Description

Bright, buttery, and irresistibly tender, this coffee cake is a weekend brunch dream. Fluffy lemon-scented cake cradles a luscious cream cheese swirl and juicy blueberries, all topped with a crunchy brown sugar streusel. It’s the perfect combination of cozy, indulgent, and showstopping.

Ingredients

Scale

For the Cake:

½ cup unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp lemon zest (about 1 large lemon)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ cup sour cream (or full-fat plain yogurt)
1½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries

For the Cream Cheese Filling:

8 oz cream cheese, softened
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Streusel Topping:

½ cup all-purpose flour
⅓ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup cold unsalted butter, cubed

Instructions

1️⃣ Prep & Preheat

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
Grease a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

2️⃣ Make the Cream Cheese Filling

Beat cream cheese, ¼ cup sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla until smooth. Set aside.

3️⃣ Cake Batter

Cream butter and ¾ cup sugar until light and fluffy, 2–3 min.
Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Batter may look slightly curdled—no worries!
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl.
Mix in flour and sour cream in 3 additions, starting and ending with flour. Fold in blueberries gently.

4️⃣ Assemble the Cake

Spread half the batter in the pan.
Carefully layer cream cheese filling on top, leaving a small border at edges.
Spread remaining batter over the cream cheese. Don’t worry if some filling peeks through.

5️⃣ Streusel Topping

Combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in cold butter until pea-sized crumbs form.
Sprinkle evenly over the cake.

6️⃣ Bake

Bake 50–60 min until top is golden and a toothpick in cake (avoiding cream cheese) comes out clean.
Tent with foil if browning too fast.

7️⃣ Cool & Serve

Cool at least 30 min before releasing springform.
Slice and serve warm or at room temperature. Optional: dust with powdered sugar or serve with whipped cream.

Notes

Frozen Blueberries: Toss in 1–2 tbsp flour before folding in.
Citrus Twist: Use orange or lime zest/juice instead of lemon.
Nutty Crunch: Add ⅓ cup chopped nuts to streusel.
Muffin Version: Layer batter, cream cheese, more batter in lined muffin tins, top with streusel, bake 22–28 min for 14–16 muffins.
Gluten-Free: Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend