I'll be cooking up this fantastic streusel on Mother's Day as a special treat to thank my family for showing me love and making me the grateful mom I am today (and every day).

Ingredients

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons chilled stick margarine or butter
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/3 cup egg substitute
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur) or water
2 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup dried tart red cherries
Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375.

Lightly spoon 1/4 cup flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine with 1/4 cup brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl; cut in margarine with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Set streusel mixture aside.

Lightly spoon 1 2/3 cups flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine with granulated sugar and next 4 ingredients (granulated sugar through salt) in a large bowl. Combine buttermilk and next 6 ingredients (buttermilk through almond extract), and stir with a whisk. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until blended. Gently fold in dried cherries. Spoon batter into a 9-inch round cake pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle streusel mixture evenly over top.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Recipe courtesy of my dog-eared copy of Cooking Light, June 1998. Photo by Becky Luigart-Stayner.