This is my all-time favorite coffee cake. It’s super soft, buttery, and loaded with a thick cinnamon-sugar layer right through the middle. Perfect for breakfast or brunch with a hot cup of coffee!
Is there anything better than calling cake breakfast and getting away with it? This recipe is exactly what I want next to my coffee—soft, buttery cake, a cinnamon-sugar swirl in the middle, a crumb topping that means business, and a sweet glaze to finish it all off. If you’ve been looking for a go-to coffee cake that feels bakery-level but still comes together with minimal effort, this is it.
Why You’ll Love This Coffee Cake Recipe
- Tender cake that’s packed with flavor. This cake has that buttery, sturdy texture I love. It’s like a fluffier pound cake. It can hold its own under all that cinnamon-sugar goodness and crumb topping.
- The crumb is everything. Thick, sweet, and next-level delicious. If you’re here for the crumb, you’re in the right place.
- That glaze on top? Not optional. I always finish mine with a quick icing drizzle because… well, why wouldn’t you?
- It’s from-scratch and totally doable. No mixes here, but don’t stress! My teenage sons have made this one on their own, and it turned out great.
Heads up on the bake time: This is a thick cake, so depending on your oven, it might need a few extra minutes. If the top starts browning too fast, just tent it with foil and keep going until the center is set. Trust me, it’s worth it.
How To Make Coffee Cake
- Prep your tools. Preheat the oven to 350°F and coat a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Make the cinnamon filling. In a medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon until combined. Set aside.
- Make the crumb topping. In another medium bowl, mix the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour until it resembles coarse crumbs. Use your hands to form some larger pieces. Set aside.
- Make the batter. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer), beat the butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the wet ingredients. Add the eggs, vanilla, sour cream, salt, and baking powder. Mix for 1 minute until smooth, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Finish the batter. Turn the mixer to low and add the flour and milk in alternating portions, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until just combined, scraping the bowl again if necessary.
- Assemble the cake. Spread half the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon filling evenly on top. Gently spread the remaining batter over the filling, then sprinkle the crumb topping evenly across the top.
- Bake. Bake for 40–45 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Cool. Remove from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Add the icing. Whisk together the powdered sugar and milk until smooth and drizzle over the cooled cake, or dust with powdered sugar instead.
I LOVE to enjoy this cake while it’s still warm, but it’s also delicious at room temperature!
What Is Coffee Cake? Why Isn’t There Coffee in It?
There are a few defining characteristics of a coffee cake. And nope there is no ACTUAL coffee in this recipe. This cake is meant to be enjoyed WITH coffee.
- No Frosting – OR a light drizzle of an icing glaze. A lot of the time coffee cake is just dusted with powdered sugar, which you could absolutely do on this recipe!
- Cinnamon. Coffee Cakes are generally spiced with cinnamon. I don’t make the rules.
- Crumb Topping – This is not a must, but it’s very common. A lot of coffee cakes include nuts in the crumb topping as well, which you could do here if you like that! I’ll hit on that in a minute.
- Vanilla Cake – It’s very typical for a coffee cake base to be a vanilla cake as opposed to chocolate.
- A Single Layer Cake – Whether it be a 9×13, or a round cake, coffee cake is generally a single layer cake!
Simple Variation Ideas
- Add chopped nuts to the crumb topping. About ½ cup of chopped pecans or walnuts mixed into the crumb gives it a nice crunch without affecting the bake.
- Swirl in some fruit. A layer of thinly sliced apples or a handful of fresh blueberries over the cinnamon filling works great. Just don’t overdo it—too much moisture can weigh the cake down.
- Switch up the spice. Try adding a little ground nutmeg or cardamom to the cinnamon filling for a subtle twist.
- Use a flavored glaze. Swap the milk in the icing for maple syrup or a splash of orange juice to add something a little extra on top.
- Make it mini. Bake the batter in two 8×8 pans instead of one 9×13 if you want one to keep and one to gift (or freeze). Just start checking for doneness a little earlier.
