Everyone loves coffee cake!

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

It’s Saturday morning.  We spent last night at a friends house having a wonderful dinner fishing on the lake behind their house and playing card games.  It was a great evening with friends and even the kids enjoyed themselves.  There were no ‘can we go home yet’ pleas of boredom because they were having so much fun.

The problem with having fun is that we stayed a lot later than we planned.  So I’m sleepy but, it’s Saturday morning!  I HAVE to bake something for breakfast, right?? I mean, it’s a tradition, an expectation!  And I’m not kidding about that!  When my mother-in-law comes over, even for just a few minutes, she immediately goes to the kitchen and asks what I baked that day.  As my kids wake up, usually late morning and all at different times, they circle the kitchen island to find out what’s for breakfast, fresh from the oven.

So I had to bake SOMETHING, even if I really just wanted to sit and drink my coffee and enjoy the silence for a bit.

So a quick coffee cake was the answer.  I always have the ingredients on hand, it’s quick to throw together and everyone loves a piece of moist cake with a thick, crumbly brown sugar topping.  And I do mean a THICK topping.  The great coffee cake debate is universal…how much topping is too much?  I have had coffee cakes that had more topping than cake and some where the cake was the centerpiece and there was just enough topping to add a bit of crunch and buttery sweetness.

I personally feel this should be solved with compromise.  Half and half. Fifty percent cake and fifty percent topping.  Then everyone is happy!  So here is this mornings’ quick coffee cake recipe.  Enjoy!

50/50 Coffee Cake

Crumble Topping

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 3/4 cups brown sugar
• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Cake batter

• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 tsps. vanilla extract OR almond extract, depending on your preference
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Spray a 9×13 pan with well with cooking spray.
2. Make the crumble – In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add the melted butter and stir with a fork until combined and the mixture makes large clumps.  Set aside.
3. Make the cake batter – In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time, until just combined.  Add the vanilla and sour cream and beat until just combined.  Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Fold the flour mixture into the batter by hand using a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are just combined.
4. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.  Try not to lick too much off your fingers!  It even tastes yummy at this stage!  Sprinkle the crumble over the batter by hand, breaking up large clumps a bit but leave some big clumps as these are super yummy when baked!  Cover the batter completely and press down gently.
5. Bake at 350° for about 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes on a wire rack before removing from the pan.  I always bake this in a pretty pan so it can be served right from the pan.  Cut into 15 squares and serve.