# Blueberry bread's still raw in the middle after 20 extra minutes. What should I do? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 2, 2018, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933 "2018-03-02T22:31:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/1 "2018-03-02T22:31:15Z")
I’m making [this](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/6873/blueberry-bread-i/). It won’t cook through. The center is completely raw (checked with a toothpick). Obviously, it needs to go back in the oven, but the top is already browned and starting to dry out. I’ve put a foil “fence” around the perimeter to try and protect the outer edges, but I’m not really a baker, despite trying every so often. Should I turn the oven up for a short time, or down and bake it longer? Give up and just serve the edges? ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/2 "2018-03-02T22:38:12Z")
I’ve always bought an oven thermometer for every stove I’ve ever owned (and also the ones in places I’ve rented). Seriously. I’ve never met an oven where the temperature on the knob was the same as the temp inside the oven as shown by my thermometer. They’re [cheap](https://www.amazon.com/Winco-3-Inch-Dial-Thermometer-Panel/dp/B001B4KUPY/ref=sr_1_9?s=kitchen&rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1520030180&sr=1-9&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011). You can probably find one at your grocery store, and certainly at Target or Wal-Mart. Sounds like your oven is running hot–browning the outside before the inside is done. But you won’t know unless you gitchyseff an oven thermometer. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/3 "2018-03-02T23:00:10Z")
I’ll look into that. The oven is pretty old, so maybe it’s having issues. I took a guess and put the bread back in at 300 degrees, checking every 10 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/4 "2018-03-03T00:07:50Z")
You can cover the whole thing in foil to stop the top browning. Don’t seal it or it will steam, but lay a sheet of foil over the top. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/5 "2018-03-03T00:14:21Z")
It doesn’t help now, but did you use frozen blueberries by any chance? That will wreak havoc on cook times and result in the problem you describe. For now, the advice above to turn down the oven a little and cover it with foil is the best you can do. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/6 "2018-03-03T01:01:33Z")
Typically, I bake my fruit breads in a rather slow over, 325, for a long time, at least an hour and often more. The top does not over-brown then. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/7 "2018-03-03T21:34:57Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > It doesn’t help now, but did you use frozen blueberries by any chance? That will wreak havoc on cook times and result in the problem you describe. I did. I cut the amount of milk the recipe called for to offset the water from the frozen berries, but it clearly didn’t work. It turned out okay, in the end, after cooking for about thirty more minutes at 300. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/8 "2018-03-03T21:41:43Z")
> [@Omega\_Glory](#): > > I did. I cut the amount of milk the recipe called for to offset the water from the frozen berries, but it clearly didn’t work. > > It turned out okay, in the end, after cooking for about thirty more minutes at 300. Frozen blueberries will drop the internal starting temperature so it’ll take longer to get to the required final temperature. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blueberry-breads-still-raw-in-the-middle-after-20-extra-minutes-what-should-i-do/809933/9 "2018-03-03T21:48:58Z")
Oh. That seems so obvious, but it never occurred to me.