Truth be known, this is a recipe that called for rhubarb. Couple of things, I’m not growing rhubarb in my backyard nor have I bought any as I just saw this posted by Lucy Waverman, another Canadian food icon. It would be amazing with rhubarb, I can just taste the sour/sweet rhubarb blending in but highlighting the taste of the cake. I will most definitely try this with the rhubarb – when I pick some up. But for now, pantry staples and all, just using what I have on hand.

I used a cup of blueberries, and about 1/2 cup of strawberry jam to make this loaf. Blueberries alone wouldn’t cut it for me, I might as well bake a blueberry loaf – been there, done that – b o r i n g!! I needed something else and a careful search of my fridge revealed an almost empty jar of strawberry jam – just the right amount for what I was thinking for this cake/loaf. These one bowl recipes are my kind of recipes. Everything goes into one bowl and gets mixed. It calls for softened butter and cream. Make sure the butter is soft, spreadable soft or it will take a lot longer to mix. If you don’t have 35% cream – I use it often for baking so it is a staple in my fridge, you can use homogenized milk. You won’t get that richness or mouthfeel but you will still enjoy this tasty recipe. It’s not too sweet, which is always a big hit in my household.

To get the fruit throughout the loaf, spread a thin layer of the batter on the bottom of the parchment lined loaf pan and sprinkle some blueberries on top, dot with the jam. Repeat this two more times ending each layer with the berries and jam (yes they are thin layers which meld together beautifully when baking). It’s a thicker batter that doesn’t really lend itself to pouring so patience and a butter knife helps. If you want you could also add some walnuts, pecans or almonds along with/instead of any of the flavoring ingredients. Perfect for a mid morning snack, mid afternoon or anytime slice. If you don’t have a loaf tin, use a 8″ square or round pan. Suggested loaf tin baking time was 30 – 40 minutes, mine took 60 (I checked at 30 still jiggly, 40, 50 – still some batter on the tooth pick, 55 – almost done, 60 – spot on). Let it cool for about 10 minutes before running a knife around the edges and pulling it out using the parchment overhang. Let cool completely before slicing. As always – enjoy!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup “softened” butter – microwave to soften, some melting is good
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup blueberries
1/2 cup strawberry jam

Heat the oven to 350f
Grease and line with parchment a standard loaf tin – 9″ x 5″, leave an overhang of parchment on either side of the tin, it will make it easier to remove
Combine all the ingredients to make a smooth batter – use a whisk or rubber spatula
Spread just enough batter on the bottom to cover the base, sprinkle with 1/3 of the berries, dot with 1/3 of the jam
Spread another 1/3 of the batter and repeat with the berries and jam
Spread the last portion of batter, top with the remaining berries and jam
Bake for 50 – 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean
Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before running a knife around the edges and using the excess parchment, transfer to a cooling rack
Let cool completely before slicing – (yeah right)