Blueberry Teacake

What are those ghostly figures up on the hill?

Hidden under the gauzy cheesecloth are dozens of ripening blueberries:

As they ripen during August, I make several trips up the hill to pick the ripest berries before the birds and insects realize what is hidden under the shroud-like gauze:

More than enough to make Aunt Doris's blueberry teacake recipe:

Doris wrote down the recipe for Mom, but Mom wondered if a different sequence of steps would work just as well. When I tried the recipe, I did adapt it a bit, reducing the sugar to a half cup, and adding a teaspoon of vanilla to make up for the lesser amount of sugar. Most of my cake recipes call for sifting the dry ingredients first to set aside, then cream the shortening and sugar, beat in the egg and vanilla, then add the milk and dry ingredients alternately. That's what I did here as well. The cake is in the oven now, and we'll see how it turns out. It's beginning to smell good. . .

Blueberry Teacake fresh out of the Oven

Doris used to freeze enough berries to save until November, to make blueberry pie for Thanksgiving. It was like having a bit of summer sun preserved for a chilly fall day. I'm not sure I'll keep mine for that long -- blueberry pancakes seems like a good idea too.