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    Home » Desserts » Cakes

    Moist Lemon-Blueberry Sour Cream Pound Cake

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    Published by Rebecca Eisenberg ⁠— September 12, 2023 — 3 Comments

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    This post may contain affiliate links

    lemon blueberry pound cake recipe with sour cream

    The combination of tart lemons and plump fresh blueberries is a match made in dessert heaven, and this lemon-blueberry sour cream pound cake brings them together in perfect harmony.

    The addition of sour cream makes the cake so soft and tender, but what truly sets this lemon-blueberry pound cake recipe apart is the crackly lemon sugar top. It's such a special finishing touch, adding an irresistible sweet-tart crunch I just know you're going to love!

    a cross section of lemon blueberry pound cake with one slice lying in front of it showing the crackly sugar muffin top.

    If you've made my old fashioned vanilla pound cake or strawberry pound cake this recipe will feel very familiar to you. I used both of them as a base, with a few modifications to help support the weight from the added fresh blueberries.

    Between the cake batter and the sugar topping there's zest from two whole lemons in this pound cake. The lemon flavor is so bright and fresh, absolutely in your face and don't you forget it.

    While traditional pound cakes use just four core incredients: flour, butter, eggs, and sugar, the addition of full fat sour cream is the not-so-secret ingredient that makes this blueberry pound cake extra soft and moist.

    The lemon and blueberry flavors may be robust, but the cake itself is surprisingly delicate!

    The lemon sugar topping was inspired by my favorite lemon-blueberry mini muffins and contrasts so nicely with the softness of the cake. Blueberry muffin cake? Yes please.

    two slices cut off the front of a lemon blueberry pound cake.

    Like all my best cake recipes, this lemon-blueberry pound cake is so good served with a scoop of ice cream or macerated fresh berries and whipped cream. But honestly, I mostly eat it plain. It has such a lovely soft texture, bursts of sweetness from the fresh blueberries, and sparkling lemon sugar top — it really doesn't need anything extra!

    Keeping Blueberries from Sinking

    To keep the blueberries from sinking in a blueberry pound cake, we're going to use a special technique known as not mixing them into the batter right away. (It's exactly what it sounds like.)

    Basically, you'll make the lemon pound cake batter and measure a portion of it into the loaf pan without any blueberries in it. Then, you'll mix the blueberries into the remaining batter and add it on top of the plain lemon cake batter.

    The blueberries will always sink a little bit as the cake bakes, but that inch-deep layer of plain lemon cake batter at the bottom is a bit of insulation, keeping them from all ending up there.

    Ingredient Notes

    Here are the ingredients that you'll need to make this lemon-blueberry pound cake recipe! See recipe card for quantities.

    all of the ingredients measured and labeled.
    • Lemon Zest - This lemon-blueberry pound cake recipe uses the zest of two whole lemons. One and a half lemons are zested into the cake batter, and the remaining half lemon is zested to make the lemon sugar topping.
    • Unsalted Butter - This recipe uses unsalted American-style butter (e.g. not European butter like Kerrygold). If using a salted butter, cut the amount of salt in the recipe in half.
    • Sugar - Plain old regular granulated white sugar.
    • Eggs - This recipe uses large eggs. Extra large eggs will also work.
    • Flour - Regular all purpose flour. Gluten free cup-for-cup all purpose flours should also work, but I haven't personally tested them.
    • Sour Cream - Full fat sour cream (or full fat plain Greek yogurt) adds a ton of moisture and makes this cake very soft and tender.
    • Salt - I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt which half as salty as other brands. If measuring by weight, it doesn't matter what brand of salt you use. But if you're measuring by volume and using a different brand of salt, even a different brand of kosher salt, cut the amount of salt in half.
    • Baking Powder - Double acting baking powder helps ensure this cake rises and can support the weight of the blueberries. It also helps it develop the soft, fluffy texture.
    • Baking Soda - A small amount of baking soda gives this cake just a little more rising energy against the weight of the blueberries and all the added fat from the sour cream.
    • Blueberries - Fresh blueberries! This is a great way to use up slightly wrinkled berries. Pick through the berries to remove any stems before use!

