Blueberry Coffee Cake (aka Boy Bait)
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This tender blueberry coffee cake topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel is cleverly named for its habit-forming effect on boys.
This old-fashioned blueberry coffee cake comes with a darling name and story. In 1954, a 15-year-old girl from Chicago named Renny Powell submitted a blueberry coffee cake recipe to the Pillsbury $100,000 Recipe & Baking Contest (the precursor to today’s Pillsbury Bake-Off). Renny took second place in the junior division for her recipe, cleverly named “Boy Bait” for its habit-forming effect on young men.
Tender, easy to make, and jam-packed with berries, boy bait has been popular ever since. My version is updated with lemon zest to complement the flavor of the blueberries and a crunchy cinnamon streusel topping. You certainly don’t need to be a teenage boy to enjoy it, but I can attest that this 14-year-old loves it — so maybe Renny was onto something ?.
What You’ll Need To Make Blueberry Coffee Cake
Fresh blueberries are ideal for this coffee cake, but frozen will work, too. If you’re using frozen berries, stir them into the batter without thawing, otherwise they’ll turn the batter purple. If you have extra blueberries on hand, or find them on sale at the market, you might also enjoy my blueberry pancakes, blueberry cobbler, or lemon blueberry pound cake – all family favorites!
How To Make Blueberry Coffee Cake
To begin, make the streusel topping by combining the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl.
Using your fingers, mix until no lumps of brown sugar remain, then add the cold butter.
Rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture reaches a crumbly state. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Next, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating well after each addition.
Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, beating on low speed to combine.
The batter will be quite thick.
Add the berries to the batter.
Fold gently with a spatula until evenly distributed. Do not over-mix.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly.
Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the batter.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool in the pan on a rack for about 20 minutes, then serve right from the pan. Enjoy!
You May Also Like
- Best Blueberry Muffins
- Blueberry Cornbread Muffins
- Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Cinnamon-Walnut Swirl
- Blueberry Cobbler
- Crumb Cake
Blueberry Coffee Cake (AKA Blueberry Boy Bait)
This tender blueberry coffee cake topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel is cleverly named for its habit-forming effect on boys.
Ingredients
For the Streusel Topping
- 6 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into ½-inch chunks
For the Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon packed lemon zest, from 1 lemon
- ½ cup milk
- 2 cups fresh blueberries (frozen may be used but do not defrost)
Instructions
- Make the streusel topping: Combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Using your fingers, mix until no lumps of brown sugar remain. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until it reaches a crumbly state. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch square pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
- Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, beating on low speed to combine. Add the berries to the batter and fold gently with a spatula until evenly distributed. Do not over-mix.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a rack for about 20 minutes, then serve right from the pan.
- This cake is best served on the day it is made. Leftovers will keep well for a few days wrapped in foil and stored at room temperature.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap, or place it in heavy-duty freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (16 servings)
- Serving size: 1 piece
- Calories: 223
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Sugar: 15 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 169 mg
- Cholesterol: 47 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I am living in an RV as campground host in Maine. It’s wild blueberry season here, so I wanted to make a blueberry treat for the park staff and found this recipe. I have no mixer or electric beater, so I mixed it all using a large bowl, a fork, and a strong arm. I even increased the ingredients to make a 9×13 size. It was perfect! The staff raved about it as the best coffee cake they had ever tasted. 5 days later, the few leftover pieces, stored in an airtight container, were still just as moist as day one. I would give this 10 stars if I could.
I made this today for brunch. It was barely cooled down all the way before we started eating it! It’s so good! We had huge Maine blueberries that I used. This coffee cake is so tender, I baked mine for 40 minutes and it was spot on.
Thanks for the great recipe, I see this being made over and over again!
Jen,
Can this cake be made without the streusel? Will it still taste good with struesel?
Thanks,
Janelle
Hi Janelle, It can be made w/o the streusel but the cake may not be quite sweet enough.
I made this recipe, 3 times, with raspberries. It came out perfect each time.
A few hints:
I omit the added salt.
I used 2-1/2 cups fresh raspberries.
I flattened the fresh raspberries, then froze them.
My berries were tart, so I tossed them, frozen, with a 1/4 cup sugar, then folded them into the batter along with the extra sugar.
I first tried with an 8×8 pan. It was too tall, definitely use a 9×9 pan.
I used a heavy wall 9×9 pan, and still covered the sides with foil to prevent overcooking on the sides.
I chose your recipes because you use limited ingredients, yet taste amazing. Thank you very much for making your recipes available online.
This is the VERY BEST blueberry cake I have ever made! Will no longer need to google for new recipes for blueberry coffeecake! I changed out the milk for buttermilk which I wanted to use up. The cake is light and fluffy with a hint of lemon and the topping was just enough to add a little extra sweetness. Thanks for such a good recipe.
Best blueberry coffee cake recipe I have tried. I’ve made it twice and substituted buttermilk for regular milk the second time; I prefer the texture. Also use CI’s New York-Style crumb cake topping since the family loves it. Comes out well in a 9″ springform pan. I tent with foil that last 15 min to get the center fully baked without drying out the topping.
Whipped this up to enjoy with coffee this morning as I had fresh blueberries. It is delicious! I love the way it puffed up and stayed that way without falling. Will definitely be making this again. Thank you for sharing.
How can I make this a 9 x 12 recipe?
Hi Jo, You’d need to double the recipe for that size dish. The baking time may be slightly different, so keep an eye on it. Enjoy!
Hi. Are you using a nonstick square pan to make this? I just ask because it looks like it from your photos. Where can I purchase the one you use or recommend? Thank you
Hi Norma, yes that pan is non-stick. I think I may have gotten it from Bed, Bath and Beyond – not a special brand – just your typical square baking pan.
I don’t have to make this to review it because it’s my mom’s exact recipe for Blueberry Buckle. I grew up in the 60’s and she made it all the time. I dont doubt that she got the recipe from the Pillsbury Baking Contest because she was famous for cutting recipes out of the paper and trying them. This was always a winner and I make it now for my family. Thanks for reminding me to pull it out again for brunch this weekend!