How to Store
- Room temp: Keep it tightly covered on the counter for up to 3 days. It stays soft and amazing—no need to refrigerate.
- Fridge: If your kitchen runs warm or you just want to stretch it a bit longer, you can refrigerate it for up to 5 days. Just bring it to room temp before serving so it’s not cold and dense.
- Freezer: Yep, it freezes great! Wrap slices individually or the whole (cooled) cake tightly in plastic wrap and foil, then freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw on the counter and warm it up a little if you like it cozy.
More Coffee Cake Recipes
The Best Coffee Cake Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: serves 12 1x
- Category: Cake
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Breakfast
Description
Grab a cup of coffee and get ready for the best coffee cake ever! Soft vanilla cake with a sweet cinnamon layer inside, topped with buttery crumb topping!
Ingredients
Scale
Cinnamon Filling
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Crumb Topping
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 cup all purpose flour
Cake
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/4 cup milk
- 3 2/3 cup all purpose flour
Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2–3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl prepare the cinnamon filling by whisking together the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon until combined. Set aside.
- To prepare the crumb topping, mix together the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour in a medium bowl until it resembles coarse crumbs. Use your hands to mix to form larger crumb pieces. Set aside.
- For the cake, mix the butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add in the eggs, vanilla, sour cream, salt, and baking powder and mix for 1 minute until combined and smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour and milk in alternating portions, beginning and ending with flour. Mix until just combined and smooth, again, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Spread half of the cake batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon filling evenly on top of the batter. Carefully spread the remaining cake batter on top of the cinnamon layer. Evenly sprinkle the crumb topping on top.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the cake is set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove cake from oven and place pan on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Whisk together the powdered sugar and milk until smooth and drizzle on top of the cooled cake. Or alternately sprinkle with powdered sugar instead of making the icing.
Notes
Store airtight for up to 3 days
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 660
- Sugar: 55 g
- Sodium: 248.4 mg
- Fat: 24.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 101.1 g
- Protein: 9.6 g
- Cholesterol: 108 mg
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I was looking for a recipe for coffee cake but there isn’t any coffee in this recipe.
Hi! There typically isn’t coffee IN coffee cake 😉 it’s just to be enjoyed with a cup of coffee.
That is not true here in the UK at least. Would expect a coffee cake to contain coffee and be light rather than dense.
Obviously this recipe isn’t for you, oliver if you are looking for something with coffee and in a style that would be from the UK. Traditionally, coffee cake doesn’t contain coffee.
Do you have this recipe in grams?
can i used a wooden spoon or a normal whisk instead of a hand mixer?
You can use a whisk, but mix well!
The topping is dry powder. The cake is too light. NOT impressed. Lots of work for ho hum results.
The topping has came out really gooey for me both times. Why is this?
That’s very strange…the common complaint I see is that it’s too dry! I can only guess that maybe there was a mis-measurement. Sorry I can’t be of more help!
This recipe was excellent! This was my first time making coffee cake. I followed the instructions exactly and baked it for about 55 minutes. I will definitely make again once my blood sugar normalizes! 🙂
haha! so glad you liked it!!
SUPER TASTY! One of the best things I have baked. I used greek yogurt for the sour cream, dark brown sugar in the crumble because I didnt have enough light brown and didn’t make the icing. Came out really nice and moist. Super yummy, proud to share this one with friends.
SO happy you enjoyed!
Very confused as this is called the best coffee cake but I cany find any coffee in the recipe?
I just tried the recipe and don’t know if I did something wrong but I had to cook it for 2 hours. I had to cut it into pieces so thy would cook. It tastes amazing tho maybe the time needs to be adjusted.
I tried this recipe as my first coffee cake and it turned out perfect! The only change I made to the recipe, per the comments, was that I used 8TBSP of butter for the crumb topping. Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly! My cake turned out moist and delicious! This cake cooked in 40 minutes. PERFECT!!!
Love hearing that! Thanks for the feedback!
Can you make this into a Bundt Coffe Cake?
Sure! It would require more time in the oven for sure though.
What kind of adjustment would I have to make to turn this into a bundt cake?