Blackberry Coffee Cake
This coffee cake has it all: a light and fluffy cake studded with blackberries, a dreamy crumble and all topped with a silky vanilla glaze.
Few things are better than a warm piece of coffee cake and a hot cup of joe. Coffee Cake is a year-round treat, whether it’s the holiday season or the dead of summer, this breakfast delight is almost universally enjoyed. For this coffee cake recipe, I wanted a ridiculously fluffy crumb with plump blackberries baked inside, a delightful crumble and, of course, that classic vanilla coffee cake drizzle. Let’s dive right into what makes this coffee cake special.
What Makes This Blackberry Coffee Cake Special?
As mentioned previously, this is a full stop coffee cake with all the fixings to make it special—cake, crumb and glaze. The recipe is adapted from my family’s coffee cake recipe, with a few adaptations including blackberries, lemon zest and my secret ingredient, kefir. Most coffee cakes call for sour cream, which has that tangy flavor we all crave in a coffee cake, but kefir takes it to the next level. How? Kefir is a bit thinner, but still incredibly luscious in consistency—this yields a supremely tender crumb, and further, the flavor of kefir can’t be beat. There are also health benefits to kefir, which is a nice perk, but honestly I am going for flavor and texture, and kefir is where it’s at. Make sure to choose a full fat kefir, like Lifeway Kefir’s Whole Milk Organic blend, which is what I use exclusively in my baked goods.
Ingredients Needed
This Blackberry Coffee Cake is made primarily with pantry staples. These ingredients include, butter, granulated and brown sugar, all-purpose flour, eggs, vanilla and baking soda. Ingredients like blackberries, lemon zest and kefir will likely require a trip to the grocery store, so plan accordingly. The cake itself can be made with a stand mixer, handheld mixer, or even by hand with a little elbow grease. It’s a pretty forgiving recipe, which makes it not only delicious, but also stress free.
Tips To Make Blackberry Coffee Cake
1.) This coffee cake calls for two cups blackberries, so choosing sweet and flavorful fruit is important. Further, after washing the berries, MAKE SURE THEY ARE DRY BEFORE ADDING TO THE BATTER. If the blackberries are wet, it will make the texture of the cake soggy. The blackberries themselves will add enough moisture while baking, so we don’t want any additional moisture.
2.) Use a light hand when mixing the batter. Less is more with coffee cake as we want the crumb nice and soft. The batter doesn’t need to be perfectly smooth when adding the blackberries, a few lumps are okay.
3.) When making the crumble, make sure the cubed butter is nice and cold. Once the crumble is made, pop it in the fridge or freezer until it’s ready to be used.
4.) Use a light hand when mixing the blackberries. If overmixed, the color of the berry will bleed into the batter.
5.) Once baked, allow the coffee cake to sit for 3-5 minutes before adding the glaze. The coffee cake should still be warm, but give it a moment to cool down so the glaze doesn’t entirely melt.
Substitutions and Variations
This coffee cake can be made using any berry, such as blueberries or raspberries. It can also be adapted to make a cinnamon coffee cake, which I am currently in the process of writing up a recipe for.
Sour cream can be substituted for kefir, if desired.
The crumble and topping can be omitted, but I think they both make the cake extra special, and I recommend at least including the crumb topping.
The cake doesn’t call for cinnamon, but the flavor of cinnamon and blackberry is lovely, so feel free to adapt as desired. For this recipe, I opted for fresh springtime flavors, hence the addition of lemon zest.
Final Tip
Coffee Cake is best enjoyed warm out of the oven. This bake is meant to be enjoyed the day it is made, ideally within the first two hours.
Blackberry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 10 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
- 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup Lifeway Whole Milk Kefir
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest
- 2 cups fresh blackberries, washed and dried
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Heavy cream or milk, for thinning
Instructions
- Preheat oven 350 degrees F. Generously grease a 9x13 pan, or line with parchment paper for easy lifting and cutting. Set aside.
- To make the crumb topping, using a medium bowl, mix together the flour and brown sugar. Cut in the butter, until it resembles course crumbs. Set aside in the refrigerator.
- To make the coffee cake, using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on medium speed, cream together the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the eggs, baking soda, baking powder, salt and vanilla and mix on medium until incorporated, about 15 seconds. With the mixer on low speed, alternately, add the flour and then kefir to the wet ingredients, doing this three times. Do not over mix as a few lumps are okay.
- Add the lemon zest and blackberries to the batter and fold by hand very briefly. Pour into the prepared pan and top with the crumble. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cake is a light golden color and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Once the cake is baked, make the glaze. Using small bowl, add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and vigorously whisk 1 tablespoon of heavy cream or milk at a time, until the desired constancy is achieved. Drizzle over the warm coffee cake. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes before cutting into squares.
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