The Best Lemon Blueberry Artisan Sourdough Bread Recipe

After 6 attempts, I finally nailed the ever-elusive lemon blueberry sourdough bread recipe (!!!).

It checks all the boxes: punchy lemon flavor, soft blueberries, a hint of sweetness, no gummy spots, and a dough that’s actually easy to handle.

I’ll be honest… by the fourth failed attempt (which was somehow way worse than the third), I was ready to admit defeat. But we pushed through.

And I say we because this recipe wouldn’t exist without all of you. Your suggestions, feedback, and encouragement guided every experiment, and together, we landed on a recipe that’s not just good—it’s one worth making again and again.

Affiliate disclaimer: there are a couple of affiliate links in this post for unique products I used to make this loaf. If you choose to purchase any of them after clicking my link, I thank you so much for supporting my work here.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Tried and tested: I went through a lot of failed attempts to get to this winning recipe. I promise you: it’s a good one.
• Simple ingredients: While I tested some niche ingredients like lemon essential oil, I ended up with a recipe that uses easy-to-find, simple ingredients. All you need here is dried blueberries, an orange, and three lemons.
• Easy-to-handle dough: Many of my trials produced sticky, impossible-to-manage dough. When using lemons, avoiding an overly acidic dough (which gets sticky fast) is a challenge. But with a few thoughtful recipe tweaks like a lemon-free fermentolyse and lower hydration, this dough manages to stay very beginner-friendly throughout the bulk fermentation and shaping.
• Even distribution of blueberries: no one wants all their blueberries on one side of the loaf (a common complaint I got from other bakers). By incorporating the blueberries during the 2nd set of stretch and folds, the blueberries are evenly dispersed throughout the dough.
• Punchy, bright lemon flavor: my complaint with lemon blueberry loaves I’ve made in the past is, 1) the lemon flavor disappears, or 2) the lemon flavor tastes and smells off. This loaf uses the zest of 2 lemons in the dough itself, plus the dried blueberries soak in a fresh lemon-orange juice mixture that amps up the brightness even more. Each bite has a fresh lemon flavor that is truly astounding.
• Optional glaze for added sweetness: last but not least, you can make a simple lemon glaze that’s just the zest and juice of one lemon with 75g of powdered sugar. When drizzled on the loaf, it adds an additional lemony sweetness that’s perfect for those who really prefer a dessert loaf. (And if you’re not a fan of super sweet? Just omit this!)

I’m so proud of this loaf!

Yes, there is more than one way to make a great lemon blueberry loaf. But my, oh my. This one is a clear winner.

The Journey: Six Attempts to Success

This recipe started with your ideas—so many great suggestions came in when I asked for tips on making the perfect blueberry lemon sourdough loaf.

These were my initial notes:

With all those insights in hand, I got to work.

It took six rounds of testing (and plenty of lessons learned) to land on the winning loaf. Let me take you through the journey.

P.S: If you want to follow along the entire journey, I saved each and every step to my Lemon Blueberry highlight bubble on Instagram. Tap through the videos to experience the whole journey with me!

Attempt 1: The Lemonade Experiment

I thought organic lemonade would be the perfect way to infuse natural lemon flavor into the dough. Here’s what I tried:

• 500g bread flour
• 200g organic lemonade
• 125g water
• 120g starter
• 10g salt
• 3g lemon extract
• Inclusions: 9 oz fresh blueberries dusted with flour, zest of 2 lemons mixed with 1 tsp sugar (rubbed together)

What went wrong: The lemonade didn’t deliver much lemon flavor at all, and the dough was stickier than expected. Plus, fresh blueberries caused gummy spots in the baked loaf. It looked beautiful and had a good rise, but the flavor fell flat. Even the kitchen renovation crew who sampled it agreed – it was underwhelming.

Attempt 2: The Fresh Lemon Juice Debacle

I swapped the lemonade for fresh lemon juice and added sugar.

• 500g bread flour
• 265g water
• 50g fresh lemon juice (from 2 lemons)
• 40g sugar
• 120g starter
• 10g salt
• Same inclusions as Attempt 1

What went wrong: The fresh lemon juice completely changed the dough structure. It overproofed way faster than expected, becoming extremely sticky and hard to handle. The overly acidic dough essentially behaved like a dough made with an acidic starter – super frustrating to handle. The loaf baked up ugly and flat. However, the flavor was incredible. The lemon came through beautifully, but the structure was a total flop. Fresh blueberries still led to gummy pockets.

