This coffee cake recipe is so easy to make and is the perfect accompaniment to an afternoon cup of joe!! It has a buttery coffee crust topped with coffee infused cake and then layered with fluffy whipped cream. A delicious aroma of coffee fills the room whenever you make this delicious coffee cake treat.
What is Coffee Cake?
Coffee cake is traditionally a vanilla cake with cinnamon streusel that is served along with coffee. Often times the cake itself doesn’t have any coffee in it and instead the name refers to how it is frequently served with coffee.
Keep reading to find out more about this coffee cake recipe...
Jump to:
- What is Coffee Cake?
- Why Make Coffee Cake for Dessert?
- Equipment and Tools to Help you Make This Coffee Cake
- Ingredients Needed to Make Coffee Cake
- Tips and Tricks to Making the Best Cake
- Removing the Cake from the Pan
- How to Make this Coffee Cake Recipe Different
- FAQS + OTHER GREAT TIPS YOU SHOULDN’T SKIP
- How to Store Coffee Cake
- about Blair
- Recipe Details
- Comments
This is a guest post by: Blair from Baked by Blair. Read more about her here.
Why Make Coffee Cake for Dessert?
- It pairs a perfect buttery crust with a soft and tender cake.
- The options for toppings on this cake are endless.
- It actually incorporates coffee into it! Many coffee cakes do not in fact use coffee in the recipe. You’ll be sure to get a hint of coffee in this recipe.
- This cake is perfectly flavored with coffee and pairs extremely well with a cup of tea or a pot of coffee!
Equipment and Tools to Help you Make This Coffee Cake
Selecting the right Pan
Choosing the right pan can become a quite the task. But to make this coffee cake recipe you have a few choices. You can use a 9" round cake pan that is 2" deep. That's what I used to make this cake recipe.
Tools and Equipment
While these tools aren't absolutely necessary, they will make baking a cake a ton easier. These will come in handy are an Electric Stand Mixer and a Coffee Grinder for the freshest ground coffee.
Ingredients Needed to Make Coffee Cake
Here’s what you need to make this coffee cake recipe! I’ll go over how to make the crust first, then the cake batter, and finally how to make whipped cream and assemble this yummy treat!
The Crust:
- Unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Brown sugar
- Ground coffee
- All-purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Salt
The Cake Batter:
- Baking Soda
- Sour cream, at room temperature
- Egg, at room temperature
- Pure vanilla extract
- Crust crumbs (from above)
- Slivered almonds or chopped nuts of your choice
Do you like lemon? Why not try this lemon cake recipe? You won't regret it.
Tips and Tricks to Making the Best Cake
HOW TO MAKE the Coffee cake
- First, combine your all-purpose flour, brown sugar, butter, coffee, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in the bowl of an electric stand mixer using the paddle attachment. Cream together until mixture resembles wet sand. The brown sugar provides depth of flavour to the crust and cake.
- Pour ½ your crust crumbs into a greased pan. Firmly press crumbs down into pan using a flat glass. It’s important to press them down firmly to prevent the crust from crumbling when it’s cut in to.
- In a separate bowl stir together baking soda, sour cream, egg and ½ the crust crumbs.
- Pour cake batter over top of crust and bake for 40-45 minutes.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan completely before removing or serve directly in pan.
Removing the Cake from the Pan
It's always best to generously spray the bottom of your cake pan or grease it with butter and sprinkle it with flour.
Another great tip is using parchment paper to line the bottom. If you don't have round parchment paper you can take a square piece of parchment paper and fold it into four. Take the baking pan and flip it upside down. Then take the center tip of the folded piece of paper and align it with the center of the pan and cut following the edge of the pan. Unfold and see if it fits in the pan, adjust as necessary.
HOW TO MAKE THE whipped cream
- Using a stand mixer, or a medium bowl and an electric hand mixer, heavy whipping cream and sugar on high speed until it thickens (2-3 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- You can leave the whipped cream in the bowl if you will be serving the coffee cake immediately, or you can put it into an airtight container or wrap with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to save for later.
HOW TO ASSEMBLE
- Make sure your cake has fully cooled after baking before topping with whipped cream/buttercream or other fun toppings!! The last thing you want is a runny whipped cream mess before you get a chance to taste your finished product.
- Remove cake from pan and place on a serving plate.
