How to make a lemon blueberry cake from scratch. Simple and easy layer cake recipe. Topped with a lemon cream cheese frosting, it's the ultimate dessert!
There are two things I love almost as much as chocolate: Lemons and blueberries. When you put the two together, it's hard to imagine a dessert any better than lemon blueberry layer cake. It's actually a lot like my homemade vanilla cake mix.
By layer cake, I mean 3 glorious layers of lemon cake with blueberries and real lemon cream cheese frosting, made from scratch.
I love a good lemon cake recipe. It's one of my favorite desserts. I even make a lemon poke cake with Jello in the summertime!
This lemon blueberry cake with cream cheese frosting is right up there at the top of my list, and it's really not difficult to make either. It actually kind of reminds me of my favorite blueberry coffee cake recipe, minus the crunchy streusel topping that the coffee cake uses. And hey, both cakes go perfectly with a steaming cup of coffee.
As you continue reading, I'll show you how to work with the blueberries to keep them from sinking to the bottom of your cake. It really can be an issue if not done properly.
We'll also use real lemon zest and lemon juice for the tangy lemon flavor in this cake. Real lemon just can't be beat; it's so, so good.
If you'd rather start with a super easy lemon recipe, lemon poppy seed muffins are an easy brunch recipe; and lemon pound cake (or if you're gluten-free, gluten-free lemon loaf) is a good beginner cake.
WHERE CAN I FIND THE ACTUAL RECIPE CARD?
If you’d rather skip all of my cake making tips, important info for this recipe, and similar recipe ideas – and get straight to the lemon blueberry cake recipe – just scroll down to the bottom, where you’ll find a printable recipe card.
INGREDIENTS YOU'LL NEED:
- Sugar
- Lemon zest – We'll talk about how to get this.
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Eggs, at room temperature
- Vanilla extract
- Cake flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Milk
- Lemon juice – You can juice the same lemon you're using for zest, or use store bought lemon juice.
- Blueberries
- Cream cheese, softened
- Salted butter, softened
- Powdered sugar
Keep in mind, all of the ingredient amounts you’ll need are in the printable recipe card below.
KITCHEN TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT YOU'LL NEED:
Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer with Mixing Bowl
3 Round Cake Pans – I use 9-inch rounds.
Cake Stand or Rotating Cake Turntable or Cake Carrier
HOW TO MAKE LEMON BLUEBERRY CAKE
Before you get started, be sure to preheat your oven and prep your cake pans beforehand. You can either grease them with cooking spray, or use the shortening and flour method.
Then you're ready to begin mixing up the cake batter…
- Mix together the sugar and lemon zest. (Lemon zest is what is going to give your cake a tremendous amount of lemon flavor, and we'll talk about how to zest a lemon below.) Then let this mixture sit for 3 to 5 minutes, so the lemon can really infuse into the sugar.
- In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the cake flour (save back a tablespoon or two for the blueberries), baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- Cream (mix) the unsalted butter into the sugar/lemon zest mixture.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, to the sugar mixture.
- Then mix in the vanilla extract.
- Alternate the dry ingredients with the milk and lemon juice mixture. Begin with the dry ingredients.
- Keep alternating, adding in the milk and lemon juice, and then ending with dry ingredients.
- Toss the blueberries in a tablespoon of cake flour, and then gently fold the flour-coated blueberries into the cake batter (with a spatula by hand, NOT the mixer).
Then you'll just spread the cake batter evenly into 3 greased round cake pans, and bake according to the instructions in the recipe card below, or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
HOW TO KEEP BLUEBERRIES FROM SINKING IN A CAKE
Let's talk about those blueberries…
You can use fresh or frozen blueberries. I actually used fresh for this recipe.
Like I'd mentioned above, a good way to keep them from sinking to the bottom of your cake layers, is to toss and coat them with a tablespoon or two of cake flour (or cake mix, if you're using them in a cake mix recipe) before adding them to your cake batter. This helps them to stick to your cake batter, so they don't sink.
You can also use corn starch. But I usually just take a tablespoon or two of flour out of my already measured flour for the cake because it's easy to do.
HOW DO I GET LEMON ZEST?
Simply put, you use a lemon zester and a real lemon.
A lemon zester allows you to grate the colorful part of a lemon and use that for flavoring your favorite lemon recipes.
While you could use lemon extract in your cake recipe, I highly recommend the unbeatable natural flavor of real lemon zest. Especially when it's so easy to zest a lemon, why use anything but this?
Just be sure to wash your lemons well before zesting. I usually soak any fruits or veggies in a water/vinegar bath before consuming.
NOW ABOUT THAT CREAM CHEESE FROSTING…
Once your cakes have cooled, they're ready to layer and frost. While I do love a good buttercream frosting, cream cheese frosting is right up there too.
