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Bursting Blueberry Lemon Layer Cake…to celebrate the weekend. Three layers of light and fluffy lemon cake swirled with a mix of fresh blueberries and blueberry jam. Each cake layer is frosted generously with whipped blueberry mascarpone buttercream. This cake is mouthwatering and oh so delicious. Every bite is layered with fresh berries, hints of lemon, sweet vanilla, and filled with creamy buttercream. This is the perfect berry-filled cake for any and all occasions. Bonus? It’s simpler to make than you’d think, and so very pretty…with barely any added effort.
And here I am, back with another layer cake, simply because they make me happy and I needed a happy cake in my life this week. You do too. Trust me on that.
Just like flowers, pretty (and delicious) food has a way of being able to completely turn my day around. It’s maybe kind of cheesy to admit, but I have a love of beautiful things. And when they happen to be incredibly delicious beautiful things? Well, that’s just an added bonus that makes food like cake the BEST.
And I don’t think many of you will argue that, because who doesn’t love cake, you know?
muti colored buttercream
1st cake layer
1st cake layer with buttercream
2nd cake layer
2nd cake layer with buttercream
cake before covering in buttercream
The story of how this cake came to be is really pretty simple. In an effort to surround myself with more color and “pretty” things, I picked up a whole bunch of fresh berries and ordered way too many edible flowers. When purchasing the berries and flowers, I really didn’t have an idea as to what I would make with them. I just knew something good would follow.
Almost as soon as the flowers arrived at my doorstep, I began baking this cake. Something about the purple-toned dahlias and faded white elderflowers screamed blueberry cake to me. Instead of thinking twice about it, I just started cooking. Less than 2 hours later I was putting the finishing touches on what is now one of my favorites cakes… Yes, I kind of have a lot of favorites.
Here are all the details.
Start with the cake. It’s a combination of a fluffy vanilla cake, lemon cake, and blueberry cake. It’s so moist, just perfectly sweet, and has a hint of lemon flavor throughout. To get a really incredible and intense blueberry flavor, I used a mix of both fresh blueberries and blueberry jam. So yes, that’s double the blueberry action, and yes, this cake is very heavy on blueberry flavor. Every bite literally bursts with berries and it’s maybe one of the best things you will eat.
Kind of dramatic, but also kind of true.
For the buttercream, I had a lot of over the top ideas. But in the end, I actually stuck with something a bit simpler and did a blueberry-mascarpone buttercream. Since I really wanted this cake to be heavy on the blueberry flavor, I didn’t want the buttercream to compete with the cake, I wanted it to compliment.
Enter this mascarpone buttercream swirled with a small amount of blueberry jam to give the cake a very pretty color. Not going to lie, I did attempt an ombre frosted cake. But it didn’t really work out just as I envisioned in my head. Oddly, I’m OK with that, and even odder? I love the imperfect look.
It’s effortlessly pretty…
Which brings me to the best part about this cake. It’s actually fairly easy to make, and pretty too.
No special ingredients, nothing fancy, just pantry staples, and a whole love of blueberries. If you have access to edible flowers, those are of course welcome, but not needed.
I know a lot of people, myself included, can stress to create a cake that’s frosted perfectly. But what’s great about this blueberry cake is that it should look like a swirly, messy, unperfect cake. Just have fun swirling on the buttercream and don’t worry too much about how it looks. Promise, in the end, the cake will be beautiful no matter what.
And most importantly?
It’s going to be GOOD…SO GOOD.
There are not enough words to describe how good this cake is, but just know that every forkful is filled with fresh berries and sweet jam. Each layer is moist, hinted with lemon, and layered with sweet buttercream.
It’s exactly what you should bake this weekend. And with that, let’s take a summer Friday and happily make our way to the kitchen. It’s time for cake.
Thank God!
If you make this bursting blueberry lemon layer cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Bursting Blueberry Lemon Layer Cake.
Servings: 24
Calories Per Serving: 1583 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup melted coconut oil (can use melted butter or canola oil)
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup high-quality blueberry jam
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw using frozen)
Blueberry Buttercream
- 3 sticks salted butter, at room temperature
- 4 ounces mascarpone or cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 4-5 tablespoons high-quality blueberry or blackberry jam
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 3 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.2. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand-held mixer) beat together the coconut oil, yogurt, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, buttermilk, lemon juice, and zest. Add 3 3/4 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined. 3. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour and fold them into the batter. Swirl in the blueberry jam, leaving a few streaks of jam throughout the batter, it shouldn't be fully incorporated.4. Pour the batter among the 3 cake pans and bake 30-35 minutes, until the tops are just set and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool five minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan and turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack. Cover and let the cakes cool completely before assembling.5. To make the buttercream. Add the butter, mascarpone, and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat the butter and powdered sugar together until the butter is light and fluffy. Divide the buttercream between 3 bowls. Mix 1-2 tablespoon jam into 1st bowl, then 2-3 tablespoons jam to the 2nd bowl. Leave the 3rd bowl plain. 6. To assemble, place one cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand. Spread the darkest colored buttercream over the cake. Add the 2nd cake layer and spread with the lighter colored buttercream. Add the final cake layer and spread with the white buttercream. Lightly frost the outside of the cake, swirling the different shades together. It's shouldn't look "perfect". Chill 30 minutes. Serve, or store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
This post was originally published on June 7, 2019
I made this last night and, due to an accident, one of the layers didn’t make it out of the oven in one piece, so a three-layer cake became a two-layer cake. 🙁 However, I ended up making the same amount of frosting anyway and just decided to slather on a bit more (not all of it, but most of it), and it still looks and tastes amazing. My only criticism of the recipe is that it took me at least three times as long (about two-and-a-half hours, actually) to make. If anyone can make this thing in an hour, that person must be a superhero!
