Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
If you’re looking for a delicious, seasonal, berry cake recipe to add to your morning-treat repertoire, this buttermilk blueberry breakfast cake is perfect! The batter can be made ahead of time and stashed in the fridge, allowing you to bake the cake off in the morning. What’s more? It freezes beautifully!
Buttermilk is magic. It turns everything into gold: super-moist, super-delicious gold.
This morning I awoke needing a simple, summery, cake-like-but-not-dessert-like breakfast treat. One of Ben’s friends had crashed here last night, and I thought it only appropriate to treat him to a proper breakfast.
In other words, I was craving sugar and carbs. The truth is I’ve been craving sugar and carbs and a cake like this for months. But seriously, who doesn’t need a good, seasonal, berry cake recipe in their morning-treat repertoire?
Nobody. And I think I’ve found the recipe that fits the bill: buttermilk blueberry breakfast cake. On an old photocopied sheet of paper in my mother’s hand writing, I spotted a note: “Baby Boy’s Favorite.”
Oh Baby Boy. Baby Boy is my younger brother, my parents’ favorite child, and one of the most satisfying people to cook for. If it was Baby Boy’s favorite cake, it would soon be mine, too. This cake is delectable! I think you’ll like it, too.
(And if you’re looking for more fruit options, this cake is so good with cranberries.)
PS: Divine Lemon-Blueberry Muffins
Five Favorite Recipes Made with Buttermilk
- One-Bowl Buttermilk Birthday Cake
- Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Simple Rhubarb Compote
- Tartine’s Buttermilk-Blueberry Scones
- Joanne Chang’s Buttermilk Biscuits with Maple and Sea Salt
- One-Bowl Buttermilk Pancakes
Bonus: Favorite Buttermilk Dressing for Slaw
How to Make Buttermilk from Scratch
Scale this recipe up as needed.
- Place 2 teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup.
- Fill cup with milk (2% or whole is best) until it reaches the 1/2-cup line.
- Let stand for five minutes. Use as directed.
Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 12 to 16 pieces
Description
This cake is a long-time family favorite. My mother made it for my siblings and me when we were young, and every time I pull it out of the oven, clichè as it sounds, I am reminded of summer mornings in my childhood kitchen. It’s simple, adaptable, and make aheadable 🙂
Over the years, many questions have been asked, which I’ve answered as best as I can in the comments. I’ve answered a few FAQs in the notes below the recipe as well.
Also, if you’re new here, welcome! You’ve landed on one of the two most popular recipes on Alexandra’s Kitchen, the other being My Mother’s Peasant Bread, which led to the creation of my cookbook, Bread Toast Crumbs, which includes 40 simple bread recipes and 70+ recipes for eating them up. (If you love baking, you’ll love this no-knead bread.)
Ingredients
- ½ cup (8 tablespoons | 4 oz | 113 g ) unsalted butter, room temperature
- zest from 1 large lemon
- 1 cup (214 g) sugar (set aside 1 tablespoon for sprinkling)
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 cups (256 g) all-purpose flour (set aside 1/4 cup of this to toss with the blueberries)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. kosher salt (I like 1.25 tsp)
- 2 cups fresh blueberries, picked over
- ½ cup buttermilk, see FAQs below
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Using a stand mixer or hand-held mixer, cream the butter with the lemon zest and the 1 cup minus 1 tablespoon of sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add half of the flour mixture to the batter, and stir with spatula to incorporate. Add all of the buttermilk. Stir. Add remaining flour, and stir until flour is absorbed. Fold in the blueberries. (Leave excess flour from the blueberry bowl behind.)
- Grease an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan (or something similar—I prefer this 8-inch pan because I like the thicker pieces) with butter or coat with non-stick spray. If you have parchment paper on hand, line the pan with parchment on top of the butter. Spread the batter into the pan. Sprinkle the batter with the remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes — a 9-inch pan will be done in closer to 35 minutes; an 8-inch pan usually needs 40 to 45 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness. If necessary, return pan to oven for a couple of more minutes. (Note: Baking for as long as 10 minutes more might be necessary, especially if you’re using a smaller pan such as an 8×8-inch. It’s not unusual for this cake to take 50 minutes, so just be patient.) Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
FAQs
- Can this be made ahead of time? Yes. Prepare the batter, spread it into the prepared baking pan, cover it with plastic wrap, and store in the fridge. In the morning, if time permits, bring it to room temperature for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with the sugar, then bake as directed. It may need more time if the batter was refrigerated.
- Can this be doubled? Yes. Bake it in a 9×13-inch pan … like this pan from Pyrex. Increase the baking time but begin checking at the 35 minute mark.
- What if I don’t have buttermilk? Use 2% or whole milk or make your own buttermilk: place 2 teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Fill cup with milk until it reaches the 1/2-cup line. Let stand for five minutes. Use as directed.
- Can this be made gluten free? Yes. I like Cup4Cup and King Arthur Flour gluten-free flour mixes, but use whatever you like, keeping in mind that all gluten-free flours absorb liquid differently, so you may need to adjust to get the batter to the right consistency.
