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The Ridiculously Good Coffee Cake I’ve Made Dozens of Times (No Other Recipe Tops It)

Patty Catalano
Patty CatalanoFood Editor at The Kitchn
At The Kitchn, I develop all of your favorite recipes and help you discover your most beloved grocery finds. I have more than 17 years of recipe development experience, including time spent in cookbook test kitchens and on Alton Brown’s culinary team. My two kids have lots of opinions on dinner.
published Mar 29, 2023
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Credit: Patty Catalano

No other meal compares to weekend breakfast. I love preparing it for my family, whether I’m scrambling eggs until the curds are tender, spreading bacon onto a hot griddle to sizzle and crisp, or holding coffee in one hand while swirling crêpe batter with the other. But my favorite thing to make is a pan of Edd Kimber’s Coffee Coffee Cake.

Unlike most coffee cakes, which gain their flavor from cinnamon-scented crumbs, Kimber’s coffee cake leans into its name with an espresso swirl that slices right through the center. The slightly sweet cake has a sturdy texture and pleasant tang from sour cream, and a scattering of sweet brown-butter streusel over top forms a craggy crumb crown in the hot oven. It’s truly the perfect coffee cake (and my entire family agrees).

Get the recipe: Coffee Coffee Cake from One Tin Bakes by Edd Kimber

Credit: Patty Catalano

This Coffee Coffee Cake Is a Make-Ahead Dream

If you’re looking to minimize day-of work, there are plenty of ways to get ahead on prep. You can brown the butter and make the streusel, then refrigerate the crumbles until you’re ready to bake. You can also measure the dry ingredients in a bowl and place it on the counter overnight, and combine the sugars in the bowl of the stand mixer so they’re ready to mix in the morning. I’ll often add the butter to the bowl and leave it out overnight, but if you’d rather wait until morning, use one of these techniques to quickly soften it. In the morning, because all of the ingredients are measured, you can put this cake together while your coffee brews.

If You’re Making Edd Kimber’s Coffee Coffee Cake, a Few Tips:

  1. Yes, you can halve the recipe. Every recipe in Kimber’s book bakes in a 9×13-inch baking pan, making this coffee cake is perfect for sharing. If you’re feeding a smaller crowd, don’t let the serving size stop you. Most of the ingredient amounts are easily halved for baking in an 8×8-inch pan. The only tricky part is halving an egg (but you can do it!).
  2. Make your own superfine sugar. This specialty ingredient is easy to make at home, so don’t bother with a trip to the store. Simply pulse granulated sugar in a food processor until very finely ground, but not dusty.

Get the recipe: Coffee Coffee Cake from One Tin Bakes by Edd Kimber

This post was originally published on The Kitchn. Read it there: The Ridiculously Good Coffee Cake I Make Over and Over (No Other Recipe Tops It)