Blueberry Crumb Bars

In honor of summer and blueberry picking, we're continuing the trend of blueberry-related posts here at Dinner from Last Night. I'm going to start counting how many times I use the word "blueberry". Blueberry blueberry blueberry. That's 6, for those counting along.

John and I can't decide whether the Blueberry Ice Cream from Tuesday or the Blueberry Crumb Bars I'm posting today are better. It's really an amazingly delicious toss up. My stepmom Candy called these magical when I brought some on my visit to the homestead last week. So, maybe they win. Either way, they're both awesome.


Blueberry Crumb Bars
Source: Smitten Kitchen, originally from AllRecipes.com

1 and 1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cold unsalted butter
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
4 cups fresh blueberries
4 tsp cornstarch

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 9x13 baking dish.

In a medium bowl stir together 1 cup sugar, flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and lemon zest. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in butter and egg. Press half of the dough into the prepared pan.

In another bowl, stir together 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the blueberries. Spread blueberries over the crust. Sprinkle the remaining dough over the blueberry layer.

Bake for 45 minutes or until top crust is golden brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Enjoy!

P.S. John unearthed his old super-nice flash, so if you've noticed significantly better lighting in the recent posts, no you are not going crazy. Be prepared for improved pictures!

P.S.S. I used the word "blueberry" 14 times. Sweet.

Blueberries Blueberries Everywhere

In an attempt to do things other than cook, clean, and watch TV all weekend, John and I went blueberry picking last Saturday afternoon. Which then resulted in me cooking everything and anything blueberry related all day Sunday. So really, our attempt to get out of the house resulted in us being cooped up in the kitchen making glorious blueberry treats all day. Which, in retrospect, wasn't necessarily a bad thing, since we get to eat all of the anti-oxidant rich goodies. See, we're being healthy, right?


We each picked over 2 pounds of blueberries... which means we had nearly 5 pounds. I'm not kidding 5 pounds of blueberries. And if you're looking for a cost-effective way of getting your hands on these little suckers, seriously go to a u-pick farm and pick them yourself. It was super fun, although super hot... but we got all of those blueberries for about $7. Seriously, ~5lbs for $7? Yes, please.


So far we've used up almost half and I'll be posting more ways to consume and cook blueberries in the next couple days. It will be antioxidant week on Dinner from Last Night! (In the fields I kept calling the blueberries "glorious sacks of antioxidants". I'm pretty sure John thought I had lost it... I'll chalk it up to heat exhaustion.)


Blueberry Ice Cream
Adapted from Annie Eats

I accidentally used way more vodka than the original recipe calls for. I thought I could remember the recipe and instead of walking back to my computer or printing it off, which would have been the intelligent thing to do, I just guessed. It came out really nicely though. From what I've read, the alcohol in the vodka keeps the ice cream from getting too hard in the freezer. The addition of more cream and vodka from the original recipe made this ice cream amazingly creamy and soft, which I wasn't expecting based on the ingredients. Feel free to dial the vodka down if that isn't your thing, or leave it out completely. This won't last long enough for the ice cream to get hard anyway!

2 cups fresh blueberries
3/4 cups water
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp vodka (optional)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

In a medium saucepan, cook blueberries, water and sugar over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool for about 30 seconds.

Transfer to a food processor or blender and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Be careful to let the processor vent! The blueberry mix will be HOT. If you want, strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve. I didn't do this step. I like the chunks. But, do whatever suits your ice-cream-consistency desires. Stir in the vodka if using. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours or up to 24. I let it go for a little under 3. I was impatient.

Add the cream and lemon juice to the blueberry mixture and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm. Or eat it straight from the ice cream maker for a little soupier ice cream.

Enjoy!