Lemon blueberry sheet cake that’s moist, loaded with fresh blueberries, topped with a thick layer of mascarpone whipped cream, and swirled with delicious blueberry curd.
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lemon blueberry sheet cake
Lemon and blueberry is a perfect, classic summertime flavor and this lemon blueberry sheet cake is as delicious as it is pretty to look at. The cake itself is super moist, tender, light and fluffy – and it’s loaded with lemon zest, lemon extract & a ton of blueberries. Then, because it’s summer, instead of a super sweet buttercream – we’re topping it with a light, fluffy mascarpone whipped cream. Aaaaand that’s not all – we’re swirling it with blueberry curd for another dimension of delicious blueberry flavor.
And of course, I try to spare you the pain of keeping extra egg whites/egg yolks in your refrigerator, so all you need is two eggs – the yolks will be used in the curd and the whites will be used in the cake. So let’s get into it! ☺︎
why you’ll love this lemon blueberry cake:
- It’s super light and fluffy: we’re making the cake using the reverse creaming method which creates a *perfectly* light, fluffy crumb.
- Blueberry curd: I loooove curd, and the blueberry curd here adds an extra dimension of blueberry flavor to the blueberry cake.
- Mascarpone whipped cream: the perfect alternative to buttercream – it’s light, fluffy, and only *slightly* sweet.
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
Be careful when mixing the cake batter:
When you over-mix your batter, you create more gluten in the batter which will make your cake go from light and moist to dense and chewy. When you mix in the wet ingredients, be sure to only mix just until that last streak of flour disappears.
try to avoid metal utensils when making the curd
It’s possible for the curd to take on a metallic taste if you are using a metal bowl or whisk, so to be safe I would recommend staying away from those when making the curd.
Use room temperature ingredients:
This is super important for allowing the batter to come together smoothly. You’ll want to take your ingredients out of the fridge about an hour before baking to allow them enough time to come to room temperature.
Keep a close eye on the cake while it bakes:
Cakes and cupcakes like to go from under-baked to over-baked super quickly so it is important to keep a close eye on them. I’d recommend that you start checking on the cake around 35 minutes.
BE CAREFUL WHEN BEATING THE mascarpone whipped cream
When you’re beating together the mascarpone with the vanilla and sugar, you’ll really only want to mix it for ~30 seconds, just until it’s all combined. Mascarpone likes to get weird and clumpy the longer you beat it, as opposed to ingredients like butter and cream cheese which get nice and smooth.
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
lemon blueberry cake ingredients –
lemon cake with blueberries:
- All purpose flour: gives the cake structure.
- Baking powder: for helping the cake rise.
- Salt: for balancing and bringing out the sweetness of the batter.
- Unsalted butter: for tenderizing the cake and for flavor. You can substitute in salted butter, just be sure to omit the extra salt in the batter.
- Vegetable oil: for tenderizing the cake. If you don’t have vegetable oil on hand, you can use another neutral oil such as canola.
- Granulated sugar: for adding sweetness and for locking in moisture.
- Egg whites: for binding the batter together, adding moisture, and for making the cake super light and fluffy.
- Lemon extract & vanilla: for flavor. The lemon extract is used to pack even more lemon flavor in, but if you don’t have it on hand, you can just replace it 1:1 with more vanilla extract.
- Sour cream & whole milk: for moisture and for tenderizing the cake. I recommend full-fat for both of these for the best texture, but low-fat or non-dairy alternatives should work well here. You could also replace the sour cream with a full-fat yogurt.
- Blueberries: I recommend fresh blueberries but frozen will work well here – just note that the frozen blueberries are more likely to “bleed” and dye the cake batter.
blueberry curd:
- Egg yolks: thickens up the curd.
- Granulated sugar: to sweeten and thicken up the curd.
- Lemon: we’ll be using both the zest and the juice for maximum flavor.
- Blueberries: I used and recommend frozen – but fresh blueberries would work as well.
- Salt: a bit of salt helps with the flavor and sweetness of the curd.
- Unsalted butter: helps thicken the curd and make it creamy. You can substitute in salted butter here, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the curd.
mascarpone whipped cream:
- Mascarpone: the base of the cream.
- Lemon zest: for flavor.
- Salt: a little pinch for flavor.
- Granulated sugar: for a bit of sweetness.
- Heavy whipping cream: to make the cream super light and fluffy.
how to make lemon blueberry sheet cake
Below are some images of what the cake looks like at various points of the process. You can find the full recipe at the end of the blog post!
- Zest the lemon into the sugar, then rub the zest into the sugar.
- Add in the remaining dry ingredients, then beat in the butter.
- Mix in the wet ingredients and the blueberries.
- Bake the cake.
- Make the blueberry curd and keep it stored in the fridge.
- Make the mascarpone whipped cream. Once the cake has fully cooled to room temperature, frost the cake with the mascarpone cream and swirl in the blueberry curd. Slice, serve and enjoy!
lemon blueberry cake recipe q&a
Can I bake this cake in a different sized pan?
You could bake this in a 8″ cake pan, 9″ cake pan, or 9″ square pan. Note that in a 9″ pan the cake will be a tad shorter and will probably take a few minutes less to bake.
can I make this cake ahead of time?
The blueberry curd can be made and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days before assembling the cake. The cake itself can be made and stored at room temperature – I probably wouldn’t recommend baking it more than one day before you want to frost and serve it just for the best freshness.
can I use different berries in this cake?
Definitely! Blackberries or raspberries would be delish for the curd and cake. I would advise against using strawberries because they tend to get really mushy and watery when baked.
not a fan of mascarpone frosting?
