
Sunday, August 19, 2018
Lemon-Blueberry Dump Cake from Peggy Ehrhart

A very warm welcome to our friend, Peggy Ehrhart! Peggy writes the Knit & Knibble Mysteries. Don't miss her giveaway of a copy of DIED IN THE WOOL! Enter at the bottom of the this post.
My sleuth Pamela Paterson usually bakes from scratch, as
do I. But sometimes a person wants a shortcut. In my cookbook collection I have
something called Dump Cakes &
One-Bowl Baking, found long ago at a garage sale. The premise is that the
cook starts with boxed cake mix and canned fruit and then dumps the cake mix on
the canned fruit, tops the creation off with lots of butter, and sticks it in
the oven. The result is something in the cobbler or crumble family.
In my Knit & Nibble series, the Arborville knitting
club’s most unlikely member is Roland DeCamp, a hard-driving corporate lawyer
whose doctor advised he take up knitting to lower his blood pressure. Club
members take turns hosting the group and providing the evening’s nibbles. When
it’s Roland’s turn in Murder, She Knit, he’s determined not to be outdone by
other members who have shown off their culinary skills. He resolves to bake a
sweet treat, but something manageable—a dump cake.
It turns out pretty well, though as his patient wife
Melanie observes, ice cream has come to the rescue of many a cook.
In my version of a dump cake below, I substituted fresh
fruit—blueberries—for the canned fruit Roland used. I added a bit of sugar to
the blueberries, but the cake mix is already so sweet that blueberries can
probably be used as is. The recipe could also be made with four cups of sliced
peaches or other fresh fruit and with plain yellow or white cake mix.
Ingredients:
2 pints fresh
blueberries, about 4 cups
1 box lemon cake mix,
about 15 ounces
1/4 cup sugar, or less
1 stick butter, cut into
about 28 slices
A bit of soft butter for
buttering the baking dish.
Directions:
Butter a large Pyrex or
ceramic baking dish, 8” X 12” or 9” X 13”. Add the blueberries in an even
layer. Sprinkle the sugar over them if you are using it.
Dump in the cake mix.
Spread it over the blueberries.
Lay the butter slices on
top of the cake mix layer. Four in one direction and seven in the other works
well. The point is for the butter to cover as much of the cake mix as possible.
Bake the dump cake at
350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. You can test it for doneness by poking it
with a wooden toothpick. If the toothpick comes out clean, the dump cake is
ready.
The top should be light brown.
It will look crumbly.
Serve the dump cake
warm—not hot, or at room temperature, with ice cream if you like.
Her
Maxx Maxwell mysteries, published by Five Star/Gale/Cengage, feature a
blues-singer sleuth. Sweet Man Is Gone
appeared in 2008 and Got No Friend Anyhow
appeared in 2011. Both are out of print but available on Kindle.
Peggy
is currently writing the Knit & Nibble mystery series for Kensington Books.
Set in the charming (fictional) town of Arborville, New Jersey, the series
features amateur sleuth Pamela Paterson, founder and mainstay of the town’s
knitting club. The first book in the series, Murder, She Knit, came out in March. The second, Died in the Wool, will appear August 28,
and the third, Knit One, Die Two, in
May 2019. Peggy recently signed a contract to write three more books in the
series.
Peggy
is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime. She is an
enthusiastic crafter, dating from her childhood as a member of the 4-H Club in
rural Southern California. She also plays guitar with the Still Standing Band.
Leave a comment to enter to win a copy of DIED IN THE WOOL.
Remember to leave your e-address so Peggy can contact you if you win. Good luck!
This recipe looks easy enough that even I could make it. Thanks for sharing! mbradeen [at] yahoo [dot] com
ReplyDeleteYummy! I make something similar, but use pineapple tidbits on the bottom. But the addition of lemon cake, instead of plain yellow would be wonderful I bet!
