This blueberry lemon cake is soft, tender, full of zesty lemon flavor and juicy blueberries. It's filled with a tangy and vibrant blueberry curd and a cream cheese frosting. The easy blueberry curd filling adds so much blueberry flavor and a gorgeous creamy rich flavor. It's the perfect moist cake that's packed full of lemon blueberry flavor.
If you love berry lemon cakes, try this lemon raspberry cake that's filled with raspberry curd.
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🍋 Why you'll LOVE this recipe
- Blueberry curd filling: The filling is so creamy, a little tangy, and full of lemon blueberry flavor. And it's so easy to make!
- Cream cheese frosting: The frosting is fluffy, creamy, tangy, and has blueberry juice to give it a pale blue color and lemon juice for some extra tang.
- Texture: The cake is soft, tender, and fluffy. With pops of juicy blueberries, a luscious blueberry curd, and fluffy cream cheese frosting.
📝 Key ingredients
This recipe consists of three components: the blueberry curd which can be made a few days ahead of time, the cake layers, and the blueberry cream cheese frosting.
Read through for all the tips you will need for success!
Full steps and ingredients in recipe card below.
Blueberry curd ingredients
- Eggs: Three whole eggs thicken the curd. No other thickeners are used for optimal creaminess and richness.
- Wild blueberries: Fresh or frozen wild blueberries give the most amount of flavor. Regular blueberries won't be as vibrant and the curd won't be as thick.
- Lemon: Adds a pop of acidity and you can use the lemon zest for more lemon flavor.
- Butter: helps thicken the curd even more and makes it ultra creamy.
Alternatively, you can fill the cake with lemon curd or even raspberry curd. Or check out my blueberry birthday cake that has a blueberry pie-like filling.
Cake layer ingredients
- Butter & oil: this combination makes the perfect cake flavor and texture. The cake has a buttery flavor from the butter, and a texture that stays moist because of the oil. I used vegetable oil - you can use any neutral oil you prefer.
- Buttermilk & sour cream: These add moisture and tang to the cake layers
- All purpose flour: Weigh the flour to get the most accurate results. If you don’t have a scale, measure properly by stirring the bag and spooning gently into a measuring cup. Scrape the excess off the top with the flat edge off a knife without packing it into the cup.
- Lemons: The juice and zest from two whole lemons.
Blueberry cream cheese frosting ingredients
- Lemon juice: makes the frosting more tangy and helps alleviate the sweetness.
- Blueberries: The juice from thawed wild blueberries gives the frosting a pale blue color.
- Butter: unsalted, softened butter is the basis for the frosting.
- Cream cheese: for the best results and a frosting that isn't gloopy, use full fat brick style cream cheese like Philadelphia cream cheese. If you don't like cream cheese, substitute with the same amount of butter.
👩🍳 How to make blueberry lemon cake
Filling step by step
Step 1: In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, eggs, and salt, and whisk until smooth. Add lemon juice and blueberries, whisk to combine. Heat on medium low heat, whisking and stirring frequently to prevent burning. Cook until simmering and thickened.
Step 2: Strain the blueberry curd through a sieve into a heat safe non-metal bowl, mashing the blueberries to release all the juice. Remove the juice and skins.
Add butter, stir to melt. Cover with a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap placed directly on the surface. Refrigerate until chilled and thickened.
For more details and tips how to make blueberry curd, check out this recipe dedicated to blueberry curd that dives into more depth.
Layers step by step
Prep: Preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Grease three eight inch baking pans with a bit of butter or oil, and line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper.
Step 1: In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine grated lemon zest, sugar, and salt. Rub the mixture with your fingers until yellow, fragrant, and moistened.
Step 2: Add butter and oil, and beat with an electric mixer until creamy and lightened in color.
Step 3: Add eggs, one by one, beating well in between each addition. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and sour cream, beat to combine.
Step 4: Sift half of the flour and all of the baking soda, and baking powder right into the same bowl. Fold gently just until no more dry streaks remain. Add buttermilk and fold.
Sift the rest of the flour in and fold gently just until incorporated.
Step 5: Combine the blueberries and 1 tablespoon of flour in a separate bowl. Mix to coat the blueberries in flour. Add the blueberries into the cake batter, but don’t add any bits of flour clumps that stay in the bowl.
Step 6: Fold to combine the blueberries into the batter.
Step 7: Divide the batter evenly among the prepared baking pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes - until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean with a few crumbs attached.
Step 8: Let the layers cool for 10 minutes before running a spatula along the edge and flipping them out onto a cooling rack to continue cooling.
Frosting & assembly step by step
Step 1: Add softened butter into a large bowl or stand mixer. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl frequently - about 5-7 minutes.
