Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Streusel

This unusually moist coffee cake is great with seasonal pairings, such as peaches in the summer and apples and pecans in the fall.

By Yankee Magazine

Sep 11 2018

Photo Credit : Mark Fleming/Styling by Jen Beauchesne

As served by chef James Arena at Connecticut’s Arethusa A Mano, this unusually moist coffee cake comes with seasonal pairings, such as peaches in summer and apples and pecans in fall. However, it is also perfect on its own. Recipe from Arethusa A Mano, in Bantam, Connecticut.

Yield:

10 servings

For the cake

Ingredients

4 tablespoons plus 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ cup sour cream

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350° and set a rack to the middle position. Grease a 9-by-9-inch baking pan (at least 2½ inches deep) or a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with butter, then lightly dust with flour.

First, make the cake: Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a small skillet over medium heat, then cook until it turns a nut-brown color (watch that it doesn’t burn). Pour into a large bowl to cool slightly.

Add 8 tablespoons butter to the bowl, then add the sugar and salt. Beat with a handheld or standing mixer until very light and fluffy, 6 to 7 minutes, scraping down the bowl midway through. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well. Scrape down the bowl with each addition.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add a third of this to the butter-sugar mixture and blend at low speed. Scrape down the bowl, then add half the sour cream. Continue alternating between dry and wet, scraping down the bowl between additions.

Next, make the filling.

For the filling

Ingredients

¼ cup granulated sugar
1½ tablespoons ground cinnamon

Instructions

In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

Now, make the streusel.

For the streusel

Ingredients

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons salted butter, softened

Instructions

Combine the brown sugar, flour, and butter with a fork until the mixture looks like wet sand with pea-size bits of butter.

Pour half the batter into the pan and smooth with a spatula (dip in hot water to prevent sticking). Sprinkle evenly with the filling, then pour in remaining batter; smooth again with spatula. Bake for 40 minutes, then sprinkle with streusel. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.