The Best Coffee Cake Recipe for a Moist and Tender Crumb

The BEST Coffee Cake, Our Family Recipe

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If there is one recipe I feel like I was practically raised on, it is this coffee cake. It has been passed down through three generations in our family, and I can honestly say it has never once let us down.

My mom made it when I was little, and now I make it for my own crew, usually for breakfast, sometimes for a snack, and every so often for breakfast for dinner, which we all agree is one of the best dinner ideas around.

One of the things we love most about this cake is how little effort it asks of you. The batter comes together in about 5 minutes with a handful of pantry staples, a mixing bowl, and a spoon. No mixer, no fuss, no complicated steps.

If I am being honest, that is exactly the kind of baking I want to do on a busy morning.

The recipe is also wonderfully flexible in how you serve it. It works for breakfast, snack time, or dinner, and it is easy to double to serve a crowd when company shows up. And here is a little secret: it is delicious as leftovers. We actually think the second day might be even better, once the flavors have settled in.

This is the kind of recipe that stays in the family because it works every single time. The crumb is tender, the cinnamon streusel layer is cozy and sweet, and the whole thing bakes in under half an hour.

I always keep the ingredients on hand just so we can throw it together on a whim. Trust me, once you make it, you will understand why it earned the name of the best coffee cake in our house.

What is Coffee Cake?

First things first, let us clear up the name. American coffee cake is traditionally a mildly sweet cake with a cinnamon streusel crumb layer, and it does not actually contain coffee. The name comes from how beautifully it pairs with a cup of coffee, which is why you so often see it on the table at breakfast or brunch.

The texture is also a little different from your typical birthday cake. The crumb is more moist and dense, similar to a light pound cake. That is part of what makes it so satisfying. It holds together nicely, slices cleanly, and feels substantial enough to be a real treat alongside your morning coffee.

How to Make Coffee Cake

You will be amazed at how simple this cake is. The batter can be whipped up in just a couple of minutes from a few staple ingredients, and there is no special equipment required.

No stand mixer, no hand mixer, nothing to haul out of the cabinet. A mixing bowl and a spoon will do the entire job, which also means fewer dishes to wash at the end.

Here is how it comes together, step by step.

Cake Steps

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Beat the egg in a mixing bowl, then mix in the sugar, milk, oil, salt, and vanilla until everything is well combined.
3. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup, then dump it on top of the batter.
4. Sprinkle the baking powder over the flour and gently mix it into the top half of the flour.
5. Stir the flour into the batter until it is just combined. Be careful not to over mix here, because that is what keeps the crumb tender.
6. Pour the batter into a 9×9 baking dish that is greased or lined with parchment paper.

That is the whole cake. It really is that quick, and I love that I can have it in the oven before my coffee is even finished brewing.

Cinnamon Streusel Topping

The streusel topping is where this cake really shines. That crumbly, cinnamon sugared layer is what everyone remembers, and it only takes a few extra minutes.

1. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter in the microwave.
2. Remove the bowl and stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour until well combined. If you like nuts, this is the moment to add them.
3. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the cake batter.
4. Now for the fun part. Use a finger or the small end of a wooden spoon to poke the streusel halfway down into the batter in 12 to 18 random spots. This little trick gives you ribbons of cinnamon sweetness running through the middle of the cake, not just on top.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs rather than runny batter.

Keep a close eye on it near the end of the bake. You want moist crumbs on that toothpick, not wet batter, and definitely not a bone dry cake.

If you feel like a finishing touch, a light drizzle of icing over the cooled cake is lovely. It is completely up to you, though, because the cake stands beautifully on its own.

The secret to a tender coffee cake is simple: mix gently and do not overbake. A toothpick with moist crumbs is your signal to pull it out.

Walnuts and Icing

Both the walnuts and the icing are entirely optional, so you can include them or leave them out based on your own preference. I love knowing a recipe leaves room to make it your own, and this one does exactly that.

When I am making our walnut coffee cake version, walnuts are always included. They add a little crunch and a lovely toasty flavor against the soft crumb. Pecans are also a good option if that is what you have in the pantry, and honestly either nut works nicely stirred into the streusel.

As for the icing, I will admit we rarely make it. It is pretty and it is yummy, but the cake is good enough on its own that the icing is more of a special occasion choice.

If I am serving this for a weekend brunch with family visiting, I will drizzle it. For an ordinary Tuesday breakfast, I skip it and nobody complains.

