This moist, berry-studded cake gets its great texture from medium-grind cornmeal. Fresh blueberries are in abundance this time of year in the South. With the u-pick farms and farmers' markets, you can easily get carried away and come home with enough berries for cobblers, smoothies, muffins, and breads. Fortunately, blueberries freeze well, so if you don't bake up all of your berries in a day or two, you can store them in the freezer. Here are some quick tips so you can enjoy this seasonal treat throughout the year. Do not wash blueberries before freezing, as added moisture hastens the growth of mold. Wash and remove stems only when you are preparing to use the berries. Sort them and discard any mushy, under-ripe, or damaged ones. Place berries in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan and freeze until firm. Transfer berries to a labeled and dated zip-top plastic freezer bag, squeezing out excess air. Freeze up to nine months.
![Blueberry-Cornmeal Cake](https://www.southernliving.com/thmb/HAWaU-cne86FaXL0RVH4pOmFlbk=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/blueberry-cornmeal_cake_2503201_194_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0-91018e356e1c4ed495f0d006966ac8b4.jpg)
Ingredients
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1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing pan
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1 cup granulated sugar
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2 large eggs
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1 tablespoon lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
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1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
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1/2 cup medium-grind yellow cornmeal
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2 teaspoons baking powder
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1/2 teaspoon baking soda
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1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
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2/3 cup buttermilk
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1 1/2 cups cups fresh blueberries (about 7 oz.)
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch springform pan. Set aside.
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Beat sugar and butter with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add lemon zest, and beat on medium speed just until combined.
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Stir together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat on medium-low speed just until combined after each addition. Pour batter into prepared cake pan, and sprinkle with fresh blueberries.
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Bake in preheated oven until the cake starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and springs back when lightly pressed in the center with a fingertip, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove cake from springform pan; serve warm or at room temperature.