Sweet Treats: Blueberry Bundt Cake {Recipe}

Whenever my mom comes to town I go out and buy fresh bagels for breakfast.  It’s kind of a treat for both of us.  My family loves bagels, but often can’t finish a bakers dozen – or even a half dozen – before they go stale…and as much as I always say I’m going to freeze them, life often gets in the way and I forget.  My mom loves bagels, but never buys them for herself.  So each time she comes to visit, I head out that very first morning that she’s here and buy a baker’s dozen and several types of cream cheese, because she loves flavored cream cheese.

But as it turns out, she was sick during her last visit and most of the bagels went uneaten.   That flavored cream cheese?   Totally unused.  As I took an inventory of the fridge a day or two after she left, my eyes landed on the container of blueberry cream cheese I purchased.  It was still sealed, but according to it’s expiration date, it wouldn’t make it until her next visit.  So I decided that it was time to get creative in the kitchen.

And then I thought about the ginormous blueberries that I’ve seen on sale at the grocery store lately.  Seriously, they’re huge – and it’s not even officially blueberry season!  I decided to get to work and make a blueberry bundt cake that would incorporate both the blueberry cream cheese that I already had and those massive grocery store blueberries, modifying a pound cake recipe I found a few months ago when I made my Iced Lemon Pound Cake.  It was made using a cake mix – and you know how much I love cake mix recipes.

The result did not disappoint.  My girls each ate a piece and asked begged for more.  I had a second piece myself (after they went to bed, of course) and I don’t even like blueberries.  But this cake is just perfect.  Dense, moist, sweet perfection.  It’s a must try, blueberry season or not!

Note:  If you can’t find blueberry cream cheese, don’t worry.  Simply use 6 – 8 oz of regular cream cheese and add in an extra 1/4 cup of fresh blueberries.  You can also substitute frozen blueberries if it isn’t blueberry season. 

You will need:
1 white box cake mix (18.25 oz)
1 box vanilla instant pudding (3.4 oz)
1/4 cup sugar
1 container blueberry cream cheese (6 oz)
1/4 cup water
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 cup fresh blueberries, or more if you prefer
1 1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
3 Tbsp milk

Step 1 – Grease a 9.5″ fluted pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2 – In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, pudding, and sugar.  Once combined, add the cream cheese, water, vegetable oil, and eggs.  Using a hand or stand mixer, beat for 1 minute on low followed by 4 minutes on high, until smooth and well blended.  The batter will be thick.  Make sure to scrap the sides of the bowl frequently as the cake mix will try to hide towards the bottom of the bowl.

Step 3 – Using a spoon or spatula, carefully fold in the fresh blueberries.

Step 4 – Pour batter into the greased pan and bake for 50 minutes (double check to make sure it’s baked all the way through by using a knife or toothpick).  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

Step 5 – Once your cake has cooled, prepare the glaze by combining the confectioner’s sugar and milk.   My glaze turned out a bit thin and seemed to get sucked into the cake.  If you want yours to be thicker (and sit on top of the cake), try adding only 2 tablespoons of milk instead of 3.  If it’s still too thin, add some more confectioner’s sugar to thicken it up.  Once you reach your desired consistency, drizzle over the cake.

TIP:  If you want to add a little extra flavor, consider adding a teaspoon of vanilla or a little lemon juice to your glaze.

Serve with coffee or on it’s own.  Either way it will be delicious!