ReplyDeleteWendy
clarksrfun at gmail dot com
Dump cakes are the best dessert! They are very versatile and a quick to make dessert. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
ReplyDeleteI have just started the audio book for Murder, She Knit. I love the covers!
Thank you for the giveaway.
debprice60@gmail.com
Sounds delicious. Have you ever made a dump cake with chocolate cake mix and cherries?
ReplyDeleteNancy R in Ottawa, Canada
jw.nl.reid@sympatico.ca
My mom used to,make a dump cake with apples.
ReplyDeletesgiden at verizon(.)net
Baking from scratch is fun but a dump cake is so easy and everybody always loves it! Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeletesallycootie(at)gmail(dot)com
Peggy, I used to make this with cherry pie filling and white cake. It is so good! Congrats on the new series. ~ Daryl
ReplyDeleteAll of these dump cake ideas look awesome! So does the book!
ReplyDeleteskforrest1957 at gmail dot com
This recipe looks easy and tasty! I'm a novice knitter, so a series that includes knitting intrigues me. Looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteRobinChase2010@gmail.com
I've never met dump cake I didn't like, and can't wait to try this one! Thanks so much for visiting Mystery Lovers' Kitchen and sharing your recipe and introducing us to your Knit and Kibble series ~ bobandcelia@sbcglobal.net
ReplyDeleteI love lemon & blueberry flavors together. This is perfect to take to family get togethers. turtle6422(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteI love dump cake! I never thought of using fresh berries though. Thanks for the recipe twist.
ReplyDeleteYou are a new author for me. I love the cover of Died in the Wool. It just looks so fun and cute. It is the type of cover that screams entertainment. I definitely want to check out this series now.
I find medieval times to be so fascinating! With your doctorate in it, have you thought of, (or have you), writing a mystery in that setting?
cristinaalaska@gmail.com
Your dump cake recipe has me drooling ! Sure would love to win one of your books, so thank you for the chance. trwilliams 69 at msn dot com
ReplyDeleteI love the book's cover, especially the cat's face!
ReplyDeletelibbydodd at comcast dot net
Roland in "Murder, She Knit" sounds like a character that I'm going to have to explore.
ReplyDeleteLove dump cakes! The make me think of my Mom and all the variations that were made in my growing up years. Mom mostly cooked from scratch, but on occasion when time was limited she made the dump cakes. I remember one that used fresh peaches and a can of crushed pineapple with chopped nuts added to the top. Of course, Mom always thought anything had to taste better with nuts so not sure if the recipe was that was or how she adapted it. Hadn't thought of making one with blueberries, but with our surplus of them I will surely be giving it a try.
Thanks you for the chance win a copy of the soon to be released "DIED IN THE WOOL". I have it on my TBR list and would love the opportunity to read it.
2clowns at arkansas dot net
Sounds delicious I am going to have to make it. Thank you for the chance. Lamonicaks (at) gmail (dot) com
ReplyDeleteI would love to win a copy of this amazing book. The recipe looks like something I have to try. Thanks for your great generosity. lindamay4852@yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteDump cakes always sound so good and so easy. I wonder why I never make them. I'm going to have to change that. And, soon.
ReplyDeletelkish77123 at gmail dot com
Sounds delicious. Thanks for the chance. sable677 at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteThe recipe and book both look great! Thank you, I would love to win the book.
ReplyDeleteThis recipe sounds so good. I will have to write this down. The book cover is just absolutely adorable. Thank you so much for the opportunity to try and win. Scoobyspenny@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteThis recipe sounds so good. I will have to write this down. The book cover is just absolutely adorable. Thank you so much for the opportunity to try and win. Scoobyspenny@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteWhat an exciting life you have led. Sounds like my dream vocation. Thank you for the opportunity to win this book
ReplyDeleterobsnest60 {at} yahoo {dot} com
Oh my, I must make this cake when I go visit my new granddaughter. The kids will love it and I won't eat the whole cake by myself!
Replyteddi1961(at)arcemont(dot)com