Blueberry Lemon Bread with Crunchy Topping

This tender blueberry lemon bread is loud with the flavors of fresh blueberries, lemon juice, and lemon zest.

This is one of those quick bread recipes that tows the line between being a breakfast or a dessert. We served warm slices of this bread for breakfast – either plain, with butter, or with a drizzle of honey.

The lemony crumble topping bakes up with a nice crunch, offering an interesting contrast in texture from the soft bread beneath.

This is a freezer friendly blueberry bread recipe. To freeze: cut the entire loaf into slices, wrap each individual slice in cling wrap, and place into a Ziploc freezer bag. The slices will thaw quickly on the counter, or you can unwrap them and microwave at 30% power in 30-second increments until they are thawed and warmed to your liking.

Blueberry Lemon Bread with Crunchy Topping

Author: Erin Browne

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 1 hour

Total time: 1 hour 10 mins

Serves: 1 loaf

Ingredients

Sweet and Crunchy Lemon Topping
½ cup flour
½ cup granulated white sugar
4 TBS (half a stick) butter, softened
2 TBS lemon zest
Blueberry Lemon Bread
1 ½ cups+ 2 TBS cake flour
⅛ tsp baking soda
⅛ tsp salt
1 heaping cup fresh blueberries (can use frozen)
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated white sugar
3 eggs
½ tsp vanilla extract
4 TBS fresh lemon juice
2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease and flour a standard loaf pan. Set aside.
Combine all ingredients for the topping in a small mixing bowl and use a fork or your fingers to incorporate everything together. The mixture should be like a thick cookie dough. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, stir together 1½ cups cake flour, baking soda, and salt.
In another small bowl, add the other 2 TBS of cake flour to the blueberries and toss together until incorporated.
In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a mixing bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese and continue mixing until completely smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, and then add the vanilla extract and lemon juice.
With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients mixture in 2 addition, scraping the sides as needed and stopping when just combined (a few visible flour streaks). Sprinkle the lemon zest and blueberries over the batter and gently fold it in using a rubber spatula - do not overmix.
Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 30 minutes. Then cover the top of the batter with chunks of the topping mixture and return to the oven for an additional 20-35 minutes - your oven will vary - until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of the bread (make sure you sink the tester all the way near the bottom of the bread) comes out clean with a few moist crumbs.
If the bread begins to get too brown but is not yet done, you can cover with a loose tent of aluminum foil for the last part of the baking process.