Adapted from my favorite Blueberry Muffins, this blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and loaded with blueberries. Since there’s no individual muffins, this muffin batter goes from the mixing bowl to the oven in minutes. Though this quick bread is outstanding on its own, a swirl of blueberry jam and sprinkle of crumble topping create an outstanding crust.
I’m always on the lookout for quick and easy recipes that double as breakfast and snack. Banana bread, morning glory muffins, and zucchini bread are my usual defaults, but in an effort to break out of routine, I baked blueberry muffin bread last weekend.
I try to be the most productive during nap time and pouring blueberry muffin batter into a loaf pan sounded much more appealing than dividing into individual muffins. And I have a feeling you’ll appreciate this easy recipe too!
What is Blueberry Muffin Bread?
Glad you asked. Blueberry muffin bread is exactly what it sounds like… blueberry muffins baked as bread. This is a quick bread recipe, so there’s no yeast required. Blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and completely overloaded with blueberries. Enjoy it warm from the oven or straight out of the refrigerator. It also freezes beautifully!
Blueberry Muffins in a Loaf Pan
Any muffin recipe yielding around 12 standard size muffins doubles as a quick bread recipe. Today we’re using my blueberry muffins, which is actually my master muffin recipe. This particular muffin batter creates 1,000s of muffin varieties including cranberry muffins, peach muffins, and apple crumb muffins. For the muffin bread, I added a little more flour to ensure this was a nice big loaf.
Now we can create plenty of quick bread recipes too! For example, swap blueberries for chocolate chips and you have an easy chocolate chip quick bread. I also made apple cinnamon bread by adding 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and peeled chopped apple. We all LOVED it.
Blueberry Muffin Bread Ingredients
Blueberry muffin bread is another example of how extremely basic ingredients easily transform into an absolutely delicious recipe.
- Butter: Butter is the base and produces a soft cakey crumb. If desired, swap with solid coconut oil.
- Sugar: Use a mix of granulated and brown sugar for flavor. A dry unrefined sugar, such as coconut sugar, works too. I don’t recommend a liquid sweetener.
- Eggs: 2 eggs work their magic providing structure and overall richness.
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Plain low fat or full fat sour cream or yogurt add exceptional moisture, as well as the necessary acid for the baking soda.
- Vanilla & Salt: Flavor flavor flavor.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is the workhorse of quick breads. If desired, substitute whole wheat flour for a denser blueberry muffin bread. I don’t bake with gluten free flours, but let me know if you try any that work!
- Leaveners: Both baking soda and baking powder add necessary lift. Remember why we use both?
- Milk: The blueberry muffin bread would be flat and heavy without milk.
2 Optional Extras!
The blueberry muffin bread is completely awesome on its own. Trust me, you’re going to be VERY HAPPY about it. But if you want to take things up a notch, add one or both:
- Blueberry Jam: Swirl 2 Tablespoons of blueberry jam into the batter.
- Crumble Topping: Simply combine all-purpose flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter. Sprinkle on top before baking.
The pictured bread includes both. See my recipe notes for detailed instructions. 🙂
Forever making muffins as quick breads. It’s so much easier!
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Blueberry Muffin Bread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Adapted from my favorite Blueberry Muffins, this blueberry muffin bread is soft, moist, and loaded with blueberries. Since there’s no individual muffins, this muffin batter goes from the mixing bowl to the oven in minutes. Though this quick bread is outstanding on its own, a swirl of blueberry jam and sprinkle of crumble topping create an outstanding crust.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (250g) fresh blueberries*
- optional: 2 Tablespoons blueberry jam and/or crumb topping (see recipe note)
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan or coat with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla extract on medium speed until combined. With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk into the wet ingredients and beat until no flour pockets remain. Fold in the blueberries.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan. See note if adding streusel or blueberry jam swirl. Bake for 60-65 minutes, loosely covering the bread with aluminum foil at the 30 minute mark to help prevent the top and sides from getting too brown. A toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf will come out clean when the bread is done. Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack.
- Cover and store bread at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Cool baked muffin bread completely. Tightly wrap the loaf or slices (individually or grouped) in 2 layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Place wrapped bread in a large freezer-friendly storage bag or reusable container. Freeze for up to 3-4 months. Thaw wrapped or unwrapped in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
- Sour Cream: Plain yogurt is a great substitute for sour cream. Unsweetened applesauce or mashed banana may also be used.
