I found my thrill…in a Blueberry Coffee Cake

[tweetmeme https://localfoodrocks.wordpress.com/2010/07/28/i-found-my-thrill-in-a-blueberry-coffee-cake%5D

Why is it when you take a vacation, you come home with less motivation than before the trip?  After having back to back vacations, I started the week with noble attempts in getting projects done,  but now mid-week I am zapped.   Vacation life was incredible…we were in  Napa (the town of Yountville) and I couldn’t have been more relaxed.  The biggest stress was deciding what to get from the demoniacal bakery literally next door to our hotel. Now back home I am having a hard time adjusting and can’t decide what to cook for the life of me.  And when I walk next door, I keep asking for fabulous chocolate donuts and coffee. My neighbor is getting madder by the day, insisting that her house is NOT Bouchon Bakery.

So for this week’s post I bring you breakfast…this was a recipe I made for the first of my two vacations…a gal pal trip to Galena.  I made it with farmers market blueberries and it makes a whole 9 x 12 pan of goodness, so there’s plenty to share.

This recipe comes from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Vegan With a Vengeance.  You can use dairy in place of the soy items and it works just as well.  However I don’t think I would use anything but real maple syrup (but once you use real, Mrs. Butterworth will seem like a cheap whore to you…trust me).

Blueberry Coffee Cake

For the Topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup chopped walnuts

For the Cake:
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 cup canola oil
1 (6-ounce) container vanilla soy yogurt
1 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 cups plain soy milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups fresh blueberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease or spray a 9×13 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Make the topping:

Sift together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Drizzle in the oil a little at a time and mix with your fingertips until crumbs form. Add the walnuts and mix.

Make the cake:

Sift together the dry ingredients into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, vigorously whisk together the wet ingredients until well combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the blueberries. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and sprinkle the topping over it. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean. Tastes great still warm.