This moist & buttery coffee cake is packed with flavor, yet simple and easy to make! It consists of a fluffy, tender vanilla cake that is adorned with a flavor packed cinnamon streusel both in the centre and top of the cake. The perfect sweet treat to have with a cup of coffee (hence the name!) or tea 🙂
What is a Coffee Cake (and why doesn’t it have coffee)?!
If you’ve never comes across a classic coffee cake before, you’re probably wondering what it is and why it’s called a coffee cake when it has no coffee in it! A coffee cake is a type of cake that is typically intended to be eaten with coffee (or any hot drink really) and is often served as a breakfast, brunch or dessert cake. Despite its name, coffee cake does not necessarily contain coffee as an ingredient (check out my moist coffee cake recipe if you want a cake packed with actual coffee).
Coffee cakes traditionally feature a streusel topping made from sugar, butter, and flour, which adds a crunchy texture. For this recipe I’ve opted for a cinnamon steusel (sometimes called a crumble topping), which is very popular amongst many coffee cake recipes (spices like cinnamon and nutmeg are often used to provide a comforting/warm feel to the cake).
Many recipes also have a layer of the streusel running through the centre of cake (like mine!), to create a ‘cinnamon swirl’ that is visible when you slice the cake. I also opted to use a simple vanilla glaze on the top to add a little extra sweetness.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Flavor: This cinnamon coffee cake recipe is rich and buttery, yet light and fluffy. The cinnamon streusel is packed with cinnamon flavor (without it being overpowering) and the simple vanilla glaze adds an extra touch of sweetness as the cake itself isn’t overly sweet.
Texture: The cake itself is super fluffy and has a tender crumb, which contrasts so well with the crunchy streusel topping. I made sure the streusel topping wasn’t overly buttery and sweet, or overly dry either – it bakes up perfectly crisp and has a great crunch to it!
I opted to use buttermilk for my vanilla cake (as opposed to sour cream, which is commonly used in many coffee cake recipes) as I wanted a more light & fluffy texture (as opposed to something a bit more dense).
Ease: For such a beautiful looking cake, this coffee cake is easy to make! It’s a simple one pan recipe and uses the same crumble/streusel mixture for the centre and top of the cake – no extra cinnamon sugar mixture required!
You also don’t need to wait for it to completely cool (it is SO GOOD served slightly warm), so it’s quick as well!
How to make Coffee Cake
Preheat oven to 180 °C (350°F) conventional (see note 1 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease an 8-inch square cake tin or baking dish (I use my homemade cake release). Line the bottom with parchment paper as well. Set aside.
Streusel: Combine light brown sugar, all purpose flour and cinnamon. Stir until well combined (and no large chunks remain).
Add in melted butter and mix until well combined. You should have a crumble like consistency. Place into the fridge while preparing the cake batter.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined and set aside for now.
In a large bowl combine butter, oil and white sugar. Using a hand mixer (or a stand mixer using the paddle attachment) on a medium speed, cream for two minutes until light and fluffy.
Add in eggs one by one on a low speed, mixing well in between each addition.
Add in vanilla and buttermilk and mix on a low speed until well combined. The batter may look a little curdled. Remove any batter off the attachments as the rest of the mixing will be done by hand.
Add in presifted dry ingredients from earlier to the wet ingredients and fold with a spatula until just combined. Avoid overmixing – only mix until you can’t see anymore large lumps or streaks of unmixed flour.
Once the batter is done, remove the crumble from the fridge. It should have solidified a bit by now. Break the crumble up into small pieces (I use a spoon first, then finish with my hands). It should be a thick sand consistency (not quite as fine as regular sand) with small lumps throughout the streusel.
Pour half of the cake batter into the cake tin and evenly spread it out with a spatula. Sprinkle half of the streusel mixture evenly over the top of the batter. Don’t leave any gaps, so try and cover the cake batter as best you can. Once done, evenly spread the remaining batter over the top. The best way to do this is to place spoonfuls of the batter around the centre of the cake tin, making sure each spoonful of batter is touching eachother with no gaps. Once all the batter is in, begin spreading out the batter from the centre to the edges of the cake tin, without the spatula ever touching the streusal (see video for demonstration). Don’t worry if its not perfect – it’ll still taste incredible 🙂
Finish by scattering the remaining streusel mixture evenly over the top of the cake. Try not to leave any gaps.
Drop the cake tin very lightly on the counter once to remove any large air bubbles. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Allow the cake to cool in the cake tin for 20 mins, before turning it out onto a wire rack and then turning it out again onto your serving plate (so that the cake is upright – see video for demonstration).
Vanilla Glaze: While the cake continues to cool, prepare the vanilla glaze. Combine powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Mix until smooth.
Once the cake is slightly warm to the touch (you don’t need to wait for the cake to completely cool), drizzle the vanilla glaze over the top. Slice and enjoy!
How to Store Coffee Cake
This coffee cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for a few days, after which it’s best to place into the fridge for up to a week.
