Lemon Blueberry Cake

My lemon blueberry cake is bursting with beautiful natural flavors and so refreshing! This moist, easy to make cake is filled with delicious blueberry and lemon buttercream. It's one of my most popular cakes and a personal favorite so I hope you get a chance to bake one up!

Stop everything and make this lemon blueberry cake if you love blueberries! This cake is beyond moist, with the perfect zing from lemon zest and juice. I divided my buttercream into two batches; one is flavored with a blueberry reduction while the other is all lemon.

I’m not sure if my meager description is doing the cake any justice but it was soooo good! I really loved it as a naked cake because the cake itself is so tasty it really doesn’t need a lot of frosting, you don’t want to mask the flavor with too much sugar.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THIS

Blueberries: I love fresh blueberries with this recipe but you can use frozen ones. Thaw before use then dry off and toss with flour.

Butter: I always specify unsalted butter just because different manufacturers add various amounts of salt to salted butter. The best way to have uniform results from a recipe is to use unsalted butter then add however much salt you need separately. If you don’t have unsalted butter then go ahead and use salted butter! Just omit the extra salt.

Milk: If you’re sensitive to dairy you can use a nut milk or soy milk instead.

Sour Cream: I love sour cream in my cake recipes but yogurt can be used instead. The closest match would be plain Greek yogurt.

Egg Whites: I like the lighter color of the cake from the egg yolks being omitted. If you want to use the whole egg just halve the sour cream in the recipe.

HOW TO MAKE LEMON BLUEBERRY CAKE

1. Preheat oven to 350F and butter and flour three six inch pans. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar into a large bowl then whisk together and set aside. 

2. In a separate bowl add the milk, sour cream, egg whites, vanilla, and butter, then whisk together. The butter should be VERY soft, you can even melt it if desired.

In a small bowl toss the blueberries in a tablespoon of flour or corn starch.

3. Pour the wet into the dry and mix until just combined. You can do this by hand or in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the blueberries and lemon zest then fold in gently. Distribute the batter evenly into the three pans and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until the centers are springy to the touch. Invert onto a wire rack and allow to cool.

4. While the cakes bake you can make the blueberry reduction. Add the blueberries, water, lemon juice and sugar to a pan then place over medium heat. Mash the blueberries and simmer until reduced by half. Strain into a bowl and chill.

5. Cream the butter and salt then sift in the confectioners’ sugar in two or three batches. Beat on low and drizzle in the lemon juice. Scrape the bowl down them mix once more until uniform and

6. Transfer about 1/2 to 3/4 a cup of the buttercream to a bowl then mix in the reduction a tablespoon at a time until the desired taste is reached. 

7. Pipe buttercream between each cake layer. I like to add alternating rings of the blueberry and lemon buttercream between each layer but make sure to pipe a thick ring of the stronger lemon buttercream at the edge. Pipe an outer layer. Scrape and smooth with an offset spatula.

8. Add dollops using an 846 tip. Place frozen berries inside the dollop ring. You can TOTALLY use fresh blueberries but the frozen ones have a nice frost, which adds visual interest

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

CAN YOU JUST ADD BLUEBERRIES TO CAKE MIX?

You can add blueberries to cake mix but blueberries are heavy and many cake mixes are going to be a bit light to support their weight. Always toss the berries in flour or cornstarch before adding to the batter.

WHY DO BLUEBERRIES SINK TO THE BOTTOM?

Blueberries are large and denser than your cake batter so they will tend to sing while baking. Tossing them in flour or cornstarch will help. This trick  also works for nuts!

HOW DO YOU DECORATE IT?

Your Blueberry buttercream is going to be DELICIOUS, but it will be softer than the frosting without the reduction. You should pipe a band of the plain frosting at the edge between each layer and if your cake looks unstable just pop it into the fridge to set up. I have a whole post with all my cake decorating tips so check it out if you have any concerns about layer cakes!

HOW CAN I AVOID IT BECOMING DENSE?

Measure your ingredients with a scale. Most problems occur when people add too much flour to their recipe. The other thing to avoid is over-mixing the batter. If you mix too much you’ll develop the gluten in the cake and after baking it will contract and become dense. Mix until just combined.

PRO TIPS FOR THIS RECIPE

• I have a hint for avoiding berries at the bottom of your pans. Toss the blueberries in a just a dash of lemon juice to moisten the skin a bit then sprinkle with a tablespoon or so of flour. This will prevent them from sinking during the bake. The harder part is making sure the blueberries are separated and not in a big clump when you pour the batter into the pans. Just use a spoon so move them around if you notice a big pile here or there.
• If you’re wondering how I got such a nice light edge to the layers it’s from using cake strips! They’re wet fabric strips you wrap around the edge of the pan. You can make your own or buy a set here. I love them because they always give me nice flat layers and the outside is never burnt! Check out my video on how to get flat layers to see how they work and how to make your own!
• If you’re not using 6-inch pans, double the recipe for 8-inch pans or triple the recipe for 9-inch pans.
• Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake. The best, and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don’t have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.