Lemon Blueberry Cake
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This Lemon Blueberry Cake is the perfect dessert for spring celebrations and get-togethers! Each layer is studded with blueberries and frosted with a bright and refreshing lemon icing. Recipe includes a how-to video!
All the Flavors of Spring in One Slice
So many of you have requested this lemon blueberry cake, and I am excited to finally share it with you today! With lemon notes in both the icing and the cake and a bounty of blueberries throughout each layer, this cake is so fruity and light. It’s absolutely perfect for spring and would be a very welcome addition to your Easter dessert table (I’ll be serving it instead of my carrot cake recipe for the first time) this year.
What’s So Great About This Lemon Blueberry Cake:
- It’s a lemony, perfectly tart variation of my vanilla cake recipe with just the right amount of sweetness.
- A soft, plush crumb suspends at least some of the berries, thanks to the reverse creaming method (like I did with my chantilly cake!).
- We’re icing it with the lemon frosting I just shared last week, which makes it both refreshing and beautiful!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients that ensure every bite of this cake is flavorful and light:
- Blueberries. I use fresh blueberries, but frozen will work too. If you use frozen, don’t thaw them first–just add them right into the batter.
- Lemon juice. For the most flavorful lemon blueberry cake, use fresh squeezed lemon juice.
- Lemon zest. Make sure you zest your lemons before you juice them! It will be quite a challenge to zest a juiced lemon.
- Buttermilk. While I love using my buttermilk substitute in a pinch, I actually don’t recommend using it for this cake. Stick with real buttermilk!
- Cornstarch. This helps achieve a soft, plush cake.
SAM’S TIP: While my lemon frosting complements this cake beautifully, you can make a cream cheese frosting variation that also tastes fantastic. To make this, follow the recipe for my lemon frosting, but add 4 oz of softened cream cheese in with the butter. You may need to add up to an additional cup of powdered sugar to get it the right texture!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make It
- Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the butter one tablespoon at a time, using an electric mixer on low speed to mix after each addition.
- Slowly drizzle in the oil.
- Combine the remaining wet ingredients in a separate bowl, then slowly drizzle them into the batter.
- Use a spatula to gently fold the blueberries into the batter.
- Divide the batter among your prepared pans and bake for 30 minutes.
- Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10-15 minutes before inverting the cakes onto a cooling rack.
- Frost and decorate your cooled cakes, slice, and enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: If you only have two cake pans (or your oven only fits two pans at a time), you can let the remaining batter sit on the counter while the others are baking. If you do have three pans and they can all fit in your oven at the same time, definitely keep a close eye on them while they bake–most ovens do not cook evenly, and some may be done before others.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Just add them in frozen (no need to thaw) and bake as normal. Note that if you use wild blueberries, these tend to streak the batter and turn it purple. If you don’t mind that look (it’s almost like a tie dye effect), feel free to use them as well!
While many (but not all) of your blueberries will sink, you’ll still get a nice distribution of blueberry to cake in the final result, especially since the cake layers are fairly thin. I made several variations of this cake where the crumb was dense enough to suspend blueberries evenly throughout, but the cake itself ended up gummy, dense, flavorless, and just all-around lackluster. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take flavor and texture over perfect looks any day! Note: While some people like to toss their berries with cornstarch or flour to help keep them suspended, I found it made no difference here.
This cake can sit at room temperature for a few hours, but after that, it will need to be stored in the fridge in an airtight container.
More Spring Recipes
And in case you are wondering, this cake is different from my (well-loved) lemon cake. While that one is divinely light, fluffy, and perfect in all its lemon splendor, today’s recipe was designed specifically to be a bit denser so that not all of the blueberries sink straight to the bottom (which would happen with my lemon cake).
