Blueberry Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar Streusel

Friends! I made this on a whim for my brother’s baby shower and immediately knew I had to share the recipe with you. It’s a soft, fluffy blueberry coffee cake topped with a thick layer of brown sugar streusel and honestly, it disappeared so fast.

It’s simple but so good, and I have one secret ingredient that gives the crumb incredible flavor and richness.

The Details

1. The Blueberry Cake – I used the base from my Blueberry Muffin Recipe (which can also be baked as a cake) because it is THE BEST. It has such a soft, fluffy texture and stays moist for days.
2. The Crumb Topping – I love a good thick layer of brown sugar streusel. I can’t be bothered with cutting in cold butter so we use cooled melted butter for this. 

Blueberry Cake

The secret ingredient here is heavy cream. I know it’s not super common in cakes, but it gives the batter such a rich flavor. I pair it with low-fat Greek yogurt to keep the texture balanced without making the cake feel too heavy.

I tested another version using milk and sour cream instead of heavy cream and Greek yogurt and although it baked up fine, it definitely lacked that extra oomph in flavor.

I don’t recommend using heavy cream and sour cream together because the fat content gets too high and the cake can turn greasy.

1. Melt the butter and mix with the sugar and vanilla. 
2. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking in each egg completely before adding the next.
3. Add the yogurt and mix just until combined. 
4. Add in the heavy cream and mix just until combined.
5. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and whisk just until the last streak of flour is mixed in. 
6. Toss the blueberries with a tablespoon of flour and fold half of them into the batter. 
7. Spread the batter in the prepared pan, top with the other half of the blueberries and set aside. 

Streusel 

I did test this with extra streusel because honestly, who doesn’t want more streusel? But too much weight on top causes the center of the cake to sink and bake up dense underneath, so this ratio ended up being the sweet spot.

1. Melt the butter (doesn’t have to be hot and fully melted – mostly melted is fine)  and let it cool before mixing it with the sugar. 
2. Add the sugar and cinnamon and mix until it’s well combined. 
3. Add the flour and use a fork to gently mix in the flour just until it crumbles – don’t over-mix or it’ll turn into a paste. Add a touch more flour if you need to. 

Serving & Storage

This is the kind of cake you leave on the counter all week and snack on every time you walk through the kitchen. I especially love it in the spring and summer. If you’re looking for a version that works year-round, I also have a Classic Coffee Cake recipe, plus a Pumpkin Coffee Cake that’s perfect for fall.

It’s best served at room temperature, so I keep it covered with a cake dome or in an airtight container and it stays soft for several days.

The powdered sugar will melt into the streusel over time, so if you’re serving this for guests, I recommend dusting it right before serving. There’s also a non-melting powdered sugar you can use if you need to dust it ahead of time.

I don’t usually refrigerate coffee cakes because the fridge tends to dry them out. If you want to store it longer, freeze slices in an airtight container instead.

As always, if you enjoyed this recipe I would greatly appreciate a 5-star rating or a review below. 

Have a blessed day & happy baking!!

Love, B