Bring on the Buckle

Demystifying the buckle…

If you happen to have a lot of extra fruit on your trees right about now, or you are just plain living right and your friends are lugging  peaches and other goodies over your way, you can use them to make a buckle! Are you wondering what a buckle is? Well, I wondered about that too.

Ok, we know it’s getting close to rodeo time at the Mariposa Fair, but, it’s not one of these:

Buckles are a traditional fruit-studded dessert that’s like a soft, moist cake that look like this:

 

Isn’t this a pretty one?

But don’t you wonder about that odd name?  Me too, so I just had to find out the origins of the dessert buckle, and here is the scoop!

“A buckle is a dessert which combines fresh seasonal fruit, a rich
cake batter, and a streusel topping. The result is a rich, dense cake with a
moist crumb which is sometimes compared to coffee cake. It is an excellent
summer dessert, and can be served hot or cold, plain or dressed with drizzles
of sauce. Making buckle at home is relatively easy, and a great way to use
fresh fruit.

The origins of buckle are a bit mysterious. The dish has been in
the United States for centuries, suggesting that it may have been developed by
colonists. Buckle is extremely popular in New England, where it is often made
with blueberries. While blueberry buckle is a classic version, the dessert can
also be made with peaches, nectarines, raspberries, and any other fresh fruit
that can be imagined. Many cooks mix several types of fruit in their buckle.

The base of buckle is a rich cake batter, which is sprinkled with
fresh fruit. Some cooks prefer to split their batter, layering half in the
bottom of the pan and mixing the other half with the fruit before pouring it
in. The fruit is topped with a streusel mixture. During the baking process, the
cake batter rises up around the fruit, encasing the fruit in batter and causing
the streusel to buckle, creating a distinctive crinkly appearance.”

Our Grandmothers probably knew the buckle recipe by heart, because there are some recipes in Dianna’s recipe box that are strikingly similar to the traditional buckle, and so many of her recipes have been passed down from her Mom and Grandma Hazel. So there ya go.

Well, anyway, I learned about raspberry and fruit “buckles” while checking out my online newspaper today, but you can
use any fruits really. Check out the recipe.

What could be a better dessert to have on a late summer day? Oh, and it sounds so good, that you’d best probably make an extra buckle for your special person!

Cherry-Raspberry Buckle

From EatingWell.com

You can actually try any fruit combination that sounds good to you. Just don’t exceed the total of 3 cups fruit — too much fruit will make the cake too wet. In this Buckle, you can see that it’s all about raspberries and blueberries. (And yes, you can use the frozen ones too!)

Yields: 8 servings

Total Time: 1 hr 40 min

Prep Time: 20 min

Oven Temp: 350

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup(s) white whole-wheat flour (see Notes)
• 2 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 1/2 cup(s) low-fat milk
• 1/2 cup(s) unsweetened apple sauce
• 1/2 cup(s) light olive oil or canola oil
• 1/2 cup(s) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup(s raspberries or blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1 1/2 cup(s) halved pitted sweet cherries, fresh or frozen, or chopped ripe apricots (1/2-inch pieces)
• 2 tablespoon(s) sliced almonds
• 2 teaspoon(s) raw cane sugar, such as Demerara or turbinado (optional; see Notes)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9-inch baking dish or spring form pan with cooking spray. (If using frozen fruit, let stand for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, to partially defrost before folding into the batter.)
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk milk, applesauce, oil, granulated sugar, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl until blended. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently fold until blended.
   Sprinkle berries and cherries (or apricots) on top and fold just until blended. Spoon the batter into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with almonds and raw sugar (if using).
3. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs, 45 to 55 minutes. Let cool for about 30 minutes before serving.

Exchanges: 1 starch, 1/2 fruit, 1 carbohydrate (other), 3 fat Carbohydrate
Servings: 2 Nutrition Bonus: Iron (20% daily value).