Soft & Fluffy Vegan Blueberry Buckle (No eggs, No dairy!)
This fluffy and soft blueberry buckle is bursting with fresh blueberries inside a sweet vanilla cake and delicious crumble topping! Just one bowl, naturally vegan and dairy free, and perfect for breakfast, snack, or dessert!
Why you’ll love this blueberry buckle recipe:
If you love coffee cake, then you need to try this blueberry buckle cake. It’s like coffee cake, but without the cinnamon and a whole lot of fresh and juicy sweet blueberries.
Basically a dream.
The cake is soft and fluffy, and just full of perfect vanilla flavor that when you get the bite of both blueberry and cake, you’ll be in heaven! The perfect breakfast cake, but also snack cake or summer dessert if you’d like!
But what’s in a blueberry buckle? Layers of vanilla cake with blueberries, fresh blueberries, and a sweet vanilla crumble topping. Basically just deliciousness.
Here’s what you need to know:
- This blueberry buckle is EASY: You don’t need any special equipment, not even a hand mixer. Simply whisk the batter together in one bowl, pour, and bake.
- The texture is unbelievable: When I tell you it’s like the perfect blend of my vanilla cake in the form of a breakfast pastry! It’s the truth! So fluffy, moist, tender, and sweet, the structure is incredible.
- You won’t believe it’s vegan: Yep, no eggs, no dairy, AND you can make this cake gluten free as well. Honestly, it’s so simple and easy to make as vegan, you’ll never want to try it another way!
A few things to note about this recipe:
- Using fresh blueberries is best! I talk a bit about this more below, but fresh blueberries, especially those that are in season (test a blueberry before you use it in this recipe!), will really shine through in this recipe. You can use frozen, but the texture is really lovely when they’re fresh and in season!
- You can absolutely swap in another berry, like blackberries for something fun and different!
- Using vanilla bean paste in the cake portion will really amplify the sweet vanilla flavor. I highly recommend it!
- For fun, you can add some lemon zest and extract to this recipe for a lemon blueberry flavor (much like my vegan blueberry lemon cake!).
Why is it called a blueberry buckle?
It’s such a funny term, right? Well, the reason for calling this breakfast cake a blueberry “buckle” is because as the cake rises, the weight of the fresh blueberries and the crumble topping sort of weigh down the rise, causing the cake to “buckle.” Simple as that!
You could technically consider this like a blueberry crumb cake (similar to my apple crumb cake and banana coffee cake!).
But how is this different than a blueberry cobbler, crisp, or crumble? Well, they’re very similar. However, a buckle also includes cake on the bottom of the fruit. Whereas a cobbler, crisp, and crumble all have a the flour component only on the top of the cake.
If you love fruit desserts, though, you should definitely check out my vegan blueberry cobbler or vegan apple crisp!
Step by step photos for how to make blueberry buckle:
You’re just going to love how easy it is to make this blueberry buckle. You only need one bowl to mix the batter, and not even any equipment!
Can I make this blueberry buckle gluten free?
Absolutely! You can swap in gluten free 1:1 baking flour for all of the flour components to make this blueberry buckle gluten free. I recommend using King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Baking Flour.
Can I use frozen blueberries?
You can use frozen when your blueberries are not in season, but fresh blueberries are really best! The water from the frozen blueberries might cause the blueberries to be super runny and might alter the desired texture of this vegan blueberry buckle.
Storage tips:
Refrigerator: Store the buckle cake in an airtight container or plastic bag and in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freezer: Wrap the blueberry buckle tightly in plastic wrap then place it in a freezer bag. You can freeze this blueberry buckle for up to 3 months in the freezer.
Reheating: Simply place a slice of cake onto a parchment lined baking sheet and heat the cake for 3-7 minutes (depending on if it was frozen) in the oven at 300F.
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If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
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Soft & Fluffy Vegan Blueberry Buckle (No eggs, No dairy!)
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 65
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 9–12 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This fluffy and soft blueberry buckle is bursting with fresh blueberries and sweet notes of vanilla in the most tender and moist cake topped with an easy crumble topping. It’s unbelievably vegan and dairy free, and makes fora great breakfast or snack cake that’s so easy to make in one bowl!
Ingredients
Crumble Top:
- 1 cup (125 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour, plus 1 tbsp for coating the blueberries
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Vegan Blueberry Buckle Cake:
- 3 cups (375 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/4 cup (250 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan butter, melted and cooled
- 3/4 cup (170 g) dairy free yogurt or vegan sour cream, room temperature
- 2/3 cup (180 g) vegan buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 2 pints fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F and lightly grease and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper and olive oil.
- Vanilla crumble topping: In another medium bowl, prepare the vanilla crumble. Whisk together the sugar and flour. Use a fork to mix in the melted vegan butter and vanilla into the mixture until it resembles a crumble. Set aside.
- Make the vegan blueberry buckle batter: Prepare the main cake layer. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted vegan butter, sugar, dairy free yogurt, vegan buttermilk, and vanilla. Then add in the flour mixture, and stir until there are JUST no more dry streaks of flour.
