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The prettiest and most delicious blueberry buckle. A buttery, moist, light and airy cardamon infused cake with a generous layer of fresh blueberries and an extra crumbly, cinnamon sugar crumble. It’s a winner any time of day!
I just typed over four-hundred words only to completely delete them. Yup deleted. As in gone forever and never to be seen again. You’d be surprised how often that happens when I write my daily blog posts. Sometimes the words and stories just flow, and then other times it takes me a minute to really get into writing out a blog post.
Today it’s taking me a little more time than usual. I just spent the entire day writing up recipes, creating mood boards, and returning emails. It was a day full of non-stop screen time. It’s currently nine forty-five pm and, I’m not going to lie, my eyes hurt just a little. I’m excited to ditch the computer soon..ish. That said, I am feeling pretty happy with all I got done today, and very ready to get back in the kitchen tomorrow, so that’s just great!
And now I’m ready to tell you all about this blueberry buckle, that’s quite literally bursting with fresh summer blueberries.
{blueberry buckle before adding the crumble}
If you’ve never heard of a buckle, it’s really just another word for a fruit filled cake topped with a buttery streusel/crumble situation. The streusel topping on the cake makes the top look “buckled”, which is how it gets its name. If you read this description on the New York Times, it says that fruit buckles are softer and fruitier than a coffee cake, but much more buttery than a cobbler. So basically, it’s a soft, buttery, and generously fruit filled cake with a fun name. But most importantly, it’s really good!
And easy, which is always a major bonus in my book. OK and? You can eat this cake warm, right out of the oven, no cooling required, for brunch or dessert, maybe even with powdered sugar. And while completely optional, ice cream is definitely recommended.
Yessss.
Now. Onto the details.
Like I said, this blueberry buckle is pretty easy. First up, mix the batter. It’s a pretty simple mix of flour, butter, milk, and eggs, but what makes my batter especially good is the addition of sweet vanilla and cozy cardamom, neither of which are traditional in a buckle recipe, but both of which are delicious in a buckle recipe.
Especially with the blueberry pairing. It’s warm and cozy, but summery too.
So, you mix the batter and spoon it into a cake pan. Now you layer.
Layer one, buckle batter.
Layer two, fresh blueberries. And lots of them.
Layer three, crumble, times two, and with a pinch of cinnamom because it’s cozy and I love it.
Bake. Wait in anticipation, smell all the delicious smells, finally remove the buckle from the oven. See its beauty, taste its deliciousness…
Is your mouth-watering yet? Because mine is.
What I love most about this blueberry buckle is that the cake layer is oh so soft, but the blueberry layer is oh SO juicy, and the crumble layer is oh so buttery and sweet.
It’s three layers of perfection and they make for the perfect bite every single time. Also, I’ve seen buckles with the berries mixed into the cake batter, and others with the berries places on top, as I did. I haven’t made a buckle with the berries mixed into the batter, but I’m sure that would be just fine too. I personally love the way the blueberry layer really bursts into your mouth with each bite, but do what sounds best to you here.
You can serve this warm, for a brunch or after afternoon pick me up (topped with a light dusting of powder sugar if you like), or you can serve as an after dinner dessert, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Either way you serve it up, it’s going to be good. Make it today. Make it this weekend. Just make it soon before the summer blueberries are gone…and I start talking about apples and pumpkins.
If you make this blueberry buckle, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love hearing from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every one of you. Oh, and of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram so I can see! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Bursting Blueberry Cardamom Buckle
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 834 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, melted
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 cups fresh blueberries
Crumble
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch spring form pan. 2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom, and sugar. Add the butter, milk, eggs, and vanilla, mix until just combined. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Toss together the blueberries and lemon zest and sprinkle the blueberries over the batter.3. To make the crumble. Whisk together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add the butter and mix with your hands until the mix is moist and a crumble forms. Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the fruit. 4. Transfer to the oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until golden on top. If you insert a skewer into the center, it should come out almost clean. Let the cake cool 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temp. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.
Thank you for thr delicious recipe! I don’t have a springform pan so I made it in a 9×13. It turned out great! I placed parchment paper inside the pan and poured my batter. Worried it would be too thin but I cut the time in half to 24 mins and it turned out AMAZING!
Hi Serenity,
Wonderful!! Love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks for sharing your review and making the recipe!! xTieghan
I buy blueberries every trip to the store in the spring and summer. Seems I can always find a use for them. My favorite way to use blueberries is a lemon blueberry cake. Made this recipe and oh..my…goodness. It is so good!! I love anything with a crumb topping. Full disclosure, I often eat the topping and nothing else. This recipe however was beyond what I imagined and so good. Easy to put together, packed full of flavor. This one earned it’s place in my recipe binder. Thank you!! And btw, all your recipe photos are amazing!!