- Place it gently on a serving tray for immediate consumption, or in a sealable container for later enjoyment!
- When you’re ready to eat the cake, place whipped cream on each individual plate. This allows for uneaten cake to be stored for later.
How to Make this Coffee Cake Recipe Different
Once you think about it, you can create unlimited combinations when making Coffee Cake. This Coffee Cake version is just the beginning, and I have several ideas for you to consider!
Coffee Cake topped with fresh strawberries and whipped cream or blackberry Swiss meringue buttercream frosting.
FAQS + OTHER GREAT TIPS YOU SHOULDN’T SKIP
How do I measure my flour properly?
Do NOT use your measuring cup to scoop flour. Instead, I like to use a spoon and scoop flour into my measuring cup and then use a knife to level it off. Using the measuring cup to scoop flour packs down the flour and you’ll end up with more flour than the recipe calls for and your cake will be dry. The opposite of what we want in a good cake recipe.
Why unsalted butter?
I recommend unsalted butter for 95% of the recipes on this blog. Using salted butter will result in overly salty and not very tasty treats.
Why is my crust crunchy and dry?
Over baking will cause this, so make sure to keep a close eye while it is baking.
How long does this stay fresh?
The cake can keep fresh for 3-4 days in an airtight container at room temperature as long as you haven’t topped the entire cake with whipped cream. Cake topped with whipped cream should be eaten right away.
How to Store Coffee Cake
The cake can keep fresh for 3-4 days in an airtight container at room temperature as long as you haven’t topped the entire cake with whipped cream. Cake topped with whipped cream should be eaten right away.
Note that the storage guidelines provided on this page and site are estimates from personal experiences. We are all adults and as an adult you are responsible to ensure that the food you eat is safe to eat. Since, I'm not a food safety expert, you are responsible to review your local guidelines on food storage prior to storing any food left-overs.
For Canadian Guidelines check Government of Canada's Food and Safety Guidelines for further information and resources.
about Blair
Guest Blogger and recipe developer at Baked by Blair
Blair is the founder, blogger and baker at BAKED by Blair. She shares indulgent dessert recipes and inspires beginners to bust out the baking pans and get baking. Blair began baking when she made her son's first birthday cake and fell in love! She now teaches cake classes to virtual students all over the world!
Recipe Details
Easy Coffee Cake Recipe
This coffee cake recipe is so easy to make and is the perfect accompaniment to an afternoon cup of joe!! It has a buttery coffee crust topped with coffee infused cake and then layered with fluffy whipped cream. A delicious aroma of coffee fills the room whenever you make this delicious treat.
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 tbsp ground coffee
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
Cake Batter
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup sour cream at room temperature
- 1 egg at room temperature
- ½ cup slivered almonds
Whipped Cream:
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease a 9" pan and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together brown sugar, flour, butter, coffee, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
- Spoon half the mixture into the pan and press down firmly using a flat glass.
- In a separate bowl mix together baking soda, sour cream, egg, and
remaining half of crust crumbs. Pour over crust in greased pan. - Sprinkle almonds on top.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the top comes out clean.
- Cool completely before topping with whipped cream.
Whipped Topping
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with an electric hand mixer, whip heavy cream and sugar on high speed for 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy. Take care not to over mix or whipped cream will appear curdled.
- Top on cake immediately or place in an airtight container in the fridge to use at another time.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 468Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 92mgSodium: 235mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 1gSugar: 33gProtein: 5g
Nutrition data is calculated automatically by Nutritionix and isn't always accurate. I am not a certified nutritionist and make no claims to the contrary. Each individual’s dietary needs and restrictions are unique to the individual. You are ultimately responsible for all decisions pertaining to your health.
Terri Gilson says
I love the delicious simplicity of coffee cake and this one sounds amazing!
Cindy Mom the Lunch Lady says
Your coffee cake looks fantastic! I love that you put coffee in the crumbly topping. Brilliant!
nancy says
You always have the best cake recipes!! this coffee cake sounds like the perfect morning calL
AmyG says
Thanks. I hope you enjoy it!
Sadia Malik says
I love a good coffee cake and this looks delicious.
Bernice says
What a lovely looking coffee cake. This is one style of cake that I love but I don't make it often enough. I love that you actually have coffee in your coffee cake too.