Buttermilk-Blueberry Breakfast Cake
Cakes are great, but they’re often only associated with dessert. This buttermilk blueberry breakfast cake is here to change cakes place on the menu, one slice at a time. With a little zing from lemon zest combined with the natural sweetness of blueberries- this moist, fluffy cake is shaking things up at the breakfast table. One bite and you’ll agree- let’s have cake for breakfast!
I’m always on the lookout for easy breakfasts I can prepare ahead of time and have ready for my kids to eat on the go on busy morning.
While those ideas are often tasty- they’re almost always of the savory variety. Like cheesy ham & toast cups, breakfast burritos, or even sausage pancake muffins.
I don’t crave dessert, but every now and then I do want something sweet. And it was high time I went that direction with our breakfast prep.
A little something sweet is a great way to get everyone motivated about getting the days started.
I had been eyeing this breakfast ‘cake’ recipe from Alexandra’s Kitchen for awhile and decided to give it a try last month.
The result was wonderful!
Moist, crumbly, and full of flavor it was a real treat for everyone. It was perfect for slicing, bagging, and grabbing with a glass of cold milk in the morning.
This blueberry breakfast cake recipe takes minimal time to prepare, which is a blessing on nights I’m scrambling at the last minute to throw something together for the morning.
My whole family, even the picky eaters, love this, whether we’re sitting down at the table for a relaxing breakfast, or grabbing a piece to go, hurrying to school or practice.
Because while we love this as an AM treat, it also doubles as a light, sweet after school snack!
Making A Cake For Breakfast- What Do You Need?
One thing I absolutely adore about this cake, other than it’s great taste, is how simple the ingredient list is. For the most part, it requires only a handful of classic pantry staples & only a couple fresher ingredients for flavoring.
- butter
- lemon
- sugar
- egg
- vanilla
- flour
- baking powder
- salt
- blueberries
- buttermilk
I realize not everyone has all of these things in stock. You can use fresh or frozen berries in this recipe, no need to thaw them first if using frozen. You can even switch up the type of berry based on what you have on hand.
The lemon zest is optional, but I highly recommend. It adds such a bright contrast to the sweet berries. Don’t want to waste a whole lemon? Zest the whole thing and save whatever zest you have leftover in a sealed baggie and freeze until needed.
Don’t keep buttermilk in the fridge? You can easily make your own!
To make your own buttermilk, measure out a cup of milk. Remove one teaspoon’s worth from the measuring cup. Add to that a teaspoon of white vinegar. Let the mixture site for 5-10 minutes, and voila! Homemade buttermilk.
How To Make The Fluffiest Breakfast Cake
As with most good cake batters, we’re going to start by readying our stand mixer.
Once ready, cream together the butter, lemon zest, and 7/8 cup of the granulated sugar until light & fluffy. Add in an egg and a teaspoon of vanilla extract and whip them together until combined. You can sub the vanilla for almond extract, if needed.
While the batter’s coming together, toss the blueberries together with a quarter cup of flour to coat. Set them aside.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder, & salt until evenly incorporated. While mixing the batter on low speed, slowly add in the flour mixture. Continue until all the flour is evenly incorporated.
Using a spatula, fold in the prepared blueberries. Do not mix them with the mixer because that won’t disperse them evenly- instead it will just mash them.
Grease an 8×8 glass baking dish with butter, or non stick cooking spray- whichever is your preference. Pour the batter into the prepared dish, scraping the mixing bowl as you go to get it all. Use the spatula to evenly spread it out.
I like to lift the dish about an inch off the counter top and let it fall twice. Not only does this help finish it settling evenly, it also helps remove any trapped air bubbles. Sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of sugar evenly out over the top.
Bake the cake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Don’t be discouraged if your cake takes an additional 5-10 minutes to fully bake. Just keep an eye on it. It’s dense and depending on you particular oven (which can vary) and altitude- it can happen.
Remove the cake from the oven, and let it cool completely. Run a butter knife around the edges of the dish to release the cake from the pan before slicing & serving.
This breakfast cake is bound to become a new favorite in your house, just like it did in ours. It’s simple enough for any level of baker.Pair it with a hot cup of coffee or a warm mug of tea for a delicious way to start or end a busy day.
Other Sweet Ways To Enjoy ‘Cake’ For Breakfast
Cake doesn’t have to be just for dessert anymore, there’s plenty of great ways to make it an acceptable breakfast menu item too! Just check out these tasty ideas:
If you’ve tried this BUTTERMILK BLUEBERRY BREAKFAST CAKE, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup salted butter softened
- 2 tsp lemon zest*
- 3/4 cup & 2 tbsp sugar 7/8 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups flour set aside 1/4 cup of this
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups frozen blueberries thawed and drained
- 1/2 cup buttermilk**
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter with lemon zest and 7/8 cup of sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with 1/4 cup flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk.
- Fold in the blueberries.
- Grease an 8×8 baking pan with butter, or coat with non-stick cooking spray.
- Pour and spread batter evenly into the pan. Sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of sugar.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let cool and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
I am absolutely going to try this next week! We have to get up so early (bus comes at 7:35 am) that sometimes it’s not easy to have a good breakfast every morning. Anything that I can make the night before and have ready for the morning is AWESOME!