Swedish Blueberry and Cardamom Crumble Cake with Vanilla Cream

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 9-inch square pan with parchment, leaving an overhang on two sides to lift the cake out later.

Serves 9

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground cardamom
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, divided
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup whole-milk yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream, for serving

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 9-inch square pan with parchment, leaving an overhang on two sides to lift the cake out later.
2. Make the crumble first: rub 4 tablespoons of the butter into the oats, brown sugar, 1/4 cup of the flour and 1/2 teaspoon of the cardamom with your fingertips until it clumps into rough pea-sized pieces. Chill it while you build the batter.
3. Beat the remaining 6 tablespoons butter with 3/4 cup of the granulated sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each, then mix in the yogurt and vanilla.
4. Whisk the remaining 1 1/2 cups flour, the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons cardamom, the baking powder and salt together, then fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture in two additions. Stop as soon as the last streaks of flour disappear.
5. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon of flour, then fold two-thirds of them gently into the batter.
6. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and level the top. Scatter over the remaining blueberries, then break the chilled crumble into pieces over the whole surface.
7. Bake for 48 to 55 minutes, until the crumble is deep golden and a skewer inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter. Cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before lifting out.
8. Whip the heavy cream to soft, loose peaks with a splash of vanilla and serve alongside slices of the still-slightly-warm cake.
9. Cardamom is to Swedish baking what cinnamon is elsewhere — brought north by Viking traders and never given up, it turns up in everything from morning buns to Christmas breads. Grinding the pods yourself makes a startling difference; pre-ground cardamom loses most of its citrusy top notes within weeks. This cake belongs to the fika tradition, the daily pause for coffee and something sweet that Swedes treat as a genuine institution rather than an indulgence. In August, when blueberries carpet the forest floor across Scandinavia and whole families go picking, a crumble cake like this is simply the most efficient way to use the haul.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 446 kcal
• Protein: 6g
• Fat: 24g
• Carbohydrates: 54g
• Fiber: 3g
• Sugar: 32g
• Sodium: 210mg