Cinnamon Swirled Coffee Cake
- PREP 30min
- COOK 45min
- TOTAL 1hrs 15min
Our sour cream coffee cake is outrageously good. We make the batter with sour cream, butter, and vanilla, then add brown sugar cinnamon streusel. We also add a maple butter drizzle after baking, which is delicious, but you can leave the cake plain or add a dusting of powdered sugar on top instead.
You Will Need
For Coffee Cake
12 tablespoons (170g) unsalted butter, at room temperature, 1 ½ sticks
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
2 ¼ cups (290g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 ¼ cups (280g or 10 oz) sour cream
For Streusel
8 tablespoons (115g) unsalted butter, melted, 1 stick
1 tablespoon molasses
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/3 cup (65g) brown sugar
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups (170g) all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (70g) walnuts, chopped, optional
For Maple Butter Drizzle
2 tablespoons (30g) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1/2 cup (55g) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
Pinch fine sea salt
Directions
Make Batter
Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350°F (176°C). Line a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
Sift or whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
In a large bowl, beat 12 tablespoons of room-temperature butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar with an electric mixer on high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. (Alternatively, add butter and sugars to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on medium speed until fluffy.)
Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then add the egg yolk, vanilla, and almond extract.
With the mixer on low speed, add one-third of the flour mixture to the batter. When it’s mostly combined, add another third and mix until almost no flour remains. Add the sour cream and mix just until smooth, then finish by adding the remaining flour to the batter and beat until just combined. Finish stirring with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely blended.
Make Streusel
In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter with the molasses, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until well blended. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and flour. Stir until a soft dough forms. Stir in nuts (optional).
Bake Cake
Spread about half of the cake batter into the prepared baking pan. It’s okay if the batter doesn’t spread all the way to each corner. Scatter half of the streusel over the cake batter. (I like scattering larger pieces and smaller crumbles.)
Spoon dollops of the remaining batter on top of the streusel and then spread into an even layer. It’s okay if some of the streusel from below gets mixed into the top layer of batter.
Finish with the remaining streusel on top. It might look like there isn’t enough batter, but don’t worry, the cake rises quite a bit, while some of the streusel will fall into the cake.
Bake the coffee cake until it starts pulling away from the pan’s sides and is springy. A cake tester or toothpick inserted into the middle should come out mostly clean, 40 to 50 minutes.
Cool the cake in the baking pan for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack and cool it completely.
To Finish
Melt the butter in a small bowl, and then stir in the maple syrup. Whisk in the powdered sugar, milk, and salt. The mixture should be the consistency of thick syrup and easily drizzled. If it’s too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add a little more milk.
Drizzle the maple butter frosting over the cake, then set aside for 5 minutes or until it hardens slightly. Cut the cake into 12 large slices or 24 smaller slices, and then serve.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Measuring the flour: Flour should be spooned and leveled in the measuring cup. Use a spoon to add the flour to the cup, and then use a flat edge to scrape the top of the cup. This method ensures you do not add too much flour to the batter.
- Room temperature butter & eggs: The butter and eggs must be room temperature for this cake recipe. If the eggs are too cold, the chill from the eggs will make your batter lumpy since they will chill the butter, and it will start to harden. It’s best to leave butter out in advance at room temperature. Place eggs into a bowl with lukewarm water for 5 to 10 minutes to quickly bring them to room temperature. (It’s okay if the sour cream is cooler since we add it at the end, but I prefer to take it out before making the cake recipe.)
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.