Blueberry Cream Cheese Loaf

If you think quick breads start and end with banana bread, this Blueberry Cream Cheese Loaf is about to change that. It’s just as easy to throw together, but the Cream Cheese in the batter makes it extra moist and rich, and the blueberries give you a juicy burst in every single slice. It makes two loaves — which sounds like a lot until it doesn’t.

Why You’ll Love It

One-bowl batter — cream, mix, fold, pour. Done in minutes with barely any cleanup.
Incredibly moist crumb — cream cheese and Butter together do something banana bread just can’t match.
Blueberries in every bite — a quick flour toss Keeps them evenly distributed instead of sunk at the bottom.
Two loaves per batch — freeze one for later or share it. Either way, you’re covered.
Fresh or frozen berries work — no need to wait for blueberry season to make this happen.

A Few Notes on the Ingredients

The cream cheese matters here. I’ve made it with the store brand and I’ve made it with the name brand and honestly I could not tell you there was a difference — just make sure it’s fully softened, not just out of the fridge for ten minutes. Same with the butter. I’ve rushed this step before and ended up with lumpy batter and a slightly denser loaf. Worth the patience.
Fresh blueberries are wonderful when they’re in season, but I’ve made this in February with frozen ones and it came out just as good. Maybe better, actually — frozen berries sometimes have a deeper flavor, or I might just be telling myself that. Either way, don’t thaw them first. Just use them frozen and toss them in the flour.
The flour toss is the step I used to skip. Don’t skip it. It’s two extra tablespoons and thirty seconds of your life, and it keeps the berries from all sinking to the bottom, which would be tragic.
I use vanilla, though I’ve seen versions that add a little lemon zest, which sounds wonderful. I haven’t tried it myself.

Ingredients

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided (the 2 tablespoons go on the berries)
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened — and I mean actually softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1½ cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Eggs
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt

How to Make It

Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease two 9×5 loaf pans. I use butter and a light dusting of flour for this; cooking spray works too but I find the edges come out a little nicer the old-fashioned way. Set the pans aside.
Toss the blueberries with those 2 tablespoons of flour and set them aside too. This is your moment to feel pleased with yourself for remembering a step most people skip.
In a large bowl — and I do mean large, this is a generous batter — beat together the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until the whole thing is smooth and a little fluffy. I use a hand mixer for this because I find it easier, but you could do it by hand if you have strong arms and a lot of patience. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each one. Don’t rush this part. I’ve rushed it. The batter looked fine and the loaves came out fine but I always feel like I’m cutting corners when I do.
In a separate bowl — okay, so it’s technically a two-bowl recipe, I wasn’t entirely honest about that earlier — stir together the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing until just combined. Don’t overmix or you’ll end up with a tougher crumb, and this bread is too good to let that happen.
Fold the blueberries in gently. Gently. I’ve been aggressive about this step and the berries break open and streak the whole batter purple, which is fine, it still tastes the same, but it looks a little muddy when you slice it.
Pour the batter into your prepared pans — it’ll be thick, don’t worry — and bake for 45 to 55 minutes. I always check at 45. My oven runs a little hot so I usually pull it around 48 minutes. A toothpick in the center should come out clean, not wet, but a few crumbs is fine. That’s how you know it’s still moist.
Let the loaves cool in the pans for about ten minutes, then run a knife gently around the edges and flip them out onto a wire rack. They’ll need at least another twenty or thirty minutes before you can really cut into them properly, and waiting is hard, but worth it. The inside is still setting even once it’s out of the oven.

Variations

A streusel topping — butter, sugar, a little cinnamon — would be a nice addition if you want something a little extra. You could add lemon zest to the batter, maybe a teaspoon. You could swap the blueberries for raspberries, though I think they’d be more likely to bleed into the batter. A handful of chopped walnuts could work if you like texture. I don’t, but some people do.
I’ve thought about trying this with flavored cream cheese — honey walnut or something — but I haven’t worked up the nerve. There’s something to be said for leaving well enough alone.

Storage

Wrap the cooled loaves tightly in plastic wrap and they’ll keep on the counter for two or three days. In the fridge, maybe five — though in my house it’s never lasted that long so I’m guessing a little. For freezing, I wrap in plastic and then foil and they hold up beautifully for a couple of months. Slice before freezing if you think you’ll want individual pieces; it’s so much easier than trying to hack through a frozen loaf at 7am because you forgot to plan ahead.
I’ve also eaten it straight from the freezer, barely thawed, with coffee. I’m not proud of it, but I’m not ashamed of it either.