Blueberry Chiffon Cake

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This blueberry chiffon cake is made with soft and fluffy layers of chiffon cake with homemade blueberry jam in between each layer and blueberry whipped cream frosting. It's made entirely with frozen blueberries and all naturally-coloured!

A slice of blueberry chiffon cake lifted from the rest of the cake with a cake server.

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Notes from the baker
Why you'll love this recipe
Tools
Ingredient notes
How to make a blueberry chiffon cake
Storage
Frequently asked questions
More chiffon cakes to try
Recipe

Notes from the baker

I once saw a photo of a cake with pretty blueberry frosting and it was so striking that I couldn't get it out of my head. I HAD to make this blueberry chiffon cake myself to capture the vibrant natural purple colour that I love.

This cake is similar to my Strawberry Chiffon Cake but with blueberries! Instead of fresh blueberries, we're making a quick and easy blueberry compote or jam with frozen blueberries and also mixing this compote into the whipped cream frosting for the perfect blueberry flavour and colour.

I feel like blueberries don't get as much love as strawberries in desserts that I see online. I hope you'll love this blueberry cake as much as I do!

Why you'll love this recipe

Soft and spongy chiffon cake layers. This blueberry chiffon cake is made with my go-to chiffon cake recipe that's fluffy and airy. There's no butter in chiffon cakes so they'll stay soft even when they're chilled in the fridge.
Juicy homemade blueberry compote. Homemade fruit compote or jam will always taste better than store-bought and it's so easy to make yourself!
Naturally-coloured blueberry whipped cream frosting. The gorgeous colour of the frosting comes only from blueberries and the light and airy whipped cream frosting isn't too sweet.
Entirely made with frozen blueberries. You can make this cake any time of year even when blueberries are out of season.

A whole blueberry chiffon cake on a cake stand.

Tools

Electric hand mixer - A hand mixer or stand mixer is essential for whipping egg whites into a meringue. It's possible to do it by hand but not recommended because it'll take a long time and your arm will get sore!
6" cake pans - This recipe is scaled for 6" round cake pans but feel free to double the recipe to make an 8" cake.
Cake turntable (optional) - A cake turntable allows you to spin your cake around so that you can apply the frosting easily and evenly. It's not absolutely required but if you want to pick one up, be sure to get a sturdy metal turntable that spins smoothly instead of a white plastic one. Plastic turntables are cheaper but you'll have a much better experience with a metal one - they're worth it!
Offset spatula - Offset spatulas provide the perfect ergonomic angle for smoothing frosting.
Bench scraper - Bench scrapers are useful for smoothing the frosting on the sides of your cake. Metal or plastic scrapers both work. Just make sure it's long enough for the height of your cake, especially if you're making a taller cake.

Ingredient notes

As always, the full recipe card with ingredient amounts and instructions is at the bottom of this post! Keep reading for more details on each ingredient or skip ahead to the recipe.

Blueberries - I recommend using frozen blueberries for this recipe because they're accessible all year round but you can also use fresh blueberries if you prefer.
Granulated sugar
Water
Eggs - These should be at room temperature. Room-temperature egg whites whip up into a meringue faster.
Cream of tartar - This is an acidic powder that helps stabilize the egg whites so that they whip up faster and into a stronger meringue.
Milk - Use any dairy or non-dairy milk you prefer.
Oil - Use any light-tasting oil such as canola oil, avocado oil, or grapeseed oil.
Vanilla extract
Cake flour - Cake flour contains less gluten than all-purpose flour and creates a softer and lighter cake crumb.
Baking powder - This cake is leavened mostly by all the tiny air bubbles you whip into the egg white meringue but I usually like to add baking powder as a backup in case the meringue fails.
Whipping cream or heavy cream - You can use whipping cream for a lighter whipped cream frosting or heavy cream for a thicker and richer frosting.
Powdered sugar

Slices of blueberry chiffon cake on plates surrounding the rest of the cake on a cake stand.

How to make a blueberry chiffon cake

Make the blueberry compote

Simmer: In a small pot, stir together frozen blueberries, sugar, and water. Cover and bring to a simmer.

Left: frozen blueberries and sugar in a pot. Right: covered pot on a stove.

Thicken: Uncover and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until most of the water evaporates and you're left with a thick jammy compote, about 10-15 minutes. Transfer the blueberry compote to a small bowl to cool completely before using.

Left: stirring blueberry compote in a pot with a spatula. Right: cooked blueberry compote in a bowl.

Make the chiffon cake

Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three 6" round pans with parchment paper rounds on the bottom of the pans only. Set aside.

Separate eggs: Separate the egg whites and egg yolks into two large mixing bowls, being careful not to get any of the yolks in the egg whites. Set the bowl of egg yolks aside.

Left: hand holding an egg yolk with the egg whites dripping down into a bowl. Right: pouring egg whites into a mixing bowl.

Beat egg whites: To the egg whites, add cream of tartar. Use an electric hand mixer on low speed to beat the egg whites until they become frothy like cappuccino foam.

Left: beating egg whites with a hand mixer. Right: beating frothy egg whites with a hand mixer.

Whip to stiff peaks: Sprinkle in the sugar, one spoonful at a time, mixing well in between each addition. Continue beating the mixture until it becomes stiff peaks (when you pull the mixer out of the bowl, the meringue should stand up in pointy peaks with a slight curl at the tips). Set aside.

Left: sprinkling a spoonful of sugar into egg whites while mixing with hand mixer. Right: egg white meringue at stiff peaks.

Egg yolk mixture: To the egg yolks, add the milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Use the same hand mixer to mix until combined. Use a fine mesh sieve to sift in the cake flour and baking powder. Mix again until combined and smooth.

Left: egg yolks and ingredients in a mixing bowl. Right: sifting flour into egg yolk mixture.

Combine egg whites and egg yolk mixtures: Add ⅓ of the egg white meringue into the egg yolk mixture. Use a spatula to fold them together until mostly combined. Add the rest of the meringue and fold until no streaks remain. Be sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl where thicker batter settles.

Left: dropping meringue into a bowl of egg yolk mixture from a spatula. Right: folding chiffon cake batter together with a spatula.

Fill pans: Divide the batter into your lined cake pans (about 185-200g of batter per pan). Lift and drop each pan on the counter to get rid of any large air bubbles.

Left: pouring cake batter into a cake pan on a scale. Right: three cake pans filled with cake batter.

Bake: Bake cakes for about 25-27 minutes or until the tops are lightly golden brown. Turn the pans upside down on a wire rack and let them cool completely.

Left: three baked cakes on a wire rack. Right: cake pans flipped upside down on a wire rack.

Release cakes: Once cooled, run an offset spatula around the edges of the cake and turn the cakes out. Peel the parchment paper off the cake layers.

Left: running an offset spatula around a cake in a pan. Right: hand peeling parchment paper off of a cake layer.

Make the blueberry whipped cream

Whip cream: In a large mixing bowl, add the whipping cream, powdered sugar, blueberry compote, and vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer to beat until it becomes stiff peaks.

Left: ingredients for whipped cream in a bowl. Right: beating whipped cream with a hand mixer.

Assemble the cake

Filling: On a cake turntable, lay down the first cake layer. Use an offset spatula to spread a layer of blueberry whipped cream on top of the cake layer. Spread a layer of blueberry compote in the middle of the whipped cream layer. Top with another cake layer and repeat.

Left: spreading blueberry whipped cream on top of a cake layer with a spatula. Right: spreading blueberry compote on top of whipped cream with a spatula.

Frost: Frost the whole cake with a thin layer of whipped cream as a crumb coat. Let the cake chill in the fridge for about 10 minutes (optional). The crumb coat won't fully harden like buttercream but it does help it set. Apply a final coat of whipped cream all over the cake and use a bench scraper to scrape off the excess.

Left: frosting the sides of a cake with blueberry whipped cream. Right: scraping excess frosting off the sides of a cake with a bench scraper.

Decorate: Decorate the cake with fresh or thawed blueberries and sprigs of thyme (optional).

Left: making a swirl design on top of a cake with a spatula. Right: hand placing a blueberry on top of a blueberry cake.

Storage

This blueberry chiffon cake can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can eat it straight from the fridge or let it come back to room temperature for 15 minutes.

Leftovers can be frozen in an airtight container or wrapped well in plastic wrap and/or aluminum foil for up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge overnight before serving.

A hand holding a plate with a slice of blueberry chiffon cake.

Frequently asked questions

How to prevent chiffon cake from collapsing or shrinking after baking?

It's very normal for chiffon cake to shrink slightly as they cool as the steam leaves all the air bubbles in the cake but it shouldn't collapse significantly if it was made correctly. To prevent chiffon cake from collapsing, let them cool upside down on a wire rack with air flow underneath before releasing them from the pans. Underbaked cakes can also collapse because there isn't enough structure in the cake to hold it up. When in doubt, bake the cakes for a few extra minutes.

Why are your measurements in grams? Why do you mix gram measurements with tablespoons/teaspoons?

Baking by weight is much more accurate than volume. When using US standard cups, ingredients like flour and sugar can easily be overpacked into the cup causing you to add too much of certain ingredients. Recipes with weight measurements are also easier to scale to smaller or bigger batches without dealing with weird fractions. To measure by weight, you simply need a kitchen scale which you can usually pick up for less than $20.

Small measurements are given in tablespoons and teaspoons because most kitchen scales are not accurate under about 10g. Tiny amounts like a ¼ teaspoon may not register accurately unless you have a drug scale. Mixing these measurements is a common practice among other recipe sites and commercial kitchens.