My hearty Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake is filled to the brim with fresh blueberries and topped with a buttery cinnamon crumble. Sour cream keeps this cake soft and moist for days. It’s perfect served with a cup of tea or coffee!
If you’re a fan of blueberries and cake, you’re going to LOVE my easy Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake. Contrary to it’s name, there is no coffee in the cake, rather this popular American-style cake is designed to be enjoyed with a steaming cup of hot coffee or tea.
Just like my favourite Classic Coffee Cake recipe, this blueberry version has a bounty of buttery cinnamon crumbs on top for crunch. Sour cream helps to create a surprisingly tender cake studded with fresh, juicy blueberries.
A two-ingredient vanilla glaze makes it complete. Simple but oh-so-tasty, this Blueberry Coffee Cake really is amazing!
Why you will love this recipe
- Quick and easy: This homemade cake is easy to make, even for beginner bakers.
- Simple ingredients: You only need easy-to-find, everyday ingredients to make this cake. You can even swap fresh blueberries for frozen ones if they aren’t in season.
- Tender texture: While this cake has a crunchy crust from the buttery streusel, the crumb of the cake is surprisingly soft and moist – and stays that way for days.
- Perfect for morning or afternoon tea: Guests will love being served this showstopping one-layer cake.
This recipe is on fire! I made it, served it and will make it again every time I have houseguests! I plan to make it with blackberries as well! Thank you so much for sharing your recipes.
– April
Recipe testing
I was recently struck by a moment of inspiration that I can thank my one-year-old for. He is obsessed with blueberries and could eat a whole tray in one sitting.
Since beautiful, big, sweet blueberries are in season here, I thought what if I could create a thick, one-layer cake studded with fresh blueberries, topped with a buttery crumb and drizzled with a sweet, drippy vanilla glaze?
And so I set off to create exactly that. I took inspiration from my favourite Coffee Cake recipe, but used sour cream for extra richness and a mountain of plump blueberries. I made the same cinnamon filled crumb and then added a simple glaze, just like we do in my popular Cinnamon Apple Cake.
The result was H-E-A-V-E-N. This cake is extremely moist, full of flavour and very, very moreish. The blueberries are juicy, the crumb is buttery and the cake is bursting wth cinnamon goodness.
This Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake is now in my regular rotation. I hope it makes it into yours as well.
Ingredients
It may look like you need quite a few ingredients to make this Blueberry Coffee Cake recipe, but most of them are pantry staples. Here’s a quick snapshot of what you need to know, including any substitutions you can make.
- Caster sugar: You can use caster sugar or granulated sugar.
- Cornflour: Cornflour, also known as corn starch, helps to create crumbs with a soft texture. If you don’t have access to it, you can easily just use a little extra plain flour or all purpose flour.
- Blueberries: If they’re in season, go for fresh blueberries for the best flavour and texture. Otherwise, frozen blueberries can be used. Do not thaw them before adding them to the cake batter, just add them in frozen. Carefully stir them through, and try not to over-mix or they will bleed into the batter.
- Sour cream: I recommend using full-fat sour cream if you can. Otherwise, a full fat Greek yogurt or natural yogurt is the best substitute – it works really too!
See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How to make Blueberry Coffee Cake
Step 1: To make cinnamon crumbs, add flour, sugar, cornflour, cinnamon and melted butter into a medium mixing bowl.
Step 2: Gently mix by hand until you have small irregular lumps or crumbs. Set aside.
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Step 3: In a large bowl, add butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat using an electric mixer on medium speed for 1-2 minutes or until pale and fluffy.
Step 4: Add egg. Mix briefly on medium speed just until combined.
Step 5: Add half of the dry ingredients, along with the milk. Mix on low speed until combined.
Step 6: Add remaining dry ingredients and sour cream. Mix briefly until you have a thick cake batter.
Step 7: Stir through fresh blueberries. Transfer cake mixture to prepared cake pan.
Step 8: Gently smooth the top. Press a few extra blueberries on top of the batter.
Step 9: Sprinkle over cinnamon crumbs. Bake cake for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Step 10: Stir together icing sugar, vanilla and milk. Drizzle over cooled cake.
Storage instructions
You can keep this cake in an airtight container at room temperature.
To make it ahead of time, you can freeze it. Wrap cake in plastic wrap once it’s completely cooled and store in an airtight container in the freezer. To serve, simply defrost at room temperature or warm individual pieces in the microwave.
I love to enjoy this cake fresh on the day it’s made and then freeze any leftovers. It freezes remarkably well!
Jess’s recipe tips
Here are my tips for creating the perfect Sour Cream Blueberry Coffee Cake from scratch.
- Use a baking scale: For the best bake every time, consider investing in a kitchen scale. It’s very easy to over-measure flour when using cup measurements and too much flour will result in a dry or tough cake.
- Pay attention to the temperature of your butter: You’ll need to use softened butter for the cake. Butter that’s approximately 65°F (18°C) will easily mix with the caster sugar. Creaming the butter and sugar should only take 1-2 minutes. If your butter is too cold, it’ll take much longer and you’ll never get your butter pale and creamy. In the same way, if your butter is melty and too warm, you won’t achieve the fluffy texture that’s needed to create a soft, tender crumb.
- Watch the bake time: This cake is quite deep so will take a good 45-50 minutes to bake. If you take it out too soon, your cake is likely to sink in the middle under the weight of the streusel topping. If the cake starts to brown a bit too much on the outside before it’s fully cooked, consider covering the cake with a piece of aluminum foil for the remaining cook time.
Frequently asked questions
While some coffee cakes may be coffee flavoured, this cake is a take on the American classic that was designed to be the perfect cake served with a cup of coffee. It typically has a soft, buttery cake and a crunchy crumb on top. This is my blueberry cinnamon version.
Yes absolutely. Simply add them to the batter frozen – don’t thaw them first.
Coffee cakes typically sink because they are slightly underbaked. The very middle of the cake is the last place to cook through. If it’s taken out of the oven before it’s fully baked, it’ll deflate as it cools and your cake will sink due to the weight on the crumbs on top. Ensure your cake is fully cooked before removing it from the oven.
Yes! This cake would be lovely with raspberries or blackberries. Experiment and let us know in the comments below your thoughts.
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Let’s Bake
Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake recipe
A soft and tender Blueberry Cake complete with a buttery crumble and a vanilla glaze.
Ingredients
Cinnamon crumbs
- 70 grams (1/2 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 30 grams (2 tablespoons) brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cornflour or corn starch (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 40 grams butter, melted
Blueberry sour cream cake
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 150 grams (3/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 210 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) full fat or whole milk, room temperature
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) full fat sour cream, room temperature
- 155 grams (1 and 1/4 cup) fresh blueberries (see notes)
Vanilla glaze
- 30 grams (1/4 cup) icing sugar or powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Line and grease an 8-inch round cake pan with baking or parchment paper.
- Cinnamon crumbs
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, cornflour, cinnamon and melted butter. Mix together until you have coarse crumbs. Set aside. - Blueberry sour cream cake
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar and vanilla together until pale and creamy. Add egg, beat briefly until combined, then scrape down the sides of the bowl. - In a separate bowl, sift together the plain flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add half of the dry ingredients, along with all the milk, and slowly mix together on a low speed.
- Add the remaining dry ingredients and sour cream and continue to mix until smooth and creamy. The batter will be quite thick – that’s fine! Stir through 125 grams (1 cup) blueberries.
- Transfer cake batter to your prepared pan and smooth the top. Press extra 30 grams (1/4 cup) blueberries on top. Then scatter cinnamon crumbs all over the top.
- Bake cake for approximately 45-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Leave to cool for 10 minutes before gently removing from the tin and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack.
- Vanilla glaze
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together icing sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk. If glaze is too thick, add a little extra milk. - Drizzle glaze all over cooled cake.
Notes
Cornflour: Cornflour, also known as corn starch, helps to create crumbs with a soft texture. If you don’t have access to it, you can easily just use a little extra plain flour or all purpose flour.
Blueberries: If they’re in season, go for fresh blueberries for the best flavour and texture. Otherwise, frozen blueberries can be used. Do not thaw them before adding them to the cake batter, just add them in frozen. Carefully stir them through, and try not to over-mix or they will bleed into the batter.
Sour cream: I recommend using full fat sour cream if you can. Otherwise, a full fat Greek yogurt or natural yogurt is the best substitute – it works really too!
Storage instructions: You can keep this cake in an airtight container at room temperature. To make it ahead of time, you can freeze it. Wrap cake once it’s completely cooled in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container in the freezer. To serve, simply defrost at room temperature or warm individual pieces in the microwave. I love to enjoy this cake fresh on the day it’s made and then freeze any leftovers. It freezes remarkably well!
Nutrition Information
Mindy says
I don’t do a lot of reviews, but this recipe deserves a 5+ rating. This Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake is AMAZING! I had some blueberries that were looking a little sad after being pushed to the back of the refrigerator. I really didn’t want to throw them out, and I’m so glad I didn’t! This cake is so simple to make and was a smashing success. It is moist and yummy, the blueberries don’t fall to the bottom of the cake and the crumb topping is the perfect addition of cinnamon sugar. I didn’t make the glaze because it just didn’t need it. I can’t stop eating it! Can’t wait to make it again! I’m looking forward to trying the apple cake recipe next.
Jessica Holmes says
Aw this makes me so happy Mindy! I love that you enjoyed this one so much. Thank you for your kind review. I think you’ll love my new Peach Cake recipe too!
Kim L says
Happy New Year to you and yours, Jess! I baked this today for dessert and served it with vanilla ice cream. It was a hit! One of my guests exclaimed, “Ooh! That crumb is sooo good! And that cake!” Definitely a keeper. Thanks for yet another brilliant recipe, Jess. Every good wish for 2025.
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! That’s so wonderful to hear Kim. The perfect cake to ring in the new year 🙂
Tina says
Can I make this in an 8 x 8 square pan as opposed to a round pan?
Jessica Holmes says
Absolutely Tina!
Maria says
Great recipe Jess! Everyone loved it! Easy to make and perfect now that blueberry season is upon us. I’d add some chopped pecans to the cinnamon crumb next time.
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Maria! Pecans would be an amazing addition!
Sm says
This was by far the best cake I have made using your recipes- which says a lot because I only rely on your recipes.
Thank you Jess for another hit recipe with staple ingredients and simple instructions.
Jessica Holmes says
This makes me so happy! So glad you love this one as much as I do!
Elizabeth T says
I made this for my husband and it was SO good we immediately got in the car and drove it over to my in-laws house because we just HAD to share. We didn’t end up using the vanilla glaze and it was super moist and delicious nonetheless. Everyone LOVED it and I will be making again and again!
Jessica Holmes says
Ohh I love hearing that Elizabeth! I’m so happy everyone loved it. I love it when a baked good is so good, you just have to share 🙂
April Rapier says
This recipe is on fire! I made it, served it and will make it again every time I have houseguests! I plan to make it with blackberries as well! Thank you so much for sharing your recipes – I really appreciate your generosity of spirit as well as your expertise and artistry!
Jessica Holmes says
That is so kind April! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it. Your lovely comment made my day! x
Josh says
Surprisingly good! Really soft, lovely cake.
Jessica Holmes says
It is isn’t it Josh!