This better-than-ever lemon blueberry layer cake is bursting with sunshine-sweet flavor and filled with juicy berries in every bite. Its tender, moist crumb is perfectly balanced with a bright, zesty lemon flavor. Finished with a rich and creamy cream cheese frosting, this is a delightfully fresh and luscious dessert that’s perfect for spring and summertime.
I originally published this recipe in 2014 and I have made a few small updates to produce a lighter, softer cake with just as much incredible flavor.
This cake has become one of my favorite spring dessert recipes and Easter dessert recipes—and for good reasons. It boasts a bright, superior lemon flavor; bursts with blueberries in every single bite; has a perfectly tender crumb; and is finished with a tangy cream cheese frosting that ties it all together.
I first published this recipe in 2014, but after receiving mixed feedback over the years, I knew it wasn’t quite perfect yet. While many readers loved the flavor and appreciated the denser-style crumb, others simply found it too heavy.
When I see a pattern of reviews with concerns over the same thing, I will revisit the recipe and try making various tweaks until I’m confident I’ve fixed the issues. After experimenting several variations of today’s cake, my team and I discovered 3 small tweaks that made a big difference in the cake’s texture. The result? A softer, lighter crumb while keeping all of the same sunshine-sweet flavor.
The updated recipe is below, with the earlier version in the Notes—just in case you loved the original!
One reader, Jen, commented: “Love the updated recipe! I’ve been making this cake for a few years now. It was a bit dense but still a great cake. It’s usually what people request from me for their birthdays. The update has a lighter and softer texture with the same perfect flavor. Thank you for the improved recipe just in time for my husband’s 40th birthday! ★★★★★”
3 Small Recipe Updates = Impressive Changes
- Sub in some oil: The recipe originally called for 1 cup of butter. While creaming butter with sugar produces a soft, airy base for cakes and cupcakes, if the other ingredients in the batter are also heavy (buttermilk, flour, eggs), too much butter will simply weigh everything down. I removed half of the butter (1/2 cup), and subbed in 6 Tablespoons of oil. Not a 1:1 swap because we didn’t want too much liquid in the batter.
- Sub in some baking soda: The cake called for 1 Tablespoon of baking powder, which wasn’t the ideal amount for its heavy crumb. Instead of increasing the baking powder, which could leave us with a chemical aftertaste, I subbed in some baking soda. Combining baking powder and baking soda enhances both the rise AND the flavor of the cake.
- Slightly reduce the buttermilk: Scale the buttermilk down to 3/4 cup, instead of 1 cup. The cake is still extremely moist without tasting heavy and wet.
Key Ingredients in Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Granulated & Brown Sugar: Use a mix of sugars. Brown sugar provides moisture and a little extra flavor. White granulated sugar adds sweetness without weighing the cake down.
- Eggs: You need 4 eggs, which provide structure, enhance the cake’s rise, and create a richer, more flavorful bite.
- Buttermilk: Known for providing exceptional moisture in baked goods, buttermilk leaves each bite tender. If you don’t have buttermilk, there’s no need to make a buttermilk substitute. You can use whole milk with no other changes to the recipe because there is enough acid in the lemon juice and brown sugar. (For the baking soda to react.)
- Fresh Lemons: Use fresh lemon juice and lemon zest in the cake batter. A citrus juicer and citrus zester are equally helpful here!
- All-Purpose Flour: All-purpose flour is ideal in this batter; skip cake flour because it’s simply too light to hold up to the heavy butter, oil, buttermilk, and blueberries.
- Fresh Blueberries: I strongly recommend using fresh blueberries. Frozen blueberries often let off too much moisture, which will weigh down the cake’s crumb.
I love this lemon blueberry cake because the blueberries DO NOT sink to the bottom of the cake. Why not? The batter is thick. When you have a thin batter, heavy fruit or add-ins will sink to the bottom. Still, toss the blueberries in a little flour… for extra insurance!
I recommend using 8-inch round cake pans, which produce thick, lofty cake layers. 9-inch pans can work in a pinch, but expect thinner layers.
Use Parchment Paper Rounds for Cakes
Line your cake pans with parchment paper rounds. I do this every single time I bake a round cake, whether I’m making a 1-layer sprinkle cake, a 9-layer Smith Island cake, or today’s lemon blueberry layer cake. Store-bought pre-cut parchment rounds are convenient, but it’s really easy to trace your pan on parchment and cut it out. You can cut the exact pan size you need, whether you’re making a 6-inch cake, an 8-inch cake, or a 9-inch cake.
Very lightly grease the cake pan with butter or nonstick spray. Place the parchment paper round inside, and then grease the parchment, too. Yes, you grease the pan and then also grease the parchment. This creates an ultra-nonstick environment for your cake. The cake won’t stick to the pan, and the parchment round won’t stick to the cake.
