Lemon Triple Berry Buckle

I’m a sale shopper. Nothing makes my little heart soar more than those 4 little letters. S-A-L-E. Even if I don’t really need it, I can’t help myself if it’s on sale. A pair of shoes that I can’t wear through an entire shift at work without feeling crippled? But they’re adorable, and they’re on sale! 5 of the exact same shirt in different colors? They're half off!  Numerous bottles of BBQ sauce? They’re on sale for $1 and I have $1 off coupon. They’re FREE! No matter that I have no use for 8 bottles of BBQ sauce. I didn’t pay a dime!

Nothing gets me more than fresh fruit on sale. Every trip to the store, I load more fruit in my cart because, “you just can’t beat that price!” Before I know it, I have more fruit than is humanly possible to eat, and I’ve got to use it NOW. Because unlike BBQ sauce that’ll hang out in the pantry for awhile, fruit doesn’t stick around forever. We’re just hitting the stride of summer fruit sales, so right now, my fridge is packed with berries, cherries, and other fruity goodness just begging to be used up. When I saw this recipe, I knew it’d be the perfect way to show them off—a Lemon Triple Berry Buckle.

Honest truth—I’d never heard of a buckle before, other than what’s on a belt. Cobbler, crisp, crumble, pie—those I get. But buckle? What the heck is a buckle? Think of a buckle is a cake/crumble hybrid. A moist soft yellow cake base, a layer of delicious juicy berries, topped with a lemony sweet crumb topping. I think I found my new favorite thing to bake! It's perfect for summer picnics and barbecues. Portable cake you can eat with your hands, and no worries of melty, gooey frosting! It may be your perfect 4th of July treat!

I used a mixture of blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries, because I had them all hanging out in my fridge, but feel free to use whatever berries you want. And absolutely make sure you rub the lemon zest into the sugar first before mixing it in with the other ingredients. It releases all the oils from the zest and gives it a bright lemony pop.

Now to find more recipes to use up the rest of my raspberries and blueberries before I bring the next load of fruit home.

---

Lemon Triple Berry Buckle
Adapted from The City Sisters
Makes 9 to 12 servings



Crumb Topping:
1/3 cup granulated sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
½ cup all purpose flour
Pinch of salt
¼ cup (1/2 stick), unsalted butter, cubed, chilled

Cake:
1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup granulated sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2 eggs
½ cup buttermilk
2 to 2 ½ cups berries (I used blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray with nonstick cooking spray a 9x9-inch square baking pan. Line with parchment paper, leaving 2-inch overhang on opposite sides. Spray parchment paper with cooking spray; set aside.
2. Make crumb topping: In a medium bowl, rub granulated sugar and lemon zest with your fingers until sugar is moist, and has the consistency of sand. Add flour and salt and stir to combine. Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, with some butter the size of peas and some the size of oatmeal flakes. (Alternately, you can combine the ingredients in a food processor, pulsing to combine.) Place mixture in the fridge to chill while you make the cake.
3. Make the cake: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt until well combined. In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together granulated sugar and lemon zest until sugar is moist and sand-like. Add butter, and combine with sugar until mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until combined, and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk. Remove bowl from the mixer and fold 1 cup of the berries by hand.
4. Spread batter into prepared baking pan. Distribute remaining berries over the top of the batter. Sprinkle chilled crumb topping over the berries. Bake until lightly golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. Once cooled, using parchment overhang, transfer cake from the pan to a cutting board and cut into slices. Best served the day it’s made, but will keep, well covered for several days. (After the first day, the crumb topping loses its crispness, but is still delicious.)