This moist, tender blackberry coffee cake recipe makes the perfect snacking cake for breakfast, brunch, or dessert — especially in summer when blackberries are ripest. Learn how to make this easy sour cream coffee cake recipe, folded with tons of ripe blackberries, below. You’ll love this recipe.
Here’s Why You’ll Love This Blackberry Coffee Cake Recipe
This blackberry coffee cake is pretty much the best. Perfect for breakfast, with a cup of tea or coffee, or as an easy dessert, it’s effortlessly elegant: moist and tender thanks to sour cream, with juicy blackberries folded throughout for bursts of fresh, sweet-tart fruit flavor.
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The recipe is adapted from Maida Heatter‘s classic coffee cake recipe. Maida’s cake recipes and dessert cookbooks are always reliable, and among my favorites. For this blackberry coffee cake recipe, I simply took her delicious, basic sour cream coffee cake recipe and folded in just the right amount of fresh blackberries — and added some more on top of the cake to highlight the fruit.
Whether you’re serving coffee cake at brunch, tea, or just because, it’s a simple, reliable recipe that feels just a little special. And the best part? You can use fresh or frozen berries, so it’s always in season.
More baked goods I love to serve for afternoon tea include these English scones (the official Buckingham Palace recipe) served with homemade, easy strawberry preserves, and Irish Spotted Dog soda bread.
Ingredients You’ll Need for This Blackberry Coffee Cake Recipe
For this recipe, you’ll make 1) a simple sour cream cake batter, and 2) a streusel topping, then 3) combine with berries and bake. Here’s the list of ingredients:
- All-purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Brown sugar
- Butter
- Chopped pecans (you can substitute walnuts)
- Blackberries (fresh or frozen)
- Baking powder and baking soda
- Salt
- Sugar
- Sour cream
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
Ingredient Notes
Why Sour Cream Makes a Difference
Any time I see sour cream in a cake, I know it will be good. Sour cream does two things in a cake: First, it adds moisture thanks to its fat content and thick, rich texture. Second, sour cream enhances a cake by adding a little tang. This subtle tang adds a flavor dimension that you can’t achieve just with butter or sugar.
Fresh vs. Frozen Blackberries
Either fresh or frozen blackberries work interchangeably here! If you use frozen blackberries in this coffee cake, do not thaw; just add them frozen and be sure not to stir the batter too much when you fold frozen blackberries in — it will turn the batter purple!
Can I use Greek Yogurt Instead of Sour Cream?
Yes. You can absolutely substitute plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream. Be sure to use full-fat versions of either. Greek yogurt also has a nice tang and a similar texture to sour cream.
Step-by-Step Instructions
The full recipe is printed below, but by way of a quick overview, here’s how to make this coffee cake recipe:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease or line with parchment paper a 13 x 9 x 2″ cake pan.
- Make the streusel topping and set aside.
- Make the sour cream coffee cake batter. Stir in most of the blackberries.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan. Top with the streusel and the remaining blackberries.
- Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes, then let cool until warm.
- Cut into 12 squares, and serve plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar, dollop of whipped cream, or some ice cream. And, of course, with coffee.
How to Serve This Sour Cream Blackberry Coffee Cake
This blackberry coffee cake is wonderfully versatile. Best served warm or at room temperature, you can serve it for a weekend breakfast or brunch, or as an afternoon treat with coffee. It’s also great cut into smaller squares for casual gatherings, or plated with a dollop of whipped cream or scoop of vanilla ice cream for a simple dessert. However you serve it, this is the kind of cake that always invites seconds.
If you want more baking with blackberries, I definitely recommend this mixed fruit tart. It looks gorgeous and always earns oohs and ahhs.
Blackberry Coffee Cake F.A.Q.s and Baking Tips
Berries can sink in a cake for two reasons: either the cake batter is over- or under-mixed and isn’t providing the right “suspension” for the berries, or 2) the weight drifts them downward during baking.
The best way to ensure that your berries don’t sink is to remove a few tablespoons of flour from the batter recipe quantity, and toss the berries in it before adding them to the cake. This provides a “grippy” coating that will help suspend the blackberries in the cake batter. (That said, I’ve never really had an issue with the blackberries sinking at all.)
Yes! this coffee cake also makes about 24 standard size muffins. Portion the batter into paper-lined muffin tins, and divide the streusel topping among each muffin and bake. Muffins will take about 20 to 25 minutes to bake.
Blackberry coffee cake keeps well at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Store in an airtight container or covered with foil to help keep it moist. This cake also freezes well. Wrap the cake tightly in foil or plastic wrap, and freeze for up to two months. Let it thaw at room temperature, and if you like, warm slices slightly before serving. I like to cut the coffee cake into large squares, wrap them individually, and freeze them. That way, you can pull out any quantity you need, whenever you need it.
More great breakfast baking recipes that are easy and loaded with berries:
- Sour Cream Crumb Cake (add blueberries as you like!)
- Blueberry Pound Cake
- The New York Times’s Famous Plum Torte
Blackberry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
For the Topping
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons cold butter, diced
- 1 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)
For the Cake Batter
- 18 ounces fresh or frozen blackberries (about 4 cups)
- 4 ounces (1 stick) butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Morton's is quite salty)
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease or line with parchment paper a 9"x13"x2" rectangular cake pan.
- Make the topping by stirring the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon together in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and work it into the flour mixture with your fingers until you get sandy crumbs. Stir in the chopped nuts, and set aside.
- Now let's make the sour cream coffee cake batter. In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium until lightened and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla, and beat until light. Scrape the bowl once or twice with a spatula during this process to ensure that the batter is evenly mixed.
- Mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients to the butter, sugar, and egg mixture in two additions, alternating with the sour cream (dry, sour cream, dry). Scrape the bowl.
- Use a spatula to stir in 3/4 of the blackberries (about 3 cups). Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan, and use the spatula to smooth the top. Top the cake evenly with the streusel, and dot all over with the remaining blackberries.
- Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool until warm. Cut into 12 squares. Remove them from the cake pan with an offset brownie spatula or similar.Serve plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar, dollop of whipped cream, or some ice cream. And, as ever, with coffee.
Notes
- How to Prevent Berries From Sinking in the Cake: The best way to ensure that your berries don’t sink is to remove a few tablespoons of flour from the batter recipe quantity, and toss the berries in it before adding them to the cake. This provides a “grippy” coating that will help suspend the blackberries in the cake batter. (That said, I’ve never really had an issue with the blackberries sinking at all.)
- Making This Blackberry Coffee Cake Into Muffins: This coffee cake also makes about 24 standard size muffins. Portion the batter into paper-lined muffin tins, and divide the streusel topping among each muffin and bake. Muffins will take about 20 to 25 minutes to bake.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutrition information is provided for courtesy purposes only, and is an estimate not verified by medical or nutrition experts. Read the full nutrition disclaimer.
3 comments
Blondie89
Excellent recipe as is.
Joy D.
I made this for guests over 4th of July weekend and it was a great hit. I added a little lemon zest and walnuts instead of pecans. Wonderful and will make again!
S.B.
Turned out great. I love Maida Heatter’s books, and was happy to see this recipe was inspired by her coffee cake recipe. She’s the best! I did a blend of blueberries and blackberries.