Once the cakes have baked and cooled, trim the tops using a cake leveler or a large serrated knife to create an even surface. A flat top ensures a sturdier and more stable layered cake. Here’s my how to assemble and decorate a layer cake video and tutorial if you want extra help.
Cream Cheese Frosting
Silky cream cheese frosting is the perfect finishing touch on this soft lemony cake—it tastes like spreadable cheesecake!
It’s light and creamy, so it glides onto the cake pretty effortlessly. I use a large flat icing spatula to frost the layers and exterior of the cake.
Crumb coat? While you can certainly add one, there’s no need for a crumb coat; the cake isn’t super crumbly and the frosting is ultra soft and creamy.
Decorate with blueberries, lemon zest, lemon slices, florals, coconut, and/or whatever you like!
You need 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice and 2 Tablespoons of lemon zest. To extract that much juice, 3 or 4 medium to large lemons is usually enough. For the zest, you’ll only need about 2. Zest the lemons first, and then cut open to juice them.
I recommend using 8-inch round cake pans, which produce thick, tall cake layers like you see in the photos. 9-inch pans can work in a pinch, but the cake layers will be thinner than what is pictured, and the cake will be shorter.
Yes, absolutely! Same amount. Toss them in flour before using, just as you do with the blueberries.
Need cupcakes instead? Use my recipe for lemon blueberry cupcakes. Or perhaps breakfast? Try my lemon blueberry muffins. How about pie? My lemony blueberry galette will hit the spot! Cookies? You’ll love these lemon blueberry cookies.
More Lemon Recipes For You
- Lemon Bars
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Blueberry Lemon Icebox Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Scones
- Homemade Lemon Cupcakes & Lemon Raspberry Jam Cupcakes
- Lemon Blueberry Babka
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Lemon Blueberry Layer Cake
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours (includes cooling)
- Yield: serves 12
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This better-than-ever lemon blueberry layer cake is bursting with sunshine-sweet flavor and filled with juicy berries in every bite. Its tender, moist crumb is perfectly balanced with a bright, zesty lemon flavor. Finished with a rich and creamy cream cheese frosting, this is a delightfully fresh and luscious dessert that’s perfect for spring and summertime.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 and 1/4 cups (250g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light brown sugar
- 6 Tablespoons (90ml) vegetable oil, canola oil, or avocado oil
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (180ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest
- 1/2 cup (120ml) lemon juice (3–4 lemons), at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (210g) fresh blueberries (I do not recommend frozen)
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces (226g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature*
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 and 1/2 cups (420g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) heavy cream*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 8-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: Using a handheld or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add granulated and brown sugars and beat on medium-high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the oil and beat until combined and light and creamy, about 3 more minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat on medium speed until everything is completely combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Beat on low speed for a few seconds, then beat in the milk, lemon zest, and lemon juice *just* until combined. Toss the blueberries with 1 Tablespoon of flour and gently fold into the batter. Batter is thick. Do not over-mix.
- Spoon batter evenly into prepared cake pans. Bake for about 22–26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pan before assembling and frosting.
- Make the frosting: Using a handheld or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter together on medium speed until no lumps remain, about 3 full minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt with the mixer running on low. Turn mixer up to high speed and beat for 3 minutes.
- Assemble and frost: (Note: See my how to assemble and decorate a layer cake video & tutorial if you want extra help with this step.) First, using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Place 1 layer on your cake stand. Evenly cover the top with cream cheese frosting. Top with 2nd layer, more frosting, then the third layer. Top with frosting and spread around the sides. The recipe doesn’t make a ton of frosting, just enough for a light frost. Top with blueberries or lemon garnish if desired. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes before cutting or else the cake may fall apart as you cut.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I like to use a cake carrier for storing and transporting.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare cakes and frosting 1 day in advance. Keep cakes at room temperature, covered tightly. Refrigerate prepared frosting in an airtight container until ready to use. Bring frosting to room temperature before spreading as it will be quite stiff after refrigerating. (Add a splash of cream or milk to thin out, if needed.) Frosted or unfrosted cakes may be frozen for up to 2 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8-inch Round Cake Pans | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cake Turntable, Cake Stand, or Large Serving Plate | Straight Icing Spatula | Offset Icing Spatula | Cake Carrier (for storage) | Citrus Juicer | Citrus Zester
- Sheet Cake: The batter makes a perfect sheet cake! Simply spread into a 12×17-inch half sheet/jelly roll pan and bake for about 20 minutes or until cooked through. It also fits nicely into a 9×13-inch cake pan. Bake for about 30–35 minutes or until cooked through.
- Bundt Cake: I recommend making my lemon poppy seed Bundt cake recipe. You can leave out the poppy seeds and add 1 and 1/2 cups (210g) fresh blueberries. I also have a lemon berry yogurt cake recipe. You can use all blueberries.