Attempt 3: The Frozen Blueberry and Zest Test

This time, I wanted to try frozen blueberries, which I thawed and coated in flour. I also hoped the lemon zest in the dough would provide enough citrus flavor.

• 500g bread flour
• 325g water
• 100g starter
• 10g salt
• 40g sugar
• Zest of 1 lemon (rubbed with sugar)
• 8 oz (ish) frozen blueberries (thawed & coated in flour)

What went wrong: The dough was still sticky, and while the flavor improved, it could’ve been a tiny bit sweeter. Overall, this test wasn’t too bad. I felt like I was getting a lot closer to a winning loaf. I tested a lemon glaze (powdered sugar + lemon juice), which was amazing. I love that it’s an optional way to boost the lemon flavor and add extra sweetness.

Attempt 4: The Total Disaster

I thought rolling blueberries in powdered sugar and laminating lemon curd into the dough would be a great way to layer in flavor. Spoiler: it wasn’t.

• 500g bread flour
• 325g water
• 120g starter
• 10g salt
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 40g honey
• 5 oz frozen (thawed) blueberries, rolled in powdered sugar
• Lemon curd spread over the dough before rolling

What went wrong: Absolute chaos. The powdered sugar macerated the blueberries, pulling out their liquid and making everything sticky. The lemon curd turned into long gummy streaks in the loaf. The whole thing was a disaster, from shaping to baking. The final texture in the loaf was downright gross.

Attempt 5: The Breakthrough

After the fourth attempt, I really needed a win, and Attempt 5 did not disappoint.

Major adjustments here:

• Cut hydration by 25g to decrease stickiness
• Used a sweet starter (10g starter, 10g honey, 50g flour, 50g water, fermented overnight)
• Hydrated dried blueberries in lemon + orange juice
• Added lemon zest after a 1-hour fermentolyse to reduce acidity impact and give the dough a jumpstart on bulk fermentation
• Added some lemon essential oil to the dough for a concentrated lemon flavor

What worked: The dried blueberries were a game changer—no gummy spots, better distribution, and incredible flavor from the soaking mixture. The sweet starter helped balance acidity, and the dough was way easier to handle.

What still needed work: I used lemon essential oil for extra lemony flavor, but my DMs exploded with people saying they did not want to buy it or thought it was unsafe to consume. I needed another way to boost lemon flavor that everyone could get on board with. I also wanted to add the blueberries during the stretch and folds instead of the shaping – I wasn’t happy with their distribution.

Attempt 6: The Winner

The final version, with all lessons learned:

• More lemon zest, rubbed into sugar with a mortar and pestle to extract maximum flavor
• Dried blueberries soaked in citrus juice for that deep, punchy blueberry taste
• A sweet starter
• Blueberries incorporated during stretch and folds for even distribution

Note: In attempt 6, I used 6 ounces of dried blueberries. I felt like it may have been a little too much, so for the 7th loaf I made (which I photographed for this recipe post), I cut it back to 4 ounces. See the difference here:

This loaf was perfect. Strong lemon flavor, even blueberry placement, and no gummy spots. Plus, zero-waste – every part of the lemons (zest and juice) got used!

Baker’s Timeline

Here’s a suggested baker’s timeline to help you plan your bake:

Day 1
8:00 PM	Make the sweet starter
Day 2
8:00 AM	Mix the main dough (minus the salt), cover, and let sit on the counter for 1 hour. Soak dried blueberries in lemon-orange juice mixture.
9:00 AM	Add salt and citrus sugar, incorporate well.
9:30 AM	Stretch and fold #1
10:00 AM	Stretch and fold #2, add drained blueberries
10:30 AM	Final fold; then, let rise until bulk fermentation is done; dough should be puffy, bubbly, and jiggly (took about 7 hours in my home at 73°F)
3:00 PM	Pre-shape
3:30 PM	Final shape; refrigerate overnight
Day 3
Anytime	Score & Bake at 450°F for 30 min covered, 10-15 mins uncovered.

Ingredients

You can visit the recipe card for the full ingredient list, but I wanted to touch on some of the ingredients that make this lemon blueberry loaf a winner.

