Simple Blueberry Cake

This blueberry cake is my official summertime dessert. I hope it becomes yours, too. It’s tender, fully loaded with blueberries, and simple to make—no mixer required. It’s a dream!

This blueberry cake recipe is naturally sweetened with maple syrup, which makes it extra delicious. Thanks to the blueberries and maple syrup, it’s nicely sweet but not over the top. Some cakes are so sweet that they give me a stomachache, but this one is just right.

This cake will absolutely be a hit at your Fourth of July festivities. Serve it as a “snacking cake” or make it celebration-worthy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. I’ve even enjoyed a slice with yogurt for breakfast.

Blueberry Cake Recipe Development

To create this cake, I started with my Healthy Blueberry Muffins and adjusted the recipe until I arrived at a perfectly sweet cake. Since we started from a recipe that I know like the back of my hand, I’m able to offer adjustments to make this cake gluten free, dairy free or vegan. Check the recipe notes for those details.

To make the recipe taste like a true cake, I substituted melted butter for the coconut oil or olive oil. I also traded buttermilk for the Greek yogurt for a fluffier texture with the same nice tang.

I managed to triple the blueberries, too. You’ll need 3 cups (1 1/2 pints) total. I trust that you can polish off the leftover blueberries on your own!

Watch How to Make Simple Blueberry Cake

Blueberry Cake Tips

Pan options: This cake bakes beautifully in a standard 9-inch springform pan. You could also use a 9-inch cake pan. I imagine that you could bake the cake in an 8-inch square baker. Any time you’re changing the baking pan size suggested in a baked good recipe, keep an eye on the oven and pay more attention to the visual cues provided for doneness than the actual timing (your cake could be done a few minutes sooner or later than specified).

This recipe works with a variety of flours. My favorite is white whole wheat flour, which is a variety of whole wheat with a very mild flavor closer to all-purpose. Use regular whole wheat flour for a faintly nutty flavor and a slightly rustic texture. Otherwise, all-purpose flour or gluten-free all-purpose blends work, too.

You can make this cake with fresh or frozen blueberries. Do not defrost frozen blueberries before using.

Toss the blueberries with a small amount of flour so they don’t sink to the bottom of the cake. The extra teaspoon of flour in the ingredients list is there for good reason.

Sprinkle raw sugar on top. Raw sugar, also known as turbinado sugar, makes the blueberries sparkle and adds a lightly crackly burst of sweetness on top. You can buy raw sugar in the sugar aisle of most grocery stores these days. Or, just grab a few extra raw sugar packets from your go-to coffee shop (I won’t tell).

More Berry Desserts to Enjoy

Just a few of many recipes with blueberries, strawberries and raspberries:

Please let me know how your cake turns out in the comments! I’m so eager to hear how you like it.

Simple Blueberry Cake

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Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 1 cake 1x
Category: Cake
Method: Baked
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian

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4.7 from 78 reviews

Make this simple blueberry cake recipe! This blueberry cake is tender and delicious, loaded with blueberries, and not too sweet. It’s naturally sweetened and whole grain as written, too (check recipe notes for more flour options). Recipe yields one 9-inch round cake, enough for 8 slices.

Scale

Ingredients

1 ¾ cups plus 1 teaspoon white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup maple syrup or honey
6 tablespoons melted butter
2 eggs, preferably at room temperature
⅔ cup buttermilk*
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups blueberries, fresh (1 ½ pints) or frozen, divided
1 tablespoon turbinado sugar (also called raw sugar), for sprinkling on top
Optional serving suggestions: Vanilla ice cream, Greek yogurt or whipped cream

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the base of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper cut to fit inside. Butter the sides of the pan to prevent the cake from sticking.
In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 ¾ cups of the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Stir them together with a whisk.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the maple syrup and butter and beat together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well, then add the buttermilk and vanilla. Mix well. (If the butter solidifies in contact with cold ingredients, gently warm the mixture in the microwave in 30 second bursts, then stir again.)
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a big spoon, just until combined (a few lumps are ok). In a small bowl, toss 2 cups of the blueberries with the remaining 1 teaspoon flour (this helps prevent the blueberries from sinking to the bottom). Gently fold the blueberries into the batter. The mixture will be thick, but don’t worry.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Distribute the remaining blueberries on top, focusing them more toward the center of the cake. Sprinkle the top of the blueberries with the turbinado sugar.
Bake for 34 to 38 minutes, until the cake is golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (blueberry bits aside). Place the cake on a cooling rack to cool. Before releasing the springform sides, you might need to run a butter knife along the outer edge of the cake to loosen it from the pan.
Serve as desired. Store leftover cake covered, at room temperature for 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Or, freeze leftover cake for up to 3 months.

Notes

Recipe adapted from my Healthy Blueberry Muffins.

*How to make buttermilk: Combine 2 teaspoons vinegar with ⅔ cup milk of choice (any milk will do). Let the mixture rest for 5 to 10 minutes before adding it to the other liquid ingredients.

Flour options: All-purpose flour and gluten-free all-purpose blends also work well here. I bet that you could use 2 ½ cups oat flour instead, but haven’t tried to be sure.

Change it up: Know that the cinnamon and turbinado sugar are technically optional. You could try this cake with raspberries or sliced strawberries in place of the blueberries. Instead of buttermilk, you could use 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream. For lemony cake, whisk the zest of 1 medium lemon (about ½ teaspoon), preferably organic, into the liquid ingredients.

Make it dairy free: Make your own buttermilk from your non-dairy milk of choice. Replace the butter with ⅓ cup melted coconut oil or mildly flavored extra-virgin olive oil, like California Olive Ranch.

Make it vegan: Follow dairy-free guidance above and substitute flax eggs for the regular eggs.

Make it egg free: Substitute flax eggs for the regular eggs.

Make it gluten-free: Substitute an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend for the whole wheat flour. Bob’s Red Mill makes a gluten-free blend that works well.

▸ Nutrition Information

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