Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
Tender, moist lemon coffee cake loaded with blueberries crowned with a crunchy, sweet crumb topping and drizzled with a tart lemon glaze. A fun way to change up blueberry muffins.
I was microwaving a bowl of Trader Joe’s Instant Multigrain Triple Berry Instant Hot Cereal for breakfast last week, and my son came upstairs and asked if I was making blueberry muffins. My family loves my streusel blueberry muffins and apparently just the smell of blueberries cooking draws them into the kitchen in hopes of finding blueberry muffins.
So when the weekend rolled around, I decided I’d better make some blueberry muffins for my son. But I also wanted to make something new to share on the blog, so my lemon blueberry coffee cake was born.
I used my blueberry muffin recipe as the base for the cake, but change it up by adding lemon zest to the batter. Coffee cake is always better with a crumb topping, and to give it another pop of lemon, I drizzled a tart lemon glaze on top and let it flow down the sides.
You can drizzle the glaze on with a spoon, but I like to use a quart size Ziploc bag. Put the bag in a tall drinking glass or mug, fold the edges over the top of the mug, then fill the bag with your glaze. Seal up the bag and snip off a tiny bit of the corner of the baggie with scissors. Then just drizzle the glaze over the top of the coffee cake.
If you want to get drips down the side of the cake, just put a little puddle of glaze along the edge and it will make a pretty little drip down the side of the cake. You’ll know your glaze is too thin if the glaze just runs down the side. If it’s too thick, it won’t drip down. You can do a test drip before you put the glaze in the baggie if you’re unsure if you’ve got the consistency just right.
If your family loves blueberry muffins as much as my family does, they’ll love this coffee cake too. It takes blueberries to a whole new level.
Update: I’ve added a new video that shows just how easy this coffee cake is to make. It’s become one of the most popular recipes on Barbara Bakes. If you haven’t tried it yet, you definitely need to try it soon! My topping is more crumbly than when Holly made it for the video, but you get the idea.
Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
Crumb Topping
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with non-stick cooking spray with flour.
- Prepare crumb topping and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla and milk. Mix in lemon zest. Add flour mixture and mix just until combine. Stir in blueberries.
- Spread batter evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with crumb topping.
- Bake at 350º for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. About 210 degrees with an instant read thermometer.
- Cool 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and remove ring. Drizzle icing on cake. Cool completely before serving. (Unless you're like us and would rather eat it hot even though the cake doesn't cut as well.)
Crumb Topping
In a small bowl, with a fork mix together sugar and flour. Add butter and mix until mixture is sandy and clumps together.*
Icing
Whisk together powdered sugar and lemon juice to create a thin glaze.
Notes
*If your crumb topping is not crumbly after adding the butter, add a little additional sugar and flour until you get a crumbly mixture.
Recommended Products
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Marionberry Cherry Crumb Cake, Barbara Bakes
Cinnamon Coffee Cake, Barbara Bakes
Orange and Almond Coffee Cake, Diethood
Banana Bread Coffee Cake, Crazy for Crust
Banana Streusel Coffee Cake with Maple Glaze, Shugary Sweets
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This was so so soo so sooo good. I’m not much of a baker or, a review leaver for that matter, but I just had to say thank you for this recipe. I didn’t change a thing and it turned out perfectly. Thanks again!
Thanks for the rave review Angel!
I am making this for Christmas breakfast. Sadly, I won’t have the time to make it that morning. How far in advance can I make it, and does it need to be refrigerated? I plan to do the icing drizzle after I warm it up that morning.
Hi Kathy – you can make it a day or two ahead of time and it does not need to be refrigerated. Enjoy!
Just made with a Meyer lemon from backyard and is still hot and is excellent! Must have another piece once cooled for comparison! 😂
That’s so fun to have a Meyer lemon tree in your yard Karen! Glad it was a hit – thanks for sharing!
Delicious! Wondering if this can be made as a bundt cake as well?
Hi Carol – it should work well as a bundt except you’d have to cool it and serve it upside down so the topping didn’t get soggy. The cook time would probably be shorter 35 – 45 minutes.
I just made this and I was surprised that it was way too sweet. The cake part was great. But everyone left the outer layer uneaten. The crumble or the glaze would have been plenty. But not both.
Hi Kate – the crumble on top is my favorite part – I try to get a little bit in every bite. Do you perhaps live outside of the US where they prefer cakes less sweet?
I made this on a whim for my coworkers, Its was phenomenal! Ill keep this recipe for ever! Made with fresh berries and I made the recipe to a T, Amazing! Thank you but how do I do a star rating?
