The Essence of Pancake
Blueberry pancakes are probably my favorite type of pancakes. I love blueberries in general, and they pair so well with pancakes because they contrast the buttery flavor with its tartness and fruity flavor. Today, my dreams are coming true because I turned blueberry pancakes into a cake with this Blueberry Pancake Bread!
Let me tell you, I tested this recipe over and over again to make sure that the essence of pancake was coming through. I didn’t just want to make a blueberry bread — I wanted the batter to have the taste and aroma of a buttermilk pancake. After eating many rounds of duds, I finally got it right! This Blueberry Pancake Bread is soft and fluffy just like a pancake. It isn’t too sweet but you do get that buttermilk and maple taste and aroma. The bread is dotted with juicy blueberries and finished with a crumble topping. Crumble topping isn’t traditionally on pancakes, but I love the extra crunch that it adds!
Always Add Crumble
To get started, we’re going to make the crumble topping. Listen, I know crumble topping usually isn’t on pancakes. However, if I’m making a quick bread, there’s a 99.9% chance I’m adding on crumble topping. It’s just too good and adds such a lovely texture on top!
The good news is, it’s super easy to make. Add flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt to a bowl. Give the ingredients a mix then add in pieces of cold diced butter. Use your fingertips the work the butter into the dry ingredients. It should be a combination of a rubbing and pinching motion — as if you were sprinkling salt onto something. At the end of the process, it should have the texture of semi-wet sand. When you close it together in your fist, the mixture should come together. Then when you break it apart, it should fall into crumbles. Place the crumble topping into the fridge while we make the batter.
Hey Batter Batter
To make the batter, we’re going to follow a standard cake making process. Add the flour baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt to a bowl. Mix the ingredients together to remove any lumps and until the ingredients are evenly distributed. I love mixing in a hint of cinnamon because it adds warmth and compliments the maple flavor.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. The mixture should be well combined, slightly thick, and a light brown color. Then add in the maple syrup, maple extract, vanilla extract, vegetable oil, and buttermilk. Mix everything together until well combined. Add the dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients. Gently fold them together until all the flour has been absorbed.
Please be sure that you are using pure maple syrup for this recipe and not pancake syrup! The combination of pure maple syrup and the maple extract will give us a delicious maple flavor and aroma that isn’t too sweet or artificial. In addition, the combination of the buttermilk and leavening agents will create that buttermilk pancake flavor as well as a fluffy bread.
Baking Tricks
There’s a few techniques out there to prevent your blueberries or mix-ins from sinking to the bottom of the cake. What I like to do is pour half of my batter into a greased and parchment lined 9×5 inch loaf pan. In a separate bowl, toss the blueberries and cornstarch together until the blueberries are evenly coated in the cornstarch. Mix the blueberries into the remaining half of the batter until they’re evenly distributed. Then pour the batter into the pan. Coating the blueberries in cornstarch creates a thicker barrier around them, which makes them less likely to sink all the way to the bottom. In addition, if they do start to sink, which is natural, they will be dispersed throughout the bottom layer of batter that doesn’t have any blueberries, making for an even distribution!
Give the pan a shimmy shake to even out the top, then bake it in the oven at 325℉ for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, gently open the oven door and pull out the rack so you can reach the bread. Sprinkle the crumble topping all over top so that it is completely coated. Gently push the bread back into the oven and bake it for another 45 minutes until cooked through. When a toothpick is inserted, it should come out clean.
Baking the bread for a bit before adding on the crumble topping is another helpful trick I learned. Often times, the crumble topping can sink into the batter as the bread rises in the oven. However, this method ensures that the crumble stays on top because the surface of the bread has already risen and set.
Best Served Warm
Once the Blueberry Pancake Bread is cooked through, allow it to cool in the pan for about 20 minutes. Then you can transfer it to a wire rack to finish cooling. Despite the agony of having to re-test this recipe multiple times over, I’m so in love with the final product. This Blueberry Pancake Bread is everything I had imagined when the recipe concept came to my mind.
It’s soft and fluffy on the inside, and the buttermilk, maple, and cinnamon flavors are truly reminiscent of a stack of buttermilk pancakes in the morning. The maple flavor isn’t artificial or too sweet, which I love. Then the blueberries add a pop of fruitiness that contrasts the fluffy bread. I absolutely love serving this Blueberry Pancake Bread warm with a coating of butter and a drizzle of honey. It adds even more to the pancake and breakfast feel. I know I say this with all of my recipes, but you cannot miss out on this one. If you love pancakes or blueberry pastries, this Blueberry Pancake Bread is a must try!
Blueberry Pancake Bread
Ingredients
For the Crumble Topping
- ½ cup All Purpose Flour
- 3 Tbsp Brown Sugar
- ¼ tsp Ground Cinnamon
- Pinch of Salt
- 3 Tbsp Cold Unsalted Butter (diced)
For the Blueberry Pancake Bread
- 1¾ cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
- ½ tsp Kosher Salt
- 2 Large Eggs
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- ⅓ cup Granulated Sugar
- ½ cup Pure Maple Syrup
- 1½ tsp Maple Extract
- ½ tsp Vanilla Extract
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- ½ cup Buttermilk
- 1½ cups Fresh or Frozen Blueberries
- 1 Tbsp Cornstarch
Instructions
For the Crumble Topping:
- Add the all purpose flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a bowl. Mix the ingredients together until they're evenly combined. Add in the cold diced butter. Use your fingertips to rub butter into the dry ingredients until you get a crumbly mixture. When you squeeze the mixture in your fist, it should come together in one mass then turn into crumbles when you break it apart. Set the mixture aside in the fridge.
For the Blueberry Pancake Bread:
- Preheat the oven to 325℉. Coat the inside of a 9×5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, add in the all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk the ingredients together to remove any lumps and until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
- In a separate large bowl, add in the eggs, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Whisk the ingredients together until well combined and it turns a light brown color. Then mix in the maple syrup, maple extract, vanilla extract, vegetable oil, and buttermilk until incorporated. Pour half of the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
- In another bowl, add in the blueberries and cornstarch. Toss the blueberries and cornstarch together until the blueberries are evenly coated with the cornstarch. Add this to the remaining half of the batter and gently fold them together until the blueberries are evenly distributed throughout. Pour the batter into the pan.
- Place the loaf pan on top of a baking sheet to catch any potential spills, then bake it in the oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, gently open the oven door and pull out the oven rack so you can reach the pan. Quickly distribute the crumble topping all over the top of the bread. Move the pan back into the oven and bake for another 45 minutes until the bread is cooked and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Remove the bread from the oven. Allow it to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before lifting it out and transferring it to a wire rack to continue cooling. Slice and enjoy!
