Blueberry Lemon Sour Cream Cake

Moist, tender, fruity and fresh. This Blueberry Lemon Sour Cream Cake is a decadent dessert with bites of juicy blueberries and bright lemon zest. This is the perfect spring or summer dessert that is sure to impress!

All of the flavors of spring can be found right here in this blueberry lemon sour cream cake. I made this cake right around Mother's Day, when the sun is starting to come out and stay and I am starting to crave bright flavors like fresh berries. And the sour cream here adds an extra layer of moistness and tanginess to the mix! It is basically like a lemon blueberry pound cake, but baked in a regular cake pan instead of a loaf pan!

This blueberry lemon cake is appropriate for just about any occasion. It is a no fuss, relatively easy recipe that has an easy whipped topping that will look beautiful no matter what. I topped mine off with plenty of lemon zest because I love the flavor that it lends!

Ingredients

For the Blueberry Cake:

• Flour: All purpose flour works great here.
• Baking Powder: A bit of baking powder helps to let the cake get nice and fluffy in the oven!
• Salt: Salt is added to round out the flavors.
• Sugar: This cake is slightly sweet thanks to the granulated sugar. You will rub the sugar into the lemon zest to get all of those lemony oils infused into the sugar!
• Lemon Zest & Juice: Fresh lemon zest and some fresh lemon juice are the key to getting a nice lemony flavor.
• Butter: Make sure your butter is room temp! This will make sure the ingredients mix together evenly.
• Oil: Vegetable oil or any other neutral oil such as canola or grape seed would work well.
• Eggs: These should also be room temperature. If you forget to take the eggs out of the fridge beforehand, run them under warm water for a few minutes.
• Vanilla: For added flavor!
• Sour Cream & Milk: I like to use a combination of sour cream and milk. Opt for full fat sour cream, or replace with a full fat Greek yogurt. Any milk you have on hand would do well! You can also use buttermilk, but I tend to not have that on hand very often.
• Blueberries: Fresh or frozen blueberries would do just fine.

For the Whippy Topping:

• Cream Cheese: Room temperature cream cheese helps to stabilize the whipped cream so it will stay in place for a few days!
• Vanilla: For flavor!
• Heavy Whipping Cream: Heavy cream is key to getting a fluffy homemade whipped cream.
• Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar is good to help sweeten the topping!

How to Make This Recipe

Make the Cake

1. Preheat & Prep: Preheat the oven to 325 F. Grease an 8 or 9 inch cake pan with butter or non stick cooking spray and line the bottom of the pan with a circle of parchment paper. Measure out the flour, baking powder and salt and place in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Make Lemon Sugar: In a separate bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest together and rub the sugar and zest together using the tips of your fingers.
3. Beat Butter & Oil: In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or using a hand mixer and a large bowl, beat butter and oil together until the mixture is relatively cohesive, on medium high speed. The butter must be room temp! Then, add the lemon zest and sugar mixture and beat until fluffy on medium high speed, about 3 minutes.
4. Add Eggs: Lower the speed and add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl in between additions. Finally, add the vanilla extract and lemon juice.
5. Mix Liquid and Dry Ingredients: Next, add the sour cream and mix until combined on medium or low speed. Turn the mixer to low and add ⅓ of your flour mixture, followed by half of the milk. Mix briefly, then add another ⅓ of the flour and the rest of the milk. Finally, add the last ⅓ of your flour mixture and mix until just combined. Don't over mix here!
6. Add Blueberries: Gently fold in the blueberries using a spoon or rubber spatula.
7. Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 55-60 minutes until the edges are golden and the middle is done. You can use a toothpick to check the middle.
8. Let Cool: Once the cake is done baking, take it out of the oven and let it cool in the cake pan until just warm to the touch. This takes about 30 minutes.

Make the Whipped Cream Topping & Decorate

1. Make the Whippy Topping: While the cake is cooling, prepare the whipped cream. In a stand mixer using the whisk attachment or using a hand mixer, whip together the room temperature cream cheese and vanilla at medium speed. Slow down the speed and add ½ cup powdered sugar. Then, slowly drizzle in the heavy cream while whipping. Turn the speed up to medium.
2. Whip to Stiff Peaks: Once the heavy cream is getting a little bit thicker and forming soft peaks, slow the mixer down to low and add the rest of the powdered sugar. Then, turn the speed up again until the heavy cream is forming stiff peaks. Be careful not to over whip!
3. Decorate: Once the blueberry lemon sour cream cake is cooled, place the whipped cream on top of the cake. You can choose to pipe it or swirl it around with a rubber or offset spatula. Sprinkle with some more lemon zest, if desired. Serve and enjoy!

Tips for Success

• Rushed for time? You can skip the homemade whipped cream and top each slice off with store-bought whipped cream like cool whip instead! Or simply eat this cake on its own, and it will still be super delicious.
• Don't over mix the batter! Once the flour is added to the batter, it is important not to over mix for the best results. You want to add the flour and milk in increments so that the mixture doesn't get too much liquid at one time, but once all that flour is added only mix until just combined! Over mixing with the flour can cause a dense, tough cake, instead of a tender lemon cake like we are after!
• Don't skip the zest! Lemon zest is what really gives this beautiful cake a light, bright lemon flavor. I highly recommend using a microplane zester to get those curly little pieces!

Frequently Asked Questions

More Recipes to Try

• Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Limonada de Coco
• Fried Sweet Plantains
• Upside Down Peach Puff Pastry
• Steel Cut Oatmeal Bars