Blueberry Cornmeal Cake
This blueberry cornmeal cake is a moist cornmeal cake bursting with fresh blueberries. It's made with nutty brown butter and coated with cinnamon sugar . This easy recipe is made without a mixer and is perfect for any occasion!
Servings: 10 slices
Calories: 328kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Blueberry Cornmeal Cake
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter browned, divided see instructions
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ¾ cup sour cream full fat, room temperature
- ¼ cup milk whole or 2%, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract optional
- 1¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup yellow cornmeal fine or medium ground
- 2¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon optional
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg optional, add up to 1/2 teaspoon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup blueberries fresh, washed, patted dry, see notes section below about frozen berries
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour for coating the blueberries
Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon brown butter reserved from the amount above
Instructions
- Melt or brown the butter. Add butter to a medium skillet set over medium heat. Stir occasionally as the butter melts. Once melted, reduce heat to medium-low. Continue cooking the butter, stirring frequently. The butter will get foamy and bubbly then it will get quiet and turn an amber color and will have a nutty aroma. You'll also see brown bits start to form on the bottom. This browning will take around 4-6 minutes once the butter has melted. When the butter reaches this stage, remove it from the heat.
- Pour the brown butter into a small bowl. Scoop out 1 tablespoon of the brown butter. Pour it into another small bowl and set aside. This will be used to brush the finished cake. Allow butter to cool to room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter the bottom of an 9" springform baking pan and line it with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar and the eggs til pale and smooth. Whisk in the the sour cream, milk, vanilla and brown butter til completely combined.
- Use a spatula to stir in the flour, cornmeal, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Fold the blueberries into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Use the spatula to smooth the top.
- Bake on the middle rack for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake.
- Run an offset spatula or thin knife around the edge of the pan to make sure the cake isn't sticking to the edge. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
- While the cake cools slightly, stir together the cinnamon and sugar mixture in a small bowl. Heat the reserved brown butter in the microwave if it has thickened at all.
- Remove the cake from the pan. Peel off the parchment paper and set the cake on a wire reack. Brush the warm cake with the reserved brown butter. Immediately sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the cake so that it sticks to the brown butter. Allow cake to cool completely.
- Enjoy the cake as is or see recipe notes below for additional topping suggestions if you prefer a more decadent dessert!
Notes
Blueberries: I recommend fresh blueberries. Remove any stems, wash and pat them dry. Raspberries, cranberries or blackberries can also be used. Frozen blueberries can also be used. Do not thaw them first.
Sugars: For a little extra warm flavor, use 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 1/4 cup packed light or brown sugar for the cake batter.
Keep berries from sinking: Toss fresh or frozen blueberries with 1 tablespoon flour just before adding them. This will keep the blueberries from sinking to the bottom when the cake bakes. The berries in the pictured cake were not coated with flour. I retested the recipe with berries coated with flour and the berries did not sink.
Baking pan: For best results, use a 9 inch springform pan. This recipe was originally made using a 9 inch round pan. After retesting, we found the springform pan was the best size.
Sour cream: You can swap in Full fat plain Greek yogurt or buttermilk in place of sour cream.
Lemon: Add the zest of 2 lemons to the batter to make this a blueberry lemon cornmeal cake.
Nuts: Add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans for some crunch and extra flavor.
Gluten free: Cornmeal is typically naturally gluten free. Look for a label that says gluten free. I have not made this cake gluten free but many of my cakes work well using a 1:1 Gluten Free Flour.
Serving: Enjoy as is or serve with whipped cream! This cake is also delicious with the cinnamon cream cheese frosting used in this olive oil apple cake!
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Serving: 1piece | Calories: 328kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 77mg | Sodium: 298mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 559IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 1mg
