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“It was everything you (and several comments) promised! I’ve passed it on to my sisters, who’ve become your followers, too, just because of this cake (and its frosting)!” ~Nancy
blueberry zucchini cake is a feast for the senses
You might have seen I am Baker’s cake around, it’s a stunner. Amanda’s blueberry zucchini cake is a gorgeous 2 layers, fit for a celebration, but in true tvfgi style, I turned it into a casual blueberry zucchini sheet cake. No less scrumptious, just a little more user friendly. Eat it with your hands, in your lap, off a paper napkin, whateves, but definitely try it, it’s absolutely delish.
what you’ll need
- eggs
- vegetable oil
- vanilla extract
- granulated and confectioner’s sugar
- shredded zucchini
- all purpose flour
- salt, baking powder, and baking soda
- blueberries
- butter
- fresh lemon juice
best pan for a blueberry zucchini cake
Instead of using round cake pans, I baked the batter in my 9×13 USA pan, I love it, it’s got a wonderful heft to it, and cooks nice and evenly. I don’t like to bake in glass if I can avoid it because it tends to cook hot, and the edges can get overdone. I used this pan to bake my favorite Pecan Praline Pumpkin Cake and my Brown Sugar Peach Cake, too, and I’m always thrilled with the results.
BAKING TIP: Converting a layer cake to a 9×13 pan is easy — since the depth of the batter will be comparable, there are no changes necessary except to watch the baking time carefully. It will probably take a little longer in the 9×13 pan, so check with a toothpick to be sure.
how to make a blueberry zucchini cake
- Whisk the wet ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, then fold in the shredded zucchini.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a small bowl and then fold into the wet ingredients, just enough to combine.
- Fold in the blueberries and bake.
- The batter is luxurious and silky — and since it uses oil in place of butter it’s super easy to throw together. I made sure to rearrange my blueberries after filling the pan so they would be evenly distributed throughout the cake.
the lemon buttercream is the icing on the cake!
This blueberry zucchini cake is moist, dense, and delicious, but I think it’s the lemon buttercream that has my taste buds doing a jig. I love it, so I made sure to lay it on nice and thick.
BAKING TIP: I blended the lemon buttercream up in my food processor (fitted with the metal blade) rather than using my electric hand beaters like I usually do, and I loved the result. It was easier, less messy, and the frosting came out super smooth and creamy. It’s my go to method from now on.
I love my USA 9×13 pan, it’s sturdy, nonstick, and has a great solid feel to it. USA pans have no bells and whistles, they’re just good quality, durable cookware. My cakes cook up more evenly in this aluminized steel, with no overcooked edges like I sometimes get with glass. USA makes a whole line of bakeware and I’m slowly replacing all my pans. Plus, they’re made in the USA!
Blueberry Zucchini Cake with Lemon Buttercream
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups sugar
- 2 cups shredded zucchini
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 pint blueberries, tossed in 1 tsp flour
lemon buttercream
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- Lightly grease and flour a 9×13 baking pan.
- Beat the eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar until well blended. Fold in the zucchini.
- Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda to combine. Slowly add it to the wet mixture, mixing just enough to blend.
- Fold in the blueberries, and pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 50 minutes, just until the top is turning golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out without wet batter clinging to it. Cool on a rack.
- To make the frosting, put the softened butter into the bowl of a food processor and process until creamy. Add the sifted powdered sugar, one cup at a time, processing till smooth after each addition. After the second cup of sugar add in the lemon juice. Scrape down the sides of the machine as necessary. Adjust the texture by adding a little more lemon or a little more sugar.
- Frost the cooled cake and store in the refrigerator.
Video
Notes
- Reader Lillia reports in the comments below that this cake can easily be made gluten free using King Arthur’s Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour.
- I felt that this blueberry zucchini snack cake was at its best chilled, so I kept ours in the refrigerator. The frosting is butter-rich, so especially in warm weather this makes sense, and the texture of the chilled frosting is out of this world.
- For all your chocoholics out there, you really need to check out my Cold Chocolate Snacking Cake ~ it’s meant to be eaten straight from the fridge, and I guarantee you won’t be able to control yourself around it
Nutrition
I’ve made this cake many times over the past couple years and I absolutely love it. I think it’s probably my favorite cake, period.
I only have a Pyrex 9×13, so I do have to keep a careful eye on it, as sometimes the middle will be underdone when the edges are golden.
So how did you get it to bake even in glass?? Tc
I didn’t have an issues baking this cake in my glass 9×13. Usually I lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees, but I forgot this time and I still turned out a delicious, fully baked cake after 50 minutes baking time.
Has anyone tried to use Lime juice instead of Lemon juice?
FYI. We made it with lime juice instead of Lemon juice and it was delicious! Definitely will make this again!
Oh wow, thanks for the heads up!
I made this yesterday and my husband loved it! Until we got to the center. For some reason the center sunk in and we didn’t realize till after I iced it that the middle of the cake was not cooked:(. Very upsetting. I checked it once it came out and the entire cake appeared to be cooked through. But after cooling it and icing it realized the middle is not at all! Is there any way to prevent this next time as my husband really enjoyed it
This is a common issue Jenna, and sometimes it just takes trial and error to get it right. Zucchini cakes are moist and dense, and require just the right amount of time in the oven to cook through. Usually the toothpick test should be accurate, so be sure to use that next time, and maybe err on the side of cooking it a little bit longer. If a cake appears to be browning too quickly on top I will loosely tent with foil while it finishes.
I’ve gotten so many complements on this cake! I reduce the sugar a bit and swap half the oil for plain applesauce. It is a delightful cake!
Shelby did you do 1/2 cup applesauce 1/2 cup oil? Also what amount of sugar did you use?
This recipe is delicious!!! I made it for my co-workers today & they loved it! Not one piece left!!
I read a comment that frozen blueberries would work. Wonderful cause grandkids picked 10#! I froze most. Should I defrost them first before baking? Or flour them frozen, put in batter and bake.
Just use them from frozen Lauren.
Excellent recipe, cake is delicious. I plan on making it often.
could you use Nectarines in place of blueberries? My neighbor gave me nectarines and I wanted to use them before they go bad?
I’m making it with blackberries
That sounds really good 🙂
There is an awful large amount of sugar in this cake.
Agreed. Definitely not for every day.