    🍽 Mise en place (aka "the setup")

    Mise en place is a French culinary term which literally translates to "putting in place."

    It basically means: Measure all your ingredients and make sure you have all the right tools and equipment ready to go when you need them before you start working.

    This can make a huge difference in a) how enjoyable you find the baking and cooking process and b) the success of your recipe!

    Here's the mise en place you'll need for this recipe:

    • Bring the butter to room temperature. Let the butter sit out at room temperature (70°F) for an hour or two prior to baking. If you need to speed this process up, microwave the wrapped sticks of butter for about 4 seconds per side. The butter should still feel slightly cool to the touch but and soft enough to press a finger into, but not so soft that it's greasy or melty — you're looking for a temperature of about 65°F.
    • Bring the eggs to room temperature. Submerge the eggs in very hot water for about 10-15 minutes prior to mixing. This helps them incorporate into the cake batter easily and will allow your cake to rise. If they're cold when you add them to the butter and sugar, they'll cool down the butter, causing the batter to break and separate.
    • Mix the dry ingredients together. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl.

    How to Make Lemon-Blueberry Pound Cake

    Just like most of my other cake recipes, this lemon-blueberry pound cake uses the creaming method of mixing. I wrote a lot more about the creaming method in detail in my vanilla pound cake recipe and I do recommend popping over there to read about it if you're a beginner baker.

    Being patient during the first step of creaming the butter and sugar together is particularly important for giving your cake a soft, fluffy texture and enough rising power to lift all the fresh blueberries we're going to add.

    butter, sugar, and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.

    Combine the softened butter, granulated sugar, and the lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and cream them together on medium speed.

    properly creamed butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. it is pale, thick, and fluffy.

    Pause and scrape down the bowl and beater at least 3 times (about every 90 seconds) during this step. It can take several minutes for the butter and sugar to reach the right texture.

    When properly creamed together, the butter and sugar mixture will be pale yellow, light, and fluffy. If you rub it between your fingers the sugar granules should be almost entirely dissolved but still feel slightly gritty.

    The next step is to add the eggs without collapsing all the air we just worked into the butter. We do this by adding them one at a time and giving the butter plenty of time to incorporate each egg (about 45-60 seconds) before adding the next one.

    Scrape down the bowl and beater before adding each egg, and then again before you move on to the next step.

    The final step is to alternate adding the dry ingredients and sour cream on the lowest speed possible. Using a low speed for this final step prevents over mixing and ensures your cake has a moist, tender texture.

    half the dry ingredients added to the mixing bowl.

    On lowest speed, add one third of the dry ingredients. Wait for them to be almost entirely incorporated, then scrape down the bowl and beater.

    sour cream added to the cake batter in the mixer bowl.

    Add half the sour cream, again mixing on the lowest possible speed just until combined. Again scrape down the bowl and beater.

    Repeat with the remaining dry ingredients and sour cream, adding one third of the dry ingredients followed by the remaining half of the sour cream and the final third of the dry ingredients.

    Don't worry about being super precise with what "one third" and "one half" is here. The goal is just to not overwhelm the batter with too many dry ingredients at once or too much liquid and fat at once.

    I know this can sound overwhelming but it's quite simple, I promise. You're basically alternating adding dry --> wet -- > dry -->. wet --> dry, mixing on low speed just until combined and scraping down the bowl between each addition.

    Stop the mixer when there are a few streaks of flour left in the bowl. You'll finish mixing those in by hand when you scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl. This also helps prevent over mixing!

    350 grams of plain cake batter smoothed into the bottom of a loaf pan on a green kitchen scale.

    Measure about 350 grams of the plain lemon cake batter into a greased and lined loaf pan. You're looking for about an inch of batter in the bottom of the pan.

    the blueberries mixed into the remaining cake batter in the bowl with a purple spatula.

    Add the blueberries to the remaining cake batter and mix them in by hand until evenly distributed. Then add the lemon-blueberry cake batter to the loaf pan.

    Use a mini offset spatula to smooth the batter out, pressing it down into the corners of the pan to press out any air bubbles.