Hey Dana,
Thanks so much for your comment! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
hi! do you think this can be made with frozen blueberries? i have some wild maine blueberries saved from last summer that i’m trying to use up! 🙂
Hi Zoe,
Totally, frozen blueberries will be just fine for you to use. Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
Can this recipe be doubled and baked in one pan? A bundt pan?
Hey Serena,
I have never tried this, if you do I would significantly increase your baking time. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Lovely texture and flavor – I’m a sucker for cardamom in baked goods!
*For others who might prefer to bake with whole grains: Instead of white flour, I used mix of barley and white wheat flour without adjusting the amount of flour in the recipe, and it worked beautifully!
Hey April,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have the best week:) xT
Made this tonight! Squeezed some lemon juice and mixed in zest with the batter. Used 1/4 cup coconut flour and 1 1/4 cup AP flour because that’s what I had. Thought I had cardamom but I couldn’t find it so left it out. Baked it about 5 minutes over the recommend time frame because it looked soft when it came out. Sure enough, it was totally delicious. Your instructed time frame would have been perfect! It’s beautiful too. Thanks Tieghan!
Hey Heiba,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you. xTieghan
Hi Tieghan, I’m Heidi. I own your first 2 cookbooks & am enjoying learning to cook w/you. Thank you for such yummy recipes! I’ve had my 1st Thai food because of you (peanut allergy). But. I’m not advancing in the baking category at all. I made the coffee cake blueberry muffins last week & today made the buckle cake. The flavor of both recipes was delicious: however, both were not moist & crumbly, but rather were moist & rubbery. I thought perhaps I overmixed the muffin batter, so I mixed the buckle cake just until no streaks of flour remained on the bottom of the bowl. I’ve looked online for help, but I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Please advise. Thanks so much!
Hi Heidi,
Thanks so much for your kind message and reaching out. So sorry to hear this! Is there anything you are adjusted in the recipes? Are you mixing by hand? I would recommend that instead of a mixer. Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
Thank YOU Tieghan for replying. I am mixing by hand. I didn’t do eye level for the meniscus of the milk–it was slightly above the 2/3 cup line. I also let my vanilla extract spill over the measuring spoon. I use organic unbleached white AP flour & goat milk. I gently packed the brown sugar. I spooned the flour in the measuring cups before leveling off. I gently poured the batter bc it seemed a bit thick–I didn’t spoon it in, but I spooned the muffin batter & their consistency was the same moist rubbery. Although I saw bubbles when the liquid was mixed into dry, I’m going to replace my baking powder. I will make this again, using any advice you give, & I’ll also measure liquids exactly. I feel so good learning to cook & then embarrassed I can’t learn to make a non-rubbery coffee cake after making rubbery muffins. I welcome any suggestions & I hope it’s okay I reply here, after I’ve tried again? Thank you Teighan!
Hi Heidi,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Holidays!? xT
Do you think I can swap out the flour for cassava flour and do non dairy milk?
Hi Lisa,
I would use a GF flour and yes non dairy milk will work! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
One of the top ten cakes I’ve ever made! Wonderful!
Hey Diana,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have a wonderful weekend☀️ xTieghan
Suuuuuper great Summer cake- the maxed out fruit-to-cake ratio is the best (I bumped it up a bit higher even) and i love that the berries are the star! I’m excited to try this with different fruits, the formula is so lovely!
Hey Meghan,
Happy Sunday! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
I have made this and loved it. I picked some fresh rhubarb from my garden this morning and am going to try to make a rhubarb cinnamon version of this after dinner!
Hey Lisa,
Wonderful! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
Just made this today and it’s so delicious! Crunchy, buttery outside and light fluffy inside. It’s not overly sweet either, just the perfect amount. I’m sure it would taste just as good with strawberries or blackberries or cherries too. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hey Andrea,
I am delighted that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xxTieghan
Tieghan thanks for the blueberry buckle! It’s delicious and was so easy to bake. Unfortunately I didn’t have any lemons but I had oranges so I used orange peel in place of the lemon. I also didn’t have any Cardamom. Perfect addition to our dinner and the house smells amazing!??
Hey Moema,
Happy Monday!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a go! xxT
I made the version from your cookbook with blackberries and lavender. It is the BEST dessert ever. I love it. It freezes well and when thawed is perfect. I will make the blueberry version too. Thanks Tieghan!
Hey Linda,
Fantastic! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I am so glad that it was enjoyed!! Have a great Tuesday. xxTieghan
Made this for a coffee date with some girlfriends and we absolutely loved it!!! My husband didn’t believe I made it he said it was so yummy!!
Hey Esther,
I am so glad this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xxTieghan
Do you have exact measurements to make a 9X13 cake? This looks amazing!
Hey Dawn,
Sorry I don’t, I used a 9 inch spring form pan. I’m sure it would be fine if you follow the recipe as is with a 9×13 pan. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
It works fine in a 9×13! Just cut the baking time in half.