Cinnamon Coffee Cake: This tender cinnamon vanilla cake has sweet cinnamon streusel swirled in the batter and baked on top, making it the perfect treat to pair with a warm cup of coffee!
Is there anything better than a piece of homemade coffee cake? We are so excited to add this old fashioned cinnamon coffee cake recipe to our line up of cinnamon breakfast treats like our easy slow cooker apple cinnamon oatmeal, cinnamon roll casserole and cinnamon french toast sticks!
Why you’ll love this recipe
You’ll have this glorious coffee cake mixed, topped with oodles of cinnamon crumb topping, baked and ready to eat in less than 45 minutes!
With common ingredients from your pantry and refrigerator, this homemade cinnamon coffee cake recipe is a go-to for breakfast, brunch or even a mid-day snack with something like this whipped coffee recipe.
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Ingredients
Get the full recipe card with instructions below!
For the coffee cake batter:
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the streusel topping:
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° F. Grease an 8×8 inch cake pan.
- Make the crumb topping: In a medium bowl, stir together the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Pour in the melted butter and stir until fully moistened and the topping resembles course crumbs. Set topping aside.
- Make the cake batter: In a separate large bowl, whisk together the sugar, milk, melted butter and sour cream until no lumps remain. Add the egg and beat well.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Mix to combine. Add 3/4 of the cinnamon topping to the bowl with the coffee cake batter and mix well.
- Pour into the cake pan and spread evenly.
- Top with the remaining cinnamon mixture.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Baking times may vary so adjust according, but be careful not to overbake or the cake will become very dry.
Substitutions and Variations
This is the best cinnamon coffee cake and I can’t wait for you to make it! Here are a few tips and a
- Sour cream – if you don’t have sour cream on hand, you can substitute an equal amount of full-fat Greek yogurt
- Sugar – if you want a sweeter cake and streusel topping, add an additional 1/2 cup brown or granulated sugar to the topping
- Cinnamon Roll Coffee Cake – For a delicious twist on this recipe, layer half of the batter in the cake pan and sprinkle the top of the batter with 1/2 of the streusel crumb topping. This creates a cinnamon layer with BIG cinnamon flavor right in the middle of the cake. Spread the remaining batter and then add the final layer of crumb topping.
Storage
For freshness, store this sour cream coffee cake in an airtight container and eat within 2-3 days.
FAQs
What is coffee cake made of? Surprisingly, there is NO coffee in coffee cake. Rather, it is a tender cake usually made with cinnamon, vanilla and basic baking ingredients. In many classic recipes for coffee cake (like this one), sour cream is added to make the cake moist. You may have also heard this type of cake called crumb cake due to the spiced crumb topping on the top of the cake.
Why is it called coffee cake? The warm comforting flavor of this easy cinnamon coffee cake makes it the most complementary pairing for iced coffee or hot coffee.
Can you freeze cinnamon coffee cake? Yes! Cut the cake into pieces and wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place the wrapped slices in a freezer bag. Wrapped cake can be frozen for 2-3 months. What a great way to have cinnamon coffee cake any day!
How do you thaw a frozen coffee cake? Remove cake slices and allow to thaw at room temperature for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. You can also place the frozen slices of coffee cake in the refrigerator overnight to thaw.
How do you reheat frozen coffee cake? Place the frozen slices of cake on a baking sheet in a 250° F oven until warmed through and ready to serve. This will take about 8-15 minutes.
More Recipes
If you love cinnamon recipes like this one, then trying these Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes are a must!
Did you make this? I’d be so grateful if you left a review below to let me know what you thought! Then, the next time you need a quick and easy recipe, come back to Fantabulosity to browse all of my easy recipes!
📖 Recipe
Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Ingredients
For the coffee cake batter
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg large
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the streusel topping
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° F . Grease an 8×8 inch cake pan.
- Make the crumb topping: In a medium bowl, stir together the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Pour in the melted butter and stir until fully moistened and the topping resembles course crumbs. Set topping aside.
- Make the cake batter: In a separatw large bowl, whis together the sugar, milk, melted butter and sour cream until no lunch remain. Add the eggs.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Mix to combine. Add 3/4 of the cinnamon topping to the bowl with the coffee cake batter and mix well.
- Spread the batter evenly in the cake pan.
- Top with the remaining cinnamon mixture.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Notes
- Baking times may vary so be sure not to overbake this coffee cake or it will become very dry.
- If you like a sweeter cake and topping, add an additional 1/2 of brown sugar or granulated sugar to the topping mixture.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Julia Lutsenko says
Such a simple yet very delicious recipe! My daughter (10) made it for the family, it was a raving success!
Kristen says
This was such a simple dessert but definitely one of my new favorites.
jess says
Coffee cake is one my of most favorite things in the world and this is a great homemade version! thank you for sharing!