Guess what?! This was a scone recipe gone bad gone scrumptious. I got hit with a bad case of blueberry scone cravings. I found a recipe online that seemed promising. I did not waste time and got down to bake like a mad woman in my kitchen.

As I was looking at the recipe instructions, I started to feel dubious. Even for a novice baker such as I am, I knew that the secret to crumbly, buttery, dreamy scones is cold butter. The recipe called for melted butter. Huh?! Well, I gave the recipe the benefit of the doubt. Sure enough, as I baked the first batch, I saw the batter melt all over the pan like snow on a hot day.

Luckily, I had the presence of mind to try to bake just a couple of “scones.” When I looked at the reviews, I am relieved to know that it was not just me. People who used the same recipe ended up with flat cookies instead of scones! (Note to self: Next time, take time to read the online reviews first!)

Well, I was not ready to throw in the towel (or the batter down the drain)! I told myself that day I might not get my scone that moment but darn it — I will redeem this recipe! I also did not want flat cookies either! I decided to bake the batter in loaf pans and reincarnate my “scones” into cakes. And ta-da! Cooking disaster was averted and Blueberry Lemon Loaf Cakes were born!

I could not believe it myself how delicious, moist and melt in your mouth these cakes turned out to be. (I also could not believe that I used 2 sticks of butter in this recipe but YOLO.) So these scones with an identity crisis were really misunderstood. They were really meant to be enjoyed as heavenly lemony cakes bedazzled with plump and juicy blueberries and not as scones or flat cookies. This recipe is such a keeper!

Blueberry Lemon Loaf Cake

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 2 sticks butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
• 1 lemon, juice and zest
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1 egg
• 1 egg, well beaten (for wash)
• 1/4 cup sugar

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease bottoms only of 2 (8×4 inch) loaf loaf pan, 1 (9×5-inch) loaf pan or 4 mini loaf pans.
3. Mix flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl. Set aside.
4. Beat sugar and butter in large bowl until fluffy.
5. Stir in egg until well blended.
6. Add half and half, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat until smooth.
7. Stir in flour with baking soda and salt just until moistened.
8. Fold blueberries into the batter. Do not overmix.
9. Pour into pans.
10. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar
11. Bake using these baking times or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean:

• If using 2 (8×4-inch) loaf pan, bake for an 1 hour.
• If using 1 (1×5-inch) loaf pan, bake for 1 1/4 hours.
• If using 4 mini-loaf pans, bake for 30 minutes.

12. Cool for 10 minutes then loosen sides from pans. Remove from pans and cool before slicing if you can wait!