Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
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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.
3,550 Comments on “Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake”
This is the worst recipe I’ve ever read, poorly worded and just doesn’t make sense! Absolutely ridiculous I wasted ingredients for this. Don’t make this. Waste of time and food.
Hmmm …. what exactly was confusing about the wording? This isn’t the typical response to this recipe.
I just put mine in the oven with zero issues with the wording in the recipe. No idea what the original commenter is referring to. There are several angry people in this review section for some reason. Maybe they forgot to have their coffee before they attempted this recipe. 😉
🙂 🙂 🙂 Hahaha, totally. Coffee before commenting should be a rule 🙂
Can this be made without egg?
Hi! I just made this recipe this morning and OH MY GOODNESS! I am in love with it!! Cant wait to make it for company this weekend! To answer your question, Snehal, my son has an egg allergy so i used 1/4 cup of plain yogurt and it turned out fantastic:)
So happy to hear this, Meghan!!
Best breakfast ever for any sort of event. I’ve taken twice now for my turn for Breakfast Club at work (doubled), and have left with an empty pan both times. Given the link to your recipe to numerous co-workers. Just made again this a.m. at the request of my daughter. We’re just waiting for it to cool. 😁
Yay! So happy to hear this, Kari 🙂 🙂 🙂
A brunch favorite in our house! Making it again for Easter! Thanks for a super easy and great one!
So happy to hear this, Amy!
This was simply superb! I followed the directions exactly and it was just divine. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe!
This was amazing. I made it with gluten free flour and brought it to Easter brunch. Everyone raved. It was moist, flavorful, actually just yummy. This will go into my favorites. Thanks for sharing it.
Wow, great to hear it turned out well gluten free!
Is it recommended that you serve this warm? Or would it be ok to make the night ahead and serve the next morning?
You can make it ahead — I think it’s great served at room temperature.
Easy to make, currently waiting for it to cool for breakfast. Crossing my fingers my 2 and 4 yr olds love it.
Yay! Happy to hear this, Belinda!
Do you think this would work (baking wise) ok in a bundt pan?
I do, but it may be a little small … I might consider doing 1.5x the recipe?
The negative comments might be because the first set of ingredients calls for 1 cup butter. Also no “notes” are included. When I clicked on “make it” to copy the entire recipe, the measurement for butter was 1/2 cup and there were several notes, all of which would make a big difference.
This was delicious! I didn’t have a lemon to zest so I used lemon juice and it was still great. I can’t wait to make it again with zest. It was so good!
Yay! Wonderful to hear this, Tiffany!
This is outstanding! I made this cake when I got out of bed this morning- still blurry-eyed- super easy and fabulous flavor. I did use frozen blueberries and it was great. I increased the baking time by 10 minutes to account for the frozen berries.
Nice! Smart. So happy this worked out!
Can I substitute with almond flour? If so, does this change the recipe and cooking time?
You can’t swap it one for one with almond flour. If you’re looking to make it gluten free, I would use a gluten-free 1:1 mix. Timing won’t change.
So good!!! Made it for Mothers Day & it was a success.
Yay!
This used to be a staple, but I love Alexandra’s breakfasty breads from Bread, Toast, Crumbs so much (coconut, apple-thyme, etc.) that I have not made the blueberry cake for years. This weekend unexpected guests arrived, and I quickly threw together this blueberry cake. “The best blueberry cake I’ve ever had,” was the verdict. Guest status notwithstanding, it really is the best, and so quick to make. I’m really not sure why the other readers had problems. Cooking until really golden and checking with a toothpick and watching for the cake to retract from the edges ensures the cake is done. It’s a winner, for sure.
This recipe was great! I’m confused about other comments saying the directions were hard to follow; I thought it was quite clear, and it turned out great! I made it for Mother’s day yesterday and it was a huge hit.
So happy to hear this, Lauren!
I’m going to Turner Falls this weekend, but it’s Wednesday. We will eat it on Sunday morning… Can I make this several days before or will it not turn out right??
I wouldn’t make it that far in advance. You can bake it and freeze it once it has cooled. It freezes beautifully.
What is the carb count on this recipe?
Very easy to make, very moist, everyone loved it
Wonderful to hear this!
This sounds like a great weekend treat when the kids don’t have school! And perfect, tomorrow is a weekend morning 🙂 I love buttermilk in a lot of things too.
I can’t wait to try this, it sounds and looks so good!
It’s in the oven as I type! I added some fresh strawberries in with my blueberries too! Thanks so much for a great recipe!
Yay!
How will the recipe change if my blueberries are frozen?
You may find it takes just a teensy bit longer to bake, but overall nothing should change.
I make this recipe regularly! It’s a family favorite. I’m hoping to try it out in a bundt pan today. Has anyone ever tried this?
Wonderful! Just made it was very easy and delicious! Everyone loved it..it’s a keeper! Thanks for a great recipe.
Absolutely outstanding cake! My husband and I cannot stop eating it. Thank you so much for the recipe!
You are so welcome!! So happy to hear this 🙂
Alexandra, you are amazing! I just so love your website and your cooking; your presentation is amazing, so is photography. Oh, and thanks for adding grams to your recipe. That is so truly amazingly helpful
Oh, Marina, thank you 🙂 🙂 🙂 Your kind words mean the world. It is my pleasure.
This is the most amazing breakfast bread! There was a store in TN that had something similar that my husband and I loved and when we moved to CO we couldn’t find it. No need now this is way better and so moist!! Can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe!! Making this again today with blackberries!
So happy to hear this, Melissa!
The recipe doesnt mention when to add the remaining sugar that didnt go into the butter at the beginning. I ran out of flour and replaced regular with oat flour & Made my buttermilk out of soymilk
Hi Rhianna,
Nice work on making the buttermilk out of soymilk. The sprinkling of sugar is mentioned in the last step.
This cake is heavenly. It is light and flavorful. The lemon zest combined with the fresh blueberries perfectly compliment the texture which is more like a biscuit than a cake. Delicious!
So happy to hear this, Susan!
Hi! Can I use a sugar substitute? And if so do you recommend one?!
I’ve never tried … sorry!
I am making this cake right now. It is in the oven. I substituted the sugar with 2 very ripe bananas. I will use bananas a lot or I substitute coconut sugar for white sugar as I am allergic to cane sugar. Both work in most things. I did sprinkle the top of this cake with coconut sugar and added extra BB for the sweetness.
Yum!
My husband and I love this recipe. I just wondered how it would be without the lemon zest? Many times I wanted to make this but didn’t have a lemon. Could lemon juice be used instead
Hi Debbie! You could definitely use lemon juice, though I do think fresh lemon makes the best flavor. You could also try just omitting it!
So good! I just finished eating a piece warm from the oven. It has a nice and light texture. I made as directed with blueberries that I just picked from my yard. I don’t have a 9×9 pan so I made it in an 8×8 and it was so thick that had to bake for almost an hour. Next time I will try to find a pan that’s a little bit larger. I can’t wait to try it with peaches or nectarines this summer! Now I’ve got to go cut myself another piece!
Yay! So happy to hear this, Jacqui!
Can I make this in a bundt pan?
I’ve never tried. My concern is that it might be too short. I might make 1.5 times the recipe and bake it in a bundt.