• Sweet starter: you can use a regular starter for this recipe, but the sweet starter does transfer some sweetness to the final loaf. The final loaf is also less sour.
• Citrus sugar: Muddling the lemon zest with sugar helps fully release all those aromatic oils. It is the perfect replacement for the lemon essential oil. The mortar and pestle made quick work of the job, but it isn’t required.
• Dried blueberries soaked in fresh lemon and orange juice: retained structure better than fresh blueberries, preventing gummy spots. Also gave an avenue for infusing more lemon flavor by rehydrating them in a lemon and orange juice mixture. The orange is hardly detectable but adds a layer of complexity that I adore.
• Optional lemon glaze (powdered sugar and zest + juice from a lemon): A final citrusy punch that takes the loaf to the next level. The perfect addition for those who want extra sweetness or to treat this like a dessert loaf.

How to Make Lemon Blueberry Sourdough Bread (Step by Step)

Step 1: Make the Sweet Starter 

The night before you prep your dough (two nights before baking), make the sweet starter. It’s like feeding your regular starter, but adding a bit of honey for sweetness.

In a jar, mix 10g sourdough starter, 10g honey, 50g bread flour, and 50g water. Stir until fully combined. Cover the jar loosely (with a lid set on top or a paper towel with a rubber band) and let it sit on the counter at room temperature overnight.

After 10-14 hours, you’ll have 120g of bubbly, active starter. You only need 100g for this recipe, so you can either discard the extra 20g or save it for later.

Step 2: Mix the Dough

In a big glass mixing bowl, combine 300g warm water and 100g sweet starter and stir until the starter is dissolved.

Add 500g of bread flour and mix using a Danish dough whisk or your hands until there’s no dry flour left.

The dough might look all shaggy and feel sticky at first, but it’ll smooth out as it comes together.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest for a one-hour fermentolyse at room temperature.

For this lemon blueberry loaf, the fermentolyse is especially helpful. It gives the dough a head start on the fermentation before the lemony additions can make it too acidic.

Step 3: Prepare the Citrus Sugar

While you’re letting your dough rest, zest two lemons using a microplane.

If you don’t have a microplane, you can use a regular grater, but a microplane gives you the finest zest.

Add the zest to a mortar with about 25g of sugar and, using your pestle, grind it together.

If you don’t have a pestle and mortar, just rub the zest and sugar together with your fingers to really press and release all those natural citrus oils.

When it’s all rubbed together, it’ll start to smell amazing, and that’s when you know you’ve really intensified the lemon flavor, and it’s ready to add to your dough.

Step 4: Incorporate the Salt and Citrus Sugar

Once the dough has rested for an hour, sprinkle 10g of salt and the citrus sugar mixture evenly over the top and use your fingertips to dimple it in.

Then, you can either do your first set of stretch and folds or knead the dough to mix everything together. 

The goal here is to fully incorporate the salt and citrus sugar so it’s evenly distributed throughout the dough.

You’ll notice that the dough starts to feel smoother and more elastic the longer you work it. Keep at it for about 3-4 minutes, and by the end, your dough should be well-mixed and soft to the touch. 

Step 5: Hydrate the Dried Blueberries

In a small jar or bowl, pour the juice of 2 lemons (the same ones you zested earlier) and 1 orange over 4-6 oz of dried blueberries, and give it a little stir.

P.S: This is the citrus juicer I use, and I love it.

If you love a super blueberry-loaded loaf, go for 6 oz—the loaf will be packed with berries. I tried 6 oz, and it seemed like a lot, so I scaled down to 4 oz.

But honestly, I think 4 oz wasn’t quite enough. 5 oz might just be the sweet spot!

Let the blueberries soak while the dough rests to help them plump up and soak in that citrusy goodness.

Step 6: First Set of Stretch and Folds

Wet your hands a little to keep the dough from sticking, then pick up one corner of the dough with your fingers, stretch it up, and fold it over the rest of the dough.

Turn the bowl a quarter turn, grab the next corner, and repeat—stretch and fold it over. Keep going around the dough, making sure each corner gets stretched and folded towards the center.

The dough will start to feel a bit firmer with each stretch and fold. Once you’ve gone all the way around and it resists a bit, stop.

Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes before you start the next set.

Step 7: Add Blueberries with the Second Set of Stretch and Folds

On the second set of stretch and folds, add the blueberries. It might feel a bit chaotic at first, but adding them here works best for an even distribution.

Grab the bowl of blueberries you set aside to soak in the citrus juice. Drain the juice (save it for a cocktail or mocktail if you like!), and pat any extra moisture off the blueberries with a paper towel.

