a scrumptious treat from the Blueberries for Sal cookbook

~ jama

“Little Bear and his mother went home down one side of Blueberry Hill, eating blueberries all the way, and full of food stored up for next winter.“ ~ Robert McCloskey

Kuplink, kuplank, kuplunk!

Sounds like Little Sal is tossing a few blueberries into her tin pail — and when I say “a few,” I mean the ones she hasn’t yet eaten, which number very few indeed.

As we all know from reading Robert McCloskey’s classic picture book Blueberries for Sal, this adorable munchkin simply couldn’t get enough of those tender juicy orbs while out berry picking with her mom on Blueberry Hill.

Can’t say I blame her: when I visited the Southern Coast of Maine ten years ago, I was finally able to try wild Maine blueberries for the very first time. So good! The lowbush berries like Sal ate are smaller and sweeter than the highbush variety widely available in supermarkets around the country. If I had gone blueberry picking with Sal and her mom, there wouldn’t be any berries in my pail at all. 🙂

I was positively giddy when the Blueberries for Sal Cookbook: Sweet Recipes Inspired by the Beloved Children’s Classic (Clarkson Potter, 2023) was released in June. I thoroughly enjoyed perusing this adorable collection, which is basically a baker’s delight.

It’s the perfect example of the “good things come in small packages” adage: a small trim size (5″ x 7″) with just 30 recipes, but it packs a delicious punch. At least 80% of the recipes are ones I’d actually like to make, and it was wonderful seeing McCloskey’s art gracing the pages, along with interesting blueberry tidbits (facts about varieties, nutritive value, tips for use in savory dishes, etc.).

Though not a children’s cookbook per se, it contains fun recipes for families to make together, and it would make a nice keepsake/gift book for those who grew up loving McCloskey’s work. Of course, it’s just the thing for blueberry lovers of all ages.

Needless to say, Mr Cornelius and the Alphabet Soup kitchen helpers were ecstatic about this new cookbook since they love the Blueberries for Sal story so much. Mama Bear and Little Bear fattening up on berries for the winter? Sal’s mother canning berries in their cozy kitchen? Sal and Little Bear sitting amid the berry bushes eating and eating and eating? What’s there not to love?

Or course it was hard picking which recipe to try. Among the chief contenders:

  • Blueberry Maple Pecan Scones
  • Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake
  • Blueberry Buttermilk Tartlets
  • Blueberry-Lemon Pudding Cake
  • Blueberry Almond Bear Claws

And yes, the standard Blueberry Muffins, Blueberry Pancakes, and Blueberry Jam were options too. What to do?

In the end, we left it up to Baby Bear. In case he looks familiar, it’s because he stars in his own book, Baby Bear Sees Blue by Ashley Wolff (Little Simon, 2014). It was only polite to let our special guest choose. 🙂

Though the recipe required more mixing bowls than usual, we had fun making the batter and streusel topping, then layering everything. This cake’s nice for breakfast, a snack, or dessert, and goes well with coffee, tea, or a cold glass of milk. We’re sure the people and bears in your house will like it. 🙂

Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake

  • Servings: makes one 9-inch square cake
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup plus 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1-1/2 cups plus 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature plus 2 tablespoons cold butter
  • 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
  • few pinches of flaky sea salt (optional)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1-1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square metal baking pan with cooking spray. You can also line the pan with two crisscrossed sheets of aluminum foil, leaving some overhang, so you can remove the entire cake from the pan before serving. Lightly spray the foil with cooking spray.
  2. In a medium bowl, add the 2/3 cup granulated sugar, the 2/3 cup flour, the brown sugar, and cinnamon and whisk to combine. Scoop out and remove 3/4 cup of the mixture to a second medium bowl. To the second bowl, add the 2 tablespoons cold butter and use your fingers to work the butter into the mixture. Stir in the nuts and flaky sea salt, if using, and set aside (this is the topping).
  3. In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the remaining 8 tablespoons of softened butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of granulated sugar and mix on medium-low speed until combined. Add the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla and mix on medium speed until combined.
  4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 1-1/2 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt and add to the batter. Mix on medium-low speed until combined, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until airy, about 1 minute.
  5. Use a silicone spatula to scrape half of the batter into the prepared baking pan. Sprinkle evenly with the sugar-flour mixture (the one without the nuts and butter) and top with the blueberries. Cover with the remaining batter, smoothing out the top. Scatter with the nut-and-butter streusel topping.
  6. Bake until the cake is browned on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 45-55 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely before slicing. Store in an airtight container for up to one week.
~ adapted from Blueberries for Sal Cookbook (Clarkson Potter, 2023), as posted at Jama’s Alphabet Soup.

*

While you’re feasting your eyes on this yummy treat, I must mention how much I love the Blueberries for Sal endpapers. It’s easily my favorite endpapers of all time. McCloskey’s dark blue line drawings for the entire book earned him a Caldecott Honor Medal in 1949, and it’s easy to see why.