- Blueberries & Other Fruit Add-ins: Fresh blueberries are best. I do not suggest frozen blueberries. If you need to use them, do not thaw, add another 2 Tablespoons of flour to the dry ingredients, and extend the bake time. I love making apple bread from this recipe using 1-2 peeled chopped apples. Add 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read here for more information.
- Blueberry Jam or Crumble Topping: If desired, swirl 2 Tablespoons blueberry jam (or any flavor) into the top of the loaf before baking. A crumble topping adds a lovely crunch. Simply combine 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, then using a fork, mix in 2 Tablespoons melted unsalted butter until crumbles form. Sprinkle over loaf before baking.
- Adapted from Blueberry Muffins with a *little* extra flour and milk to produce a nice large loaf.
Keywords: blueberry muffins, bread
I have made your blueberry muffin loaf a few times and it is slightly dry. It is delicious! I follow your recipe closely. Perhaps you can give me a suggestion? I use King Arthur organic white whole wheat flour.
Hi Dorothy! Substituting white whole wheat flour will dry out the batter and make the bread dense. We suggest sticking with the all purpose or only substituting half of the flour with white whole wheat for best results!
This was easy to make and a nice way to utilize extra blueberries. I am glad I added the crumble topping because the bread itself doesn’t have much sweetness. It took a little longer than an hour to bake through but is moist. If I make it again, I will increase the sugar and maybe add some lemon zest to the batter.
★★★★
My husband was raving about some blueberries he bought, so I offered to make about half of them into this bread. He was a little wary, because he doesn’t like overly sweet things, but he said this is GREAT, just the right amount of sweetness. I did the crumble topping, which adds just a little bit of sweet but not too much. I’m sure this will be in regular rotation!
★★★★★
Love this recipient. It came out moist with light crumb. My husband really liked it as well, and he is not a fan of sweets. I used a mix of fruit: blueberry, raspberry and blackberry. Put a tablespoon or so of granulated sugar over the fruit while I mixed the batter to sweeten the fruit a bit.
It was good warm out of the oven. It was even better the next morning reheated
I made this recipe as directed and my blueberry loaf came out very dense and very dry. I spoon and leveled the flour and all ingredients were room temperature. Not sure what happened.
★
Hi, can you give suggestion to replace function of milk you mentioned? My husband does not drink milk. I slways replace butter with margarine , milk with water… looking for inspiration here cause i like your nyffin recipe so much! ( for muffin, milk with water works but indeed dense)
Hi Sally! Do you think that this would be OK using buttermilk instead of regular milk? Thanks!!!! Heather
Hi Heather, If using buttermilk, use it to replace the sour cream AND the milk. (1 cup total.) Enjoy!
I made this today since I had some blueberries that needed to be consumed. My son does not like…well basically anything delicious… and he loves this!
★★★★★
I love experimenting with recipes and doing my own thing and so i made this recipe with frozen blueberries and plain yoghurt. It was . Super moist. Thanks Sally
★★★★★
Very disappointed in this recipe. Followed to the letter, the crumb is dry and the blueberries all sank to the bottom in a soggy mess. The topping sank into the middle of the cake. The cooking time was incorrect, and it took an extra 40 minutes to be done. Really disappointed, this is not a good recipe.
★★
Hey Sally making this bread for the second time its so delicious thanks for this great recipe and website ❤️
I went blueberry picking today, got home and decided we got way too many and I needed to find something to make with them, hence the search for a great recipe! Boy, was I in for a surprise, your recipe is delicious, not too sweet, the perfect amount of moist too! eleven me when I say, I just took the second loaf out the oven and am considering starting a third to give to a family member! I left everything per your recipe, no substitutions or additions…perfect! Thank you for such a great recipe that is most definitely a bookmark for me!!
★★★★★
Thank you so much for this kind review, Estela! We’re thrilled this blueberry muffin bread is a hit.
I want to make mini breads for gifts for my bowling team. Following the directions exactly, how much time to bake? I’m guessing the same as a muffin but not sure.
Thanks
Hi Jan, we’re unsure of the exact bake time, as mini bread pan sizes can greatly vary. It will be shorter, but keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness. Hope they’re a hit!
