A Sweet and Tender Blueberry Coffee Cake Recipe (2024)

Saturday, March 30, 2024 · 67 Comments

I love making this blueberry coffee cake because not only is it overloaded with plump blueberries, but it’s also soft, sweet, and topped with turbinado sugar for a crunchy crust. It’s the perfect tender cake for breakfast, brunch, showers, and holiday celebrations.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but I completely perk up at the mention of coffee cake. I refer to it as my ‘comforting reality,’ if that’s even a thing. I’ve never been able to put my finger exactly on it, but coffee cake just feels right.

This blueberry coffee cake perfectly satisfies my comfort cravings. It’s fluffy, airy, and sweet, with a turbinado sugar crust (don’t skip this) that adds another dimension of texture. I’ve served it for leisurely breakfasts, brunches, evening desserts, and as a snack during the day. I use buttermilk to keep the fat content down while adding the perfect tanginess.

One question that keeps popping up is why coffee cake doesn’t actually have coffee in it. Coffee cake is simply cake that’s perfect for pairing with a nice cup of coffee. While there are plenty of coffee cake recipes out there that do include coffee in the mix, it’s not a must-have ingredient.

Why I Love this Recipe

• The turbinado sugar crust is everything, trust me on this one.
• I created this recipe with an abundant amount of blueberries to cake ratio, so it’s bursting with sweet blueberry flavor.

If you’re also a coffee cake enthusiast, you should try my raspberry almond coffee cake (it’s such a favorite) and my pumpkin crumb coffee cake. My recipe for cranberry orange coffee cake is also amazing!

Ingredients

I think you’ll find you have most of these ingredients already.

• All-purpose flour: I have found all-purpose flour creates the perfect structure for this cake. If you need to, you can substitute a gluten free flour with a 1:1 ratio.
• Baking powder, baking soda and salt: The leavening agents for this blueberry coffee cake. If you use salted butter, omit the salt from the recipe.
• Granulated sugar: I prefer granulated sugar in this recipe. I’ve tried using brown sugar and the cake was less airy and fluffy.
• Vanilla extract: For flavor enhancement.
• Unsalted butter: I like coffee cake made with butter instead of oil for richness. You can use salted butter, but omit the salt from the recipe.
• Egg and egg white: Eggs add rise to this coffee cake. I have never used an egg substitute with this recipe.
• Buttermilk: I chose to use buttermilk for the tangy flavor and to lower the fat content. However, you can use any type of milk you prefer.
• Fresh blueberries: Fresh blueberries are key in this recipe. Frozen blueberries tend to have a lot more liquid and can create too much moisture, however some readers have used frozen with great success.
• Turbinado sugar: This raw sugar, with large crystals is what gives the crunchy crust. I’ve tried using regular sugar and the result is not the same. Try not to substitute!

How To Make This Recipe

Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card at thebottom of the post.

This coffee cake is so simple to make! It takes me about 15 minutes to put together before baking it in the oven.

• Step One: I start with preheating the oven to 350 degrees and preparing a 9″ round baking pan with cooking spray.
• Step Two: In a large bowl I combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, setting it aside for later.
• Step Three: I cream together the butter and sugar before adding the vanilla, egg and egg white and mixing it well. I add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture, mixing after each addition. I make sure not to overmix here, which is key for a light and fluffy cake.

• Step Four: Half the batter is going to go into the pan, before I top it with half the blueberries. Then I cover the blueberries with the rest of the batter and finish it off with the remaining blueberries. (I never add extra blueberries, the batter won’t support it.)
• Step Five: I bake the cake for 45-50 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. I cool it in the pan for 20 minutes on a wire rack before removing it from the pan by first running a knife around the edges and flipping it onto a plate. The bottom of the cake now becomes the top, do not flip it back over. This is where the crunchy crust comes from.
• Step Six: I serve it once it has cooled completely.

Recipe Tips

• I have made this same recipe with raspberries, blackberries and strawberries, but it has to equal the same amount of blueberries used in this recipe. Anything more and it overwhelms the batter.
• Even though it’s hard to wait, let this coffee cake cool before slicing into it and taking a bite. The large amount of blueberries in this breakfast cake means you can easily burn your mouth with the hot blueberry juice when it’s still warm.
• Make sure not to overmix the batter, I’m always so mindful of this when baking from scratch.
• You can absolutely substitute the buttermilk with milk or any dairy product you prefer. I’ve used whole milk and almond milk, but I do prefer the buttermilk for my tastes.

Storage and Freezer Instructions

• I cover any leftover coffee cake tightly with plastic wrap, and have stored it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It rarely gets eaten before four days though!
• This coffee cake freezes well, but I’ve found it’s best when frozen no longer than a month. Thaw it overnight in the fridge or for a few hours on the counter before eating.

More Blueberry Recipes

• Blueberry-Lime Pound Cake
• Cornmeal-Blueberry Scones
• Blueberry Streusel Bars
• Blueberry Pudding Pie
• Blueberry Crisp
• Blueberry Lemon Cake
• Blueberry Muffins with Sour Cream

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read mydisclosure policy.

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.