- Cupcakes: Here are my lemon blueberry cupcakes topped with cream cheese frosting.
- 6-Inch Cake: Use my lemon blueberry cupcakes batter and follow my 6-inch cake baking instructions.
- Eggs: Room-temperature eggs are recommended because they mix easily and quickly into the cake batter, reducing the risk of over-mixing. Place eggs into a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes before using or set the eggs out when you set out your cream cheese and butter for the recipe.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk helps produce a supremely moist cake. If you don’t have buttermilk, use whole milk instead. No need for a buttermilk substitute. You can use lower-fat or nondairy milks in a pinch, but the cake won’t taste nearly as rich and moist.
- Cream Cheese: Use brick-style cream cheese, not cream cheese spread.
- Heavy Cream: Heavy cream with 30% or more milk fat gives the frosting the creamiest texture. Milk will work in a pinch!
- Updated in 2025: Based on reader feedback about the cake baking up flat and tasting too heavy, I made 3 small tweaks. The updated recipe is what you see above. To make the original recipe, leave out the oil and baking soda. Increase the butter to 1 cup (226g/16 Tbsp), the baking powder to 1 Tablespoon, and the buttermilk to 1 cup (240ml). The bake time is the same.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I keep trying to get this cake right but I always get pockets of lemon that stay liquid even when I bake the cakes for the longest advised baking time. Could this happen with a mixing issue? I followed to mixing speeds and times and used a kitchen aid stand mixer, everything looked really well mixed
Are there high altitude instructions for this cake recipe?
Hi Kim, we wish we could help, but we have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
My partner loved this cake just as it was. It is a great cake, I just would have liked it even more lemony. Next time I may put lemon curd between the layers. It is a wonderful cake – make it!
I made this for my daughter’s birthday yesterday it came out great my daughter said best cake ever. I followed the easy directions glad I ignored the unfavorable reviews,don’t know what they did wrong but my cake came out great. Thank you so much.
Could I use something else instead of lemon juice? I don’t want to use lemon in this cake! Please let me know! Thank you!
I made this for my brother’s birthday. It turned out great. I followed the recipe and didn’t change a thing and it looks as good as it tastes. It is delicious and everything blends together so well to create a fresh, moist, and flavorful cake. I wish I could upload a photo.
I had just finished making this cake and had my sad review all typed up. My first cakes turned out flat, dense, and rubbery. I tested my baking powder with hot water, it fizzed! I couldn’t figure out what went wrong.
I’m a big fan of Sally’s recipes and wasn’t ready to give up so I went to the store, bought new baking powder, and tried again. I’m so glad I did! The cakes in the second batch were still not super tall but the texture was much improved. This cake has a great taste and very moist texture. My friends cleared their plates and argued over leftovers. I suggest making sure you use NEW baking powder. Passing the “fizz-test” was not enough for me in this case. This cake is totally worth making, even if you have to make it twice!
This looks amazing! I’m hoping to make this for a friend who is lactose intolerant and gluten free…could I use lactose free milk, dairy free butter, and gluten free 1:1 flour? Or would that totally mess things up?
Hi Sara, We haven’t tested this recipe with these substitutions but let us know if you try it!
This is now my favorite birthday cake to be served on MY birthday. I am usually hard to please when it comes to lemon recipes but this cake has the right amount of tart/sweet combination.
This is probably the best lemon & blueberry cakes I’ve ever tasted! Recipe is so easy to follow and love the advice on mixing times! Is there a way to make the cream cheese frosting set without refrigerating? I find putting cakes in the fridge can dry them out a bit.
Hi Lynn! It’s the best way to help the frosting set, we find that just 45 minutes or so doesn’t dry the cake out. So glad you enjoyed this recipe!
This has become a family favorite! Perfect combination between the cake and the icing. Just enough lemon flavor. Only wish it was calorie free because I could eat the whole cake myself!! LOL!
thanks for this wonderful recipe sally. i made this for my wedding (small cake + lots of cupcakes) and 4 years later friends still bring up how good it was. now im making this recipe again for a friends non profit fundraiser event!
I’ve made this cake several times and it always comes out perfectly and is a real crowd pleaser. Light, fluffy and moist cake. Frosting is really great, although I sometimes make a little extra!
Would it be possible to make this cake without a stand mixer, like the old fashioned way mixing everything by hand?
I just made this recipe by hand, and it came out perfectly! Just be sure that the butter is soft, and you shouldn’t have any troubles.
Hi Stacey, thank you for your feedback. 2 inch layers in the full cake is accurate and about the thickness I usually get as well. Did you use 8 inch or 9 inch pans? For the 6 inch cake, I do recommend the cupcakes recipe batter. I have better results using that.