- Should the batter be thick? Yes. As with all baking, I highly recommend using a scale to measure the flour. I have this one, which costs under $11.
- Can I bake this into muffins? Yes. Follow the baking directions on this post.
- Can I use frozen berries? Yes. No need to thaw.
- What other fruit could I use? Really any fresh fruit or berries. Around the winter holidays, I make this cranberry-orange buttermilk breakfast cake.
- Can this be frozen? Made ahead of time? Yes! Let cool completely, then wrap well with plastic wrap or other airtight wrap. Freeze for up to 3 months. Let thaw at room temperature the night before serving. Reheat at 350ºF for 15 minutes before serving. If you are not freezing it, store it at room temperature for a day. Refrigerate if storing for more than 1 day.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
3,553 Comments on “Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake”
Could you use a different fruit.
Yes! Really any berry, but peaches, nectarines, etc work, too.
Can this be made using Splenda?
I think several commenters have had success using Splenda, but I’ve never tried, so I can’t say for sure.
Can I use soy milk rather than buttermilk? Dairy allergy in the family.
Yes! I’ve never used it, but several commenters have used soy or almond milk.
One tbsp of apple cider vinegar and soy milk to make one cup of buttermilk. Let stand 5-10 min or til it curdles. Hope this helps!
Yes, thank you!
16 pieces of this cake in an 8″ pan???
I would think that would take a 9″x13″ pan ???
My kids would be fighting over this from an 8″…..
I typically make 4 cuts each way — the pieces are small, definitely. We all fight over this no matter what size the pieces are! 🙂
I would like to know if you can use frozen berries as well We had more on our bushes this year than we could possibly use. I’m assuming Alexandra doesn’t answer questions about the recipes? Has anyone else used frozen?
Yes, absolutely! Use them as directed in the recipe — no thawing necessary.
Do you wash the fresh blueberries?
This looks and sounds wonderful!!!! Just wondering about using apples instead of blueberries. Adding cinnamon to the batter and a cinnamon sugar topping. Do I need to make any other adjustments? Thanks for your recipe and help.
I would like to know what is zesting from lemon
Hi Linda,
I use a microplane grater (see video above — recently added!). If you don’t have one, you can use a peeler or the part of a box grater that looks kind of like flowers? Or just omit it.
CAN I USE A GLUTEN FREE FLOUR BLEND?
Yes! I like Cup4Cup (Thomas Keller’s brand) best. I buy it at Target.
I think people should read the ALREADY ASKED questions before they bother you!
Thanks for the delicious recipes! Keep them coming!
THE most delicious thing I’ve ever eaten for breakfast! I ALWAYS make 2 batches because the first one is GONE within the hour. My family is nuts over this! I’ve always used regular salt – never had any problem with taste or texture. I will make a few next time and freeze them.
Are there any adjustments got high altitude?
What can I substitute lemon zest with? I don’t have a grater.
Even at only 1 tsp kosher salt it tastes salty. Which gives it an off flavor
Did you use salted butter? If not, cut back the salt.
I have made this recipe three times in as many weeks now and it has been a hit! My son doesn’t like blueberries though so I am going to try and make it with strawberries today.
Have you ever turned this into mini-muffins? If so, will it make 24 muffins?
Does this need to be stored in the refrigerator?
This was delicious! I was out of Greek yogurt to bake my usual blueberry muffins and found this. I didn’t have buttermilk so used the vinegar with milk and it worked great, otherwise I followed the recipe exactly – it was SO easy and everyone loved it!
Hi
Recipe sounds delicious!!!!!!!!!!!
Can this be made the night before and then re-heated?
If so, how would you re-heat it? And how long can it be stored in the refrigerator
Thanks so much!!!!!
Can I use sea salt instead of kosher salt??
How important is it that the egg be room tempt? About how long should it sit from fridge to counter to get that way?
Can I use buttermilk pancake mix to save time? Thanks!
This cake is delicious! The crumb is so moist and tender and I especially love the sugar on top! Thanks for the great recipe!
Can you make this without sugar? Like maybe honey or some other healthy sweetner?
Possibly! I worry about honey being too strong in flavor, and its liquid content affecting the texture. I might try for coconut sugar instead.
This is the best blueberry breakfast cake that I have made. I give it 5 stars for sure. It’s so moist and flavorful.
I made this when my sister was visiting to go along with our brunch. It was thevstar of the show! Best coffee cake I’ve ever eaten. So easy to make. She took some home with her and I had a ouece forvthe next day.
Yay!! So happy to hear this.
Can I use frozen blueberries?
Yes can You use frozen blueberries or other frozen berries?? My niece picked me about 12 qts. .
YES! no need to thaw
YES! no need to thaw
Can Almond Milk be used in place of buttermilk?
Yes!
Can I use cake flour, instead of all purpose? Just wondering since it’s so fine although I’m not sure what difference it makes.
Cake flour has baking powder in it so you would have to adjust the baking powder.
Cake flour doesn’t have baking powder in it; self-rising flour does.
Shouldn’t make much of a difference. Go for it if that’s what you have on hand.
Any reason I couldn’t use chocolate chips instead of blueberries?
I can’t believe this has never been done?! I don’t see why not.