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This Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake is everything I want with my morning coffee, a tender, lemony crumb packed with juicy blueberries, a buttery streusel, and a sweet lemon glaze on top. I bake it for slow weekend mornings when the girls want something special and the kitchen smells like a bakery. It has the same bright lemon and berry magic as our layered lemon blueberry trifle.
Made in one 9 by 13 pan with pantry staples and fresh blueberries, this lemon blueberry coffee cake is easy enough for a weekday and pretty enough for brunch.
Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 15 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 677kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Tender lemony cake and juicy blueberries under a buttery streusel and sweet glaze
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our lemon blueberry trifle
Quick Answer
Whisk together a lemony sour cream batter, fold in fresh blueberries and lemon zest, then layer it in a 9 by 13 pan with a buttery streusel crumb. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 to 65 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean, cool, and finish with a sweet lemon glaze. The result is a tender, bakery style Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake perfect for brunch.
Jump to:
- Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake FAQs
- Other Recommended Lemon Dessert Recipes
- Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Sour cream keeps it moist. Two cups of sour cream make the crumb incredibly tender and rich, so the cake stays soft for days.
- Lemon two ways. Zest in the batter and the streusel plus lemon juice in the glaze layer bright citrus flavor through every bite.
- Double streusel layers. A crumb layer in the middle and on top means buttery, sandy streusel in every slice, not just the surface.
- Fresh blueberries burst. Whole berries folded into the batter pop as they bake, leaving juicy pockets of jammy fruit.
- Melted butter, no mixer. Whisking melted butter into the batter means no creaming and no stand mixer, just one bowl and a whisk.
- The glaze seals the deal. A simple lemon glaze adds a sweet, glossy finish and one more hit of citrus to balance the rich cake.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Bakery quality at home with a tender lemon crumb, double streusel, and sweet glaze that looks as good as it tastes.
- It feeds a crowd from one 9 by 13 pan, perfect for brunch or a potluck. For another lemon berry treat, try our lemon raspberry cake balls.
- No mixer required, just whisk, fold, layer, and bake, which makes it an easy weekend bake even with kids helping.
Key Ingredients
Simple baking staples plus fresh lemon and blueberries come together for this cozy coffee cake. Here is what each one does.
- Blueberries: Fresh berries fold right into the batter and burst into juicy pockets as the cake bakes. Frozen work too, just do not thaw them.
- Lemon: Zest in the batter and streusel plus juice in the glaze give the cake its bright, fresh citrus flavor.
- Sour cream: The secret to a moist, tender crumb that stays soft for days. Do not swap it for milk.
- Butter: Melted in the batter for richness and cut cold into the streusel for those craveable buttery crumbs.
- All purpose flour: The structure for both the cake and the streusel topping.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This coffee cake is easy to adapt. Here are a few ideas.
- Different berries: Swap in raspberries, blackberries, or diced strawberries for the blueberries.
- Add nuts: Stir chopped pecans or sliced almonds into the streusel for extra crunch.
- Make muffins: Portion the batter and streusel into a muffin tin, like our blueberry muffins, and shorten the bake time.
- Extra lemony: Add a teaspoon of lemon extract to the batter for an even bolder citrus punch.
- Skip the glaze: Dust the cooled cake with powdered sugar instead for a simpler finish.
How to Make Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 by 13 baking dish. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, melted butter, vanilla, and eggs until smooth, then stir in the dry mix and sour cream in alternating batches until just combined.
- Fold in the blueberries and lemon zest until they are evenly distributed through the batter.
- Make the streusel by whisking the sugar, flour, and lemon zest, then cutting in the cold butter until it looks like wet sand with pea sized chunks.
- Spread half the batter in the pan, sprinkle on half the streusel, add the remaining batter, and top with the rest of the streusel.
- Bake for 55 to 65 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake, then drizzle with the lemon glaze before serving.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Do not overmix the batter. Stir just until the streaks disappear so the cake stays tender, not tough.
