This classic breakfast cake gets a little twist with a cocoa layer in the middle. That little bit of chocolate flavor is just right and would complement any cup of coffee or hot cocoa. And of course a coffee cake is not complete without the signature crumble on the top. Here an almond streusel is used.
The recipe calls for 4″ baking molds. I used a 6″ cake pan.
Cake assembly:
1) Piping a layer of cake batter
2) Sprinkling of the cocoa mixture
3) Piping second layer of cake batter
4) Sprinkling of almond streusel topping
The dusting on top is a combination of powdered sugar and a cocoa cinnamon mixture. I like the layering of colors beginning with the white from the powdered sugar and finished with the brown, which pops with the white beneath.
With my 6″ round pan, I made the cake twice the height so it took an additional 10 minutes to bake, or 50 minutes total. With the leftover batter I used my 2.25″ pannetone molds that I had from the time I made the blueberry muffins but as I did with that recipe, the cakes overflowed.
The coffee cake is fluffy and more of a pound cake texture because it is butter-based so it was a little dry. I’m typically used to coffee cakes having a lot of oil to make them moist and dense. Also, because of that extra height of the cake I think I needed more of the cocoa mixture in the middle, with the addition of cinnamon to add more flavor to the whole cake. Lastly, I could be more generous with the streusel. It was a little thin after the cake baked and rose.
It’s a nice recipe to try out and experiment with by adding different ingredients, perhaps with berries, toasted nuts or chocolate chips.
Week 20 of the Bouchon Bakery Book Project
Read the Project recap on the Coffee Cake
Bake with us!