If you enjoy baking breakfast treats when the weather cools down, this coffee cake fits right into a fall lineup. Alongside this recipe, here are five more breakfast favorites worth trying:

• Apple pie crepes
• Apple cranberry baked oatmeal
• Baked pumpkin maple French toast
• Cinnamon apple French toast
• Granola brunch baked apples

Together with this coffee cake, those recipes make a wonderful rotation for fall mornings, and they pair beautifully with the pumpkin pecan coffee cake and the walnut and apple coffee cake we bake when autumn rolls around.

Ingredients

This recipe keeps everything simple and uses ingredients you most likely already have. It is broken into three parts: the cake, the streusel, and the optional icing drizzle.

For the cake

• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups flour

For the streusel topping

• 2 T butter, melted
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 T flour
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional

For the icing drizzle, optional

• 1 T butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 T milk, plus a little extra if needed

Instructions

Here is the full method from start to finish so you can follow along easily.

Make the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Beat the egg in a mixing bowl, then mix in the sugar, milk, salt, oil, and vanilla.
3. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and dump it on top of the batter.
4. Sprinkle the baking powder over the flour and gently mix it into the top half of the flour.
5. Stir the flour mixture into the batter until combined, taking care not to over mix.
6. Pour the batter into a greased or parchment lined 9×9 baking dish.

Make the streusel and bake

1. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter in the microwave.
2. Remove the bowl and mix in the brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour, stirring until well combined. Add nuts if desired.
3. Sprinkle the streusel over the cake batter.
4. Use a finger or the small end of a wooden spoon to poke the streusel halfway down into the batter, randomly 12 to 18 times.
5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs, not runny batter. Do not overbake, or the cake will be drier.

Optional icing drizzle

1. Mix the butter and powdered sugar together.
2. Thin with milk until you reach the desired consistency.
3. Lightly drizzle the icing over the cooled cake.

Recipe Notes

• Spoon the flour into the measuring cup for the cake batter rather than scooping it. This keeps the measurement accurate and the crumb tender.
• For the flour in the streusel topping, you can scoop it straight with the measuring spoon, since a bit of extra flour there is no problem at all.
• Do not overbake the cake. Going past the moist crumb stage will dry it out, and a tender cake is the whole point.

Measure gently, mix gently, and pull the cake from the oven as soon as the toothpick shows moist crumbs. That is the recipe for a perfect crumb every time.

Recipe details

This coffee cake makes 9 servings, which is just right for a family breakfast with a little left over. It takes 5 minutes of prep, about 25 minutes to bake, and roughly 30 minutes total from start to finish.

The oven is set to 375 degrees F, and since the batter mixes in about 5 minutes, the cake is easy enough to fit into any morning.

If you are feeding a bigger group, it is easy to double. It also stores nicely, and we genuinely enjoy it as leftovers the next day.

Between the quick prep, the simple ingredients, and the moist, tender crumb, this is the kind of recipe that earns a permanent spot in your collection. We hope it becomes one of your family favorites, just like it is in ours.

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The BEST Coffee Cake, Our Family Recipe If there is one recipe I feel like I was practically raised on, it is this coffee cake. It has been passed down through three generations in our family, and I can honestly say it has never once let us down.

• Total Time: 30 min
• Yield: 9 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Cake
1 egg
1/4 cup oil, vegetable or canola
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups flour

Streusel
2 T butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 T Flour
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Icing Drizzle
1 T butter, room temperature
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 T milk

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Instructions

Cake
1-Preheat oven to 375°: Preheat oven to 375°.
2-Beat egg in mixing bowl: Beat egg in mixing bowl. Mix in sugar, milk, salt, oil, and vanilla.
3-Spoon flour into measuring cup: Spoon flour into measuring cup. Dump flour on top of the batter. Sprinkle baking powder over flour and gently mix into the top half of the flour. Stir flour mixture into batter until combined. Pour into greased, or parchment lined, 9×9 baking dish.

Streusel
4-In a microwave-safe bowl, melt butter in: In a microwave-safe bowl, melt butter in microwave. Remove and mix in brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour and stir until well combined. Add nuts if desired.
5-Sprinkle streusel onto the cake: Sprinkle streusel onto the cake. Use a finger or the small end of a wooden spoon to poke the streusel halfway down into the cake batter, randomly 12-18 times.
6-Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick: Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs (not runny batter). Do not overbake or it will be more dry!

Icing (optional)
7-Mix butter and powdered sugar: Mix butter and powdered sugar. Thin with milk until desired consistency. Lightly drizzle cake with icing.

Last Step:

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• Prep Time: 5 min
• Cook Time: 25 min
• Method: bake