Blueberry Streusel Cake

For this month's Secret Recipe Club, I was assigned Anne-Marie of This Mama Cooks!

I was intrigued by her Avocado Ricotta Pound Cake, and totally have her Mexican Breakfast Casserole on my list, but ended up choosing this Blueberry Streusel Cake. 

It was easy to put together.  I did make a few changes, and if there is a next time I will make more changes. To me, in the morning, even with coffee, the cinnamon in the streusel is overpowering, as is the sheer amount of streusel.  I thought about leaving some off as I was dumping it over the batter, but I didn't.  Next time I will, and I'll probably also cut back on the dry ingredients and increase the butter.  But maybe that's just me.

I had to bake this cake almost double the suggested time--15 additional minutes!  At 20 minutes it was still raw (I know this because my pan is clear (see below) AND the toothpick came up with batter on it.  In the end it turned out fine, but if you have somewhere to be, maybe choose a quicker recipe.

H-Bomb likes this cake a lot, and ate two pieces for breakfast!  Sawed Off is refusing to try it (nothing new) and Number One said he'll have some later. 

So, it's a good cake and we'll probably eat it all, but to be honest it makes me long for my mom's amazing Blueberry Tea Cake.  I wish that is the cake I'd made.  I'll have to get that recipe from her and share it soon.

Blueberry Muffin Streusel Cake
Adapted from This Mama Cooks via a friend via Holly Clegg?  
(I'm not sure where the recipe originally came from, but I found it at This Mama Cooks!) 
Makes 12 servings

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons oil
1 cup fresh blueberries

Streusel Topping (recipe follows)


Preheat oven to 375°F.  Coat a 9x9x2-inch square pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.

In bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, sugar, milk, egg and vanilla.

Stir in oil and blueberries, only until mixed.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup reserved Streusel Topping (recipe below) on bottom of pan. Carefully spread cake mixture on top. Cover with remaining reserved Streusel Pecan Topping.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out dry.

Streusel Topping
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup chopped pecans

In small bowl, mix together sugar, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon.
Cut in vanilla and butter using pastry blender or fork.
Reserve 1/2 cup topping and add pecans to remaining topping.

An InLinkz Link-up

Glazed Stuffed Pork Chops

Glazed Stuffed Pork Chops
4 VERY thick pork chops
8 slices oatnut bread
butter
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup apricot pineapple jam, room temperature**
1 tablespoon peach schnapps
1 large lemon, juiced

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Slit each pork chop along 2 sides to create a large pocket.
• *Toast each slice of bread well and then lightly butter.
• Cut each piece into small squares.
• Toss with thyme, garlic salt and pepper.
• Stuff each pork chop with 1/3 cup of mixture.
• Whisk together the jam, peach schnapps, red pepper flakes, ginger and lemon juice.
• Place chops in a square greased baking dish.
• Arrange remaining stuffing around the edges.
• Glaze chops and stuffing tops.
• Bake uncovered 30 minutes.
• Turn chops, glaze chops and stuffing again. Bake another 30 minutes.

*If you prefer, prepare 1 box of stove top stuffing instead.
**Tonight I used Lemon Curd and had a distinctively fresh flavor with the same consistency.  Use whatever flavor speaks to you.

Slow-Cooked Kalua Pork

Once you taste this pork, you will never believe it has only three ingredients!  It is succulent and flavorful and simply amazing.  We plan to make it again and again.  We made two batches of this to feed two families totaling 10 people (5 adults and 5 kids).  We ended up stirring the two slow cookers into one after the meat was shredded.  I don't have a picture because we proceeded to eat a TON of pork sandwiches.  We'll be making it again soon though, so stay tuned!!

The recipe comes from January 2014 The Costco Connection, attributed to Michelle Tam.  I used Red Hawaiian Sea Salt from Frontier for the recipe. (follow the link to purchase--I am glad I bought a pound of red salt as this recipe is a keeper!)  The only thing we changed was adding more bacon and slow-cooking the meat overnight, then we shredded it and reheated before dinner.  The salt colors the outside of the meat a deep, beautiful red, and any crunchy outside bits are the best!  We served ours on rolls with coleslaw (on top or on the side).  It makes a lot.  Buy the best pork roast you can find and make this recipe!

Slow Cooker Kalua Pork
Serves a lot.

3 bacon slices (we used 1/2 package of bacon per slow cooker)
5-pound Boston butt pork roast (bone in or boneless)
1-1/2 tablespoons coarse (or 1 tablespoon fine) Red Hawaiian Sea Salt
toasted rolls, for serving
coleslaw, for serving


Line the bottom of the slow cooker with strips of bacon.  Evenly salt the pork with the red Hawaiian sea salt.  Place the roast in the slow cooker on top of the bacon, skin side up.

Cook the roast on low for 16 hours.
Shred the meat with a couple forks, discarding any excess fat chunks.  You can either do this right in the slow cooker, or by taking the meat out, shredding it on a pan, then mixing it back in with the liquid in the slow cooker.  This reheats beautifully, so if you don't want to get up at 1 or 2:am to turn on your slow cooker, it's not a big deal to cook it when it's more convenient.  Just be sure you allow 16 hours for cooking!