Classic Coffee Cake (with Cinnamon Streusel)
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Cinnamon Streusel
- ¾ cup (150 g) soft light brown sugar
- 1 cup (120 g) all purpose flour
- 2 tsps ground cinnamon
- 6 tbsp (85 g) melted unsalted butter
Cake Batter
- 1½ cups (180 g) all purpose flour
- ¼ cup (30 g) cornstarch
- 1½ tsps baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- ¼ cup (53 g) unflavored vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- ¾ cup (150 g) white granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs - room temperature
- 2 tsps vanilla extract/essence
- 1 cup (225 g) buttermilk - room temperature
Vanilla Glaze
- ½ cup (63 g) powdered sugar - also known as icing/confectioners sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract/essence
- 1 tbsp milk - heavy cream okay too
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 °C (350°F) conventional (see note 1 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease an 8x8 inch square cake tin (I use my homemade cake release). Line the bottom with parchment paper as well. Set aside.
Cinnamon Streusel
- Combine light brown sugar, all purpose flour and cinnamon. Mix until well combined (and no large chunks remain).
- Add in melted butter and mix until well combined. You should have a crumble like consistency. Place into the fridge while preparing the cake batter.
Cake Batter
- Sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined and set aside for now.
- In a large bowl combine butter, oil and white sugar. Using a hand or stand mixer on a medium speed, cream for two minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add in eggs one by one on a low speed, mixing well in between each addition.
- Add in vanilla and buttermilk and mix on a low speed until well combined. The batter may look a little curdled. Remove any batter off the attachments as the rest of the mixing will be done by hand.
- Add in presifted dry ingredients from earlier and fold with a spatula until just combined. Avoid overmixing - only mix until you can't see anymore large lumps or streaks of unmixed flour.
- Once the batter is done, remove the streusel from the fridge. It should have solidified a bit by now. Break the streusel up into small pieces (I use a spoon first, then finish with my hands). It should be a thick sand consistency (not quite as fine as regular sand) with small lumps throughout the streusel.
- Pour half of the cake batter into the cake tin and evenly spread it out with a spatula. Sprinkle half of the streusel mixture evenly over the top of the batter. Don't leave any gaps, so try and cover the cake batter as best you can. Once done, evenly spread the remaining batter over the top. The best way to do this is to place spoonfuls of the batter around the centre of the cake tin, making sure each spoonful of batter is touching eachother with no gaps. Once all the batter is in, begin spreading out the batter from the centre to the edges of the cake tin, without the spatula ever touching the streusal (see video for demonstration). Don't worry if its not perfect - it'll still taste incredible 🙂
- Finish by scattering the remaining streusel mixture evenly over the top of the cake. Try not to leave any gaps.
- Drop the cake tin very lightly on the counter once to remove any large air bubbles. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Allow the cake to cool in the cake tin for 20 minutes, before turning it out onto a wire rack and then turning it out again onto your serving plate (so that the cake is upright - see video for demonstration).
Vanilla Glaze
- While the cake continues to cool, prepare the vanilla glaze. Combine powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Mix until smooth.
- Once the cake is slightly warm to the touch (you don't need to wait for the cake to completely cool), drizzle the vanilla glaze over the top. Slice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
34 Comments
Good day,
Wondering if I can substitute the buttermilk with greek yogurt?
Hi there! 🙂
I haven’t tried that myself so not too sure how it would affect the taste and texture sorry! Usually yogurt works well as a buttermilk substitute (regular thinner yogurt as opposed to Greek for larger quantities like in this recipe). I think it should be okay, but the tang from the yogurt may come through in the final cake so just keep that in mind 🙂
Hey, why is the sugar 405g for this cake in the nutritional facts? I would love to try, but that’s of some concern to me. Is it an error?
Hi Reena! 🙂
That’s the sugar content for the whole cake (not per piece). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe if you decide to give it a go 🙂
The best coffee cake!! Very moist the flavors are amazing. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Thanks so much Lisa! So glad you enjoyed the recipe 😀
Hi Maryam,
This recipe was exactly as you described, along with the Easy Almond Cake, and a hit with all who managed to have a slice. Your cooking videos are the best I’ve watched, and I’ve watched many other cooking videos. You do a fantastic job in presenting your recipes on video. The website presentation is also wonderful- great work. Could you please let me and no doubt other home bakers know, if any of your delicious recipes can be made gluten-free?
Thank you and keep up the great work.
Kind regards,
Jane.
Hi Jane! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such a wonderful comment, it truly means a lot! 🙂
I haven’t tried turning my recipes into gluten free recipes myself, though many readers have with success when using a gluten free flour that is meant to act as a 1:1 substitute with all-purpose flour 🙂
Hope that helps Jane!
Love this recipe! Thanks Cakes by MK 💗
Thanks so much Saadiyah! 😀
So glad you loved the recipe and really appreciate the wonderful feedback 🙂
If making eggless can we substitute yoghurt instead of egg
Hi Sathya! 🙂
I haven’t tried this recipe as an eggless version myself so I’m not too sure if yoghurt would work well as an egg substitute for this recipe sorry! Would love to hear how it goes if you decide to try it out 🙂