The only thing that can make great coffee better is an awesome baked good to go alongside it. Jason and I have been huge fans of the caramellato at Octane Coffee in Atlanta since before we moved here. Their main location is walking distance of his office and it’s a fun funky place and these folks have serious brewing skills. Need I say more:
They recently opened a new location (near Grant park) and half of the store is “Little Tart Bake Shop”. One step inside and I fell in love. It’s bright and open, industrial and decorated with common materials but in a chic fun way. Large typography on the wall, huge mirrors-turned-dry erase-menu and lots of coffee alchemy going on. (It inspired us to incorporate more of the industrial look into our house renovation). On our first trip, we ordered several goodies because we couldn’t decide what to try, so many sweet & savory options.
By far our favorite was a golden blueberry buckle. A cross between a blueberry muffin and a scone, it was flecked with huge caramelized blueberries in a fluffy buttery crumb. I’ve been wanting to recreate it at home and I quickly learned that the interpretation of a buckle is widely varied. Some describe it as more of a coffee cake with a streusel on top. Others just a rustic dough baked on parchment into a biscuit shape. I decided to make a very large version of the Little Tart interpretation:
What sold me on this recipe was the addition of peaches or nectarines, a perfect compliment to the blueberries! I nixed the streusel for a wash of milk, sugar and cinnamon that gave the top a beautiful sticky golden covering. I opted to make one large buckle, but you could easily do this in 12 muffin tins for individual portions at a brunch. Enjoy!
Peach Blueberry Buckle
(serves 8-12)
- 3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 c.sugar
- 2 tsp. homemade vanilla
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 3 eggs
- 1 pint blueberries
- 1 1/2 c. peaches or nectarines
- 1/4 c. milk
- 1 tsp. granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Peel and dice the peaches and wash your blueberries. Let both strain to remove excess liquid.
In the meantime, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Stir in the vanilla.
Combine the dry ingredients and add in 3 increments to the butter mixture, alternating with an egg each time. Don’t overmix.
Pour into a greased 9″ cake pan and smooth with a spatula. Prepare the milk wash with the remaining ingredients. Brush over the pastry until the whole surface is shiny (note: you may not use it all).
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the center is set. Allow to cool and serve to your very lucky breakfast guests!