I understand (although I promise it’s super delish!) For a sweeter topping, you can top this cake with cream cheese frosting. I have a recipe for it under this gingerbread banana sheet cake.
how to store lemon blueberry cake
Once you frost the cake, you’ll want to keep it stored in an airtight container in the fridge, where it will keep well for about 3 days.
tools and ingredients:
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other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
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Lemon Blueberry Sheet Cake
Ingredients
Lemon Blueberry Sheet Cake
- 240 g blueberries (2 c.)
- 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
- zest of 2 large lemons
- 200 g granulated sugar (1 c.)
- 180 g all purpose flour (1 ½ c.)
- 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- 98 g unsalted butter cubed, room temperature (7 tbsp.)
- 35 g vegetable oil (3 tbsp.)
- 2 egg whites room temperature
- 2 tsp. lemon extract
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 75 g sour cream room temperature (5 tbsp.)
- 115 g whole milk room temperature (½ c.)
Blueberry Curd
- 42 g unsalted butter cubed (3 tbsp.)
- 65 g granulated sugar (¼ c. + 1 tbsp.)
- 1 large lemon
- 90 g frozen blueberries (½ c. + 2 tbsp.)
- 2 egg yolks
- ⅛ tsp. salt
Mascarpone Whipped Cream
- 225 g mascarpone (1 c.)
- 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- zest of 1 large lemon
- 225 g heavy whipping cream (1 c.)
Instructions
Lemon Blueberry Sheet Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Butter and line an 8" square pan with parchment paper.
- In a small mixing bowl, toss together the blueberries and 2 tbsp. of flour until all the blueberries are coated. Set aside.
- To a medium sized mixing bowl, add the sugar and zest of 2 large lemons. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar.
- Add in the flour, baking powder and salt. Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to beat the mixture together until the butter has completely combined with the dry ingredients and no lumps remain.
- Add in the oil, egg whites, lemon extract, vanilla, sour cream and milk. Whisk the ingredients together just until a cohesive batter has formed.
- Add 2/3 of the blueberries into the batter and gently mix them into the batter.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and top it with the remaining blueberries. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with only a few moist crumbs.
Blueberry Curd*
- Prep a small mixing bowl by adding the cubed butter to it, along with a fine mesh sieve. Set aside.
- Add the sugar to a small saucepan, then zest the lemon into the pan. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar.
- Juice the lemon, and add 28g (2 tbsp.) of lemon juice to the saucepan. Then add in the egg yolks, blueberries and salt.
- Set the saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly (this can be slowly – we just need constant movement happening!) Gently mash down the blueberries as they soften.
- Continue to stir the curd until it thickens and reaches a temperature of at least 170°F / 76°C (This took me about 3-5 minutes.)
- Remove the curd from the heat and pass it through the fine mesh sieve, over the butter. Mix the curd and the butter together until the butter has melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Transfer the curd to the fridge to chill until you're ready to assemble the cake.
Mascarpone Whipped Cream
- In a medium sized mixing bowl with a hand or stand mixer, beat the mascarpone, sugar, salt and lemon zest together on low speed just until the mixture is cohesive.
- Slowly beat in the heavy whipping cream. Once all of the heavy cream has been added, beat the mixture until stiff peaks form.
- Once the cake has fully cooled to room temperature frost it with the mascarpone whipped cream, then swirl in the blueberry curd (you will likely have extra curd.) Garnish with extra blueberries, then slice, serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.
I made this for my daughter’s first birthday party and guests said it tasted like I bought it at a European bakery. SO delicious. I subscribed over on substack. I get all my recipes from you now. Thank you for putting this into the world!
Ah thank you so much, so happy to hear that everyone liked it & a very happy belated first birthday to your daughter! ☺︎
Hi! I’d love to make this cake a day in advance and store it in the fridge. Since there’s butter in the cake, I was wondering if there’s any risk of the texture of the cake getting more dense.
Hi! If you’d like to make the cake in advance I’d recommend keeping the frosting and curd in the fridge and the cake out at room temperature – and then you can frost the cake when you’d like to serve it to avoid it drying out in the fridge. If you need to assemble it in advance then I’d just recommend letting the cake sit out at room temperature for ~30 mins before serving to let it soften. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
I made this for 4th of July, and it was so good!! Since then my mom and I have used this recipe as a base for a pineapple upside down cake and a lemon cake with raspberry puree. Can’t go wrong with this cake!! It’s so soft and moist.
This is the best lemon blueberry cake recipe wver
Ah thank you so much, I’m so happy you like it!
This is going to be my project for the weekend I’m so excited! I’m hoping I’ll be able to replace the milk in the cake with soy milk, as I don’t keep whole milk in my house. Thank you so much for such a simple but delicious treat!
would love to make this cake for a present, is it possible to stack this cake into a layered cake?
Hi! I’m so sorry for the late reply – there should be no issues with stacking this cake!
This is so good! I’ll definitely be making again 🙂
Can this cake be made in a 9×13 pan?
Definitely! You’ll just want to double the recipe – and it will likely take a little longer to bake.
Delicious!!! I made this for a small dinner party and everyone said 5/5 stars!!! It looked amazing and tasted amazing. Google recommended this recipe to me, and though it had no reviews yet, I just knew I had to try it. It certainly did not disappoint! Great balance of ingredients in a deliciously moist cake. I don’t ever leave reviews but I just had to for this recipe – it was so good. I will definitely be making again.
Ah thank you SO much, I’m so happy you and the party enjoyed the recipe! 🙂