Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Enjoy bakery-style flavor at home with this tender and moist Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake. A rich sour cream crumb, bursting with fresh berries, gets topped with a browned butter cardamom streusel.

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 36

Total Time 51

Ingredients

STREUSEL TOPPING:

▢ 1/4 cup (30g) all-purpose flour
▢ 2 Tablespoons (25g) firmly packed light brown sugar
▢ 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
▢ 1/8 teaspoon salt
▢ 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter cold and cut into pieces

Instructions

Prep the Pan and Build the Streusel

Set your oven to 350°F (177°C) so it is fully heated by the time the batter is ready. Lightly coat an 8-inch square baking pan with non-stick spray, making sure to get into the corners, then set it aside.
For the streusel, start by browning the 2 Tablespoons of butter in a small pan over gentle heat until it smells nutty and turns amber with little golden milk solids. Let it cool just enough that it begins to thicken slightly, then stir it in a small bowl with the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, a pinch of cardamom, and salt.
Use a fork first, then your fingertips, to pinch and press the mixture into craggy crumbs. Create mostly medium chunks with a few smaller and larger pieces so the crumb topping bakes up crisp, golden, and beautifully uneven.

Mix the Batter

In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until the leaveners are evenly distributed. This helps the cake rise evenly.
In a large bowl, cream the softened butter with the light brown sugar and granulated sugar until the mixture looks lighter in color and feels fluffy. Add the room temperature egg and beat until smooth, then mix in the vanilla extract and sour cream until the batter looks creamy and fully blended.
Switch to a spatula and gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture just until no dry streaks or flour lumps remain. Stop mixing as soon as the batter comes together to ensure a tender cake.

Assemble and Bake

Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan, smoothing the top into the corners. Scatter the blueberries across the surface so they are nicely spaced, then cover everything with the streusel so each square gets some of the buttery crunch.
Bake for 32 to 36 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. The middle should look set, not wet.

Cool Before Slicing

Take the pan from the oven and let the cake cool completely on a wire cooling rack. This resting period gives the crumb time to settle for clean slicing.

Notes

Berry Sinking Prevention: Toss fresh blueberries with 1 tablespoon of flour before scattering them over the batter to help suspend them.

Ingredient Temperature: Use room temperature ingredients for the batter. This ensures the butter, egg, and sour cream emulsify smoothly, creating a lighter crumb.

Frozen Blueberries: If you are baking with frozen blueberries, keep them frozen until the exact moment they go on the cake to protect the batter's color. Add 5 to 10 minutes to the total baking time.

Mixing Technique: Do not overmix once the dry ingredients go in, or you will develop too much gluten and create a dense cake.

Nutrition information is estimated based on common ingredients and serving sizes and may vary.

Keyword blueberry sour cream coffee cake, crumb cake, streusel cake

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