Blueberry Almond Breakfast Cake

After a very disappointing round of blueberry apple muffins, I started my online search for the perfect blueberry muffin recipe. Unfortunately I did not find anything that I had to try. Vegan Yum Yum did have some very appetizing pictures of blueberry breakfast cakes. After reading over her description, I had to try them. I agree with her when she describes them as "moist & fluffy...a crunchy sugar top".

Instead of 1 cup of sugar, I only used 1/2 cup. Next time I will increase to 3/4 cup of sugar. For the oil, I used 1/4 cup refined coconut oil & 1/4 unrefined extra virgin coconut oil. I added 1 teaspoon of almond extract & did 1/2 cup dried blueberries and 1/4 cup chopped almonds. For the topping, I used raw coarse turbinado sugar + chopped almonds + dried blueberries.
The cakes tasted closer to pound cake to me, but not really, plus I haven't had any since I was a little girl. It's possible that the addition of almonds plus the almond extract gave the cakes a denser texture & flavor. Although the cakes tasted good to me, I will add more lemon extract or the zest of a lemon or more vanilla extract next time because they lacked the complexity of flavor that I'm looking for in my desserts/baked goods. I increased the amount of baking powder to see if the cakes would rise more, but they looked very similar to Vegan Yum Yum's. Next time around, I think I will try 1/2 tsp baking soda and using about 2 1/2 - 3 teaspoons of baking powder to see if that makes any difference. This time I used all AP flour, I'm hoping to use at least half whole wheat pastry flour or spelt. Also, my cakes got quite brown on top, I think I will decrease the oven heat a bit next time to around 375F - 380F, as my oven runs a little hot. The recipe made 10 cakes for me.

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Blueberry Almond Breakfast Cakes

1 1/2 cups + 2 tblspn AP flour
1 tsp baking soda (1/2 tsp next time)
2 + 1/2 tsp baking powder (2 tsp)
1/8 tsp salt

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil (coconut)
1 ener-g egg replacer (1 1/2 tsp + 2 tblspn warm water)
1 cup vanilla soy yogurt (Stonyfield Farm O'Soy, my favorite brand)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp lemon extract or zest of one lemon

1/2 cup dried blueberries + 1/4 cup chopped almonds
cupcake liners

• Preheat oven to 375 - 380F & line for 10 - 12 muffins.
  
• Mix & sift all the dry ingredients, including the sugar, into a large bowl. Use a whisk to incorporate everything. Remove 1 tblspn and mix with dried berries and almonds.
• Whisk all wet ingredients, oil, "egg", yogurt, extracts thoroughly together.
• Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Using a silicon spatula, gently fold until barely JUST INCORPORATED, lumpiness & little loss flour is ok. Add blueberries + almonds with only a few more stirs.
• Distribute the batter as evenly as possible. It's ok if the liners are full since these do not rise very much at all. Sprinkle the tops with blueberries, almonds + coarse sugar and slightly push the topping into the batter. Bake for 23-26 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness & tops look lightly golden brown.
  
• Let them cool completely on a wire rack before tasting since they taste best at room temperature.

Side Note: I was browsing through foodnetwork.com and this recipe seems to be the veganized version of Alton Brown's blueberry muffins. Check it out if you're interested in another version.
08/02/07: My mom said these tasted a bit dry...I think I accidentally used 2 tsp egg replacer instead of 1 1/2 tsp. Or I may need to add more oil/yogurt next time.