The temperature was 38 below, the snow piled almost to the top of the privacy fence, the raised container garden was under at least three feet of the powdery white stuff. Beautiful, but too cold for this southerner to go outside for long. Finn, the German Shepherd longed for a walk in the worst way. Sorry, buddy, not today. But hang in there, spring’s coming.
I was on a visit to my youngest’s in Alaska. For me, being there was an adventure. But she was over the cold. The temps have been 40 below all winter and they’ve had lots more snow than usual. Icy roads, dark days, and cold, cold, cold.
A bowl of lemons sat on the kitchen counter and there were blueberries from last summer in the freezer. “What can we make that’s special from what we have on hand?” A quick search on the internet and loveandlemons.com popped up along with a tempting picture of Lemon Blueberry Bread. Perfect.
Just the smell of the lemon zest brightened the winter day. The recipe was simple. It only needed fifteen minutes prep time. The most difficult part was waiting for it to cool long enough to remove it from the pan. It smelled so good. And it tasted wonderful. Springtime.
When I came home, I made five more loaves to share with my family, my book club, and our Friday Family Fellowship. It tastes yummy and I think it will be a favorite around here. I hope you enjoy! And, thanks, Kristen (and Love & Lemons) for the recipe!
Lemon Blueberry Bread
- 1 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour, spoon and level
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 cup sea salt
- 1/2 cup cane sugar
- 1 TBSP lemon zest
- 3/4 cup whole milk greek yogurt
- 1/2 extra virgin olive oil plus more to oil the pan
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
- Lemon glaze if desired
Optional Lemon Glaze: juice of one lemon with confectioner’s sugar to desired consistency
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease an 8×4 or 9×5-inch loaf pan
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together
In a large bowl, combine sugar and lemon zest. With fingers, work zest into sugar to combine and bring out the zest’s fragrant oils. Add yogurt, olive oil, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, stirring just until combined. Fold in blueberries. The batter will be thick.
Pour into prepared pan, using a spatula to smooth the top.
Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into top comes out clean.
Let cool completely before removing the pan. If desired, drizzle with lemon glaze before slicing and serving.
Lots more delicious spring recipes can be found at Love & Lemons!
Are We There Yet? 