Hi Meredith! I am so glad this still turned out so amazing for you! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
So excited to make this!! Can you use 9inch pans instead of 8?
Hi! Yes, 9-inch pans will be just fine. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Made this in two 10 inch pans and they were done in about 30 minutes. Cake was moist and delicious and the frosting was beautiful!
So happy to hear that Jen! Thank you! xTieghan
A few questions in one post. 😉
What kind of cake pans would you recommend using? Dark colored Non-Stick pans? Or light colored metal pans? If using dark colored non-stick, should I adjust baking time (i.e., shorter time)
And Using 9-inch pans instead of 8-inch is ok?
Hi there! I love using USA baking pans, linked below. Keep the baking times the same if using these pans.
I don’t recommend using dark pans.
A 9-inch pan will be great, just bake 2-4 minutes less. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
https://rstyle.me/+xipd6XWebebpUpg1IZgrgQ
I made this for my family the other weekend and it did not last longer than a couple days. SO good. Rich but light, super fluffy and flavorful. I made it as a two-layer cake, but kept the same amount of frosting as the recipe called for, which worked perfectly. Small changes: My local grocery was out of jam, so I used preserves. I also didn’t have buttermilk, so I did the milk+lemon hack. Will be making again before summer is officially over, thanks Tieghan!
Thank you so much Lea! I am so glad to hear that this recipe turned out amazing! xTieghan
Luscious. Rich. Moist. Enough frosting for the entire cake, 3 layers and all. Lemon & Blueberry? What’s not to love?
Agreed! So glad you liked this cake, Linda! Thank you! xTieghan
I would like to use butter instead of coconut oil – is it salted or unsalted? In the comments you have recommended both.
I’ve made this cake a few times now and it’s delicious! I sub melted butter for the coconut oil (because I’m allergic) and it’s perfect. I’m going to make this cake for a friends wedding in a couple of days and just wanted to be sure I can safely triple this recipe? Not sure on the baking soda and baking powder ratios. Is it safer just to make 3 separate batches and then combine? (Might have to anyways for lack of a gigantic mixing bowl with my kitchenaid hah)
Thanks always for the most fabulous and beautiful recipes!
Hey Mandy! Just to be safe (especially since it is a wedding) I really like making 3 separate batches. When tripling recipes things can get a little wonky sometimes and portions can be off. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope the cake is a huge hit! Thank you! xTieghan
Delicious cake!
Thank you Emilie! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan – my 4-yr-old grandson is crazy for blueberries, so I want to make him a blueberry layer cake for his birthday this week. He is not a fan of lemon though, and I’ve had such a hard time finding a blueberry layer cake without it 🙁 If I was to attempt this recipe without the zest or lemon juice, what would you suggest I use as a replacement? Assuming I could just leave out the zest, but a cup of juice is a lot, so clearly need to replace that with something, Thanks!
Hey Marcie! You can easily just replace the lemon juice with additional buttermilk and then omit the lemon zest. That will be great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe and happy birthday to your grandson! Thank you! xTieghan
Hi Tiegan, do you measure your coconut oil before or after you melt it? Thank you! xx
Hey Amy! I measure after melting. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
This cake is beautiful and sounds delicious! I’m thinking about making this as cupcakes. About how many cupcakes do you think it will make? Thank you!
Hi Janiece! This will make roughly 32 cupcakes. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
This cake was incredible!! It was super moist and so flavorful!! I will definitely be making this again for special birthdays!! Thank you for another incredible recipe!! (I’m having 20 women for lunch and am debating between this cake and the lemon blueberry cheesecake bars! Any suggestions?) all my favorite recipes are from your site!!
Hey Beth!! I mean, I am all about cake for a party. It is just such a show stopper!! Or since you are having so many people, maybe make both?!? So glad you enjoyed the cake! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
If you make this without frozen blueberries do you need to add more liquid?
Hey Katherine, I am sorry are you asking if you can make this without blueberries? So you’d just like the cake to be lemon? Is this correct? If so, I would recommend only omitting the berries and not changing the recipe in any other way. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Would this work in 2 9-inch cake pans?
Hi there! This is too much batter for 2 (9 inch) pans. I would recommend cutting the recipe down by 1/3 if you need to use 2 pans. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan