Blueberry Coffee Cake (aka Boy Bait)
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This tender blueberry coffee cake topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel is cleverly named for its habit-forming effect on boys.
This old-fashioned blueberry coffee cake comes with a darling name and story. In 1954, a 15-year-old girl from Chicago named Renny Powell submitted a blueberry coffee cake recipe to the Pillsbury $100,000 Recipe & Baking Contest (the precursor to today’s Pillsbury Bake-Off). Renny took second place in the junior division for her recipe, cleverly named “Boy Bait” for its habit-forming effect on young men.
Tender, easy to make, and jam-packed with berries, boy bait has been popular ever since. My version is updated with lemon zest to complement the flavor of the blueberries and a crunchy cinnamon streusel topping. You certainly don’t need to be a teenage boy to enjoy it, but I can attest that this 14-year-old loves it — so maybe Renny was onto something ?.
What You’ll Need To Make Blueberry Coffee Cake
Fresh blueberries are ideal for this coffee cake, but frozen will work, too. If you’re using frozen berries, stir them into the batter without thawing, otherwise they’ll turn the batter purple. If you have extra blueberries on hand, or find them on sale at the market, you might also enjoy my blueberry pancakes, blueberry cobbler, or lemon blueberry pound cake – all family favorites!
How To Make Blueberry Coffee Cake
To begin, make the streusel topping by combining the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl.
Using your fingers, mix until no lumps of brown sugar remain, then add the cold butter.
Rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture reaches a crumbly state. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Next, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating well after each addition.
Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, beating on low speed to combine.
The batter will be quite thick.
Add the berries to the batter.
Fold gently with a spatula until evenly distributed. Do not over-mix.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly.
Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the batter.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool in the pan on a rack for about 20 minutes, then serve right from the pan. Enjoy!
You May Also Like
- Best Blueberry Muffins
- Blueberry Cornbread Muffins
- Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Cinnamon-Walnut Swirl
- Blueberry Cobbler
- Crumb Cake
Blueberry Coffee Cake (AKA Blueberry Boy Bait)
This tender blueberry coffee cake topped with a crunchy cinnamon streusel is cleverly named for its habit-forming effect on boys.
Ingredients
For the Streusel Topping
- 6 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into ½-inch chunks
For the Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon packed lemon zest, from 1 lemon
- ½ cup milk
- 2 cups fresh blueberries (frozen may be used but do not defrost)
Instructions
- Make the streusel topping: Combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Using your fingers, mix until no lumps of brown sugar remain. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until it reaches a crumbly state. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch square pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
- Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, beating on low speed to combine. Add the berries to the batter and fold gently with a spatula until evenly distributed. Do not over-mix.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a rack for about 20 minutes, then serve right from the pan.
- This cake is best served on the day it is made. Leftovers will keep well for a few days wrapped in foil and stored at room temperature.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap, or place it in heavy-duty freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (16 servings)
- Serving size: 1 piece
- Calories: 223
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Sugar: 15 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 169 mg
- Cholesterol: 47 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Delicious cake! My husband took some to the neighbors for a visit, and it was a huge hit! The lemon zest is a nice touch. I baked it for 35 minutes in a Goldtouch pan.
Absolutely delicious. This did not last long in the household. I have been asked to share the recipe. I will definitely make this again!
Simply amazing!
Can I use dried blueberries,if so how much would I need?
Thanks
I wouldn’t recommend dried blueberries here — sorry!
I am a seasoned baker, after more than 35 years of marriage. My husband just said that “This is the BEST cake you have ever made!” Thank you Jenn! I used fresh blueberries and will try frozen once the season passes.
I’ve been baking this cake for the past few weeks. The one change I did make was to dust the blueberries with flour before adding them to the batter. I found that they did not sink to the bottom when I did this, helping to maintain dispersement throughout. I highly recommend this recipe.
Is there any reason you couldn’t turn these into muffins instead of a cake? Just easier for portability and serving.
It should work, Theresa. I’d love to know how they turn out!
Stop your search for coffee cake. This is dynamite.
ABSOLUTELY Delicious made with fresh blueberries yesterday 11/2 recipe to fit larger pan shared with Neighbors now they want recipe 🥰
This blueberry coffee cake has become my go-to recipe in my breakfast menu when we have company: very moist and full of flavor. For family, I often spread the batter into a 9” X 13” pan and bake it for only 25-30 minutes—not as thick, but just as good.
This is the best coffee cake I have ever made or eaten!
I made this recipe using fresh blueberries. It was absolutely delicious. My husband was in love and kept cutting more pieces.
I made this again this week (after making it a previous August) and it’s still great! Served warm with vanilla ice cream and a few more blueberries as garnish – a wonderful dessert. It needs 40 minutes max for baking and it’s good to check it a couple of minutes before then. I’m looking forward to having another piece of the blueberry coffee cake, as is, with coffee this morning!
This was the perfect coffee cake, perfect amount of streusel topping and light and airy cake vs heavy and dense. I did however increase the recipe and used 1 1/2 of the ingredient quantity to fill a 9×13 since I did not have the smaller pan noted for the recipe. I have made many coffee cakes and this one beats them all!
OMGoodness! This is sooooo good! We made with fresh picked blueberries. Yum!
The Boy Bait Blueberry coffeecake is superlative! It’s a keeper. So wonderful to find welll crafted recipes.
Meh, it was just okay. Was expecting better based on the reviews.
Perfection! I followed the recipe and the cake was delicious ☺️
I also received a lot of compliments from the guests! Thank you for sharing!
I made this blueberry coffee cake last week, followed the recipe to a “T” and it was oh so very good. Not only was it great, the whole house smelled wonderful. When we cooked something in the oven a few days later, the house smelled great again. I will definitely do this recipe and that fabulous key lime pie again.
Joseph
This was absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for sharing!
(I only have 8×8 inch pans but it still came out perfectly, I just turned down the heat a little and baked it for a little longer, as others suggested).
I will definitely be making this again!
I loved this cake – when I cut into it for pieces to serve it was so moist and light textured but very very crumbly so the servings wouldn’t hold together. I am wondering if my stove temp (which can be finicky ) could be the problem or too many blueberries ( I used probably 2.5 cups) ?
Hi Karen, I haven’t gotten that feedback about this cake before so the only thing I can think is that perhaps the extra blueberries had an impact. Sorry you had a bit of a problem with it!
We picked 2 lbs of blueberries yesterday and I was looking for recipes to use up the extras. This cake was a huge hit – it’s surprisingly light, not too sweet, and easy to make. My partner had 3 pieces before dinner. I love this blog and everything I’ve made comes out delicious. Thank you!
😊
This is truly a perfect cake (and I’ve baked many that just don’t come close). Wonderful taste and texture. My family loved it—thank you!
Made this recipe many times. It is always gone within hours and there is only four of us.
Hi there! Made this tonight after a morning of blueberry picking – WOW!!! Oh my gosh it came out GREAT! Added a lil bit of naughty by topping it with a powdered sugar glaze while warm! Lets just say it truly MAN BAIT! My hubby signed on for another lifetime! Thanks much!
Great recipe! For the topping, I simply put all the ingredients in a food processor and pulsed a few times, adding teaspoon after teaspoon of iced water until I got the right consistency (about 4-5 total). Easier than doing it by hand. The baking time was 40 minutes in my oven and the cake came out amazing.
This cake received the highest praise from my husband and son. It beat out Grandma’s cinnamon streusel coffee cake. Thanks so much for such a hit. It truly is boy bait. And…all of your recipes are the bomb!
Made this cake today and it is by far the best blueberry crumb cake ever.
Thanks for the recipe. I used fresh blueberries since they are in season here on Long Island.
We made this with blueberries and strawberries and it was so so so good. I also shared it on Facebook to let everyone know it’s delicious.
After 3 years of reading your emails, I finally got an oven of my own to start experimenting, and this recipe sounded easy enough to try to replicate.
Making the topping was the worst part for me, I think I used too much butter and turned out much less quantity than expected, but it wasn’t all that essential so it didn’t affect the overall result that much.
Used strawberries instead because they’re easier to find here (Dominican Republic), 8×8 inch glass dish, electric oven, placed it in the middle rack at 365 F for 45 minutes. Turned out pretty good, considering this is my first time baking anything! The neighbors like it, and hopefully next one will be better.
Thanks for the easy to follow recipe!
And I forgot to ask. Given that this one is made with strawberries, can it still be stored the same way? AKA, at room temp wrapped in foil or frozen?
Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, I’d store it the same way. 🙂
Excellent! Update: coworkers also loved it. Thanks for the answer.
Picked an obscene amount of blueberries the other day and was thrilled to make this! The cake itself is not overly sweet, so the crumble is the perfect accompaniment. And the lemon zest lends a balanced brightness. It is so tasty, I’ve decided to bake another pan off tonight to keep in the freezer. Thanks for the keeper : )
Made this today for a family brunch and it was a HUGE hit – devoured by everyone with many requests for the recipe. I followed directions exactly, don’t have a 9×9 square pan, so made it in an 11×7; my oven runs a little hot so I baked at 350 for 50 minutes (not done enough at 45). The blueberries were nicely distributed and the texture was perfect. I don’t bake very often, but the preciseness of these directions gave me confidence and I was very happy with the outcome.
Another winner. This will replace my old recipe that I’ve used for a few years. I forgot a cup of the blueberries (oops!) and it was still amazing. We ate it as a dessert for Father’s Day. So good!!!
Great taste, but I found it a bit too dry. I made it exactly as written and suggest that bakers start checking at 35 minutes and check your oven temp. I’ll make it again, but will try 350 degrees.
First time to make it today and love it! My husband likes to combine with vanilla ice cream so I might reduce brown sugar of streusel next time.
Will make this again next week for my friend’s birthday.
Thank you Jenn for the recipe😀👍
Noemi July 14,2020
I followed the directions exactly using frozen blueberries but not thawing them as she recommends – 5 stars. You won’t be disappointed if you make this recipe. Everyone loved it and it tasted as good the day after. Forget the negative reviews of those that modify it by using a blender and doing other random things. Enjoy!
Made this today for the first time. I’ve typically used Yankee Magazine’s recipe but decided to try this. It’s very good! The lemon really comes through. I know you said the batter would be thick but when I saw it, I thought the texture would be tough but it’s not at all! It’s delicious! We enjoyed this this morning with a cup of great French press coffee. Will be making again!
Once again, Jenn’s recipe is a winner. I used mixed frozen berries as that’s all I had and it turned out great. Can’t ever go wrong with a crumble!
Absolutely delicious! I’ve made these 4 times and it never disappoints! Given to friends & neighbors and everyone raves about them. Easy, light, and delicious.
Cake was amazing, even the next day. Everyone especially loved the streusel topping. Blueberries sank to the bottom (my guess is that I did not toss in enough flour before folding into the mixture) but it actually gave the cake a purposeful layered look. Topped the cake with a lemon glaze (powdered sugar, melted salted butter, lemon juice). This is my first recipe from you and it won’t be my last. I’m a new fan, thanks for the winning recipe!
Want to make for my book club. Can I use gluten-free flour?
Hi Michelle, I haven’t made a gluten-free version of this, but a few readers have commented that they have successfully. Hope everyone enjoys! 🙂
Made this yesterday and it’s pretty much devoured already by me and my family, so unfortunately no photos to share this time. But it looked just like the photos and was gorgeous, light, fluffy and delicious! My only adjustment was to use just half cup of organic cane sugar for the cake itself. You never steer me wrong and this latest success finally convinced me to buy your cookbook. 🙂 Thank you for all your meticulous research, hard work and testing. Your recipes are marvelous!
❤️
This recipe is amazing. I went to a drive through blueberry festival a few weeks ago and made a double batch. Shared with my neighbors they were begging for more.
Texture, taste, easy -AMAZING! This will be a go to! I am not one to leave reviews, but had to say I loved this and say thank you!
This was fabulous- followed the recipe exactly except substituted chopped strawberries for blueberries. Will make over and over. Thank you for such a great recipe!!
Hey Jenn, great recipe. I made it l, it tastes great, but all of the streusel on the top sunk while baking… I was actually second-guessing whether I even put the streusel on top before I put it in the oven! 🙂 any idea why this happened so I can correct it next time?
Hi Charlotte, That is very odd! Did you by chance make any substitutions or use an alternative flour?
No subs or alternative flour (I did the scrape method for the flour, it might have been a LITTLE less flour used as one of my cups maybe wasn’t completely full – my bad). From Cooks Illustrated…
“During testing, we noticed that the streusel at the edges of the cake sometimes appeared to sink into the batter. Eventually, we realized that it was actually the cake batter and not the streusel that was on the move. As the batter at the edges of the pan heats up, it becomes more fluid and rises, eventually flowing over the topping. To solve the problem, we added extra flour to stiffen the batter and prevent it from climbing up and over the streusel.“ they’re lucky it was only the edges that sunk in! 🙂 so it very well could have been my rush to get the cake in and not paying more attention to flour measuring. There’s always next time!
Oh, and that was for a CI separate recipe, had nothing to do with your recipe which is on point!!
Oh, glad to hear that! 🙂
Lemon zest in a blueberry coffee cake? OhMyGosh DELISH! Excellent recipe, everyone LOVED it. I did omit the salt from the crumble topping, not sure it’s needed, is there a reason for adding it?
Hi Tracie, So glad you liked this! The salt in the crumble just helps to balance out the other flavors, but glad to hear you found it perfect without!
Absolutely delicious! Used a 9×13 brownie pan lined with parchment and baked for exactly 20 minutes. For the liquids, used 1/4 c. of sour cream and 1/4 c. of milk. SO moist and flavorful. Thank you!
I made these and oh my gosh it was amazing! I was missing starbucks coffee cake and saw we had blueberries, so I felt like I had to make this recipe. Great instructions so anyone can do it. The taste of the coffee cake is incredible. Please make this🤩
I made this tonight to take to a friend’s house and everyone absolutely loved it! It was so great! Thanks for the amazing recipe. Will be making another batch for my parents tomorrow.
This is such a lovely recipe!! We could only find a 9 x 5 baking dish, so we baked for longer (around an hour or so). It rose beautifully and turned out delicious. We will definitely be making this again with our frozen blueberries from last season!
Amazing! Completely homemade deliciousness! Easy to follow steps! If only have 8×8 pan just cook a little longer😉
I made this amazing coffee cake this morning for breakfast. I followed the directions except I mixed both eggs into the batter at once. I mixed half the flour addition with the hand mixer on low then switched to hand mixing with a spoon for the rest. I substituted orange zest for Lemon. I cooked it for 50 minutes and used a 9x 7 glass casserole to bake it in.
I was not willing to wait 20 minutes before cutting into. Way to scrumptious to delay. It was moist, fluffy and just sweet enough, not too sweet. I love this coffee cake. Yum.
Thank you so much Jenn. I look forward to cooking several of your other recipes.
This coffee cake is the best I’ve ever had and I’ve made quite a few. Thank you so much for this.
Another absolutely perfect recipe from Jenn. Followed the clear and concise directions and it is AMAZING!!