I made two loaves using this recipe (cards on the table, I went to culinary school a few years ago and I give everyone your website for go to recipes bc they always come out great). I followed the recipe 100% except I used vanilla almond milk in place of the whole milk. My blueberry loaf with the crumble topping came out nice and moist with a nice, golden outer crust. The second loaf, I did as a chocolate chip with a squiggle of raspberry jam on top. That loaf was a lot sweeter obviously but it was nice to have the juxtaposition of flavors. Great recipe and saved me the annoyance of scooping into muffin cups and the pain of having to hand wash my muffin tin.
★★★★★
Thank you so much for the kind feedback and for making and trusting our recipes, Elyse!
Don’t know if I baked this a little too long but it came out kind of dry and not very sweet. I followed the instructions completely and added the blueberry jam and the crumble topping too.
★★★
Just made this tonight. Had really good blueberries from he farm. It started to “lava out” of the 9″ loaf pan, so put foil under it. Saw the note about foil on top if browning before done inside. Had that too. Hung in there and it cooked in 80 min. and it is AWESOME! Hang in there with it. Worth it! My dear hubby will clean oven in the morning. Great recipe! Thanks!
★★★★★
The same thing happened to mine…what a mess in my oven. I am hoping for the best and I plan on baking longer as I read other reviews that said to do so. I did not alter the recipe, at all. I did double it and used 2 large loaf pans.
I used 2/12 cups of frozen berries, as I didn’t have fresh and it’s not yet blueberry season. It was delicious, with a soft crumb and very moist. I made the crumb topping. I did not feel that there were too many blueberries. I tossed them in flour. They did not sink. The bread baked for 70 minutes and did not over brown. Perfect.
★★★★
Hi Sally , I am from India and amateur baker here. Can I use dried Blueberry? since thats the closest I can get . Also please do help me to use wheat flour instead of All purpose flour(diet restrictions) in your receipes
Hi Archana! Dried blueberries should work in a pinch. You can use whole wheat flour instead, but the bread will be denser and quite heavy — the taste will also be slightly different. Let us know what you try!
Can I use oat flour for half the recommended ap flour? If so how much oat flour for 1 c ap?
Hi Isabelita, we haven’t tested this bread with oat flour, but fear the oat flour will be too drying. Let us know if you give it a try!
Based on Google recommendations I subbed 1/4 c ap flour with the same amount of oat flour and luckily the bread wasn’t dry.
Yum! Just made this and had to come leave a review mid-slice. I subbed coconut almond milk for regular milk, and used fairly large, fresh-frozen blueberries that I had in my freezer, but followed the recipe “to the t” otherwise. The loaf had to bake about 90 minutes, but came out moist, not-too-sweet, and delish! Highly, highly recommend. I can’t wait to use this base with other mix-ins. Including fresh peaches from The Peach Truck this summer. Thanks!!
★★★★★
what if i don’t have sourcream ?
Plain yogurt is a great substitute!
Hi Sally! Love love love your recipes. Can we make the batter for this the night before put in fridge and then bake the next day?
Hi Tania! We don’t recommend making this batter ahead of time. The raising agents will activate too soon and the bread won’t rise properly when baked.
Hi Sally,
Thanks for this wonderful recipe, which has just been permanently added to my list of favorites. Even my very picky elderly parents loved it! The batter looked so fluffy and pretty in the pan that I was almost sad to bake it! I used sour cream as directed and found the bread to be the perfect consistency, not dry at all. Can’t wait to make it again and try it with the swirl of jam.
★★★★★
It came out moist and perfect and half of the cake was over in less than half a day. A recipe to keep and make !
★★★★★
Hi Sally, I baked your blueberry bread loaf and it was moist and tasty! I did crush about 1/3 cup of pecans and mixed it in with the topping…lots of crunch! Thank you for this marvelous recipe!
★★★★★
I baked this loaf today, following the recipe exactly as written and it is great! Not sweet (as so many pointed out), it is the perfect vehicle to let the blueberry flavor shine. I added the crumb topping, which is a nice addition. Next time I might increase the amount of blueberries to two cups just to up that flavor but one should NEVER change a recipe and then review it. To change it (even with “substitutions”) makes a new recipe.
★★★★★