Blackberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake

My blackberry sour cream coffee cake is yummy breakfast cake fancied up with a purple swirl of blackberries! Use fresh or frozen berries ~ sour cream in the batter makes it extra luxe and totally company-worthy.

A classic buttery coffee cake is one of the best reasons to get out of bed, like ever. And when you add sour cream and fresh blackberries into the mix, you’ve got a breakfast cake you can’t walk away from. Let’s make it!

I’m popping in for a quickie today because it’s still blackberry season, are you paying attention? They’re everywhere, and they’re amazing. This blackberry sour cream coffee cake is our little reward for eating our weight in zucchini and kale these past few weeks 😉

what you’re gonna need for a berry-licious breakfast cake

I’ve adapted my blackberry sour cream coffee cake from Michelle, at A Latte Food. I came home last week with 3 giant pints of late summer blackberries and immediately went on a google hunt for a cake to make with them. Michelle’s homey vintage style coffee cake stood out to me. I’ve changed it up slightly and upscaled it for a 9×13 pan. When something is this good, you want to make sure there’s enough for everybody.

• blackberries
  • for this recipe I puree and then briefly cook (just bring to a boil, actually) the berries with a bit of cornstarch to thicken the puree a bit. You could, in a pinch, use a good blackberry jam (how about homemade blackberry jam?) If your jam is thick, thin it down with a little water to loosen the consistency.
• butter
• granulated and brown sugars
• sour cream
  • it’s in the title of the recipe for a reason! Sour cream makes cakes super tender.
• half and half, milk, or buttermilk
• eggs
• flour
• vanilla extract
• cinnamon
  • you might substitute cardamom, or use both.
• salt and baking powder
• cornstarch

how to layer up your crumb cake

I admit it, this cake takes a little more effort than most of my easy breakfast cakes. But that’s ok, not everything has to be a 15 minute, one bowl wonder. Some recipes are totally worth it.

1. Puree and cook your berries with a little sugar and cornstarch, just to get it up to a boil and allow the cornstarch to do its thing.
2. Mix up your topping, then mix up your batter.
3. Lay down half your batter in your pan.
4. Top with the blackberry puree.
5. Finish with the rest of the batter, and give it a nice swirl with a butter knife.
6. Sprinkle the crumble topping all over.
7. Bake!

tips for making this blackberry swirled crumb cake

Halve the recipe and bake in a 9×9 pan for a smaller cake.

Other berries and fruit will work, of course. Get creative!

Want to use jam? I would thin it down with a little water first, so you can swirl it in. A little lemon juice wouldn’t be a bad idea either, to cut the sweetness.

I haven’t tried, but I think a good vanilla boxed cake mix would work for the base cake layer. I love Duncan Hines Signature Vanilla.

This cake will freeze well, either whole or in individual servings, just be sure to let it cool completely, and double wrap in plastic and then foil to prevent freezer burn.

love dessert for breakfast?

• Almond Fig Cake
• Dorie Greenspan’s Dimply Plum Cake
• Lemon Yogurt Breakfast Cake (Ciambella)
• Easy Rhubarb Breakfast Cake
• Blueberry Lemon Cake
• Nutella Banana Bread

Blackberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake

4.80 from 10 votes

My blackberry sour cream coffee cake is a yummy breakfast cake with fresh or frozen berries. Sour cream in the batter makes it extra luxe.

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Prep Time:15 minutes minutes

Cook Time:40 minutes minutes

Total Time:55 minutes minutes

Servings: 16 servings

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Ingredients

 

for the blackberry swirl

• 3 cups blackberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in a tablespoon or two of water

for the crumble topping

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 6 Tbsp butter, cold
• 1/8 tsp salt

for the cake

• 11 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cup milk or buttermilk
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 4 cups all purpose flour

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375F and line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper if desired.
• First make the blackberry swirl filling. In a small saucepan, combine the blackberries, sugar, and cornstarch. Bring to a boil and cook for just about 30 seconds to 1 minute until slightly thickened. Set aside and allow to cool while you make the rest of the cake.
• To make the crumble topping, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add the cold butter, cut into small pieces, and work it together with your fingers until the butter has been completely incorporated and the mixture is crumbly. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk the melted butter, eggs, milk, sour cream, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
• Add the salt and the baking powder, and whisk in.
• Fold in the flour, just until there are no dry pockets of flour left in the batter, don't over-mix.
• Pour half of the batter into your prepared baking pan. Top with the blackberry mixture, spreading it out evenly over the batter with an offset spatula. Top with the other half of the batter, and smooth it out a bit to cover the surface as evenly as possible.
• Using a butterknife, swirl together the layers of batter and blackberry mixture. Sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the whole cake.
• Bake for about 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out without wet batter clinging to it.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool before slicing and serving.

Notes

*recipe adapted from A Latte Food

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Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Author: Sue Moran

Keyword: baking, blackberries, breakfast, brunch, coffee cake, crumb cake

Nutrition

Calories: 465 kcal · Carbohydrates: 74 g · Protein: 6 g · Fat: 17 g · Saturated Fat: 10 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 4 g · Trans Fat: 0.5 g · Cholesterol: 63 mg · Sodium: 288 mg · Potassium: 255 mg · Fiber: 3 g · Sugar: 42 g · Vitamin A: 582 IU · Vitamin C: 6 mg · Calcium: 114 mg · Iron: 2 mg

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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