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Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

  • April 6, 2021
  • By Karen
  • 0 Comments
Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

This blog is sponsored by City Avenue Market

The idea around coffee cake is to have it with coffee, it doesn’t have coffee in it. Well, I guess it could but this version does not.  What I can promise you is this, it’s delicious with a cappuccino, a freshly brewed percolator of coffee or your favourite vanilla latte. 

This moist vanilla cake that is ribboned with cinnamon swirls (I love cinnamon) and topped with a scrumptious crumb layer. The trick is to have a top that is a little crunchy and full of buttery melt in your mouth deliciousness. Oh and I add nuts in this recipe, this particular one I added toasted hazelnuts! Feel free to use pecans or almonds.

The fat in this recipe is sour cream.  And you know what sour cream does for a cake right?! Me either, I looked it up.  It makes the cake super creamy.

More science,  when you are incorporating your liquid and flour into your finely whipped butter and sugar mixture, you need to alternate the flour and liquid, starting with the flour and ending with flour – why? Well, if you start with liquid the butter/sugar mixture cannot absorb this liquid hence the batter will separate. Then if you add in the flour at this point it will absorb but not nicely for having a lovely cake.  The cake will be extremely tight and heavy. 

There’s 4 parts to this recipe: the cake, the cinnamon swirl, the crumb topping + the glaze

Feel free to make this in a 9×13 pan but I like to make this in a circular ribbed pan to add visually to the presentation.

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

Ingredients for Cake |

1 C  Butter 

1 C sugar

⅔ C brown sugar

3 eggs

1 TBSP vanilla extract

¾ C Sour Cream

1 tsp salt

3 tsp baking powder

1 ¼ C milk

3 ½ C flour

Cinnamon Swirl |

¾ C brown sugar

¾ C flour

2 tsp cinnamon

½ pkg small vanilla pudding powder

Crumb Top |

6 TBSP butter, melted

1 C brown sugar

1 ½ TBSPS cinnamon

1 C flour

1/2 C chopped nuts, I used hazelnuts

Glaze |

1 C icing sugar

2-4 TBSP milk

INSTRUCTIONS |

Crumb topping – mix together melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and flour.  Using your hands to combine.  It will be quite crumby looking (in a good way).  Set aside.

Cinnamon Swirl – mix together brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, vanilla pudding powder.  Set aside.

Vanilla Cake – Add butter, brown sugar and sugar into your mixing bowl.  If you have a stand mixer attach the wire attachment. Let that mix up until all creamy and all the sugars are combined. One at a time add in the eggs till combined.  Add in the vanilla, sour cream, salt, baking powder and mix until combined. Alternate flour and milk, start and end with flour (the more science I mentioned above). Scraping down the side of the bowl as needed.

Alrighty now, let’s put this baby together.

Grab your prepared pan (or prepare it now with non stick spray).  Pour in half the vanilla cake batter.  Now it’s cinnamon swirl time.  Evenly pour your cinnamon mixture over the vanilla cake.  If you want to swirl your cinnamon into the batter for extra depth, use a knife to cut into the batter. Pour the remaining batter over top of the cinnamon layer.  

Now for the buttery crumb topping.  Spread evenly on top of the vanilla cake.  Put in your preheated 350 oven.  Bundt pan bake for 45-50 minutes. Check the cake with the toothpick test, if it’s clean then it’s done.  

When it’s done, place on a wire rack to cool. 

When cake has cooled, pour over the glaze. And serve!

Notes |

*Remember having your ingredients at room temperature will help with blending everything smoothly.  

*I also use vanilla paste in place of extract.  I say extract in the recipe as that is what is most common in kitchens.

*I also use the wire attachment on my mixer as I find the paddle one does not cream the sugars and butter as nicely.

BIG LOVE!!


All ingredients for this recipe you can find at all 3 City Avenue Market locations – New Westminster, Port Coquitlam + Commercial Drive

By Karen, April 6, 2021
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