Made this on 4th of July and it was a hit. My only change was I added blueberries into the frosting (my grandsons request). The instructions were easy to follow and it tasted great. I will definitely make this one again. Love your recipes.
Good concept. I added lemon curd in between the layers and did not regret it. My biggest problem was the cake was dry and a bit bland. I followed the instructions and the cakes looked like they should be perfect! Maybe Sally’s recipes aren’t for me.
I am surprised that the frosting does not contain lemons or blueberries or both, any reason it was made with vanilla frosting?
Hi Steve! There’s plenty of flavor coming from the lemon blueberry cakes themselves and the creamy frosting is a perfect compliment to those flavors, but feel free to top with lemon cream cheese buttercream instead.
This is such a wonderful recipe and the cream cheese frosting is perfect. I have made it gluten free and also swapped out the blueberries for raspberries and I always get rave reviews. Thank you!!!
Julie, what did you do to make the recipe gluten free? I have CUP4CUP multipurpose GF flour, but I was hesitant to sub it in. What did you use? Thanks!
So glad you said this. I want to make this soon and I wanted to see if raspberries would work. Thank you for your comment.
I thought I should give an update because two days ago I was wondering if I should serve this cake at a birthday party (because I thought it was too dense and moist and had thrown out my first attempt). I did serve it and everybody (including me) loved it! It IS very rich and pound cake like, but when entirely assembled, it looked beautiful and the flavor was delicious! I’ll be making it again with perhaps a few adjustments to see if I can get it to rise a bit more.
I made the original recipe and I also made a modified recipe where I used milk instead of lemon juice, both times great cake. I’ve used this cake as a basic vanilla cake without blueberries also. It’s my basic cake for everything now. The frosting is a classic, simple and tasty. I always bake two cakes in 9″ round pans at 350F for 27 minutes. Perfect golden cake
I was having a birthday dinner for my mom and didn’t want a store bought cake. I saw this and knew I wanted to attempt it. I was nervous as I never made a cake from scratch before. I followed the recipe and crossed my fingers. This cake was beautiful and delicious! I had a bit of anxiety until it was cut but it was delicious and moist with a spring flair. I will definitely make it again. Thank you for such a yummy recipe !
So happy to hear that this cake was a hit for you, Susan! Thank you so much for trusting our recipe for your mom’s birthday cake.
I tried this recipe with some Saskatoon Berries we had in our freezer and it turned out beautifully! The berries were suspended just the right amount and there were minimal cake scraps from leveling.
I did add a blackberry/Saskatoon berry filling between layers instead of icing and it turned out wonderfully. Not too wet at all
Absolutely delicious and moist my sisters pound cake was delicious for her birthday and this blueberry lemon cake for my mom. Thanks Sally for delicious recipes!
I made the Lemon Blueberry cake but instead of Blueberries, I had to use figs. For whatever reason the grocery store didn’t have any fresh blueberries so I used fresh figs and the cake was delicious!
Hi! Can I use fresh raspberries instead? Raspberries and lemon sound good, right? We aren’t huge fan of blueberries.
Hi Jennifer, Absolutely! Simply swap with the same amount of raspberries.
This recipe is absolutely delicious. I I I followed the steps exactly using 3 “9” inch pans. I used fresh blueberries and 2 1/2 lemons. I baked on 350 for 21 minutes. The cream cheese frosting covered the 3 layers perfectly. I put it in the fridge for 2 days and it was extremely moist. I will definitely make it again for the next barbecue.
Hi Sally: Would I be able to use cake flour in this recipe? I have some to use up and not a lot of recipes call for it. This cakes sounds divine, am looking forward to baking it!
Hi Janice, For a lighter texture you can use the same amount of cake flour. The batter is thinner with cake flour, be sure to toss the blueberries with 1 Tablespoon of flour before gently folding into the batter to help them not sink. Here are all of our recipes that call for cake flour, in case you are interested in browsing!
I made this today just for fun and it’s awesome. I followed the recipe exactly and didn’t have any problems, but the cake layers don’t rise a lot, which was fine with me because they taste great.
Just fantastic! I hadn’t made a cake from scratch in more than 20 years, so I was a bit nervous about trying this one. My 26-year-old daughter asked for a “lemon berry cake” for her birthday. She came for dinner with her three roommates, all excellent cooks and baking aficionados. When I served the Sally’s Lemon Blueberry Layer Cake, the response was overwhelming. They LOVED the cake. They couldn’t stop talking about it, asking me what I did, where I got the recipe, telling me how delicious/moist/flavorful it was. I highly recommend this recipe!
Thank you so much for your positive feedback, Debbie! We’re so glad you loved this recipe.
I made this cake for my daughter’s baby shower and I was a bit nervous about it, since I didn’t get to try it first, but it was a huge success. Everyone loved it, I had so many compliments on the cake. I will definitely be making it again!