Add salt and 4 cups of powdered sugar, half a cup at a time, beating well to combine and scraping down the bowl frequently. Beat for another few minutes until very light and fluffy.
Step 2: Add cream cheese, a piece at a time and beat well to make a fluffy frosting.
Step 3: Strain the blueberries from the juice, and add the juice into the frosting. Add lemon juice and beat well. Try the frosting and add more lemon juice if you want to. If it’s not thick enough, add more powdered sugar and beat well. Fold the frosting with a rubber spatula to remove large air bubbles.
Step 4: Smear a small bit of frosting onto a serving plate and place the first layer bottom side down. Spread a very thin layer of frosting on top and pipe a 1” tall thick border around the outside. Fill the middle of the cake with ¼ cup of blueberry curd. Top with another cake layer and repeat.
Place the last layer of cake bottom side up. Place the cake in a freezer for 10 minutes to stabilize the cake and prevent the filling from leaking out.
Step 5: Spread frosting all over the outside of the cake and top and smooth it down. Pipe the remaining frosting in a border on top of the cake.
Step 6: Fill the top of the cake with blueberry curd and decorate with lemon wedges and fresh blueberries. Slice and serve at room temperature.
✔️ Expert cake decorating tips
- Don't add too much filling to prevent it from seeping out the sides. You will have some filling left. Serve extra with sliced pieces of cake.
- This recipe gives you enough frosting to cover the cake completely. I opted more for a naked look but you can use more frosting.
- The cake is best served at room temperature, because the frosting softens up. The cake needs to be stored in the fridge because of the cream cheese in the frosting.
- For extra clean slices, cut the cake while it’s chilled and wipe the knife clean with every cut.
🥄 Make ahead and storage
This blueberry lemon cake can be made and assembled a day ahead of serving. Store it in the fridge in a cake container. A cake container will prevent the cake from getting damaged in the fridge and keep it fresh.
The cake needs to be stored in the fridge, but should be served at room temperature. Leftovers will keep well in the fridge in an airtight container for up to three days.
Blueberry curd can be made up to a few days ahead of time. You can store any leftover curd in a freezer safe bag or container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
You can also make the cake layers a day ahead. Wrap the cooled cake layers in food wrap to prevent them from drying out and store at room temperature overnight.
✔️ Why blueberry curd makes the best cake filling
Blueberry curd is thick, creamy, bursting with bright tangy blueberry flavor. It's like lemon curd but with blueberries! Eggs and butter are used to thicken the curd, making it luscious and thick. And it's so easy to make!
It's so irresistible, you're going to want to put it on everything!
If you don't want to fill this blueberry lemon cake with curd, you can use the blueberry filling in this blueberry birthday cake recipe that tastes like blueberry pie.
You can also use pre-made or homemade lemon curd for a more lemony twist.
❔ Why should you use both butter and oil?
The combination of butter and oil gives the cake layers a rich buttery flavor and keeps it soft and moist for days.
By combining both you get the best of both worlds! The benefits of butter's flavors and oil's texture. If you've never tried it, give this recipe a go!
This biscoff cake also uses a combination of butter and oil.
📖 Recipe FAQs
Yes, just fill the cake with they cream cheese frosting.
Yes, make this gooey blueberry filling or you can also fill it with lemon curd.
Yes. Bake the batter in a greased and lined 9" by 12" baking pan. You may need to increase the baking time. It's ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with a few crumbs attached. Frost with the cream cheese frosting, pipe a border on the edge, and fill the middle with blueberry curd.
Don't add too much filling and make sure that you make very tall borders of frosting. The borders keep the filling from leaking out. Once you stack and fill the cake, pop it in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm the frosting borders and prevent the filling from leaking out when frosting the sides.
Pop it in the fridge for 10-15 minutes. Beat again, adding more icing sugar a quarter cup at a time if needed. Add a few drops of lemon juice to balance the extra sugar. Don't add too much lemon juice or it might make the frosting gloopy again.
A split cream cheese frosting means that it's too cold. Place it near a hot oven or at room temperature for 10 minutes. Beat again to help re-emulsify.
