Can you add blueberries to a boxed cake mix?
Yes. Blueberries work well in boxed cake mix, and there are a few different ways to do it depending on how much effort you want to put in. You can stir berries into a doctored batter, layer them under dry mix for a dump cake, or bake them into a coffee-cake style cake with a crumb topping. The rest of this page covers all three, plus the mistakes that most often cause trouble.
Three easy ways to make it
| Method | Best for | Effort |
|---|---|---|
| Blueberry bundt or loaf-style cake | A moist, sliceable cake with glaze | Low |
| Blueberry dump cake in a 9x13 pan | Warm dessert with ice cream | Very low |
| Blueberry coffee cake | Brunch with a cinnamon crumb | Low |
Ingredients
For a blueberry cake (bundt style):
- 1 box white, vanilla or yellow cake mix
- 1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix (optional, adds moisture)
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt)
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup melted butter or oil
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons of the dry cake mix, set aside for tossing the berries
Glaze: powdered sugar plus a little milk or lemon juice.
Blueberry cake, step by step
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease and flour a bundt pan very well.
- Whisk the cake mix and pudding mix together in a large bowl. Scoop out the couple of tablespoons you are saving for the berries.
- Add the eggs, sour cream, milk and melted butter. Beat until smooth.
- Toss the blueberries with the reserved dry mix, then gently fold them in.
- Pour into the pan and bake until a toothpick comes out clean, usually around 45 to 55 minutes for a bundt pan. Start checking early.
- Cool in the pan for about 10 to 15 minutes, turn out onto a rack, and cool fully before glazing.
Dump-cake or cobbler version
If you have wondered whether you can make a three-ingredient blueberry cobbler with cake mix, the dump-cake method is the closest answer. Allrecipes’ popular version uses roughly 4 cups of blueberries tossed with sugar and cinnamon, spread in a 9x13-inch pan, covered with dry yellow cake mix and drizzled with melted butter, without stirring. It bakes at 350 degrees F until golden, around 30 minutes. A strict three-ingredient version (berries or pie filling, dry mix, butter) also works, though the topping may have a few dry patches, so spread the butter as evenly as you can. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Common blueberry cake mistakes
- Berries sink to the bottom. Toss them in a spoonful of dry mix or flour, and make sure the batter is thick enough to hold them.
- Soggy or purple batter from frozen berries. Do not thaw frozen berries first, fold them in while still frozen, and expect a slightly longer bake.
- Overmixing. Stir the berries in gently so they do not burst and streak the batter.
- Underbaking. Wet berries can make the center look done before it is. Test in more than one spot, and wait for the toothpick to come out clean of batter (a moist berry streak is fine).
- Skipping the pan prep. A bundt pan needs thorough greasing, and it is worth letting the cake rest a few minutes before turning it out.
Fresh vs frozen blueberries
Both work. Fresh berries hold their shape a bit better, while frozen berries are available year-round and are usually fine in a cake. Add a few minutes to the bake time with frozen fruit, and use the same amount by volume.
Variations
- Use a lemon cake mix, add lemon zest, and make a lemon glaze for a lemon blueberry cake. For a from-scratch take on the flavor pairing, see our lemon blueberry roll cake.
- Swap in raspberries, blackberries or chopped strawberries, folding them in gently. Our easy raspberry cupcakes show how to keep raspberries intact in a batter.
- Add a cinnamon crumb topping and you have a blueberry coffee cake, which our easy cinnamon coffee cake with cake mix explains in detail.
Storage
Keep the cake covered at room temperature for a day or two, or refrigerate it for longer, since the fruit adds moisture. Bring slices to room temperature before serving. Dump cake is best the day it is made but can be reheated in a warm oven.
Related cake mix recipes
If you like boxed mix shortcuts, try the jello pistachio pudding bundt cake, which uses the same mix-plus-pudding idea, or the best crack cake recipe for a moist syrup-soaked bundt.