Recipe: Marbled Coffee Cake with Nutty Crumb Streusel
Serves12
This is a darn fine coffee cake, with a sweet vanilla cake, generous streusel and nuts throughout, and a cinnamon-vanilla aroma that will make your house smell better than a bakery. Oh, and the cake part still only requires one bowl, thanks to our one-bowl vanilla cake. That first cup of coffee is starting to look even better.
This Coffee Cake Is All About the Streusel
Okay, yes, there is a cake to contend with here, but it’s an easy one-bowl ditty that bakes up beautifully no matter what you bake it in. Before assembling the cake batter, make the streusel so that you can layer it inside the cake too. Pour half of the cake batter into a 9×13-inch baking pan and layer with half the streusel mixture. Add the remaining batter and top with the remaining streusel.
This coffee cake is near perfect fresh from the oven, but if you’re feeling fancy, make a glaze to zig-zag over the streusel after the cake has cooled for at least 30 minutes. If you grew up loving those Little Debbie cakes, then this one is for you.
Marbled Coffee Cake with Nutty Crumb Streusel
Serves 12
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
For the streusel:
Cooking spray
- 1 cup
all-purpose flour
- 1 cup
walnuts (3 ounces), coarsely chopped
- 3/4 cup
packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons
ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoons
salt
- 8 tablespoons
(1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed
For the cake:
- 3 cups
all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 cups
granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons
baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon
salt
- 4
large eggs
- 3/4 cup
canola oil, or melted and cooled unsalted butter
- 1 cup
whole milk
- 1 tablespoon
vanilla extract
For the glaze:
- 1 cup
powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons
whole milk
Instructions
Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 350°F. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with a parchment paper sling that hangs over the 2 long sides. Coat with cooking spray; set aside.
Make the streusel:
Stir the flour, walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. Incorporate the chilled, cubed butter with your fingertips until you have small- to medium-sized lumps and none of the flour-sugar mixture remains dry; set aside.
Make the cake:
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the eggs, oil or butter, milk, and vanilla and mix with an electric hand mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.
Pour half of the batter into the pan and spread into an even layer. Sprinkle half of the streusel over the batter. Pour in the rest of the batter evenly over top, then distribute the remaining streusel over the top.
Bake until the cake is lightly browned and springs bake when gingerly pressed with a finger, 30 to 40 minutes.
Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Grasping the parchment paper sling, remove the cake from the pan and cool completely before glazing.
Stir the powdered sugar and milk together in a small bowl until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. Wait 10 minutes for the glaze to harden before cutting and serving.
Recipe Notes
Storage: Leftovers of this cake can be tightly wrapped and stored at room temperature for up to 1 week. Toasting under a low broiler or in a toaster oven and smearing with butter is highly suggested.