Lemon blueberry bundt cake is a moist breakfast or tea time cake that combines tart citrus with bursts of juicy berries. It’s one of those cakes that looks as good as it tastes.
lemon + blueberry
As far as spring cakes go, the lemon blueberry bundt cake reigns supreme. It’s bright and cheerful, and everyone loves the flavor combination. This one has all the qualifications to be the perfect potluck or brunch centerpiece. It looks lovely on a plate with the shiny glaze dripping down all sides, but even prettier once you remove a slice to reveal the moist texture of the vivid yellow cake dotted with berries. The anthocyanin pigments in the fruit turn from blue to vibrant purple as they react with the acidic lemon in the cake~ it’s a looker!
lemon blueberry bundt cake ~ the ultimate recipe
Bundt cakes are quite a bit easier to bake than layer cakes, and a whole lot more laid back for casual entertaining or satisfying that weekend baking urge. (I love this one because it can double as a breakfast cake.) The recipe is straightforward, but rich.
- 1 1/2 cups of butter make this cake moist and tender. Use unsalted butter, and make sure it’s at room temperature. If I’m in a pinch with cold butter I microwave it in 5 second bursts until soft (but not melted!)
- 6 eggs enrich the batter and help to give it that sunny yellow color. Again, make sure your eggs are room temperature. I warm up cold eggs in a bowl of warm tap water. Each egg gets its moment in the mixer, I let it get completely incorporated before adding the next. Recipes are formulated for large eggs, unless otherwise stated.
- lemon juice and zest provide the citrus element in this cake. The zest is equally important, if not more so, as the juice, so don’t skimp!
- blueberries are one of the most problematic fruits. They’re available year round, which is nice, but their flavor isn’t reliable, in fact some of them have no flavor at all! Luckily baking tends to enhance the flavor of fruit, but try to source good berries to start with. You can use frozen berries, but don’t thaw them first.
how old is your bundt pan?
Bundt pans need to be replaced periodically, and a good nonstick finish needs to be babied ~ hand wash and make sure to remove everything from the nooks and crannies with a soft sponge, nothing scratchy. Always prep your pan with butter and flour. Give your cakes a 10-15 minute rest after they come out of the oven to allow the cake to firm up, and then loosen all the edges (including the inner tube) with a flexible offset spatula before flipping.
I recommend a classically shaped 9-inch bundt pan for this cake, I used this one.
don’t skip the glaze
It might seem like a simple thing, but the glaze is an important finishing touch. It adds a mouth puckering punch of tart lemon that you can’t get any other way.
more tea time cakes
- Easy Rhubarb Breakfast Cake
- Lemon Olive Oil Cake
- Apple Cider Doughnut Loaf Cake
- Authentic Irish Apple Cake
- Honeycrisp Apple Cardamom Cake
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Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake
Equipment
- 9 inch bundt pan I use this one.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups blueberries (make sure they are dry)
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon extract (you can also use vanilla)
- 1 1/2 cups (that's 3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 Tbsp zest, from 2 large lemons
- 6 large eggs, at room temperature
lemon glaze
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar
- 3-4 Tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour your bundt pan.
- Whisk the flour together with the baking powder and salt, and set aside. Toss the blueberries with a little of the flour mixture and set aside.
- Stir together the milk, lemon juice, and extract and set aside.
- Cream the butter, sugar, and lemon zest together in a stand mixer, or using electric beaters. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl as necessary.
- Beat in each egg, one at a time, making sure to get it completely incorporated before adding the next one. Again scrape down the bowl as needed.
- Alternately blend in the flour mixture and the milk, beginning and ending with the flour. Don't over beat the cake once you have added the flour. Gently fold in the blueberries (and any extra flour mixture.)
- Turn the batter into your prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the top is set and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out without wet batter clinging to it.
- Let the pan cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes, then gently loosen all the edges (including around the center tube with a small offset spatula or knife. Carefully invert the cake onto the cooling rack and let cool completely before glazing.
- Make the glaze by stirring or whisking together the sugar and lemon juice. You can make it thicker by adding more sugar, or thinner with more lemon juice.
- Drizzle the completely cooled cake with the glaze. Let set before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
Great recipe
This was so delicious prepared with buttermilk instead of milk. The only other thing I added was 1/2 tsp lemon oil instead of the lemon extract. The bottom part of the Bundt did stick but I believe it was operator error. I forgot that with my regular Nordic Ware black Bundt pan I need to be heavier handed with the grease and flouring the pan. I only used half of the lemon glaze recipe, but it was a delicious and don’t leave it out. It really adds a lemon pop to the finished slice.
Thanks Kim, I can’t agree with you more about the glaze, I say that same thing about so many of my lemon recipes.