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Lemon Blueberry Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 8 pieces
- ½ cup (120 ml) canola, vegetable, or avocado oil
- ¾ cup (180 ml) buttermilk
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest, zest lemons before squeezing
- ¼ cup (60 ml) lemon juice, fresh-squeezed preferred
- 4 large eggs, room temperature preferred
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups (340 g) blueberries, see note (12 oz)
- 1 batch lemon frosting or preferred frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and line three 8” round cake pans by lightly but thoroughly greasing and flouring the sides and lining the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon table salt
- Using an electric mixer, add softened butter, one tablespoon at a time, adding the next tablespoon only after the first is combined. The mixture will appear sandy in texture.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- While mixing on low-speed, slowly drizzle in oil.½ cup (120 ml) canola, vegetable, or avocado oil
- In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together buttermilk, lemon zest, lemon juice, eggs, and vanilla extract until combined.¾ cup (180 ml) buttermilk, 2 Tablespoons lemon zest, ¼ cup (60 ml) lemon juice, 4 large eggs, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- With mixer on low-speed, slowly drizzle in the buttermilk mixture until the batter is smooth and completely combined.
- Use a spatula to stir in blueberries.2 ½ cups (340 g) blueberries
- Evenly divide batter into prepared cake pans and transfer to 350F oven (if your oven is not large enough for all three pans or if you only have two pans, it is fine to let the remaining batter sit on the counter while the first two pans bake. If all of your pans do fit in the oven, make sure to keep an eye on them as most ovens do not cook evenly and some pans may be done sooner than others). Bake for 30 minutes or until the surface of the cake springs back to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow cakes to cool in cake pans for 10-15 minutes before running a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen cakes and carefully inverting onto a cooling rack to cool completely before decorating.
- Once cooled completely, decorate the cake using lemon frosting (or preferred frosting).1 batch lemon frosting or preferred frosting
Notes
Blueberries
I prefer to use fresh blueberries but in a pinch frozen blueberries will work instead. You do not need to thaw before using. Note that if you opt to use “wild” blueberries, they may streak your batter purple.Storing
Store tightly covered at room temperature for up to 24 hours or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (note that the refrigerator does tend to dry out cakes the longer they are in there).Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
While the cake itself was moist and fluffy, I was expecting more of a hit you in the mouth lemon flavor. Any ideas on how to make it more lemony without adding extract? Also can I make this in 2 9inch pans instead?
Hi Elizabeth! Did you use fresh squeezed lemon juice? That typically has a bit more flavor. You can always add a bit more zest into the batter. You could make this in 2 9″ pans. Your bake time will vary. Make sure to not overfill your pans. 🙂
I did, ill have to try that next time. thank you!
this cake looks AMAZINGLY delicious. can it br made in a 13×9 baking pan instead? I rarely bake with round cake pans? TIA
Hi LuAnn! It could be baked in a 9 x 13, but just know that a lot of the blueberries will sink to the bottom. 🙂
Didn’t care for this cake. It wasn’t as moist as I thought it would be, and I won’t make it again.
Hi Melody! If the cake was dry unfortunately it was likely baked just a tad too long. It should absolutely be moist and your results aren’t typical.
The recipe calls for 375 grams of AP flour and 1 Tablespoon of Cornstarch. Can I substitute cake flour, if so how much?
Hi Matthew! If substituting cake flour you will want to use the same weight. 🙂
Is it okay to use self rising flour instead of AP flour?
Hi Monica! Other alterations would be needed with self rising flour and without having tried it I can’t say for sure how to do it. 🙁
Amazing, made it, family loved it! I had to bake for extra 5 minutes and I used fresh blueberries..but maybe next time I would make part of them into a compote so that the blueberry part was slightly sweeter or more flavorful bc I found the blueberries even though they were good quality to be a little bland inside the cake itself. Plus I would make extra icing.
We are so happy it was a hit CJ! 🩷
I have made this twice for family member’s birthdays and it came out perfect and was a huge hit both times (except for my sister who doesn’t care for lemon in desserts). I was wondering if I omitted the zest and lemon juice and added more vanilla for flavor, would the texture come out the same?
I’m so glad everyone has seemed to enjoy it so much, Karen! I’m not sure how removing the lemon juice and zest would change the cake, but if you do try it I would love to know how it turns out. 🙂
I left an earlier comment asking if I could omit the lemon, but I couldn’t figure out how to reply to my earlier thread😬. Anyhow, I tested it this weekend, but went a step farther and omitted the blueberry as well. I have always loved the crumb and texture of this cake so much. It always bakes up so perfectly and I wanted to try it as a basic vanilla cake. I added two teaspoons each of vanilla extract and vanilla bean paste for lots of vanilla flavor. I did end up adding one tablespoon of lemon juice too but you couldn’t taste it in the final product. It was the perfect vanilla cake and will be my go-to recipe from now on! I also forgot to mention that I have made this recipe twice for Thanksgiving dessert, replacing the lemon and blueberry with orange and cranberry. Very delicious that way as well!