But we're going to make a lemon cream cheese frosting this time around, giving this cake even more delicious lemon-y flavor.
To mix up this frosting quickly and easily, I usually use my stand mixer fitted with a whisk paddle attachment.
- Mix together the softened cream cheese and salted butter.
- Add vanilla extract and lemon juice, mixing in well.
- Then add in the powdered sugar, mixing until smooth and creamy.
- Finally, mix in the lemon zest to finish up the frosting.
Now you're ready to frost and layer your cake. I usually like to frost between layers as I add them. Then frost all over the outside of the cake, including the sides.
Then you can add blueberries and lemon slices to the top, whatever your preference. This makes for a gorgeous cake that's absolutely perfect for birthdays, Easter, Mother's Day, and more.
HOW SHOULD I STORE THIS CAKE?
I recommend storing any leftovers in a cake carrier in the fridge, mostly because of the cream cheese frosting.
CAN YOU FREEZE LEMON BLUEBERRY CAKE?
Yes, you can, though I highly recommend eating it fresh.
But should you decide to freeze it, you can freeze with or without the frosting.
If you're freezing without the frosting, just wrap your cakes tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil, and place them in the freezer.
If you're freezing with the frosting, place the already chilled cake, uncovered or in a storage container, in the freezer for a good 2 to 3 hours. Then when the frosting is frozen enough that nothing will stick to it, go ahead and wrap the cake in plastic wrap and aluminum foil, and place it back in the freezer.
Be sure to allow ample time for thawing before serving.
MORE CAKE RECIPES
Here are a few more cake recipes you may enjoy:
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Lemon Blueberry Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
- KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Qt. Stand Mixer with Pouring Shield – Aqua Sky
- Wilton Performance Aluminum Pan 9-Inch Round Cake Pans, Set of 2
- Ultra Cuisine 100% Stainless Steel Wire Cooling Rack for Baking fits Half Sheet Pans Cool Cookies, Cakes, Breads – Oven Safe for Cooking, Roasting, Grilling – Heavy Duty Commercial Quality
- Microplane Premium Classic Series Zester Grater, 18/8, Green
- Sweet Creations, locking cake carrier with server, up to 10 inch, 3-layer cake, light blue and cream
- Cakewalk Melamine Cake Cupcake Stand, One Size, Yellow
Ingredients
Lemon Blueberry Cake:
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter softened
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 3/4 cups cake flour
- 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 1/4 cups blueberries*
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 16 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 tablespoons salted butter softened
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 350° F.
- Grease 3 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray, or use the shortening and flour method to grease them.
- Mix together the sugar and lemon zest*. (Lemon zest is what is going to give your cake a tremendous amount of lemon flavor, and we'll talk about how to zest a lemon in the notes below.) Then let this mixture sit for 3 to 5 minutes, so the lemon can really infuse into the sugar.
- In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the cake flour (save back a tablespoon or two for the blueberries), baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- Cream (mix) the unsalted butter into the sugar/lemon zest mixture.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, to the sugar mixture.
- Then mix in the vanilla extract.
- Alternate the dry ingredients with the milk and lemon juice mixture, beginning with the dry ingredients. Keep alternating, adding in the milk and lemon juice, and then ending with dry ingredients.
- Toss the blueberries in a tablespoon of cake flour, and then gently fold the flour-coated blueberries into the cake batter (with a spatula by hand, NOT the mixer).
- Spread the cake batter evenly into 3 greased round cake pans.
- Bake at 350° F for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
- To mix up the lemon cream cheese frosting quickly and easily, I usually use my stand mixer fitted with a whisk paddle attachment.
- Mix together the softened cream cheese and salted butter.
- Add vanilla extract and lemon juice, mixing in well.
- Then add in the powdered sugar, mixing until smooth and creamy.
- Finally, mix in the lemon zest to finish up your frosting.
- Now you're ready to frost and layer your cake. I usually like to frost between layers as I add them. Then frost all over the outside of the cake, including the sides.
- Then you can add blueberries and lemon slices to the top, whatever your preference.
- Slice and serve!
Can this be made in a 13 x 9 pan?
Cathy, this recipe would make enough to fill 2 13×9 pans with a little extra. That would certainly work!
Hi, Mel Lockcuff Cake was made very tasty and soft, please tell me about different cakes.
thank you
Thanks for sharing nice blog for lemon blueberry cake.
Any time! Thanks for stopping by.
Thank you for sharing this delightfully easy, mouthwateringly delicious recipe. Have baked this cake several times since I first tried it a few weeks back and it’s been a huge success each time!
Thank you so much. I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it!
The frosting turned out runny. Help
Lisa, it shouldn’t be runny. You can try adding extra powdered sugar.