Jan 9, 2014

Time for Tea {Blueberry and Yogurt Loaf}

It's Time for Tea @ I Heart Cooking Clubs.


 

This week we're cooking up Donna Hay recipes that go great with tea, are made with tea, or just make you think about tea.


But when I think about tea, thoughts of coffee immediately pop into my head.
Coffee or tea?
Tea is always the outcast in that match-up.


Coffee makes me so much more pleasant.
My co-workers never, ever begrudge me my morning cup.  (They don't dare.)


So I enjoyed Donna Hay's Blueberry and Yogurt Loaf with a cup of coffee rather than tea.  And thought about how maybe my co-workers deserve some of this bread for putting up with my pre-coffee non-verbal mutterings and thousand yard stares.


Review:
I don't think I've ever used yogurt in baking.  There's no question that the yogurt made the bread moist.  The loaf was also dense, buttery, and lemony.  More lemony than I thought it would be.  The texture was almost like pound cake.  I figured it would be good, but I wasn't prepared for how good.

Blueberries are my favorite fruit and I felt that the recipe could have used more of them.  Although I didn't top the loaf with additional berries (mine were frozen).  Even if I had, I still think I'd want more in the bread itself.

Truthfully, I dislike baking.  Really dislike baking.  I especially dislike making bread in loaf pans.  The loaves seem to brown too quickly--well before the middle bakes through.  A reader once gave me a tip that takes advantage of this browning, creating an awesome sweet, crunchy crust.  After greasing your pan, dust with cinnamon sugar instead of flour.
(Thank you Mom Chef!)

Donna Hay's recipe can be found on her website.

IHCC Donna Hay Badge resized Google+

15 comments:

  1. It's a beautiful loaf!!
    I'll tell you a secret - I've never baked with blueberries....
    I so want to now :)

    What you can do if the middle is not baked yet and the side are, is cover the pan with an aluminium foil - but cut the middle 1st. You can also buy a special towel-belt for pans from Wiltons/

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  2. Hi Michelle,
    I just saw a comment from you on another blog… sure miss your recipes on Foodie Friday. If you have time stop by tonight after 8:30pm or tomorrow.

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  3. My gosh ... I am so ready for spring and spring flavors! Lemon and blueberries are a great combo! Pinned this, Michelle :)

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  4. Blueberry and lemon is such a great pairing--it always makes me happy.

    Not a big baking fan either--I tend make mini quick bread loaves because there is less worry about the browning/undone middle thing. ;-)

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  5. The bread looks perfect! I make something similar (but not with yogurt) and pour a lavender glaze over the top. I'm a tea in the afternoon and coffee anytime kinda gal. :) Beautiful photos!

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  6. A slice of this and a cup of coffee? Perfect!

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  7. Love the sound of the flavours. The world is indeed divided into the tea and coffee lovers camps. I need my cuppa tea early in the morning or am as grumpy as a bear. use yogurt often in my baking and find that it lends moisture.

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  8. Hi Michelle, We made this cake in the Donna Hay Wednesday group and I was the smart gal who chose it. We love it and I am glad you did too. I used it in IHCC also. Yours looks so tempting.

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  9. I almost made this one this week too, but in the end I couldn't be bothered going out to the supermarket, so opted for something using ingredients I already had on hand - which didn't include blueberries. I love yoghurt based cakes though - I love the moistness you get and the lemony tang. I don't like baking either - I always have so much angst over it, but this loaf looks as though you have the perfect amount of golden exterior to moist and perfectly cooked interior.

    I love a good cup of tea, but given the choice coffee would always win.

    Hope you survived all the freaky weather ok down your way.

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  10. Hi Michelle,
    I love blueberries in bakes and your loaf looks moist and good! And I like using yoghurt in bakes too. A slice or two of this lovely cake is calling for a cuppa tea, or coffee! I love both tea and coffee!

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  11. I love lemony blueberry cakes and your loaf would go perfectly with a cup of coffee or tea. I've bookmarked the recipe but I'll add more berries as you suggest.

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  12. Happy New Year! And thanks for sharing this bread! It looks so pretty and I bet it tastes lovely.

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  13. Michelle, for someone who dislikes baking (I share your disdain actually), you've done an amazing job - this looks gorgeous. I almost made this one myself this week, but since I couldn't be bothered going out to get blueberries I opted for something using ingredients I already had on hand. After seeing your loaf though, I am determined to make this soon.

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  14. Ok, can I say that I really wanted to make this recipe but I didn't have any dang lemon! I made sure to buy some lemons at the store because I'm making this really soon. It looks fantastic!

    Hope you're doing well :) Happy New Year to you!

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  15. This is a good moist cake. We made it for WWDH and it was popular with everyone. I like the cinnamon sugar idea.

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Thanks for stopping by! I appreciate your comments.