Lush Sour Cream Coffee Cake

This sour cream coffee cake is a true masterpiece of home baking, delivering unparalleled richness and a melt-in-your-mouth tender crumb, all thanks to the magic of sour cream. Each slice promises a delightful journey through layers of crunchy cinnamon-pecan streusel, elegantly crowned with a delicate white glaze. More than just a cake, it’s a versatile treat perfect for any moment: a comforting start to your morning, a delightful companion for your coffee break, an elegant addition to tea time, a satisfying snack, or a decadent dessert. It’s the kind of irresistible goodness that brings smiles all around and might just quiet even the most energetic little ones!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake: Quick Answers

• What is it? A supremely moist and tender coffee cake, distinguished by its delicate, sour cream-enriched crumb and generous ribbons of crunchy cinnamon-pecan streusel, finished with a sweet glaze.
• Why you’ll love it: It’s the ultimate weekend baking project, offering immense flavor and classic comfort. This cake is an ideal partner for your morning coffee, a delightful brunch centerpiece, or a satisfying dessert that impresses every time.
• How to make it: The process involves preparing a simple yet irresistible cinnamon streusel, mixing the rich cake batter using a stand mixer, layering the batter and streusel artfully in a tube pan, then baking to golden perfection and drizzling with a homemade glaze.

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Featured Review

I would file this recipe under “Does the world need another coffee cake recipe? Yes, yes it does!” I made this cake for a post-dinner meeting and it was wonderful. Perfect moist-ness, delicious flavor and a nice crunch topping… I don’t have a tube pan and, thanks to David’s note to another baker, I didn’t use my bundt pan. I went with a 10-inch springform pan and that worked out fine. It took an extra 10 minutes or so of baking but turned out just fine.

Greg Crawford

A simple sour cream coffee cake is delightful, but elevate it to extraordinary with an easy, homemade cinnamon-pecan streusel. This combination creates a dessert that’s simply irresistible. The rich, moist crumb of the cake perfectly complements the sweet, crunchy streusel, making every bite a delight. Serve this exquisite cake with a steaming cup of hot coffee for the adults, creating a moment of pure bliss, and a refreshing glass of cold milk for the kids (and for those of us who, like me, simply can’t resist milk with a slice of delicious cake).

This recipe isn’t just about baking a cake; it’s about creating an experience. The moment you pull this golden-brown beauty from the oven, its comforting aroma fills your home, promising warmth and indulgence. Whether it’s a quiet morning treat or the highlight of a festive gathering, this sour cream coffee cake consistently delivers on flavor and texture.

Why This Sour Cream Coffee Cake Stands Apart

What makes this particular sour cream coffee cake recipe truly exceptional? It’s the harmonious blend of carefully selected ingredients and a method designed for maximum flavor and an unbelievably tender texture.

The Secret to Its Moistness: Sour Cream

The star ingredient, sour cream, plays a crucial role. Its natural acidity reacts with the baking soda, creating a lighter, more tender crumb. Beyond that, the fat content in sour cream adds incredible moisture and richness, resulting in a cake that remains moist for days. It prevents the cake from drying out, ensuring each slice is as delicious as the first. This is why sour cream is a baker’s best friend for creating truly luscious cakes.

The Irresistible Cinnamon-Pecan Streusel

A coffee cake isn’t complete without a stellar streusel, and ours is no exception. This cinnamon-pecan streusel is more than just a topping; it’s an integral part of the cake’s charm. Made with a blend of brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, butter, and crunchy pecans, it creates delightful pockets of sweetness and texture throughout the cake. The buttery, spiced crumbs get perfectly toasted during baking, adding an aromatic crunch that contrasts beautifully with the soft cake. Layering it both in the middle and on top ensures a delightful streusel experience in every single bite.

The Perfect Glaze

A simple yet elegant white glaze provides the finishing touch. Made from confectioners’ sugar and milk, it adds a delicate sweetness and a touch of visual appeal without overpowering the cake’s rich flavors. It’s easy to whisk together and drizzles beautifully, setting off the golden-brown crust and streusel with a sugary sheen.

Baking Tips for the Perfect Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Achieving bakery-quality results at home is easier than you think with a few simple tips:

• Room Temperature Ingredients: Ensure your butter, eggs, and sour cream are at room temperature. This allows them to emulsify properly, creating a smooth, uniform batter that bakes evenly and yields a tender crumb.
• Don’t Overmix: Once you add the flour mixture, mix just until no dry streaks remain. Overmixing develops the gluten in the flour, which can lead to a tough, dry cake.
• Proper Pan Preparation: Generously butter and flour your tube pan, or use a nonstick spray, to prevent the cake from sticking. This is crucial for easy removal and a beautiful presentation.
• Measure Accurately: Especially with baking, precision matters. Use proper measuring cups and spoons, and for flour, spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off rather than scooping directly from the bag.
• Test for Doneness: Use a wooden skewer or cake tester inserted into the center of the cake (avoiding a streusel layer) to check for doneness. It should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached, but no wet batter.

Variations and Serving Suggestions

While this sour cream coffee cake is perfect as is, it’s also wonderfully adaptable:

• Nut Alternatives: If pecans aren’t your preference or readily available, walnuts, almonds, or even a mix of nuts can be used in the streusel. Toast them lightly before adding for enhanced flavor.
• Add Fruit: Fold in 1 cup of fresh or frozen (not thawed) blueberries, raspberries, or chopped apples into the batter for a fruity twist. Adjust baking time slightly if using fruit.
• Spice it Up: Experiment with other warm spices in the streusel, such as a pinch of nutmeg, cardamom, or allspice, to complement the cinnamon.
• Serving Occasions: Beyond breakfast and coffee breaks, this cake is fantastic for brunch gatherings, potlucks, holiday mornings, or as a thoughtful homemade gift.

