Michelle, I’m glad you liked the cake. This combination is indeed a winner. 🙂
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Yummy 😋
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Thank you Kim! 🙂
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Sounds and looks absolutely divine! 😍 saved!
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Thank you, I’m glad you liked the cake. It was very tasty. I hope you’ll enjoy it. 🙂
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Yum!
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Thank you Preethi. 🙂
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Yummy Combo!
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Thank you Smitha! 🙂
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Gorgeous
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Thank you! 🙂
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Wow.. beautiful 💕
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Thank you Syamala. 🙂
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So delish. Loved it.
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Thank you Juliet. 🙂
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Marble effect looks great Ronit!! With so many flavors, cake must have disappeared soon😋😋
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Thank you Deeksha, I’m glad you liked the cake. You got it right – it disappeared in no time! 🙂
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I’m trying this next week!
Miamii / https://explorewithmii.com/
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Thank you for commenting. I hope you’ll enjoy the cake. 🙂
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