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Blueberry, coconut, and lime bake

With the arrival of blueberry season, a new combination with tropical flavors makes an unusual summer treat. 

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Perre Coleman Magness/The Runaway Spoon
A summery combination of blueberries, coconut, and lime can be served for breakfast or as a snack.

I’ll admit, blueberries and coconut are not a combination I would have thought up. Then I had a blueberry and coconut popsicle at a Mexican paleta shop and the idea sort of took off. I’ve been thinking of interesting and complex ways to make the most out of the combo, dreaming up ideas for cakes and bars and pies to create recipes for. In the meantime, I rather accidentally converted an old recipe to the new ingredient and it worked out so well, I thought I better share it.

My first pass at this used lemon, and it was delicious. But when I was making it again to photograph and test, it occurred to me that lime added to the slightly tropical feel of the coconut, and, well, I happened to have some limes on the counter. This dessert is so simple with so much reward. Use those last berries from your farmers market haul and the rest of the ingredients are probably already hanging around. The coconut adds a wonderful, slightly chewy texture with a little zip from the limes and a nice burst of juicy berries.

Blueberry and coconut lime bake
 

1-1/2 sticks butter
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 egg
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
juice and zest of one lime
1 pint blueberries

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 1-quart baking dish.

2. Beat the butter and 1/2 cup sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in the egg until combined, then the sour cream until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in the lime zest until it is evenly distributed. Beat in the coconut, flour, baking powder and salt until the batter is thoroughly combined and smooth.

3. Sprinkle most of the blueberries over the bottom of the prepared dish, reserving a small handful for the top. Squeeze the lime juice over the top of the blueberries. Spoon the batter over the berries and spread out to evenly cover. I find a slightly damp hand the best tool for this. Press the remaining berries over the top of the batter, then sprinkle over the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar.

4. Bake for 30 minutes until the top is golden brown and firm.

See related post on The Runaway Spoon: Strawberry Almond Morning Cake 

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