Gluten-Free Coffee Cake

THIS POST IS SPONSORED BY 
BOB’S RED MILL

Cake for breakfast? I’m here for it. Plus it has the word coffee in it, making it completely legit to eat right when you roll out of bed.

And if you wanna swing it for afternoon tea time or after-dinner dessert that would obviously be acceptable as well.

How much lovelier will your day become enjoying your morning coffee (or tea) accompanied with cake in hand? You might just burst into a frolic. What a great way to start the day.

This streusel-topped cinnamon coffee cake is coming affectionately to you as part of my year-long partnership with Bob’s Red Mill. Throughout this last year my goal has been to show that by using reliable gluten-free products, the common stereotypes associated with gluten-free baked goods (ie. dry, tastes like cardboard, weird texture…you get the picture) are no longer valid. And this recipe takes the cake. (<–it’s hard to pass by a good pun)

By combining Bob’s Red Mill wholesome Gluten-Free Oat Flour and their signature Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour this classic coffee cake is all the things we dream of. It’s:

• Perfectly sweet in taste and tender in crumb
• Loaded with warm, toasty flavors
• Laced with a pecan cinnamon-sugar streusel through the center and crumbled on top
• Completely satisfying for a laidback weekend morning with your favorite cuppa
• A great choice when you need something sweet to take to a friend or neighbor

Pair it with my personal hot beverage of choice, a Creamy Vegan Chai-Spiced Steamer, and swoon.

• Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-To-1 Flour: DO NOT substitute a different all-purpose gluten-free flour blend. This coffee cake recipe was developed using this specific gluten-free flour. No two gluten-free flours blends are the same so if you do go rogue and use something different the odds that your coffee cake will turn out as tasty as intended are a risky gamble.
• Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Oat Flour: Finely ground from the highest quality gluten-free oats and processed, packaged, and tested in a Bob’s Red Mill dedicated gluten-free facility. It lends wholesome warmth to the flavor of the coffee cake.
• Bob’s Red Mill Baking Powder: My go-to baking powder. It’s aluminum-free and has no bitter aftertaste. A leavener that helps the cake rise.
• Bob’s Red Mill Baking Soda: An additional leavening agent that reacts with the wet ingredients to help the cake rise.
• Sour cream: The secret ingredient that makes this coffee cake moist and completely irresistible.
• Sugars: Brown sugar adds depth of flavor and moisture while granulated sugar contributes to the cake’s sweetness.
• Eggs: Binds the ingredients and contributes to a cake with a tender crumb.
• Unsalted butter: Cold butter is needed to make that lovely streusel crumb topping but room temperature butter is needed for the cake in order to cream the butter and sugars together for the cake batter.
• Pecans: Totally optional but totally tasty. Pecans and cinnamon are a match made in heaven giving the crumb topping extra flavor and texture. Walnuts would be a great choice too.

For a full list of ingredients and quantities see the recipe card at the end of this post.

Step 1: Let’s first make the cinnamon crumb topping for our coffee cake. Add Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour to a mixing bowl along with chopped pecans, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and kosher salt. Whisk to combine.

Step 2: Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the bowl. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers (my kids’ preferred method), cut or rub in the butter until coarse crumbs form.

Step 3: You know you’re done smooshing the butter into the cinnamon flour mixture when you have pea-sized clumps of streusel that either you or others in your home keep trying to sneak out of the bowl into their mouths. Place the cinnamon crumb mixture in the fridge to chill (and to prevent theft) while you make the coffee cake batter.

Step 4: Time to make the cake batter! In a bowl, whisk Bob’s Red Mill ingredients (Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour, Gluten-Free Oat Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder) with cinnamon and salt until combined.

Step 5: In another bowl, using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or a handheld electric mixer) on medium speed, cream together the butter and sugars.

Step 6: Add the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.

Step 7: With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in 2 or 3 increments, alternating with the sour cream. Beat until smooth and combined.

Step 8: Spoon half of the cake batter (it doesn’t need to be exact, just eyeball it) into a 9-inch square parchment-lined baking pan. The batter will be thick and slightly sticky so just do your best to evenly spread the batter in the cake pan. I found it to spread most easily by using an offset spatula.

Step 9: Sprinkle roughly half of the cinnamon crumb topping evenly on top of the cake batter.

Step 10: Spoon the remaining cake batter over the crumb topping and carefully spread into an even layer. Don’t fret if some of the crumb topping gets a little mixed into this layer, just do your best.

Step 11: Sprinkle the remaining streusel crumb mixture on top. Then pop the coffee cake into the oven to bake!

Step 12: Once baked, place the baking pan on a wire rack to cool for about 15 minutes. Then slice into squares, brew your favorite hot morning beverage, serve, and enjoy a perfectly tasty start to your day.

They say you can’t have your cake and eat it, too. That is unless you have this recipe and make it on repeat, every weekend.

See how I take care of you. ♡