But the endpapers? A nostalgic kitchen scene that beautifully depicts the heart of the home. Did you know the wood stove actually belonged to McCloskey’s mother-in-law Ruth Sawyer (herself an esteemed children’s book author)? From the polka dot curtains to the tiny kitten to the vintage egg beater in the drawer to the rubber canning seals on Sal’s arm — this is a picture for the ages.

Of course you probably know McCloskey’s elder daughter Sally and his wife Peggy were the models for Little Sal and her mom. They really did go berry picking one day, but McCloskey added the bears as he was sitting nearby sketching.

Described by one of his daughters as a shy and quiet man, Robert McCloskey started out wanting to be an inventor or musician. He published eight picture books, four set in Maine. With two Caldecott Medals and two Caldecott Honors, McCloskey was named a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress in 2000.

*

BLUEBERRIES FOR SAL COOKBOOK: Sweet Recipes Inspired by the Beloved Children’s Classic by Robert McCloskey
Recipes developed by Raquel Pelzel
Illustrated Literary Cookbook for ages 9+, 128 pp.
*Includes Introduction, Sidenotes, and Illustrations from the original picture book

Amazon
Bookshop

*

♥️ Click here to read my flashback post about visiting Maine for the first time, eating wild blueberry pie and ice cream and loving McCloskey’s book. Preview pics:

♥️ Enjoy some Blueberries for Sal merch (click on images for more info):

*

“And Little Sal and her mother went down the other side of Blueberry Hill, picking berries all the way, and drove home with food to can for next winter — a whole pail of blueberries and three more besides.” ~ Robert McCloskey

*Interior spreads text and illustrations copyright © 1948 Robert McCloskey, published by Viking. All rights reserved.

**Copyright © 2023 Jama Rattigan of Jama’s Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.

16 thoughts on “a scrumptious treat from the Blueberries for Sal cookbook”

  1. Pingback: dessert recipe archive | Jama's Alphabet Soup
  2. Pingback: chronological book review archive (2008-2023) | Jama's Alphabet Soup

  3. Yum, yum, yum, thanks for this scrumptious and delightful post and pics Jama! Robert McCloskey’s books are favs of mine and always bring me smiles, and what a lovely little cookbook too, thanks for sharing it! I love Maine and will revisit your post when not rushing off to teach. I remember fondly the wild blueberries scattered hither and yon…

    Liked by 1 person

  4. I think I must have this one, Jama. I eat blueberries every morning with granola & make blueberry pie often. Now it’s time for variation, right? It’s hard to believe that McCloskey wrote all those favorite books like ‘Blueberries for Sal’. When donated to the bookstore (not often), they leave very quickly! Thanks for a yummy post & about the endpapers, too. One grandmother continued to cook on a cast iron cookstove though in my early memories she also had an electric stove, too.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. This is just wonderful! Two days ago, I was with my granddaughter at the bookstore and she found this and ran up to me clutching it in her hands with a grin as wide as they come. I must have read that book to her a hundred times, it is still one of her favorites (I read it to her mother too when she was little), so needless to say, we left with a copy of this cookbook. It’s really good, and just as entertaining as the book.
    Highly recommended!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Jama, this is a darling post! We are a blueberry loving family. I love all the beautiful photos, pics from the book, and information about Robert McCloskey. I eat blueberries every morning, though raspberries are my favorite berry. Blueberries are my husband’s and oldest daughter’s favorite fruit. We all love strawberries, too. When the girls were young, I took them strawberry and raspberry picking on local farms. We would also pick wild raspberries and blackberries. There weren’t a lot of farms that had blueberries to pick, but there are, now. One time my husband and I picked blueberries that were almost as big as quarters. I have hiked many mountains that have wild blueberry plants, but the berries were never ripe when I was there. This past spring, my husband and I hiked up to a mountain summit where the wild blueberry bushes were all in bloom! Beautiful.

    Your pottery is beautiful! Is it handmade in Poland? I have a bowl with blueberries around it that is similar to your pottery, and I have two mugs that are similar with flowers. Thank you for sharing your yummy post. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks for sharing all your wonderful berry picking memories, Gail! You have sharp eyes — yes, the teapot and small plate are made in Poland. I think I’ve seen the blueberry pattern somewhere too. If only I had more storage space — I would buy more Polish pottery — beautiful and well made!

      Liked by 1 person

  8. Oh this looks like a book that I need (and would help me use up all the blueberries we picked and froze last summer!) In the summer of 1990, when my now 35-year old offspring was 2, we moved from upstate NY to Illinois. On that trip I read Blueberries for Sal approximately 147 times, which played a big part in making me want to write for kids. My dad, who grew up in Maine, called those little wild berries huckleberries. Which were vastly superior, in his opinion, than the Pennsylvania ones that my mom called huckleberries. Thanks for all the deliciousness and memories.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Wow, that must have been some trip with all those BFS readings!!! Cool to know that the book inspired you to write for children!! Yay, Robert McCloskey! Also cool that your Dad grew up in Maine. I’ve heard the term huckleberries, but haven’t seen them — they’re a totally separate fruit from blueberries, right?

      Like

Comments are closed.