Blueberries

Blueberries! Blueberries!
They bounce in my bowl,
Blue little blueberries,
I love each jolly blue soul.
Blueberries! Blueberries!
Once I see them, I can't stop.
Into my mouth, they go plop, plop, plop.
Blueberries! Blueberries!
I could eat them all day.
So sweet and so juicy, in a lip-smacking way.
Blueberries! Blueberries!
Glowing in a beautiful bright hue.
I wish I could color all my pictures in blueberry blue.
Blueberries! Blueberries!
My mom has such a great fright,
when she peeks in the kitchen to see such a sight...
Blueberries! Blueberries!
On my fingertips and nose,
I'm covered in blueberries, from my head to my toes.
But mom doesn't mind, she just giggles from the door,
As one more blueberry blueberry bounces down along the floor.
by Kathy Patalsky

Here's the berry scoop...

• July is national blueberry month because it is the peak of harvest season.
• American poet, Robert Frost, loved blueberries so he wrote a poem about them. You guessed it; the poem was called Blueberries."http://www.daypoems.net/poems/2648.html
• Over 200 million pounds are grown every year with Michigan and New Jersey producing 66% of all blueberries in the US. 
• Blueberries are the second most popular berry in US and strawberries are number one. 
• Blueberry muffins are the official muffin of Minnesota and blueberries are the official state fruit of New Jersey. 
• Talk about healthy...a cup of blueberries is only 80 calories and it has virtually no fat! This fruit offers noteworthy nutritionally benefits with one serving get 14 mg of vitamin C and it rates near the top for antioxidant activity per serving. 

So enjoy the following recipes that feature "the blueberry" as the star!

30 Blueberry Recipes You Will Love from Midwest Living 
http://www.midwestliving.com/food/fruits-veggies/blueberry-recipes/?esrc=nwbm070815&did=c57c1d11-8570-4657-8734-b6ed471853b6?page=28

Buttermilk-Blueberry Breakfast Cake

Cook's notes: recipe adapted from Alexandra Cooks 

Ingredients:

• ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 tsp. lemon zest ot zest from a large lemon
• 1 cup sugar  
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups cake flour or all purpose flour, divided
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and patted dry on a paper towel
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 6 TB. crushed almonds
• 1-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 3 TB. sugar

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter with lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy.
• Add the egg and vanilla, beat until combined. 
• Toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour and set aside. 
• Whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
• Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in the floured blueberries last.
• Grease a 9-inch square baking dish with butter or coat with non-stick spray. Spread batter into pan. 
• Topping: Mix 3 TB. sugar, 6 TB. crushed almonds and 1-1/ tsp. cinnamon.  Sprinkle over the batter. 
• Bake breakfast cake 30 minutes. Use a toothpick to check for doneness. Let cool at least 15 minutes before cutting.