- Fold in the blueberries: Remove 1 cup of blueberries and set aside. This will be the topping right before the crumble. To the remaining blueberries, add in 1 tbsp of flour and toss to coat evenly. Then pour the coated blueberries into the batter and fold the blueberries into the batter with a silicone spatula to distribute evenly.
- Assemble the blueberry buckle: Pour the batter into your baking pan, and spread the batter to touch the edges of the pan. Sprinkle the fresh blueberries on top evenly. Then top with the vanilla crumble.
- Bake: Place the pan into the oven to bake for 55-65 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven, and allow the coffee cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
- Serve: When ready to serve, it’s best served slightly warm. Slice into 9-12 squares and dust with powdered sugar if desired. Enjoy! Store any leftovers covered in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, in the fridge for up to 6 days, or in the freezer for up to a month.
Notes
*Gluten Free: You can swap in gluten-free 1:1 baking flour (such as King Arthur’s measure for measure) or oat flour. For gluten free flour blends, please use the cup measurements then convert to gram measurements (so for 3 cups of Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 flour, it will be 420 g rather than 375 g of flour). For oat flour, please use the gram measurements rather than the cup measurements (so you would need 3 3/4 cups of oat flour for 375 g).
See the post for recipe tips and tricks!
Hi the written recipe specifies adding salt to the batter but there is no salt mentioned in the ingredients list. How much salt? Thx!
I’m so sorry about that!! Just adjusted it- it should reflect the salt now 🙂 Enjoy!
This was easy and delicious. A definite make-again!! I used vegan sour cream.
This is so wonderful! Thanks so much for the review 🙂 Enjoy!!
What we substitue for the dairy free yogurt to make this a regular blueberry buckle?
Hi Gabrielle! You can use regular yogurt if you’d like. Enjoy!
Heya! I read your room temp attachment for butter but am a little concerned about the safety of room temperature sour cream or yogurt. Can you offer any advice/links/perspective? I don’t want to leave it too long but I also don’t want to ruin the consistency of the buckle. Thanks!
Oh yes, totally understandable! It’s very similar to bringing an egg to room temperature, and is much faster than bringing the butter to room temperature! I like to portion out the required amount for each recipe, rather than leaving the container on the counter. Then just cover the sour cream or yogurt so that nothing gets in it!
What could I use instead of vegan buttermilk (doesn’t have to be vegan)? I am having a hard time finding that item!
Hi Hannah! Oh you make that one! So it’s just your favorite dairy free milk (I recommend soy milk or almond milk!) with either 1 tbsp acv or 1 tbsp lemon juice! 🙂 But if you don’t need it to be vegan, you can swap in regular buttermilk! I haven’t personally tried this, but I know that many readers swap in regular dairy products with great success!
Hello what can I use in place of the granulated sugar?
Hi Ara! You can use granulated maple sugar or coconut sugar 🙂 It will alter the taste however!
What about brown sugar? 😌
Hi Ara! Yes, you can use brown sugar as well, but keep in mind it will have a richer taste!
can regular butter be used instead of vegan butter?
I haven’t personally tried this, but other readers have with success!
Just made this for my mom for her mother’s day brunch and it was a hit! Everyone loved it, it’s the perfect amount of sweetness and the crumble on top was fantastic. I substituted some of the vegan things out for other ingredients but I would 100% recommend! Thank you for a great recipe!
So happy to hear this, how wonderful!! Thanks so much for coming back to review 🙂
hiii, I am making this now – super excited, I had this saved in my reels on IG for a while – finally getting around to baking this! 🙂
My question: how long can I keep the cake in a stainless steal type of baking dish/tin after I finish baking? I want to make it for a friends dinner in a few hours and not sure if I should remove it from the tin in ten minutes as per instructions or if I can leave it in the stainless steal (brownie type – not sure if its actual stainless steal but it resembles it) baking tin for a few hours?
Thank you for your answer in advance!
Hi Niki! Oh that’s wonderful!!! I would remove the cake still to cool only because it will continue cooking in the pan! But after it’s fully cooled, you can transfer it back to the pan for an easy transport 🙂 Enjoy!
Loved this recipe! Very easy to follow and tastes great. Only had an 8×8 pan and had no issues with cook time. I will definitely share this recipe with friends & family!
This is wonderful!!! So happy to hear it 🙂 Thank you so much for coming back to review!! Enjoy!!
Just made this, it turned out great. used whole wheat flour as is all I have in. Was very soft and fluffy. Will definitely make again. Thank you for the recipe.
I’m so excited to make this recipe. Thank you for sharing it. I would love to make it in a loaf pan. What would be the recommended temperature in baking time?
Hi Susana! I can’t wait for you to try it! So the batter might be too much for a 9″ loaf pan- you might want to break it up into 2 loaves if you can, or divide the recipe in half! The baking time will be about 45-50 minutes, but check with the oven light to see how it’s doing around the 35 min mark!
The lemon and blueberry was the perfect combo, such a moist delicious cake and the cinnamon in the crumble topping was perfect!
Made this recipe for book club and it was sooo good!! Everyone raved about it. I didn’t use any vegan ingredients and it came out great. Will definitely make this again!