I’m so glad it turned out, Karen! 🙂
Oh my goodness! What a beautiful cake! I made this Lemon Blueberry Cake for a neighbor’s going away party and the reviews were outstanding! I followed the recipe exactly and even decorated the top with a few sugared blueberries and a pretty yellow flower! The texture was wonderful and the blueberries were spread throughout the whole cake … and the frosting…. it was the perfect pairing with the lemon of the cake! I will definitely be making it again! Lots of the ladies even took an extra piece home! Thanks! All your cake recipes I have tried have been wonderful!
Thanks so much for the sweet review, Cindy! We are so happy the cake was well-loved 🥰
I want to make sure his cake for my Mother’s birthday but she isn’t a fan of blueberries. Can I replace the blueberries with raspberries or would they be too big?
Hi Mandy! Others have done it with success. 🙂 Happy birthday to your mother! 🙂
I made this for my birthday yesterday and it was a huge hit with my crowd. Excellent instructions! Will be making more of your cakes!
We’re so happy everyone enjoyed it, Nan! Happy Birthday 🎂
Best cake I ever made. Thanks!
I followed the recipe exactly, but the cake is very dense and sort of bland. The cake weighs a ton. I made it for Easter dinner, and should have tried it out first, but I didn’t. I won’t make that mistake again. A fair dessert, but I would never make again.
I’m so sorry to hear this happened, Mary Anne! If the cake was dense and bland there’s a chance the batter was over-mixed or over-baked. 🙁
Hi! I only have nine inch pans. Can I get away with using two of them?
Hi Jennifer! This should fit in 2 9 inch pans but I’m not sure on a bake time. 🙂
Actually, it got better with age, as it aged it seemed to become more flavorful. It tasted good, flavor wise but the texture was just off a bit and as I said, it was very dense and heavy.
Hi,
Going to try this tomorrow but I don’t have cornstarch. Is there something that can replace this?
Thanks!
Hi Jessica! You would just want to replace the cornstarch with flour. 🙂
Hi – so excited to try!! Question – do the buttermilk and eggs need to be room temp?
Hi Abraham! It works best if all ingredients are at room temperature. 🙂
Love your recipe! If i were to use a rectangle pan, what size would equal 3 8” rounds? And how would the baking time differ? Thanks in advance!
Hi Mira! These are thinner cake layers so the batter should fit into a 9 x 13. I’m not sure on a bake time though.
This is one of the favorites at my church! Thank you for this recipe it’s an easy one to make. I do them in the 4” cupcakes size and it doesn’t stay around for long! Again thank you.
can this be made into cupcakes sam?
Hi Rebecca! Yes, you can certainly use this recipe for cupcakes. Your bake time would likely be close to 17 minutes 😊
Absolutely love that you put amounts of ingredients in the instructions!
The best! I’m attempting gluten-free tomorrow for a friend because everyone raved about it! I will use a mini bunt pan so she can freeze and enjoy when she wants
I am going to try gluten free today and see how it turns out. Using frozen wild blueberries for little extra moisture, tad bit more liquid,1/2 tsp baking soda per cup flour to help fluff it up, let the batter sit just until the blueberries begin to thaw and see how it turns out.
Please let us know how it goes for you! 😊
can i freeze this cake unfrosted and frost when i need it?
Hi Sally! That will work just fine. 🙂
could I use strawberry in place of blueberries?
Hi Annette! We haven’t tried this but it should probably work. Let us know how it turns out!
This cake is amazing! I made it to take to a friend’s house for Thanksgiving. I couldn’t eat enough of it! I craved more so now I am going to try to make a smaller one just for me!
You have to use the suggested frosting with the lemon curd base. You will need to add more powdered sugar to get the frosting right but it’s worth the extra effort! This is a contest winner!
We’re so happy this one was such a hit for you, Mary 🥰