Have you ever had a recipe “fail” turn into one of your best recipes ever? That is exactly what happened with this cake. My plan was to bake a blueberry buckle, but then realized I didn’t have the requisite springform pan. I thought I’d improvise and add the streusel topping to the bottom of the pan first, with the intention of turning it into an upside-down blueberry cake, but then I waited too long to flip it after taking it out of the oven. Some of the topping stuck to the pan, which made the cake look awful, even though it was still perfectly edible.

I probably would’ve simply just cut it up and served it as-is to my own family, but since I was planning to take it over to some friends, I knew I needed to do something to make it look pretty. I scraped the stuck portions of crust back onto the cake, then back right side up onto the plate, so that the streusel topping was now a sugar crust, then whipped up a quick sour cream glaze to spread over top.

I was a little hesitant to bring it, but apparently 2 wrongs do sometimes make a right, because both our friends AND my normally non-dessert-loving husband raved about the perfect combination of the tart blueberries, sweet crunchy crust and cool sour cream topping. I really knew I had struck gold when Princess–who doesn’t even like blueberries–asked if I would make it for her birthday cake. Apparently this is one “mistake” that will be repeated a lot more often!

Assemble your ingredients for the cake: butter, sugar, egg, flour, baking powder, salt, milk, blueberries, brown sugar, cinnamon, sour cream, powdered sugar, vanilla and baking soda.

Here is what you need:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened and divided (plus more for greasing pan)
3/4 cup + 1/3 cup sugar, separated
1 egg
2 + 1/3 cups flour, separated
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
3 cups blueberries
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Grease cake pan with butter.

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees; liberally grease round cake pan with butter.

Beat butter and sugar together until fluffy.

Step 2: Beat 1/2 stick butter with 3/4 cups sugar until fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes. Add egg and beat 1 minute more.

Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl.

Step 3: Mix together 2 cups flour, salt, & baking powder.

Add flour mixture to egg mixture.

Step 4:  Add 1/2 of flour mixture and half of milk to egg mixture; mix just until blended. Add remaining flour and milk; mix again, just until blended. Batter will be thick.

Add blueberries to cake batter and carefully fold in.

Step 5:  Add blueberries to batter and carefully mix in with a spatula, being careful not to mash the berries.

Blend remaining butter, sugar, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in small bowl until crumbly.

Step 6: Blend remaining half stick of butter, 1/3 cup of sugar, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in small bowl until crumbly. Layer crumb mixture at bottom of the pan.

Layer crumb mixture at bottom of the cake pan.

Step 7:  Pour blueberry batter carefully over crumb mixture, then spread out evenly with spatula. Tap pan gently on counter to release air bubbles. Bake for approximately 45-50 minutes, until knife inserted in middle comes out clean.

Pour cake batter into pan.

Step 8: Remove from oven. Loosen sides with knife, then invert cake immediately onto plate. Let cool upside down for 10 minutes.

Top the finished cake with homemade frosting and enjoy.

Step 9:  In small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, & 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to make glaze. Flip cake again onto serving plate, then carefully spread glaze over top of cake. Serve warm, if desired, or refrigerate and serve chilled. (We liked it best chilled!)

Sugar-Crusted Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze | Blueberry Cake Recipe | Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze | Blueberry Crumb Cake

Sugar-Crusted Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze

The perfect blend of creamy, tart, & sweet with a to-die for crunchy sugar crust!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Sugar-Crusted Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 12 people

Ingredients

  • 1 stick unsalted butter divided and softened (plus more for greasing pan)
  • 3/4 cup + 1/3 cup sugar separated
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups + 1/3 cups flour separated
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 3 cups blueberries
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees; liberally grease round cake pan with butter.
  2. Beat 1/2 stick butter with 3/4 cups sugar until fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes. Add egg and beat 1 minute more.
  3. Mix together 2 cups flour, salt, & baking powder.
  4. Add half of flour mixture and half of milk to egg mixture; mix just until blended. Add remaining flour and milk; mix again, just until blended. Batter will be thick.
  5. Add blueberries to batter and carefully mix in with a spatula, being careful not to mash the berries.
  6. Blend remaining half stick of butter, 1/3 cup of sugar, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in small bowl until crumbly. Layer crumb mixture at bottom of the pan.
  7. Pour blueberry batter carefully over crumb mixture, then spread out evenly with spatula. Tap pan gently on counter to release air bubbles. Bake for approximately 45-50 minutes, until knife inserted in middle comes out clean.
  8. Remove from oven. Loosen sides with knife, then invert cake immediately onto plate. Let cool upside down for 10 minutes.
  9. In small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, & 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to make glaze. Flip cake again onto serving plate, then carefully spread glaze over top of cake. Serve warm, if desired, or refrigerate and serve chilled. (We liked it best chilled!)

Sugar-Crusted Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze | Blueberry Cake Recipe | Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze | Blueberry Crumb Cake

*   *   *

Have you ever had a recipe fail? How did you salvage it?

TAKE BACK CONTROL OF YOUR HOME LIFE


Ever feel like you just can't keep up? Our Living Well Starter Guide will show you how to start streamlining your life in just 3 simple steps. It's a game changer--get it free for a limited time!


If you love this resource, be sure to check out our digital library of helpful tools and resources for cleaning faster, taking control of your budget, organizing your schedule, and getting food on the table easier than ever before.