This easy-to-make Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe is great with a dollop of whipped ricotta cheese. The lemon zest gives this blueberry cake a refreshing flavor, making it ideal for serving at brunch, tea time, or as an after-dinner treat.
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Introduction
Blueberry lovers are always looking for new recipes that use their favorite fruit.
Like me, if you are one of them, you love to use fresh blueberries in fruit salads. You probably already have a blueberry oat muffin and a recipe for blueberry scones that you make regularly.
Today, I am sharing a blueberry coffee cake recipe that will quickly become another favorite in your household.
Not only is it easy to prepare, but you will love the delicious combination of juicy blueberries, lemon zest, and almond extract. There is also no need for any special kitchen equipment or fancy ingredients to make this treat.
With just a handful of ingredients, a bowl, and a whisk, you can create this blueberry sour cream cake that mimics the taste of a classic recipe.
What is a coffee cake?
The idea of the coffee cake comes from Europe. It is commonly associated with German and Dutch settlers in the eastern part of the United States. By definition, it is “a sweet, rich bread often with added fruit, nuts, and spices that is sometimes glazed after baking.” [source]
If you have ever baked coffeecake before, you know that one of the main attractions is a rough crumb topping made with generous amounts of sugar, butter, flour, and cinnamon. This is called streusel, and coffee cakes are sometimes called streusel cakes.
This version uses blueberries and a lightly sweetened cinnamon-walnut combination to become a delicious jammy nutty center. The addition of sour cream creates just the right amount of richness.
Let me show you how easily this cake comes together.
Prepare the streusel topping
Preheat the oven to 350℉ (175°C). Set the oven rack to the middle position.
Grease and flour (or use non-stick cooking spray) a 9 x 9-inch square pan. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup of brown sugar with ¼ teaspoon of ground cinnamon and ¼ cup of chopped walnuts. Set aside for now.
How to make coffee cake
In a medium bowl, sift or whisk together 2½ cups of all-purpose flour (350 grams), 1 teaspoon of baking powder, and 1 teaspoon of baking soda. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together 1 scant cup of brown sugar with the ⅔ cup of vegetable oil.
Add one lightly beaten egg, 1 cup of sour cream, ½ teaspoon of almond extract and 1 teaspoon of grated lemon zest, preferably organic. Whisk to combine properly together.
Add one lightly beaten egg, 1 cup of sour cream, ½ teaspoon of almond extract and 1 teaspoon of grated lemon zest, preferably organic. Whisk to combine properly together.
Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine them with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Do not overmix.
Spoon about half the batter into the prepared pan and spread with an offset spatula.
Sprinkle half the streusel topping evenly over the batter, followed by 1 cup of the blueberries. Press the blueberries gently into the batter.
Spread the remaining cake batter evenly over the layer of blueberries. Once again, sprinkle the remaining sugar-cinnamon walnut mixture evenly over the top of the batter, followed by the blueberries. Press the blueberries gently into the batter.
Look at the quick video tutorial in the recipe card to see how easy this is.
Bake in the oven for 60 minutes until golden or until the cake tester comes out clean.
Place it on a wire rack to cool down for about 15 minutes.
After this short period, carefully remove the cake from the pan and place it on the wire rack, where it will continue to cool down.
Serve cake at room temperature with a dollop of sweet ricotta and a sprinkling of powdered sugar (optional).
Tips
- Sift the dry ingredients together to better distribute all the individual ingredients throughout the dry mixture. As a result, this process also aerates the flour mixture, making the final product lighter in texture.
- Do not overmix the batter, as this will result in a tough cake.
- The sour cream creates an extra moist cake crumb.
- Use room temperature ingredients. This creates a smoother batter that results in a cake with a uniform texture. Take out your ingredients one hour before beginning.
FAQ
Yes, there is no need to thaw. To prevent them from bleeding, run them under cold water and then use paper towels to blot them dry. Tossing them in 1 tablespoon of flour prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
Yes, this blueberry cake recipe freezes wonderfully for up to 3 months. Once the cake has completely cooled down to room temperature, double wrap it with plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil, then place it in a large freezer-safe plastic air-tight container to avoid crushing it in the freezer.
How to serve?
You can serve this blueberry coffee cake as is or with a scoop of ice cream for dessert. As a healthy alternative, consider this sweet ricotta cream instead. It offers a light and velvety texture that tastes great as a topping for baked goods. Also, consider serving with this healthy fruit salad recipe.
Variations
- You can replace the blueberries with strawberries.
- Incorporate the blueberries into the batter rather than creating a layer. Tossing them in 1 tablespoon of flour prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
- Replace the almond extract with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Recipe inspiration
I recently cleaned out my fridge and realized I had sour cream that was about to expire.
I had a couple of options. One was to replace the buttermilk with sour cream and use my frozen rhubarb to make a variation of this delicious rhubarb cake.
Another option was to make a sour cream variation with my pint of blueberries that were beginning to look a little sad.
As you can see, I opted for choice number two with a few modifications.
I created a healthier streusel topping for this blueberry coffee cake by combining walnuts, a small amount of brown sugar, and cinnamon.
Unfortunately, I tried to reduce the total brown sugar in the original rhubarb cake recipe to ¾ of a cup, but the texture was too dense. I found that lightly packing the brown sugar and using a scant cup provided the perfect consistency.
Enjoy!
THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.
Ciao for now,
Maria
★★★★★ If you have made this sour cream blueberry coffee cake, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!
Recipe
Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe
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Ingredients
Streusel Topping:
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ground
- ¼ cup walnuts chopped
Cake Batter:
- 2½ cups flour 350 grams, all-purpose
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup brown sugar lightly packed, scant cup
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil or sunflower oil
- 1 egg lightly beaten, room temperature
- 1 cup sour cream room temperature
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest from organic lemon
- 2 cups blueberries fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ (175°C). Set the oven rack to the middle position.
- Grease and flour (or use non-stick spray) a 9 x 9-inch square pan. Set aside.
Streusel Topping:
- In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar with the ground cinnamon and chopped walnuts. Set aside for now.
Cake Batter:
- In a medium mixing bowl, sift or whisk together flour, baking powder and soda. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar with the oil.
- To this, add a lightly beaten egg, sour cream, almond extract and lemon zest. Whisk to combine properly together.
- Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine with a wooden or rubber spoon. Do not over mix.
- Spoon about half the batter into the prepared pan.
- Sprinkle half of the streusel topping evenly over the batter followed by 1 cup of the blueberries. Press the blueberries gently into the batter.
- Spread the rest of the batter evenly over the blueberries. Once again, sprinkle the remaining sugar-cinnamon walnut mixture evenly over the top of the batter followed by the blueberries. Press the blueberries gently into the batter. Take a look at the quick video tutorial to see how easy this is.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 60 minutes until golden and the cake tester comes out clean.
- Place on a wire rack where it can cool down for about 15 minutes.
- After this short period, carefully remove the cake from the pan and place it on the wire rack where it will continue to cool down.
- Serve cake at room temperature with a dollop of sweet ricotta and a sprinkling of powdered sugar (optional).
Video
Notes
- Sift the dry ingredients together to better distribute all the individual ingredients throughout the dry mixture. As a result, this process also aerates the flour mixture making the final product lighter in texture.
- Do not overmix the batter as this will result in a tough cake.
- The sour cream creates an extra moist cake crumb.
- Use room temperature ingredients. This creates a smoother batter that results in a cake with a uniform texture. Take out your ingredients one hour before beginning.
Loretta Mckay
Hi Maria, made the blueberry sou r cream coffee cake this morning. Instead of whole berries made a “jammy” compote. Then used toasted sliced almonds instead of walnuts. Turned out great. I think this would be good WITH orange zest in the dough and leftover whole cranberry sauce I always seem to have.
Maria
Thanks for sharing Lorettta! Sounds like a wonderful variation!
Vesna Dražilović
Dear maria,
your introductory letter to me- as a new subscriber- is a warm and sincere insight into who you are and what you do.
The recipe is a wonderful, easy one and I made it in no time!
Thanks for sharing it with us. Sincere regards, Vesna from Belgrade, Serbia
Maria
Welcome Vesna! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. So thrilled to read you enjoyed the recipe.
Linda Schoenmann
I did not have a 9×9 inch pan (81 sq.in.) so I used my 7×11 inch pan (77 sq. in.) which was perfect! An 8×8 inch pan would have been 21% too small. I used little more than 1 c. blueberries which is all I had on hand. I added all the frozen berries into the batter and put all the batter in the pan. I sprinkled the streusel mixture on top. It was done after about 40 minutes. I would make it that same way again!