You’re going to love this light, tender blueberry buckle. The texture is similar to coffee cake, with an addicting crumb topping!
Did you ever watch Alton Brown’s Good Eats back in the day on Food Network? It was one of my favorite shows. I love learning about the science behind cooking, and he has such an entertaining way of explaining things.
Recently, I came across an article where a former employee of Alton’s was interviewed and she mentioned that his blueberry buckle was without question her favorite recipe of his.
How could I not try it? I made a few minor changes and notes, mainly because he uses cake flour which has been difficult to come by recently. I’ve offered a way to make this using either cake flour or by turning all-purpose flour into cake flour, a little trick I love to use from time to time.
How to Make a Blueberry Buckle
This recipe follows a pretty typical cake format:
- Prepare a simple crumb topping by mixing the ingredients.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, add an egg, then alternate between adding the dry and wet ingredients until everything is combined.
- Stir in the blueberries, then pour into a baking dish. Add the crumb topping and bake!
I was a little lazy putting the crumb topping together, as you can see some pretty large pieces of butter scattered around in the photo below. The topping is very forgiving, so it still came out perfectly.
Recipe Notes and Substitutions
You can find the original recipe linked below in the notes section if you’d prefer to follow Alton’s instructions. My version is almost identical, but as I’ve already mentioned, cake flour is a bit tricky to find right now at the grocery store. I’ve included instructions for how to make cake flour using all-purpose flour using cornstarch. If you don’t have cornstarch, this recipe will work using only all-purpose flour. It just won’t have the same tender texture. I have no doubt it will still be delicious, though.
I used fresh blueberries, but you can use frozen. Don’t thaw them out first, just stir them directly into the batter. If you thaw them, the juices will make the batter too runny.
More Blueberry Recipes
If you love this recipe, be sure to check out my Blueberry Bars, Baked Oatmeal, and Blueberry Buttermilk Cookies.
You can also see my full archive of blueberry recipes here!
Blueberry Buckle
Ingredients
For the Crumb Topping
- 3 1/2 ounces sugar (1/2 cup)
- 1 1/2 ounces cake or all-purpose flour (1/3 cup)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
For the Cake
- 9 ounces cake flour (2 cups using Spoon & Level Method; see notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 5 1/4 ounces sugar (2/3 cup)
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 15 ounces fresh blueberries (frozen may be substituted; don't defrost)
Instructions
Prepare the Topping
- Combine the sugar, flour and nutmeg in a small bowl. Add butter, then use a pastry blender, fork or clean fingers to combine the ingredients until they have a crumb-like texture (a few larger pieces of butter here and there are fine).
Prepare the Cake
- Place an oven rack on the center shelf, then preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and ginger together in a medium-sized bowl.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, approximately 1-2 minutes (longer if your butter isn’t fully at room temperature). Reduce the speed to low and thoroughly incorporate the egg. Add one-third of the flour mixture. Once incorporated, add one-third of the milk, then repeat alternating the wet and dry ingredients until everything is combined.
- Stir in the blueberries, then pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the topping on evenly.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown on top. Cool for 30 minutes before serving.
- Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Notes
Please read my full post for additional recipe notes, tips, and serving suggestions!
Nutrition
Recipe Troubleshooting
For immediate help troubleshooting a recipe, please email me using the form on my contact page. I’ll try to respond to urgent questions as quickly as possible! For all general questions, please leave a comment here :)
This was an amazing dessert… although I also ate a bite for breakfast. I served it with vanilla bean ice cream and it was a hit.
YUM! My blueberry bushes are starting to develop their fruits and I’m excited to make this! It looks so easy and delicious.