This Sourdough Blueberry Crumb Cake is the perfect treat to make for brunch and weekend breakfasts. With an easy, make-ahead topping, browned butter, and a rich sour cream base there’s no way you’ll pass on a second slice!
Raise your hand if you love cake for breakfast?!
Inspired by the classic coffee crumb cake which we all know and love, I’ve created this delicious sourdough version to enhance any breakfast, brunch, or snacking situation.
How so?
More flavor is packed into every bite with a few simple but noteworthy upgrades.
And because you know I love a good time saving tip, I’ve included my secret weapon for incredible make-ahead desserts, guaranteed to wow your guests at a moment’s notice.
Shall we?
Sourdough Blueberry Crumb Cake: A Few Upgrades
Butter? Oil? Sour cream? What about berries?
I wasn’t sure what direction to take this cake initially. But after several tests, including one major flop I wish to eradicate from my memory, I’ve settled on the following upgrades- and proud of it!
Salted Butter
If you’re not baking with salted butter, you’re really missing out.
I’ve been using salted butter almost exclusively these days, and it makes all the difference in the world especially for cakes, frostings, and chocolate chip cookies. My cat is actually licking the bowl right now as we speak!
Also, for a nice touch, I like to lightly brown the butter before adding to the batter. I did this by accident when first testing this recipe, and it was so yummy, I decided to keep it.
Leftover Sourdough Starter (Discard)
Baking with leftover sourdough starter (the stuff you remove and discard when when feeding it), is one of the best ways to get creative with something you’d otherwise throw away.
As long as it’s been recently fed, smells yeasty (not like gym socks), and doesn’t have any dark liquid on top, it will add a wonderful depth of flavor to this crumb cake. Paired with tangy sour cream, the texture becomes rich and decadent too.
Tip: For best results, use leftover 100% hydration starter. This type of starter is fed with equal parts flour and water by weight, and has a consistency similar to thick pancake batter. If you need a sourdough starter, you can create one here (it takes about 7 days and up to two weeks). Or, you can purchase directly from my shop.
Make-Ahead Crumble Topping
Ok, so ready for my secret time-saving tip?
Freeze the crumble topping ahead of time!
Just take any crumble topping recipe (it doesn’t even have to be mine) and store the rubbly bits in a ziplock bag. Use directly from the freezer when ready to assemble desserts like apple crumbles, peach crisps, pies, cakes, etc.
It will last in the freezer for several months and there’s no need to let the crumbles come to room temperature before using.
Taste Test
It’s sweet, fluffy, tangy, juicy…. and I’m telling you: that lightly browned salted butter is just to-die-for.
Also, the blueberries are mixed into the crumble topping, instead of folded throughout the batter. They won’t sink to the bottom this way, and you’ll get a burst of warm, blueberry goodness in every bite!
Finally, your best bet is to make this cake fresh and serve it on the same day. The prep takes about 15 minutes from start to finish, and the frozen make-ahead crumbles shaves off even more time.
Enjoy it for brunch, overnight guests, holiday gatherings, weekend treats- the list goes on!
Anything Else?
PS: I did test an overnight version of this recipe, one where you would refrigerate the batter and bake the whole thing the following day. But I wasn’t happy with the results. The texture was really chewy, most likely from the sourdough starter, and I wasn’t inspired to test it any further. If you want to test it out, let me know! Can’t win ’em all!
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This Sourdough Blueberry Crumb Cake is the perfect treat to make for brunch and weekend breakfasts. With an easy, make-ahead topping, browned butter, and a rich sour cream base there’s no way you’ll pass on a second slice! Don’t forget to check out my notes below for best results. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Crumble Topping
1/4 cup (50g) sugar
1/2 cup (100g) light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups (180g) all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
Rounded 1/2 tsp cinnamon (use 1 tsp for more flavor)
Pinch of fine sea salt
8 tbsp or 1 stick (113 g) salted butter, cut into small cubes, cold
Wet Ingredients
8 tbsp or 1 stick (113 g) salted butter
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup (120g) leftover sourdough starter discard (see note below)
Dry Ingredients
2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Pinch of fine sea salt
1/2 cup (120g) sour cream
1 heaping cup of fresh blueberries
Powdered sugar
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly oil an 8×8-inch pan and line with parchment paper. Smooth the bottom and sides of the pan so the paper is flat.
Add the blueberries to a small bowl. Sift a a tablespoon of powdered sugar over the top and gently toss to combine. This will prevent the berries from sinking into the cake. Set aside.
To make the crumble topping, add all of the ingredients to a medium-sized bowl. Mix into crumbles using your hands. The butter should be well blended into to the flour; some larger pieces are ok. If using frozen crumble topping, remove it from the freezer now.
In a small skillet, melt the butter until light golden brown around the edges (you are not fully browning the butter). This will only take a few minutes, but do not walk away from the pan- it will burn quickly!
Meanwhile, using a stand mixer, beat the sugar, egg, and sourdough starter on medium-low speed, 1 minute. With the machine running, gradually pour in the warm melted butter.
In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients. Add to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined. You should still see specks of flour in the bowl; do not over mix. Add the sour cream and mix until smooth. This technique will give the cake a soft, velvety texture. The batter will be thick.
Spoon the batter into the pan. In an even layer, scatter some of the crumbles over the top first, then do a layer of blueberries. Repeat to finish all of the crumbles and blueberries. See my note on this below.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted (I use a dried piece of spaghetti).
Cool completely before serving. Dust with powdered sugar.
Notes
For best results, use leftover 100% hydration starter. Its batter-like texture is the perfect match for this crumb cake. If you’re using a thicker, low hydration starter you will have to add more liquid.
If you’re not weighing your ingredients, spoon and level the flour into measuring cups. This way, you won’t be tempted to overpack the flour which will result in a denser cake.
When adding the crumble topping and blueberries, make sure to evenly cover the surface of the batter, especially the corners. Otherwise, the batter will puff up in certain spots, which could lead to uneven baking.
Keywords: crumb cake, sourdough crumb cake, crumb cake recipe
kelly says
Ahh, the softness and beauty of these photos … so nice to see you back at your art lovely. I’ll pop over later this morning for a slice and cuppa in the sunshine, x
Anna says
I just made this! After my weekly grocery trip, which included blueberries for this recipe, I realized I only had one stick of butter left! I really had my heart set on this so to make do I used the butter for the crumb and 1/3 cup oil for the batter. Instead of cinnamon I used lemon zest and added a little lemon zest and juice, and vanilla to the batter. I also used half whole wheat and half AP flour for the batter. This turned out great! I only ended up using about half the crumb so in the future I know if I only have on stick I can use half of it in the batter.
Emilie Raffa says
Oh my goodness, Anna, this sounds awesome. Love the whole wheat and lemon zest variation- must try! x
Margaret says
This is absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for sharing!
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Margaret,
Thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed it :)
Dawn says
Next time I’ll use a 9×12 pan! It took 65 minutes to get the center done otherwise it’s a lovely coffee cake.
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Dawn,
Oh wow! Thanks for you feedback! This can happen as all ovens are different :)
Rosa says
Hello,
Can I use unsalted butter for this recipe? And also substitute cherries instead of blueberries? Sounds so delicious! Can’t wait to make it this weekend!
★★★★★
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Rosa! Yes! Just make sure to add additional salt to the recipe to make up for the flavor difference (perhaps 1/4 to 1/2 tsp?). Regarding the cherries: I haven’t tried it myself so I cannot advise with specifics. But with that said, it doesn’t hurt to experiment. Please let me know how it goes :)
Gail says
Would it be ok to use half the sugar in the cake?
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Gail! In my opinion, I wouldn’t halve the sugar in this recipe. It will change the overall texture, and perhaps it might not be sweet enough. But you are more than welcome to experiment and see how it goes :)