Add the blueberries a quarter at a time with each stretch and fold. Start by sprinkling a quarter of the blueberries on top of the dough, then stretch the dough up and fold it over the blueberries.

Repeat with the next quarter, and keep folding until all the blueberries are added.

Cover and let sit for another 30 minutes.

Step 8: Final Coil Fold

For the final dough strengthening session, I like to do a coil fold to build up extra dough strength without overworking it. Since all the blueberries are already in there, it’s easier on the dough and helps keep things nice and smooth.

To do the coil fold, gently lift the center of the dough and let the edges naturally drape down on the sides. Then, tuck the edges underneath the dough, like you’re folding it into itself, and set it back down in the bowl. 

If the dough still feels a little slack or not as strong as you’d like, you can do an extra coil fold after another 30-minute rest. 

Step 9: Bulk Fermentation

Cover the dough and let it ferment at room temperature until it’s done. The time it takes will depend on your environment, so keep that in mind. 

The fermentation timer starts when the starter is mixed with the water and flour. For reference, mine took about 7 hours at 73°F (23°C).

You’ll know it’s done when you see visual signs like it being puffy, jiggly, and having visible bubbles on the surface and sides.

Here’s what my dough looked like when I dumped it out:

Step 9: Pre-shape the Dough 

Mist your work surface with water—this always works better for me than using flour, and it keeps the dough from drying out.

Gently turn the dough out of the bowl onto your surface. Then, using a push-and-pull motion with your hands and a bench scraper, start shaping the dough into a round ball. The goal is to have a smooth, tight top.

Once it’s shaped, let the dough rest uncovered on the counter for about 20 minutes, or just until it starts to relax a bit.

Step 10: Final Shaping

Scoop the dough up and flip it over into your palms so the smooth side is facing down. For a batard, fold the edges to the center like a book, to make a caddy clasp.

For a boule, rotate it and fold it twice to get a nice round shape. 

Step 11: Cold Proof Overnight

Once it’s shaped, set it into a floured banneton, seam side up. Pinch the seam together to give it a bit more tension and seal everything in place.

Quick tip: When you’re using blueberries or other inclusions that might leak, I suggest skipping the wood pulp banneton. If the blueberries leak during the cold retard, it may stain your banneton. I finally found a good use for those silicone bannetons!

Cover it with a flour sack towel or plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for a cold-proof overnight, or about 8-24 hours.

Step 12: Bake

Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C) with a Dutch oven inside for at least 30 minutes to get it nice and hot.

Once the oven’s ready, flip your cold dough onto parchment paper or a bread sling. Score the top with a bread lame or sharp knife to control the rise, and carefully place it into the Dutch oven.

Bake with the lid on for 25 minutes; then, take the lid off.

Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 205-210°F (96-99°C).

Let it cool on a wire rack before slicing.

Step 13: Optional Glaze

If you love a touch of extra sweetness, whisk together 75g powdered sugar with the zest and juice of 1 lemon.

Drizzle it over the cooled loaf just before slicing, or drizzle it onto each individual slice.

FAQs

Can you really taste the orange from soaking the blueberries in lemon and orange juice?

Not really—it doesn’t make the bread taste like oranges. It just adds a more complex acidity that balances the flavors, which I think is lovely.

How’s the blueberry flavor?

The blueberry flavor is great. The dried blueberries plump up beautifully when rehydrated, so you get a nice burst of blueberry in every bite.

Can I use fresh blueberries instead of dried?

Every time I’ve tried, I ended up with slightly gummy spots around the fresh blueberries in the finished loaf. Dried blueberries solve that problem and have the bonus of soaking up extra citrus flavor when rehydrated in lemon and orange juice.

That said, if you like that extra moisture from fresh blueberries, I’d add them at the same time (during the stretch and folds), but toss them in all-purpose or bread flour first.

Another inclusion loaf you might like: Italian Herbs & Cheese Artisan Sourdough Bread Recipe

Conclusion

After six attempts, I finally cracked the code on the perfect blueberry lemon sourdough loaf.

And this loaf is one for the books. The flavor is bold, the texture is dreamy, and the lemon glaze? Chef’s kiss.

If you make it, let me know how it turns out—because if there’s one thing I love more than baking sourdough, it’s seeing all of you baking it too.

To try next: Cinnamon Swirl Sourdough Bread Recipe: No Stress, No Leaks