I’m participating in this year’s Whip It Up Challenge. I’m looking forward to trying new recipes each week and seeing what all the other bloggers cooked up!

This week’s theme was “Holiday” Favorites. With the Fourth of July coming up and blueberries being in season, I wanted to something that had blueberries (one my favorite summer foods) and was a dessert, so I attempted the recipe for Blueberry Buckle from O Magazine.

Ingredients

Crumble:

1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 t. ground cinnamon
4 T. butter (cold)

Batter:

4 T. butter
5 T. granulated sugar
1 egg
1 t. baking soda
1/2 c. buttermilk

Filling:

4 c. (2 pints) blueberries
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. flour
3 T. granulated sugar

Directions

1. To prepare crumble: Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and break apart with fingers. Refrigerate.

2. To prepare batter: In a medium-size bowl, cream butter and sugar, then mix in egg. Sift together dry ingredients. Add half the dry ingredients to the creamed butter; mix, then add buttermilk; mix, then add remaining dry ingredients; mix just to combine. Refrigerate batter 30 minutes.

3. To prepare filling: Combine all ingredients in a bowl; stir.

4. Grease eight 6-ounce ramekins or soufflé dishes (or one large Pyrex pie pan). Add 1/4 cup batter to each mold, smoothing mixture with a plastic spatula. Add 1/2 cup blueberries, then top each with 1/4 cup crumble. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes, until top is browned and filling just starts to bubble. Remove from oven and allow to cool 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

My Thoughts

The recipe was very straightforward and easy to make. I used a Pyrex pie pan and wish I had ramekins on hand. It would have cooked easier and more evenly, especially in the middle. Not to mention, it would be easier to get from the pan to the plate. Was it good? Yes! It would also be delish with ice cream. I’m planning to add this to my summer dessert favorites. Enjoy!

Today I told my boss I was planning on moving out of Boston at the end of summer. Boston is a very transient place if you don’t have any strong ties to the city. A big leap, considering I don’t have a job lined up or a place to live that is not a relative’s house. This is a great chance to find the job that is right for me. I can take the the time to make sure that the new job is the right fit.

I’m looking forward to returning home to Pittsburgh. I’m looking forward to being close to the family, reconnecting with old friends and making new ones, finally starting on my MBA and rediscovering my hometown. Plus, I’ll be within 4 hours of some of my closest friends from college, bonus! So excited.

I’ll be sad to leave Boston, but know this is the right choice for me. I’m a Pittsburgh girl at heart and have had the opportunity to live in some amazing cities, but there is no place like home.

I’ve been in a slump lately, so here’s how I can sum up my weekend:

* Friday, I watched Revolutionary Road. Great movie, but very heartbreaking. Kinda makes me want to go to Paris and find myself.
* Saturday, I helped my friend Lisa celebrate her birthday/graduation. We realized that we were old enough to have given birth to some of the guys of the bar we were in. But, it was still a fun night.
* Stats, how I loathe thee. I’m taking a class to beef up my math skills before I start the MBA and I spent all weekend on two assignments. Including an hour on one problem. Nuts.
* The Gap and I have a love-hate relationship. Sometimes the clothes are great and sometimes they aren’t. I stopped by after my haircut this weekend and picked up a few things at a great price. I walked out with the below, plus three pairs of socks for $20, yay for good deals.