There’s a reason this classic sour cream coffee cake has stood the test of time. With a ridiculously soft cake, a gooey swirl of cinnamon and a brown sugar crumble on top, you cannot beat this combination for morning breakfasts, brunches or afternoon pick-me-ups.
This coffee crumb cake is one of those desserts I could have every single day. It’s simple, not-too-sweet and feels like one of those cakes your grandma would always have on hand when you stopped by. Sure, you can get fancy with the flavors like this pumpkin coffee cake version, but the classic is hard to resist.
Ingredients
With a name like sour cream coffee cake, you probably already guessed that sour cream is going to be included in the ingredient list! But let’s look at the other ingredients you need. There are three main components to this coffee cake – the cake, the cinnamon streusel filling, and the brown sugar crumb topping.
- All-purpose flour. For many cakes, I would use a lighter cake flour, but because of the literal weight of the crumbs on top, we don’t want too light and airy of a cake base. So all-purpose flour is a better choice here.
- Baking powder & baking soda. Enough to give us a lift of the cake!
- Unsalted butter.
- Granulated sugar. The cake will use the granulated sugar.
- Light brown sugar. Brown sugar will be used in the toppings and fillings for that gooey molasses texture.
- Eggs. For the cake structure.
- Sour cream. This will replace the typical liquid in our cake batter. The end result is a super rich and soft cake with a subtle tanginess.
- Cinnamon. Flavors throughout! If you want a spin on the classic, swap in a chai spice blend for something a little unique!
- Vanilla bean paste or extract. Because this cake base is so simple, I like to use the vanilla bean paste for an extra kick of flavor, but a good extract will work will too.
Making Sour Cream Cake
This basic sour cream cake is uses the basic creaming method. What does that mean exactly? Let’s look through the steps.
Cream the butter and sugar. Creaming the butter and sugar is the backbone of this method, and this means to whip the ingredients until they are literally creamy, light and airy. This will take a few minutes to really whip well and will help the final cake texture to be light and airy as well!
Add eggs one at a time. This will prevent the mixture from splitting and will allow you to scrape the bowl in between each addition!
Alternate flour and sour cream. The trick to avoid tough over-mixed or split batters is to add the flour and liquid in alternating additions. Mix 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 of the sour cream, and continue on until everything is incorporated!
Crumb Topping and Filling
To take this cake to exceptional, we are going to make a cinnamon swirl filling and a classic crumb topping with plenty of brown sugar goodness. Why bother to make two separate things? Yes, you could technically use the streusel on the top as well, but there is just something about those big clumps of goodness on top that I cannot resist.
Cinnamon filling. To make the cinnamon filling, whisk together the dry ingredients, then rub in cold butter using your fingertips. The final goal is a crumbly, sandy texture with some pea-sized bits of butter remaining.
Crumb topping. For the crumb topping, melted butter is key. This will provide those thick clumps. I recommend to leave the topping once just combined then make the rest of the cake. When you come back to the topping, the butter will have cooled and you can break apart nice big ol’ clumps.
Layering The Cake
Now that we have our components made, it’s time to build the cake! Follow the steps below for the order of the layer!
Make sure each layer is smooth and even before adding the next!
- Half of the cake batter
- Cinnamon streusel filling
- Remaining cake batter
- Crumb topping
Pan Sizes
Let’s talk pans. I tried this recipe in both a standard cake and tube-shaped pan. And while the cake pan worked OK, the crumb topping does have a tendency to sink a bit in the center. Does it affect the taste? Nope. Would you even notice once it’s sliced? No again. But I’m too anal for that.
If you are using a square or round pan, the baking times will take much longer, see notes in the recipe card for more info on baking times.
I tested this in both an 8-cup tube pan (8″ x 5″) and 18-cup pan (10″ x 4″). The batter jussstttttt fits in the 8-cup pan. I really preferred this 18-cup pound cake pan from Nordic Ware (not an affiliate, just saving you some leg work).
The biggest thing I was looking for was a straight sided pan. Because this cake does not get inverted onto the serving dish, typical sloped sided bundt pans looked upside down to me. Again, I’m anal.
If you hate flipping your cake onto a serving dish, you can look for a pan with a removable bottom. This will let you lift the cake up and out of the outer ring.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure, you can remove it completely!
For this cake, I would recommend using the sour cream and not a typical substitute. It is such a major component of the texture and taste, yogurt will not provide the same result.
Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Equipment
- 9" or 10" tube pan see notes below
Ingredients
Cinnamon Swirl Streusel
- 40 g all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 71 g light brown sugar packed
- 42 g unsalted butter chilled and cubed
Crumb Topping
- 135 g all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 71 g light brown sugar packed
- 113 g unsalted butter melted and cooled
Sour Cream Cake
- 240 g all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 113 g unsalted butter room temperature
- 300 g granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
- 227 g sour cream room temperature
Drizzle (optional)
- 56 g confectioners' sugar sifted
- 2 teaspoons milk or water
Instructions
- Cinnamon Swirl Streusel. Whisk together all dry ingredients. Using fingertips, rub cold butter into mixture until texture is sandy and some pea-sized clumps remain. Set aside.40 g all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 71 g light brown sugar, 42 g unsalted butter
- Crumb Topping. In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients for crumb topping. Pour in melted butter and stir using rubber spatula until everything is moistened. Set aside while making cake. Mixture will set as is sits and clump together.135 g all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 71 g light brown sugar, 113 g unsalted butter
- Sour Cream Cake. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour tube pan well, set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and baking soda, and salt. Set aside.240 g all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt
- In the bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with hand-mixer, whip butter and sugar on high speed until light and airy – about 5 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed.113 g unsalted butter, 300 g granulated sugar
- Reduce speed to low and add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla.3 large eggs, 2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
- Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, mix until just incorporated. Add 1/2 of the sour cream. Repeat steps until all ingredients are added. Use rubber spatula to make sure sides and bottom of the bowl are well mixed. Batter will be very thick.227 g sour cream
- Spoon 1/2 of the cake batter into the prepared pan. Smooth into an even layer. Sprinkle all of the cinnamon streusel evenly across the batter. Top with the remaining cake batter.
- Crumble large clumps the crumb topping (about grape-sized) evenly on top. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 40-45 minutes.
- Allow cake to cool completely before removing from the tin. If you do not have a removable bottom, place a plate upside down on the cake tin and flip. Remove tin. Place serving platter upside down on cake bottom, flip again.
- Drizzle. If desired, whisk together confectioners' sugar and milk/water. Drizzle over the top of the cake.56 g confectioners' sugar, 2 teaspoons milk or water
Notes
- Pan sizes – use at least an 8-cup pan. If you are using an 8″ or 9″ round/square cake pan, bake for 55-65 minutes. See post above for more information.
- Store cake at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Disclaimer: We test all recipes using the metric weights shown, we cannot guarantee outcomes when switching to US measurements.