Now that’s a rave review – thanks Jess! In the recipe card right under print, just click the stars 🙂
Can Greek yogurt or plant milk be used instead of whole milk? I don’t have milk on hand.
Hi Diane – Greek yogurt is probably too thick but plant milks should work fine.
I have made it with Greek yogurt and it turned out great. Going to try it today with sour cream and raspberries instead of blueberries. This recipe is amazing I have served it to company and everyone asks for seconds.
Thanks for sharing Krystal! Let me know how the raspberry version turns out.
I made this yesterday with fresh blueberries picked from my son’s yard. Not only does this cake look amazing, it is flavorful and moist. My family loved it and I will be making it again and again.
Only change I made was to use lemon extract instead of lemon juice in the glaze which gave it a stronger lemon flavor. Otherwise, I wouldn’t change a thing.
Thanks Lucille! How fun to make it with blueberries you picked in your son’s yard. Glad it was a hit!
I made this coffee cake this morning. I love the look of it baked in a springform pan and drizzled with the lemon glaze. My husband had to take a slice of it to make sure it was good enough to share with others. I did have to bake it about 10 minutes more than the recipe directed but I know all ovens run a little differently. It’s a great way to use those fresh blueberries this time of year.
Thanks Susan! Glad you enjoyed it. Definitely a great way to use fresh blueberries.
I made this recipe yesterday and it was fabulous! Thank you so much for sharing it…my whole family loved it!
That’s great to hear – thanks Kathy!
Hi there! Just came across your site, cake looks lovely!! I don’t have a spring form pan, can I use a regular cake or perhaps a tube pan (I have those on hand)? Much obliged!
Yes, you can use a tube pan or a 9×3 inch cake pan. You can also make it into muffins or loaves. Here’s the cook times for muffins https://www.barbarabakes.com/best-blueberry-streusel-muffins/ and loaves https://www.barbarabakes.com/lemon-blueberry-quick-bread/ Enjoy!
Can u freeze this cake after u make it?
Hi Danielle – yes, it freezes and thaws very well. Just wrap it with plastic wrap and thaw overnight on the counter. Enjoy!
This blueberry lemon coffee cake was a big hit with my family. I bake often and I would rate this recipe as excellent and easy to make.
That’s so nice to hear – thanks Ron!
I’d like to bake this but I only have 2% milk. Can I use it instead of whole milk?
Hi Sue – yes, I often sub 1% milk even. Enjoy!
I only have a cup of fresh blueberries on hand. Should I just omit them altogether?
Hi Joanne – no, it will still be enjoyable with just 1 cup of blueberries.
Made this today for my family. It was very simple and the cake came out prefect. I add some Cinnamon to the strudel topping.
Sounds like a delicious addition. Glad it was a hit – thanks Cynthia!
Do I put flour all in the cooking pan before putting in batter?
Hi Cassandra – you spray the pan with a non-stick cooking spray with flour, like Bakers Secret, or grease and flour the pan (the ingredients for greasing and flouring the pan are not included in the ingredients list.) Here’s a good post about greasing and flouring a pan if you’ve never done it https://www.crazyforcrust.com/how-to-grease-a-pan/ Then you mix the beat and sugar as outlined in step 4, add the eggs, vanilla, milk and lemon zest, and then you add the flour that you’ve mixed with the baking powder and salt into the mixing bowl with your other ingredients. Then you pour it into your prepared pan. Enjoy!
If using frozen blueberries, should we keep them frozen or thaw them first? Thanks!
Hi Matt – use them frozen and increase the cook time. Enjoy!
My crumb topping never comes out crumbly even though when I mix it together it is crumbly. Something happens when it baked and I don’t get that crumb cake type topping. Any thoughts on what isn’t working ? Thank you !
Hi Sam – it sounds like it’s melting into the cake? So perhaps you’re not waiting for the oven to preheat, or your oven temperature is not high enough – have you checked to see how accurate your oven is? Do you live in a humid climate?
Crumb topping is way off. I added 1/3 cup of additional flour to get a light crumb topping but it made double wahat I needed.. I Also used sour milk in the cake which was great.
Hi Lynn Ann – Glad you enjoyed the cake. Sorry you had trouble with the topping. I’ve made these cake more times than I can count and never had a problem. Do you live in a humid place?
Duluth, MN
. Maybe if you didn’t melt the butter.
Soften the butter slightly, not melt, for crumb topping and everything works together perfectly!
Great recipe!
I had the same problem. It was NOT a crumble. The cake was still good though.
Thanks Debbie – glad you enjoyed it. I added a note to the recipe.