Glazed lemon blueberry pound cake takes the best part of blueberry muffins and turns them into a blueberry loaf flavored and glazed with lemon for a bright, citrusy kick. This lemon-blueberry bread works well as a breakfast, snack, or dessert full of fresh summer flavors.
What makes a blueberry pound cake recipe even better? The addition of fresh lemon juice and zest of course! While blueberry recipes are great on their own, the addition of lemon makes all the flavors pop even more with a bright and acidic punch of citrus.
This recipe is very similar to my blueberry swirl muffins, with a little more sugar and a little less flour, which gives this glazed lemon blueberry pound cake a moist center with a tighter crumb. Using fresh lemon juice in the glaze in place of milk also accents the lemon flavor used in the pound cake itself.

This lemon blueberry loaf comes together quickly and easily and is like making a quick bread. With only two mixing bowls and no special techniques, the whole recipe can be made without a stand or hand mixer as well. Using my base muffin recipe with only a few tweaks, this lemon blueberry pound cake uses both butter and oil, and milk and sour cream to keep a tender, tangy, and moist interior, just like in my strawberry & rhubarb streusel muffins.
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🥘 Ingredients
As mentioned above, I use most of the same ingredients here as I do in my blueberry muffin recipe, with just a few tweaks that work better in a pound cake. Plus, the addition of fresh lemon in both the pound cake and the glaze.
Flour – All-purpose flour is fine here. Add a tablespoon on the side for dusting the blueberries also.
Leaveners – Unlike my muffin recipes, here I use just baking powder and a decent amount for a good rise.
Fat – Use both unsalted butter and oil here. Butter adds fat and flavor, while cutting it with some oil helps fight gluten development for a more tender crumb. Salted butter is also fine, just eliminate the added salt.
Eggs – Two large eggs at room temperature.
Sugar – A lot of recipes I like to mix both white and brown sugars, but white granulated sugar on its own is fine here. Use powdered sugar for the glaze.
Dairy – A mix of both milk and sour cream works great here. The sour cream adds a nice tang and helps keep the interior moister than milk alone would. Whole milk works great, but any dairy milk is fine here. I used 2%.
Vanilla – A splash of extract helps to balance and enhance the flavors here.
Lemon – Two lemons should be enough for both the zest and the juice required for both the pound cake and the lemon glaze.
Blueberries – Fresh blueberries work great here. 1 ½ cups should give you plenty, which is slightly less than a typical 11oz container holds. Can save some for a garnish or drop them on top when you add the glaze.
🔪 How to Make
Preheat your oven to 350°F / 180°C and prepare an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan with a parchment sling, or spray with a floured baking spray shortly before adding batter.
In a mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside. Wash and pick through the blueberries and set aside 1 ½ cups worth.
In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs, sugar, oil, and melted butter. Whisk to combine well until the sugar has dissolved and mixed. Then add the sour cream, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and lemon juice and whisk together thoroughly. Toss the blueberries in the reserved flour.
Beginning with the flour mixture, add about ⅓ of the dry ingredients and whisk together, followed with some of the milk, alternating until both are completely used. Mix until just combined. Now add the blueberries and fold into the batter.
As soon as the batter is finished, add it to the prepared loaf pan and place it into the oven. Bake for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack until completely cooled. Place some wax paper underneath the cooling rack (or foil or parchment paper).
When cooled, make the lemon glaze. In a small mixing bowl combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and stir together until a thick but pourable glaze comes together. Spoon or slowly pour over top of the lemon blueberry pound cake until the top is fully coated. Once the glaze has set, slice and serve.
📖 Variations
While glazed lemon blueberry pound cake is great as it is, there are a few variations that also work.
Other Berries – Blueberries and lemon go well together, but you can also swap them out for strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries. You could also go for a mixed berry pound cake. Try to keep the total amount of berries to 1 ½ cups though, 2 at the most.
Frozen Blueberries – While fresh almost always tastes best, you could use frozen as well. Use them without thawing but still toss with some flour.
💭 Frequently Asked Questions
With their citric acidity, lemons bring out the natural sweetness in blueberries and other berries. The added tartness also balances the sweetness in blueberries to make a balanced flavor in baked goods.
Typically overmixing will cause this. Whipping too much air into the eggs can make a drier texture or overmixing once the flour is added can activate too much gluten and cause a pound cake to come out tough.
While the difference seems minor, it can make a difference in finished loaves and baked goods. A 9x5 inch loaf pan is roughly 15% larger than the smaller version. Using an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan will cause your bread or baked goods to rise taller, while using a 9x5 inch pan will cause your bread or pound cake to be shorter and squatter. Typically, use what is called for in a recipe.
Yes, if you want or need to use frozen blueberries instead of fresh, they’re ok to substitute. Add in frozen and unthawed at the same time they’re called for in the recipe.
🍽 Equipment
While most equipment is standard kitchen tools, I wanted to point out just a handful of items I prefer to use here.
Whisk – While I like using a balloon whisk for most of the mixing, Danish dough whisks are perfect anytime you need to fold in softer ingredients like the blueberries here. I switch to this when I begin adding flour.
Loaf Pan – There’s a number of loaf pans out there, and the correct size does make a difference. This recipe calls for a 1-pound loaf pan, which measures 8 ½ x 4 ½ inches. I prefer the listed USA pan loaf pan for most recipes.
Bowl Scraper – A cheap bowl scraper made of stiff but flexible plastic or nylon are amazing for recipes involving batters or doughs. I use one here because it contours to the shape of the mixing bowl to easily scoop out all the lemon blueberry batter and it helps to spread and level it out in the loaf pan.
❄️ Storage
Glazed lemon blueberry pound cake can be wrapped or placed into an airtight container and left at room temperature for 3-4 days. For longer storage, wrap it in plastic wrap or an airtight container and refrigerate for up to one week.
If you need longer storage, blueberry pound cake also freezes well. Wrap in plastic wrap and again in foil, then freeze for up to 2-3 months. When ready to eat, thaw at room temperature. If you plan to bake ahead and freeze, leave unglazed until ready to serve.
📋 Recipe
Glazed Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake
Ingredients
Pound Cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¼ cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
- ¼ cup milk, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups blueberries
Lemon Glaze:
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F / 180°C and prepare an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan with a parchment sling, or spray with a floured baking spray shortly before adding batter.
- In a mixing bowl, add 2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and a ½ teaspoon salt. Whisk to combine and set aside. Wash and pick through the blueberries and set aside 1 ½ cups worth.
- In a large mixing bowl, add 2 large eggs, 1 cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup vegetable oil, and a ¼ cup melted butter. Whisk to combine well until the sugar has dissolved and mixed. Then add ¼ cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, and 2 tablespoons lemon juice and whisk together thoroughly. Toss the blueberries in the reserved flour.
- Beginning with the flour mixture, add about ⅓ of the dry ingredients and whisk together, followed with some of the milk, alternating until both are completely used. Mix until just combined. Now add the blueberries and fold into the batter.
- As soon as the batter is finished, add it to the prepared loaf pan and place it into the oven. Bake for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack until completely cooled. Place some wax paper underneath the cooling rack (or foil or parchment paper).
- When cooled, make the lemon glaze. In a small mixing bowl combine ¾ cup powdered sugar, 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and a ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract and stir together until a thick but pourable glaze comes together. Spoon or slowly pour over top of the lemon blueberry pound cake until the top is fully coated. Once the glaze has set, slice, and serve.
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