🍰 More related recipes
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📖 Recipe
Blueberry Lemon Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Blueberry Curd
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 cup frozen wild blueberries if using regular blueberries, use 1 ¼ cups
- ¼ cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
Cake Layers
- 2 lemons zested
- 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup lemon juice freshly squeezed from about 2 lemons (use the zested lemons)
- 3 ⅓ cup all purpose flour 400g
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 ½ cups frozen wild blueberries do not thaw
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 ¼ cup unsalted butter softened
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 4 oz cream cheese full fat brick style, softened for 10 minutes at room temperature
- ⅓ cup frozen wild blueberries thawed
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
Instructions
Blueberry Curd
- In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, eggs, and salt, and whisk until smooth. Add lemon juice and blueberries, whisk to combine. Heat on medium low heat, whisking and stirring frequently to prevent burning. Cook until simmering and thickened.⅓ cup granulated sugar, 3 large eggs, ⅛ teaspoon sea salt, ¼ cup lemon juice, 1 cup frozen wild blueberries
- Strain the blueberry curd through a sieve into a heat safe non-metal bowl, mashing the blueberries to release all the juice. Remove the juice and skins. Add butter, stir to melt. Cover with a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap placed directly on the surface. Refrigerate until chilled and thickened.¼ cup unsalted butter
Cake Layers
- Preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Grease three eight inch baking pans with a bit of butter or oil, and line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine grated lemon zest, sugar, and salt. Rub the mixture with your fingers until yellow, fragrant, and moistened.2 lemons, 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar, ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- Add butter and oil, and beat with an electric mixer until creamy and lightened in color.½ cup unsalted butter, ½ cup vegetable oil
- Add eggs, one by one, beating well in between each addition. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and sour cream, beat to combine.4 large eggs, ½ cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, ¼ cup lemon juice
- Sift half of the flour and all of the baking soda, and baking powder right into the same bowl. Fold gently just until no more dry streaks remain. Add buttermilk and fold. Sift the rest of the flour in and fold gently just until incorporated.3 ⅓ cup all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¾ cup buttermilk
- Combine the blueberries and 1 tablespoon of flour in a separate bowl. Mix to coat the blueberries in flour. Add the blueberries into the cake batter, but don’t add any bits of flour clumps that stay in the bowl.1 ½ cups frozen wild blueberries, 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
- Fold to combine the blueberries into the batter. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared baking pans and bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes - until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean with a few crumbs attached.
- Let the layers cool for 10 minutes before running a spatula along the edge and flipping them out onto a cooling rack to continue cooling.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Add softened butter into a large bowl or stand mixer. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl frequently - about 5-7 minutes.1 ¼ cup unsalted butter
- Add salt and 4 cups of powdered sugar, half a cup at a time, beating well to combine and scraping down the bowl frequently. Beat for another few minutes until very light and fluffy.⅛ teaspoon sea salt, 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- Add cream cheese, a piece at a time and beat well to make a fluffy frosting.4 oz cream cheese
- Strain the blueberries from the juice, and add the juice into the frosting. Add lemon juice and beat well. Try the frosting and add more lemon juice if you want to. If it’s not thick enough, add more powdered sugar and beat well. Fold the frosting with a rubber spatula to remove large air bubbles.⅓ cup frozen wild blueberries, 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
Assembly
- Smear a small bit of frosting onto a serving plate and place the first layer bottom side down. Spread a very thin layer of frosting on top and pipe a 1” tall thick border around the outside. Fill the middle of the cake with ¼ cup of blueberry curd. Top with another cake layer and repeat.
- Place the last layer of cake bottom side up. Place the cake in a freezer for 10 minutes to stabilize the cake and prevent the filling from leaking out.
- Spread frosting all over the outside of the cake and top and smooth it down. Pipe the remaining frosting in a border on top of the cake.
- Fill the top of the cake with blueberry curd and decorate with lemon wedges and fresh blueberries. Slice and serve at room temperature.
Video
Notes
- Don't add too much filling to prevent it from seeping out the sides. You will have some filling left. Serve extra with sliced pieces of cake.
- This recipe gives you enough frosting to cover the cake completely. I opted more for a naked look but you can use more frosting.
- The cake is best served at room temperature, because the frosting softens up. The cake needs to be stored in the fridge because of the cream cheese in the frosting.
- For extra clean slices, cut the cake while it’s chilled and wipe the knife clean with every cut.
Mark
Hi Mary,
Love your recipes! Made the raspberry lemon sticky rolls and they were A+.
Quick question for this one, can I sub Greek yogurt for the sour cream in this one? Flavor profile is so similar and I always have that in the fridge.
Thanks!
Mary
Hi yes you can! It won't be as rich as with the sour cream but Greek yogurt is a great substitute in a pinch
Mickey
Hello! I'd really like to make this cake, but I don't have any 8 inch pans. All I have are nine inch. Is there anyway I can still make this cake without buying 8 inch cake pans? Or will that mess up the whole recipe? I don't mind having two layers instead of three.
Mary
Yes you can! You can use two 9" pans, resulting in two thicker layers. If you prefer you can cut each layer in half horizontally to make four thin layers - or just keep it with the two thicker layers. You may need to add a few minutes onto the cooking time because of the thicker layers.