Storage and Make-Ahead Tips

This sour cream coffee cake is excellent for making ahead and storing:

• At Room Temperature: Store the cake, covered tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, at room temperature for up to 3-4 days. The sour cream helps maintain its moistness.
• Refrigeration: While not strictly necessary, if you live in a very warm climate or prefer it chilled, the cake can be refrigerated for up to a week. Bring to room temperature before serving for the best flavor and texture.
• Freezing: For longer storage, freeze individual slices or the whole cake (unglazed is best) wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, then in foil. It can be frozen for up to 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature and glaze just before serving.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

5 / 11 votes (This is a static representation of the original rating)

This sour cream coffee cake achieves its exceptional richness and tender crumb from sour cream, featuring delightful ripples of cinnamon-pecan streusel and a luscious white glaze. It’s a versatile indulgence, perfect for breakfast, coffee breaks, tea time, snacking, or dessert.

David Leite

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Course
Dessert

Cuisine
American

Servings
12 to 14 slices

Calories
519 kcal

Prep Time
30 minutes

Cook Time
1 hour

Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes

Equipment

• 10-inch tube pan

Ingredients

For the filling and topping

• 1/3 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons (1 1/2 oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch (6-mm) cubes
• Large pinch kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans

For the coffee cake

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 12 tablespoons (6 oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze

• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• Small pinch kosher salt

Instructions

Make the streusel filling and topping

• In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, butter, salt, and vanilla. Use a fork to mash the ingredients until they come together in a crumbly mixture. Stir in the chopped pecans.

Make the sour cream coffee cake

• Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C). Position an oven rack in the middle. Generously butter and flour a 10-inch tube pan, or spray it thoroughly with nonstick vegetable spray, ensuring all surfaces are covered to prevent sticking.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a large bowl and a hand mixer), beat the room temperature butter and granulated sugar together until the mixture is light, pale, and fluffy, which should take approximately 4 minutes. Stop occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure everything is well combined.
• Add the large eggs one at a time, beating briefly after each addition just until incorporated. Next, add the sour cream and vanilla extract, mixing only until they are just combined into the batter. Be careful not to overmix at this stage.
• Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add the reserved dry flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Gently fold it in by hand using a spatula, mixing only until no dry flour streaks are visible. Overmixing can lead to a tough cake.
• Spoon half of the prepared cake batter into the greased and floured tube pan, spreading it evenly with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle approximately half of the cinnamon-pecan streusel mixture evenly over this layer of batter. Carefully spoon the remaining cake batter over the streusel, again smoothing the top. Finally, sprinkle the rest of the streusel evenly over the top layer of batter. Bake the cake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center (avoiding the streusel layers) comes out clean.
• Once baked, cool the cake in its pan on a wire rack until it reaches room temperature. This step is crucial for the cake to set properly and for easier removal.
• Once completely cool, cover the pan with a flat plate, then carefully invert the pan to release the cake. Remove the pan and its removable center core. Place a serving platter or cake plate against the cake and invert it once more so that the cake is right side up, ready for glazing.

Make the glaze and drizzle it all over the coffee cake

• In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and milk until smooth. If you prefer a thinner glaze, add a little more milk, one teaspoon at a time, until the desired consistency is achieved. Drizzle the finished glaze generously over the cooled coffee cake using a spoon, allowing it to cascade down the sides.

Notes

Coffee Glaze Variation

For those who crave an extra boost of coffee flavor, consider replacing the milk in the glaze with an equal amount of strongly brewed coffee. This simple switch transforms the glaze into a rich coffee-flavored topping, creating a delightful “coffee cake squared” experience. Just be warned: it might keep you energized late into the night!

An LC Original

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Nutrition Information

Serving: 1 sliceCalories: 519 kcalCarbohydrates: 64 gProtein: 7 gFat: 27 gSaturated Fat: 13 gMonounsaturated Fat: 9 gTrans Fat: 1 gCholesterol: 114 mgSodium: 241 mgFiber: 2 gSugar: 40 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximation only.

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Recipe Testers’ Reviews

Dawn English

Eureka! I found it. The sour cream coffee cake recipe I’ve been searching for. It’s super moist, has the perfect density, is not too light and not too heavy with just the right amount of sugar and cinnamon crumb. I love the light cinnamon swirl layer in the middle. I made this for my family and to share with some friends. This sour cream coffee cake will be a showstopper for any gathering or gift.

I used a Bundt pan and it turned out perfectly. I was afraid the glaze would make the cake too sweet, and I almost didn’t make it, but I’m glad I did because it was a nice finishing touch. For the glaze, I used milk, sugar, and a drop of vanilla.

Two substitutions I made with success: I used walnuts because that’s what I had on hand. They were lovely and toasty from the baking time, a perfectly acceptable substitute. I also used Daisy-brand light sour cream, and the cake was still moist and rich, and I was happy to save on some calories without sacrificing taste or texture.

Adrienne Lee

The cake part of this sour cream coffee cake is moist and the filling and topping is crunchy and delicious. Because this recipe is made in a tube pan, you can definitely turn it over and back to get the topping back on the top; however, its a little messy as the topping is crumbly. This is a really, really minor complaint, but there are a lot of ingredients in this recipe. If I made this again, I would probably cut back on the butter.

Daniela Trapani

This was phenomenal! I brought it to a family birthday party and everyone was talking about this coffee cake instead of the birthday cake! My husband, who generally doesn’t care for cake, was devastated that we had to leave it behind (ha!!) This recipe has a permanent home in my arsenal now. I wouldn’t change a thing.

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