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Coffeecake: Breakfast Or Dessert?

Photo by LYNN KESSEL

Twin Mountain Blueberry Coffee Cake is a moist, blueberry-studded, bake-and-take with a crunchy coconut topping. The recipe makes two, so you'll want to keep one for yourself.

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 25, 2008

Tack on the word "coffee," and some people think it is OK to wolf down a piggy slice of cake for breakfast. That certainly works for me.

I would have no vivid memories of my mom's blueberry coffee cake - an incredibly moist, blueberry-studded, bake-and-take with its crunchy coconut topping - if it wasn't for my mother's coffee club.

Lucky for us, her recipe made two cakes - one was kept at home and the other shared with her gal pals.

Mom made the recipe for a group of neighbors who gathered in the 1960s at each other's homes to nosh on something sweet while polishing off a pot of coffee.

As our school bus would disappear down Wisteria Lane - I mean Woodcliff Road - there were mornings, I'm sure, when Mom threw her hands in the air and screamed "hallelujah," as she plugged in the coffee percolator, without pausing. I think I did that a couple of times myself years later with my own children.

Coffeecake is simply a cake served with coffee. According to H.F. Ullman's "Culinaria Germany," it probably was no accident that cake-loving Saxons were also coffee-loving Saxons.

Back in the 18th century, German or Scandinavian women used to participate in what was called a "coffee sisterhood," a break in the day to meet for some coffee, a sweet and casual conversation.

That pretty much describes my mom's neighborhood coffee klatches.

I'd never made my Mom's coffeecake until a few weeks ago, when I was home alone on a weekday morning. I felt a surge of nostalgia as I awoke and remembered the pint of fresh blueberries I had stored in the fridge.

Mom's twin mountain blueberry coffeecake recipe originated with her best friend, Ruby, the likely ring leader of those mid-morning socials.

A person working 9 to 5 doesn't get much of a crack at partaking in the antiquated custom of "coffee sisterhood." Nowadays, we grab a cup of java and a Pop Tart and just keep going.

Hmmm. Then again, one could always quit working. ...

TWIN MOUNTAIN BLUEBERRY COFFEECAKE

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup shortening

2 eggs

1 cup milk

11/2 cup blueberries

11/3 cups flaked coconut

Mix and sift flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening with two knives or pastry blender. Combine eggs and milk; stir into dry ingredients. Fold in blueberries. Divide batter between 2 greased and parchment-paper-lined, 9-inch layer cake pans. Sprinkle coconut evenly over tops. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Serves 12.

A note about the recipe: To prevent your blueberries from settling on the bottom like mine did, toss them first with one or two teaspoons flour mixture to lightly coat before adding them to your batter. This cake is especially good served warm.

Lynn Kessel can be reached at lkessel@mac.com or P.O. Box 913, Ruskin FL 33575-0286. For more of her recipes, visit southshore.tbo.com and enter keyword: Lynn Kessel. Readers are invited to send in their favorite recipes, comments and suggestions.

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