Description
A moist and flavorful blueberry cake infused with pureed blueberries and topped with a tangy lemon cream cheese buttercream frosting. This delightful dessert combines the sweetness of fresh blueberries with the zesty brightness of lemon, perfect for celebrations or any special occasion.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Blueberry Cake
- 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, softened (170g)
- 2 cups white sugar (400g)
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 3 cups cake flour (342g) or substitute with 3 cups all-purpose flour minus 6 tablespoons plus 6 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder (8g)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda (3g)
- ½ teaspoon salt (3g)
- 1 cup sour cream (227g)
- 1 ½ cups blueberries, pureed and reduced to ¾ cup (198g blueberries to 181g puree)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil (54g)
- Pink Coloring Gel (optional)
- ½ cup whole blueberries (66g), folded in at the end
For the Lemon Cream Cheese Buttercream
- 3 sticks unsalted butter, slightly softened (339g)
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened (226g)
- ¼ cup lemon juice (57g), approximately one lemon
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 7 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted (863g)
- Milk, optional, to thin the frosting
Instructions
- Prepare Blueberry Puree: Measure 1 ½ cups blueberries, thaw if frozen. Puree in a blender, then cook with ¼ cup water over medium heat until reduced to ¾ cup. Cool completely before use.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Pans: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour three 8-inch round cake pans.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour (or substitute mix), baking powder, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds. Set aside.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In another bowl, combine sour cream, cooled blueberry puree, and vegetable oil. Mix with fork and set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a mixer bowl, beat softened butter on medium speed until smooth. Gradually add sugar and continue beating for 3-5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add Eggs: Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each until fully incorporated.
- Combine Ingredients: Alternately add dry ingredients and sour cream mixture to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Mix on medium speed until combined.
- Add Coloring Gel: Add a small amount of pink coloring gel if desired to enhance the berry color. Mix gently.
- Fold in Blueberries: Fold in the ½ cup whole blueberries carefully to avoid breaking.
- Bake the Cake Layers: Divide batter evenly among prepared pans. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with few crumbs. Watch baking time closely as ovens vary.
- Cool the Cakes: Let cakes cool in pans for 5-10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
- Prepare Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting: In a mixer bowl, beat the softened butter until smooth. Add softened cream cheese and mix until combined.
- Add Sugar and Lemon: Gradually add sifted powdered sugar, then add lemon juice and zest. Mix on low speed until smooth, do not overmix. If frosting softens too much, chill for 10 minutes to firm up. Add milk in small amounts if needed to adjust consistency.
- Assemble the Cake: Once cake layers are completely cooled, spread lemon cream cheese frosting between layers, on top, and around sides as desired.
Notes
- Substitute for cake flour: Use all-purpose flour minus 2 tablespoons per cup, replacing that with 2 tablespoons cornstarch. For 3 cups flour, remove 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour and add 6 tablespoons cornstarch. Whisk to combine.
- Puree and reduce blueberries ahead of time and refrigerate if needed.
- Pink coloring gel is optional and used to brighten berry color.
- Use brick cream cheese, not tub style, for better frosting texture.
- Frosting can be thinned with milk if too stiff.
- The recipe yields approximately 7 ½ cups of cake batter and about 5 cups of frosting.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/12 of cake)
- Calories: 420 kcal
- Sugar: 38 g
- Sodium: 180 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 12 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 52 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 85 mg
Keywords: blueberry cake, lemon cream cheese frosting, blueberry dessert, homemade cake, lemon frosting, berry cake
