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Sourdough Blueberry Bread

This sourdough blueberry bread is the perfect way to use sourdough discard and sweet blueberries. It’s an easy recipe that’s super tender scented with lemon and a buttery crumb topping—the perfect afternoon snack.

slice of blueberry cake with purple berries.

This has quickly become a family favorite. It’s so flavorful and bursting with blueberries. Adding sourdough discard to a quick bread like this is a great way to make it tender, thanks to the acid in the discard starter.

There’s the option to give the batter an overnight ferment. This ferments the flour, which can make things easier to digest. If you want to bake it right away, though, you can. This bread tastes like sourdough blueberry muffins but in loaf form!

 Don’t have a sourdough starter yet? Learn to make a homemade sourdough starter.

sourdough blueberry bread birds eye.

Ingredients

Find all the ingredient amounts for this blueberry lemon sourdough bread listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. Here is a rundown of what’s needed. 

  • Sourdough starter discard. Runny and acidic leftover sourdough discard for best results. This is acidic, and it helps to create tender bread.
  • Dry ingredients. All-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • Blueberries. They can be fresh blueberries or frozen, so you can still make it even if it’s not blueberry season. If adding frozen blueberries, give them a quick rinse first so they don’t color the batter. 
  • Butter and oil– I add a mix of both. Butter brings the best flavor, but the oil helps to keep it moist. You could use olive oil or a neutral vegetable oil. There’s butter in the crumble topping too.
  • Granulated sugar.  In the batter and streusel.
  • Milk. Loosens the batter.
  • Lemon zest. Adding lemon zest brings a bright citrus note that complements the blueberries beautifully. 
  • Lemon juice and powdered sugar for the glaze
side view sliced blueberry cake with dripping glaze.

Method

  1. Whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
sourdough discard being whisked into melted butter.
  1. Add the melted butter, oil, eggs, sugar, sourdough discard, vanilla extract, lemon juice, zest and milk in a large bowl. Whisk until well combined.
spatula mixing flour in batter.
  1. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until almost all are combined.
  1. Toss the blueberries in a little bit of flour to coat them, then fold them through the batter. Scoop into a lined 9×5 inch loaf pan. At this point, the sourdough blueberry loaf can be baked right away or cold fermented.

Cold-fermenting – Cover the pan tightly and place it in the refrigerator for up to 16 hours. Cold fermenting allows the flour to absorb more moisture from the batter, which can lead to a more moist crumb. Additionally, slow fermentation helps break down the proteins in the flour.

Streusel and baking

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
  1. Add melted butter, all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt to a small bowl. Use a fork to combine it into a coarse crumb.
hand crumbling streusel on batter.
  1. As the streusel sits, it will stiffen up and easily crumble with your fingers. Pop it in the fridge for 5 minutes if it’s too soft.
streusel topped cake.
  1. Crumble the streusel topping into small pieces on top of the batter.
  1. Bake the loaf in the preheated oven for around 60-70 minutes until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. After baking, let the sourdough blueberry bread sit in the pan for 20 minutes before removing. Let it cool down to room temperature on a wire rack.
  2. Once cooled, drizzle with lemon glaze.

Variations

Sourdough Blueberry Lemon Muffins: Divide the batter over a muffin pan to make individual muffins instead.

More delicious recipes

Looking for more easy sourdough recipes to use up spare starter? Try these!

close up sourdough blueberry cake.
slice of blueberry cake with purple berries.

Sourdough Blueberry Bread

Elien Lewis
This sourdough blueberry bread is the perfect way to use sourdough discard and sweet blueberries. It's an easy recipe that's super tender, scented with lemon, and a buttery crumb topping.
4.82 from 11 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Course Sourdough Discard Recipes
Cuisine American, New Zealand
Servings 1 loaf
Calories 254 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 250 g all-purpose flour plus 1 Tbsp for the blueberries
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 115 g butter, melted
  • 15 g olive oil or vegetable oil
  • 200 g granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs room temperature
  • 100 g sourdough discard room temperature
  • 120 g milk room temperature
  • 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon zest finely grated
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 250 g blueberries

Streusel

  • 30 g butter, melted
  • 40 g all-purpose flour
  • 50 g granulated sugar
  • 1/8 tsp salt

Lemon glaze

  • 60 g powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions
 

  • Line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang so the loaf can be easily lifted out once baked.
  • Whisk the 250g (2 cups) all-purpose flour, baking powder, soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
  • To a large mixing bowl, add the melted butter, oil, eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, sourdough discard, vanilla extract, and milk. Whisk until well combined.
  • Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until almost all are combined.
  • Toss the blueberries in the tablespoon of flour and fold them through the batter.
  • Scoop the batter into the prepared pan. At this point, the sourdough blueberry loaf can be baked right away or cold fermented. (See notes.)

Streusel

  • Add melted butter, all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt to a small bowl. Use a fork to combine it into a coarse crumb.
  • As the streusel sits, it will stiffen up and easily crumble with your fingers. Pop it in the fridge for 5 minutes if it's too soft.

Baking

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
  • Crumble the streusel topping into small pieces on top of the batter.
  • Bake the loaf in the oven for around 60-70 minutes until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
  • After baking, let the sourdough blueberry bread sit in the pan for 20 minutes before removing. Let it cool down to room temperature on a wire rack.
  • Mix together the glaze ingredients once cooled, then drizzle it over the blueberry bread.

Notes

Cold-fermenting – After making the batter, scoop it into the pan and cover the pan tightly. Place it in the refrigerator for up to 16 hours. Cold fermenting allows the flour to absorb more moisture from the batter, which can lead to a more moist crumb. Additionally, slow fermentation helps break down the proteins in the flour.
The cup sizes given are for US-sized cups, which are smaller than metric cups, for best results, use a scale and measure in grams.
 
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 254kcalCarbohydrates: 39gProtein: 7gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 53mgSodium: 398mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3g
Keyword Blueberries, Sourdough
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11 Comments

  1. Hello. After the cold ferment do we bake directly from fridge or do we let the batter come to room temp?

  2. If you are using frozen berries and want to ferment it should you let them thaw first or just rinse. Also do you weigh them after rinsing. I am new to sour dough and weighing my ingredients.

  3. 5 stars
    Love this recipe. I did not make any substitutions and it was delicious. It will definitely be part of my rotation going forward. I tried to give it 5 stars, but for some reason I could only give it 4 stars.

4.82 from 11 votes (10 ratings without comment)

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