This cake is such a delightful alternative to the typical chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry cakes you make for birthdays or celebrations. I made this on Jonathan and Jordanna’s birthday to celebrate them on their day. Jonathan is extremely sensitive to sugar so I decided to search for a great tasting cake with less sugar and that does not need icing and I came across this recipe. I have to say I am quite glad I found it too!
It definitely falls into the blueberry lemon theme I have going on lately. I think I have had a blueberry lemon craving going on because I have made the blueberry lemon Overnight Oatmeal recipe so many times within the past few weeks that I need to slow down before anyone gets sick of it. I know I won’t though. It tastes so great!
This cake is such a great change from the sugary cakes topped with icing and may feel like more of an adult type cake, but the kids loved it! I mean, I think if you say the name “cake” in anything, then kids are willing to try it. Below are the details to make this delicious “breakfast” cake.
Preheat your oven and grease your pan
Preheat your oven to 325°F and make sure your oven rack is in the middle of the oven.
You will want to grease a springform pan with butter by rubbing butter into all the nooks and crannies and then sprinkle flour over the butter. This will create a barrier between the batter and the pan so it does not stick.
The springform pan should be about an 8-inch pan or if you double the recipe, use about a 12-inch pan.
Buttermilk
If you do not have buttermilk on hand, you can create a buttermilk substitute. Take a liquid measuring cup and add ½-1 tablespoon of vinegar to the measuring cup. Then, fill up the measuring cup with milk until you are at the correct measurement, which in this case is the ½ cup mark. You will want it to sit while you do the rest of the steps up until you are adding the “buttermilk”.
Since this recipe is using lemon juice, it will work in place of vinegar. I used both in this case. The liquid ingredients were closer to the ⅔ mark on the liquid measuring cup because the juice from the lemon was about 2-3 tablespoons.
If you have buttermilk, then you are good to go for this recipe!
Butter
Using room temperature butter is easier, however, I have used cold butter and just let the mixer do the work the smooth out the butter.
Add the butter to the bowl of a mixer and beat it until it is light and fluffy, then add the sugar and lemon zest. Mix it to ensure it is still light and fluffy.
Add your egg and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
How to Add the Dry Ingredients and the Buttermilk
I add all of the baking powder and salt in the first portion of this to ensure it gets mixed in well. Then you will take the flour and the buttermilk and add them in small increments, alternating between dry and liquid ingredients.
So, add 1 cup of flour, using a spoon to spoon the flour into your measuring cup. Mix the flour in on a low speed until incorporated. Then add about ⅓ of the buttermilk. Mix on low until incorporated. Add ½ cup of the flour, again using a spoon to scoop the flour into your measuring cup. Mix on low until incorporated. Add half of what is remaining in your liquid measuring cup for the buttermilk. Mix on low until incorporated. Add the last ½ cup of flour and mix on low until incorporated. Add the remaining buttermilk and mix until everything is nicely mixed together, scraping the bottom and sides if needed. The mixture should be fairly thick at this point.
Blueberries
If you are using fresh blueberries, rinse your blueberries and take out bad berries. Then, dry them as much as you can and then toss in 2 tablespoons of flour.
If you are using frozen blueberries, keep them in the freezer until you are ready to fold them into the batter.
If you want to save some blueberries to sprinkle on top of the batter and press into the batter when it is in the pan and before baking, then only use about 1 ⅔ cup of blueberries to fold into the batter. Use the other ⅓ at the end. You will still be using 2 cups in total.
Fold your blueberries into mixture. If you are using fresh blueberries, be careful that you don’t rupture your blueberries on this step. Use a spatula to scrape the batter into your pan. Spread as evenly as possible because the batter will be thick. Top with your blueberries if you are doing that step and slightly nudge them into the batter before baking.
bake, cool, and enjoy
Bake for 50-60 minutes and make sure your cake passes the “toothpick test”. When you insert a toothpick into the center of your cake, it should come out clean or fairly clean; no gooey batter.
Cool for 30 minutes before undoing the springform pan. The cake will still be a little warm at this point so you can serve warm or let come to room temperature. Enjoy!
Blueberry Lemon Cake
Serves: 8 small-medium pieces
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- zest from 1 lemon, about 1 tablespoon
- ¾ cup sugar
- juice from 1 lemon, about 2-3 tablespoons
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups, all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups blueberries, frozen
- ½ cup buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325°F.
- Grease and flour an 8-inch springform pan. Set aside and not on your oven!
- In the bowl of a stand mixer beat butter for several minutes until light and fluffy, especially if butter is not soft. Add lemon zest and sugar. Beat in and ensure mixture is still fluffy and light.
*If you do not have buttermilk and need to make buttermilk, see the buttermilk section above.* - Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated. Add the lemon juice here if you are not using the lemon juice to help create buttermilk.
- Add baking powder, salt, and 1 cup of flour; mix on low until incorporated.
Add about ⅓ of the buttermilk to the bowl; mix on low until incorporated.
Add ½ cup flour; mix on low until incorporated.
Add ½ of the remaining buttermilk mixture; mix on low until incorporated.
Add the last ½ cup flour; mix on low until incorporated.
Add the rest of the buttermilk mixture; mix on low until incorporated.
The batter should be fairly thick at this point. - Gently fold in the blueberries into the thick batter. Reserve about ⅓ cup of blueberries if you want to add some blueberries to the top of the batter, gently pressing them into the batter once in the pan.
*See the blueberry section above to read about fresh vs. frozen blueberries.* - Using a spatula, scrape the batter into the pan and spread around as best you can to create an even layer. Top with some blueberries if you wish.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes or until it passes the “toothpick test”.
- Allow the cake to rest for 30 minutes before removing it from the pan. Enjoy!
The original recipe can be found at Saving Room for Dessert.
Watch the tutorial
I doubled the recipe for this cake in this video because I was serving it as a birthday cake. So we also used a larger springform pan; about 12 inches.
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