- Toss berries in a little flour if you want to keep them from sinking to the bottom.
- Keep the streusel butter cold. Cold butter is what gives you sandy, crumbly streusel instead of a paste.
- Check early. Ovens vary, so start testing with a toothpick at 55 minutes to avoid overbaking.
- Cool before glazing. A warm cake melts the glaze right off, so let it cool so the glaze sets.
- Use full fat sour cream for the richest, most tender crumb.
- Store covered at room temperature for two days or in the fridge for up to five.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
This coffee cake is made for brunch. Serve thick slices warm with coffee or tea, alongside a fruit salad and our pistachio muffins for a pretty spread the whole table will love.
It also doubles as dessert. Warm a slice and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a spoonful of our easy homemade frozen yogurt for a cozy treat, or pair it with our lemon blueberry trifle for a full lemon berry dessert table.
Leftovers travel well, so wrap up squares for lunchboxes or a morning snack. If you love lemon desserts, our lemon lime angel food cupcakes are another bright, sunny bake.
Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake FAQs
Yes. Use them straight from the freezer without thawing so they do not bleed into the batter. Toss them in a teaspoon of flour first to help keep them suspended in the cake.
This usually means it was underbaked or the oven door was opened too early. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean and avoid peeking before 55 minutes.
Cover it tightly and keep it at room temperature for up to two days or refrigerate for up to five. Bring slices to room temperature or warm briefly before serving.
Absolutely. Bake it a day ahead, cool completely, and store it covered. Add the glaze the day you serve it so it looks fresh and glossy.
Yes. Freeze the unglazed cake, well wrapped, for up to three months. Thaw at room temperature and add the lemon glaze just before serving.
A 9 by 13 inch baking dish is ideal for this recipe and gives you 15 generous squares. You can also use two 8 inch pans, just watch the bake time.
Craving more lemon berry goodness? Make our layered lemon blueberry trifle next for an easy, no bake showstopper.
For more cozy blueberry flavor, try our soft oatmeal blueberry cookies.
Pair this coffee cake with a platter of our mini fruit tartlets for brunch.
For another bright citrus treat, bake our homemade lemon bundt cake.
Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of fine sea salt
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups sour cream
- 2 cups blueberries
- Zest of 1 lemon
For the crumble:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- zest of 1 lemon
- 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter small dice, or grated
For the glaze:
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice fresh squeezed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with baking spray, set aside.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, set aside.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, pinch of fine sea salt
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, butter, vanilla, and eggs until smooth. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir it in until there are no more dry patches.1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, 3/4 cup unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 3 large eggs
- Stir in half of the sour cream until there are no more streaks of white.2 cups sour cream
- Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and sour cream.
- Fold in the blueberries and lemon zest, set aside.2 cups blueberries, Zest of 1 lemon
- In a large bowl make the streusel topping, whisk together the sugar, flour, and lemon zest. Add the butter to the bowl and cut it in with a pastry cutter or rub the butter pieces with the flour through your fingers until the mixture resembles wet sand with a few larger chunks the size of peas mixed in.2 cups granulated sugar, 2 cups all-purpose flour, zest of 1 lemon, 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter
- Add half of the cake batter to the bottom of the prepared pan and smooth it out.
- Next, half of the crumb topping evenly.
- Spread out the remaining cake batter on top. Sprinkle the remaining crumble on top of the batter. Bake for 55-65 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool on a wire rack.
- While the cake is cooling, make the glaze by whisking together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla until smooth.3 cups powdered sugar, 4 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Serve the cake warm or room temperature with a drizzle of the glaze on top of the cake for serving.
Notes
- For the crumble we like to grate our butter, we well that it incorporates better.
- This can be frozen, see my tips above.
- You can use frozen blueberries if desired.
- This can be served warm or cooled.
- Pour the glaze over the whole cake or you can pour over each slice like we do.
Nutrition
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Can u make this as cupcakes and if so how long to bake