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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Hi! I was so excited to do this but I substituted some almond flour, coconut sugar and I used a blender cause I don’t have an electric mixer. It wasn’t as thick before putting into the pan and it did come out not intact/mushy inside even if I left it for 50 minutes. Is it because I substituted some ingredients? Or is it the mixer? My boyfriend still says its good but I feel like I messed it up 🙁 thank you!
Hi Janine, I suspect it was a combination of the ingredient substitutions you made as well as using the blender. Sorry to hear it was a disappointment!
Used gluten free 1 to 1 flour and it turned out AMAZING. Made it a few hours ago and half the cake is gone already.
Hi Jennifer! Could I substitute Chopped Rhubarb for the blueberries?
Thanks!
Terrie from Prince Edward Island
Hi Terrie, I’ve never tried making a cake with rhubarb so it’s hard to say for sure. You may want to try using half chopped rhubarb and half blueberries. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
This is a delicious recipe Jenn! No tweaks, no substitutes, no changes, no nonsense! Delicious just like it is.
For others who post reviews, please…just make the recipe as is. That is what you are actually reviewing. Your additions, changes, substitutions, etc. are not a fair way to rate the recipe(s) herein. Feel free to make this cake in 682 different ways if you wish, but make Jenn’s recipe for your review. She has invested a ton of time and effort to test and perfect her recipes. She is a trained professional chef and we are lucky to have her skills and knowledge available to us as home cooks. I’m not writing this to be rude, mean, or insulting and if anyone takes my words that way, my apologies. I’ve made several of Jenn’s recipes and have not been disappointed. Jenn shares her vast knowledge with us, and we should show our appreciation by actually reviewing her recipes AS IS! I’m a 61 year old man whose wife HATES to cook, so I do the cooking. Jenn…you are my first responder, so I don’t crash and burn! Thank you for all of your efforts to make all of us look good!!!
Well said!! Couldn’t agree more, however, relatively speaking, very few people change too much of Jenn’s recipes. I think there is just too much trust and respect there for people to get carried away, plus they are THAT good! If you want to hear about changes, go to Epicurious.com!!! It will blow your mind the way dozens of self absorbed “chefs” obliterate the recipes and then have the audacity to “review” them! It’s such a joke!!
Growing up on the east coast of Newfoundland blueberries were plentiful and delicious. I’ve eaten lots of blueberry cakes over the years and this one is definitely at the top of my list. It’s delicious.
Made yesterday for husband, he absolutely loved it. Perfectly light and fluffy with tasty crunchy topping (I did add extra cinnamon). Thank you for a great recipe, this one is a keeper, a bit like my husband :o)
🙂
OMG!!!!! I made this for guests in our Airbnb. It was a huge hit with them, my husband and all subsequent guests. It is a definite regular on my recipe rotation list. The only problem is having the leftovers calling my name! My solution has been to package up several pieces for guests to take away with them. They are all very appreciative. This is such an easy, moist, and delicious treat. It stays fresh and moist for days. It’s perfect.
This is by far one of the best blueberry coffee cakes I’ve made. I didnt cook it as long and covered with foil and turned down to 325 after cooking 30 min and baked until completely puffed and tested with touch pulled out of oven and uncovered let cool did drizzle lemon icing after cooled. Very yum
Hi Jenn, can this recipe be easily be made GF simply by using GF flour.?
Hi Rosie, Thanks for your note. I haven’t made this with gluten-free flour, but I think it should work. A number of readers have commented that they have good luck with King Arthur’s gluten-free flour. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
I made this today for the second time. The first time I used a glass pan. The middle just would not get done. I took it out so at least we could eat the outside of the cake. Today I used a metal pan, thinking that may be the issue. Same. Any suggestions??
Sorry you’ve had a problem with this, Bette! This cake is pretty predictable – – have you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe?
We had the same issue. Used a glass pan and had to put it back in the oven for another 30 minutes as it was all gooey in the middle. We covered the edges with tin foil so the topping wouldn’t burn. Once it cooked through, it was delicious! Only substitute we used was almond milk.
Could it be that you live in a higher altitude? Baking times and temps would probably need to be adjusted.
I started to make this cake without checking to see if I had a 9 x 9 baking pan, which I didn’t, but somehow I had 3 8 x 8 pans! It was difficult to buy a 9 x 9 on short notice and for a moderate price so I decided to use the 8 x 8. Of course I expected it to take longer so I lowered the temp to 365 degrees and kept checking the cake after 45 mins but it went quick from jiggling liquid in the center to cooked and the topping became quite hard. What would be a good temp and time for an 8 x 8?
Also, is there a trick to keeping the blueberries from sinking to the bottom?
Hi Rose, I’d suggest lowering the temperature a bit more — to 350 or 340 degrees and I’d start checking for doneness at 50 minutes. Hope that helps!