    Take care not to push the blueberries all to the bottom of the pan as you go — you want to see some of them at the surface!

    smoothing the blueberry lemon cake batter into a loaf pan using a mini offset spatula.

    Pressing the cake batter down into the pan is important for pressing out any air bubbles that might be hiding inside. Smoothing out the top helps the cake bake evenly.

    Lemon Sugar Cake Topping

    Before you bake this lemon-blueberry pound cake, it's time to add the blueberry muffin inspired lemon sugar topping. This is non-negotiable, imo. It is so good you really don't want to skip it.

    a hand over a bowl showing the lemon zest rubbed into sugar to make lemon sugar.

    Zest the remaining half lemon into a bowl with 1 tablespoon sugar. Rub them together with your fingers to infuse the sugar with lemon oil.

    the cake topped with lemon sugar before baking.

    Sprinkle the cake all over with 1 tablespoon plain sugar. Tilt the cake pan carefully to get an even coating of sugar. Then top with the lemon sugar.

    Bake the cake at 350°F for 60-65 minutes, until a toothpick or small knife inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it. You're looking for an internal temperature of 200°-209°F.

    Let the lemon-blueberry muffin cake cool in the pan on a cooling rack for about 15-20 minutes. Then run a knife around any sides of the pan without parchment paper and use the parchment sling to lift it out and onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

    This cake is so soft and tender, you really do want it to be completely cool so the starches have time to set before you slice it or else it will fall apart.

    Your moist lemon-blueberry pound cake is now ready to serve!

    Suggested Equipment

    Here's the equipment I use to make this lemon-blueberry pound cake. You don't need to have all of these same tools, but they may make the process easier!

    • Electric Mixer - I use a KitchenAid stand mixer with the paddle attachment. An electric hand mixer will also work — the creaming stage may just take a little longer.
    • 1 Pound Loaf Pan - A "1 pound" loaf pan is approximately 8 inches long, 4 inches wide, and 3 inches tall. A 1.25 pound loaf pan (9x5x3) will also work but your cake may not have the same height that mine does in these photos as there's more room for the batter to spread out. Metal pans work best for getting that golden brown crust. You may need to adjust baking time and temperature if using a glass pan (King Arthur Baking recommends lowering the temperature by 25°F and adding 10 minutes to the bake time).
    • Quarter Pan Pre-Cut Parchment Sheets - I use these pre-cut parchment sheets to create a parchment sling that lines the pan to make the pound cake easier to remove. You'll have to trim about an inch off one of the long sides for it to fit, but they work very nicely!
    • Metal Binder Clips - To secure the parchment paper in place so it doesn't fold in on top of the cake in the oven. Do not use plastic binder clips in the oven. I repeat, no plastic in the oven.
    • Mini Offset Spatula - For smoothing out the cake batter in the pan. Trust me, you'll think a regular spatula or a knife can do the same job, but once you try using a mini offset spatula, there's no going back.
    a silver rectangular loaf pan.

    USA Pan Bakeware Aluminized Steel Loaf Pan, 1 Pound

    Dimensions: 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.75. Durable construction with corrugated surface for optimal airflow. Non-stick finish is PTFE, PFOA and BPA free.

    Amazon
    Crate & Barrel
    Williams Sonoma

    Storage Notes & Freezing

    This lemon-blueberry pound cake can be stored at room temperature with an airtight cover for 4-5 days. You can also refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to a week.

    The pound cake itself can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge, and let come to room temperature for serving.

    two slices of lemon blueberry cake on a small white plate with a basket of blueberries and two lemon halves behind it.
    a white square ceramic berry basket filled with fresh blueberries.

    Practical Tips and Recipe Notes

    • If the cake batter begins to look split or curdled as you're adding the eggs, don't sweat it too much. It will come back together when you add the flour.
    • When in doubt, SCRAPE DOWN THE BOWL. If it feels like you're stopping too often to scrape down the bowl, that means you're doing it right. You don't want any ingredients to go unincorporated or you'll end up with large air bubbles or clumps in your final cake.
    • Mixing the dry ingredients on the lowest possible speed and stopping as soon as they're all combined is super important. The goal is to avoid developing gluten in the cake batter, which would make your blueberry pound cake dense and tough, with lots of trapped tunnels of air bubbles inside.
    • To keep the cake from sticking to the pan, spray the pan with non stick spray, then line with a parchment paper sling. The non-stick spray helps the paper stick to the walls of the pan. I use metal binder clips to help hold the paper in place, but this is optional.
    • If you don't have parchment paper you can grease and flour the pan by spraying it with nonstick spray or a paper towel with a bit of olive oil on it. Add about a tablespoon of flour into the pan and tap, tilt, and rotate the pan over the sink until the flour evenly coats all the sides of the pan.
    • Make sure your baking powder is fresh! If you aren't sure, it's probably not. Baking powder is good for about 6 months, after that it loses its potency. To check if it's still good, Epicurious recommends mixing 1 cup very hot tap water with 2 teaspoons baking powder: "If there’s an immediate fizzing reaction that dissipates all of the powder, you’ll know it still works. If there’s no bubbling, the baking powder is no longer potent and needs to be swapped out."

    Why Temperatures Matter

    Make sure you pay attention to the temperature directions in this pound cake recipe. If your ingredients aren't at the right temperature the cake may not rise properly!

    • If your butter is too warm, it won't incorporate enough air. If the butter is too cold, it will take much longer to cream properly.
    • If you use cold eggs, they will cause the butter to firm up in the mixer and you risk it curdling or splitting, resulting in a flat, dense, tough cake.
    • If your oven runs hot or runs cold, this can affect the cake's rise, the thickness of the crust, the texture, and the baking time. I recommend using an oven thermometer to make sure you're baking it at the right temperature!

    Recipe FAQ

    Why is this recipe in grams? I want to use cups!

    A kitchen scale is more accurate than cup measurements and will give you the right ratio of dry and liquid ingredients so that the cake batter behaves the way we want it to. The name of this cake is literally pound cake — it's super important that you have equal amounts of flour, butter, and sugar by weight to get the best results.

    I tested and developed this recipe using weight measurements. If I were to convert it to volume measurements, I would be using an online conversion calculator — just like you would. There's no set standard for how much "1 cup" of flour weighs (I use 120 grams, like King Arthur Baking does, but other recipe developers use as much as 150 grams as "1 cup"), which means this will produce wildly varying results. Use a kitchen scale for best results!

    Can I make this lemon-blueberry pound cake with almond flour?

    No. Almond flour is just ground almonds. I recommend finding a pound cake recipe designed to use almond flour if that's all you've got.

    Can I use frozen blueberries in this pound cake?

    I haven't personally tested this with frozen blueberries, so I can't promise how this will turn out if you use them. You'll want to defrost them completely, drain any excess liquid, and pat them dry with a paper towel before mixing them into the batter. You definitely shouldn't mix frozen berries directly into the cake batter. Frozen berries have a ton of moisture in them and if you don't defrost and pat them dry first, they will release water as they bake. Since the water can't evaporate, it gets trapped and can make the dough mushy or even raw around the berry pieces. Yuck!

    📖 Recipe

    Moist Lemon-Blueberry Sour Cream Pound Cake

    Rebecca Eisenberg
    The combination of tart lemons and plump fresh blueberries is basically a match made in dessert heaven, and this lemon-blueberry sour cream pound cake brings them together in perfect harmony. The sour cream makes the cake so soft and tender, but what truly sets this lemon-blueberry pound cake recipe apart is the crackly lemon sugar top.
    No ratings yet
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Saved! Email
    Prep Time 20 minutes mins
    Cook Time 1 hour hr
    Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 1 loaf

    Equipment

    • Kitchen scale
    • 1 pound loaf pan (8x4 inch)
    • Small offset spatula

    Ingredients
      

    • 227 grams unsalted butter (65°F, softened)
    • 227 grams sugar
    • 1½ lemons (zest only)
    • 227 grams all-purpose flour
    • 2 large eggs (room temperature)
    • ½ teaspoon diamond crystal kosher salt (use half as much of any other brand)
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
    • 120 grams full fat sour cream (room temperature)
    • 113 grams blueberries

    Lemon Sugar Topping

    • 2 tablespoons sugar (divided)
    • ½ lemon (zest only)
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions
     

    • Mise en Place. Bring butter and eggs to room temperature (the butter should be cool, around 65°F, but soft to the touch, not melty or greasy). Measure sugar and lemon zest into one container. In another container, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. Remove any stems from the blueberries. Grease an 8x4" loaf pan and line with a parchment paper sling. Set aside.
    • Preheat oven to 350°F.
    • Cream butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Cut the butter into large chunks and place in the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment. Beat on low-medium speed to soften, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the sugar and lemon zest. Beat on low speed until there's no loose sugar in the bowl, then increase speed to medium and continue creaming for 5-7 minutes, pausing to scrape down the bowl and the beater at least 3 times. Properly creamed, the butter and sugar will have a fluffy, airy, and paste-like texture and pale yellow color. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
    • Add eggs. One at a time, crack each egg into a small bowl (to avoid getting shells in your cake!) then dump the egg into the mixer bowl, beating on medium speed for at least 60 seconds and scraping down the bowl again before adding the next egg. Scrape down the bowl again after the last egg has been added.
    • Alternate adding dry ingredients and sour cream. With the mixer running on the lowest possible speed, add one third of the dry ingredients. When they are mostly combined, scrape down the bowl and beater. Add half the sour cream and mix on low just until combined, then stop and scrape the bowl and beater again. Repeat, alternating the remaining dry and wet ingredients — dry, wet, dry — until just a few streaks of flour remain. Scrape down the bowl and beater and finish mixing by hand with a spatula to prevent over mixing.
    • Add blueberries. Before adding the blueberries, fill the bottom of the prepared loaf pan with about half an inch of plain cake batter, smoothed into the corners (about 350g of cake batter). Then add the blueberries to the bowl with the remaining cake batter and gently fold them into the cake batter until evenly distributed. Scoop the batter into the loaf pan and smooth it out, pressing it down into the corners and sides of the pan so that there aren't any trapped air bubbles. Level off the top, covering any berries at the surface of the cake as best you can.
    • Lemon sugar topping. Use your fingertips to rub the zest of half a lemon into 1 tablespoon sugar. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon plain sugar over the top of the cake batter, tilting, tapping, and shaking the pan as needed to get an even layer of sugar on top. Then sprinkle the lemon sugar over top.
    • Bake. Bake in the center of a 350°F oven for 60-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it.
    • Cool. Remove the pan to a cooling rack. Let cool 15-20 minutes, then use the parchment sling to lift the cake out of the pan to finish cooling. Let cool completely before slicing.

    RECIPE NOTES

    • Pay close attention to the temperature cues given in the recipe — they're very important to how the final loaf turns out! 
    • When in doubt, scrape down the bowl and beater. 
    • To use frozen blueberries, defrost completely, drain and pat dry thoroughly with a paper towel before using.

    YOUR NOTES

    Click here to add your own private notes. Only you can see these.
    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and let me how it was!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Betty Quiring

      September 18, 2023 at 12:43 pm

      I would love to try this recipe, but I measure my baking ingredients by cups, if you would consider giving the grams measurements to the Dewey Decimal system, I would appreciate it and then I would be able to try this recipe, because sounds delicious.

      Thank you

      Betty

      Reply
      • Rebecca Eisenberg

        September 18, 2023 at 3:23 pm

        The Dewey Decimal System is how books are organized by libraries.

        If you're asking me to convert this recipe to volume measurements for you, unfortunately I can't do that. It's not an accurate way to measure ingredients and increases the likelihood of your cake not turning out well. Please refer to the FAQ for my detailed explanation as to why I write my recipes this way and why a kitchen scale is the best tool you can buy for baking!

        Reply
    2. Mariann

      September 25, 2023 at 10:51 am

      So I made this yesterday and it is amazing. The balance of lemon to blueberries with the sour cream is amazing. This recipe is not overly sweet, which I assume brings out the natural flavors. This recipe will be my go to for years. ❤️🍋🫐❤️

      Reply

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