Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe - The Domestic Diva (2024)

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Hand's down, the best coffee cake you'll ever eat. You won't believe how easy it is to make. Turn a simple boxed cake mix into a cinnamon swirl coffee cake that tastes like its from your favorite coffeeshop.

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Don’t let the name fool you. Coffee cake doesn’t have any coffee in it. This coffee cake recipe gets its name because it is recommended to serve alongside your favorite cup of joe.

Not a coffee fan, not a problem. Coffee cake is one of those desserts that everyone in the family enjoys.

Bursting with cinnamon flavor, each time I make this coffee cake recipe it is devoured in just a few days time. My family loves it.

Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe - The Domestic Diva (1)

This recipe is best made in a bundt pan. I prefer to use either a traditional metal bundt pan. However, a silicone bundt pan often makes it easier to remove the cake from the pan after baking. With silicone bundt pans you can push the cake out because of the flexible structure of the “pan”.

Give this Cake as a Gift

This mini-bundt pan would make the perfect sized little bundt cinnamon swirl coffee cakes to give away as a surprise gift to someone. If you choose to use a mini-bundt pan, please keep in mind that you will need to adjust the cooking time of the mini coffeecakes. They will more than likely cook faster in a mini pan than a regular sized bundt pan.

Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe - The Domestic Diva (2)

Do you eat coffee cake with coffee?

Get the entire coffeehouse experience without even leaving your house. Learn how to make two coffeehouse classics, Caramel Macchiato and Iced Coffee, in your own kitchen.

These recipes tastes so much better than a trip to your local coffeeshop, you might prefer to stay-in instead. Your wallet will thank you, if you do.

Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe

thedomesticdiva.org

Hand’s down, the best coffee cake you’ll ever eat. You won’t believe how easy it is to make. Turn a simple boxed cake mix into a cinnamon swirl coffee cake that tastes like its from your favorite coffeeshop.

4.95 from 18 votes

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12 people

Ingredients

  • 1 yellow boxed cake mix + ingredients according to package (usually water, oil, and eggs)
  • 1 stick cold, unsalted butter
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350F.

  • Grease bundt pan and set aside. I use coconut oil to grease my pan but you could use any nonstick cooking spray that you prefer.

  • Mix yellow cake mix according to package instructions and set aside.

  • In a bowl, mix together all of the remaining ingredients except the cold butter.

  • Cut the cold butter and mix into the dry ingredients. I found it easiest to use my hands to squish the butter and dry ingredients together until they formed a crumbly texture. (See Notes)

  • Pour half of the cake batter into your greased bundt pan.

  • Sprinkle half of the crumb topping mixture onto the cake mix.

  • Pour the remaining cake batter on top of the crumb topping.

  • (Optional) Swirl the batter slightly by making small circles in the batter with a butter knife, just once around the pan. This step is not necessary but will swirl the crumb topping in the middle of your cake, ever so slightly.

  • Evenly distribute the remaining crumb topping to the top of the cake.

  • Bake in preheated 350F oven for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

  • Remove from oven, and allow to cool completely in the pan.

  • Once cooled completely, remove from the pan, slice and enjoy.

Notes

If you don’t want to use your hands to cut the butter into the dry ingredients, a pastry cutter is the perfect tool for this job.

Check out my favorite kitchen gadgets for stay-at-home chefs on Amazon.

Keyword Cake, Coffee, Coffeecake

Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe - The Domestic Diva (4)

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Cinnamon-Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe - The Domestic Diva (2024)

FAQs

Is cinnamon crumb cake the same as coffee cake? ›

While some people confuse crumb cake for coffee cake, there's actually a pretty big difference between the two. Traditionally, coffee cake is topped with a layer of crumbly streusel, while crumb cake is essentially half crumb, half cake. Both are worthy bakes, but today, we're all about the crumb!

What makes coffee cake different from cake? ›

The difference between coffee cake and regular cake is the topping. Coffee cake and regular cake are made with the same ingredients like flour, sugar, eggs, and butter and a leavening agent like baking powder. The difference is that instead of frosting on top, coffee cakes have crumble or streusel.

How do you increase the flavor of coffee in a cake? ›

Here's how we made it happen:
  1. Infuse the Batter With Coffee Two Ways. Bakers know that that the easiest way to get coffee flavor into a baked good is to add instant espresso powder to the batter. ...
  2. Add a Mocha Swirl. ...
  3. Pack the Crumb Topping with Coffee, Too. ...
  4. Finish with a Boozy Latte Glaze.
Apr 28, 2015

What is a good substitute for cinnamon in coffee cake? ›

While nutmeg has a stronger nutty flavor than cinnamon, it shares that same earthy, warming quality. The flavors are distinct but complementary enough that nutmeg can work as a replacement in recipes like coffee cakes or cinnamon swirl bread.

Why is coffee cake called Buckle? ›

A buckle is a funny name for an old fashioned fruit studded coffee cake. Like many other desserts in the extended cobbler family buckles take their name from their appearance—grunts grunt as they cook, slumps slump when served, buckles—you guessed it—buckle.

What does adding coffee to cake mix do? ›

Its rich, bittersweet flavour adds depth to cakes, cheesecakes, pies, cookies, muffins, loaves, and soufflés.

Is a king cake a coffee cake? ›

The name “king cake” comes from the Biblical story of the three kings who bring gifts to Baby Jesus. A blend of coffee cake and cinnamon roll, king cake is usually iced in yellow, green and purple – the colors of Mardi Gras -- and is frequently packed with fruit fillings and decadent cream cheeses.

What is in a Bakers Treat coffee cake? ›

Sugar, enriched flour (bleached wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, ferrous sulfate or reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), water, soybean oil, brown sugar, corn syrup, butter (cream, salt), contains 2% or less: modified cornstarch, glycerin, egg, cinnamon, tallow, palm oil, salt, natural ...

Is it better to put sour cream or milk in a cake? ›

Sour cream is one of the fattiest dairy products; the extra fat content (for example, adding sour cream to a cake instead of milk) will make the cake moister and richer, says Wilk. "Fat, in any form (butter, lard, cream, etc.) shortens gluten strands, which essentially leads to the most tender baked goods," she adds.

What does adding mayonnaise to cake mix do? ›

All this means that adding mayonnaise to the cake batter boosts the moisture of the final product—and leaves none of its characteristic taste. Testing showed that using oil or butter instead of mayo made for a drier cake, but keeping the eggs in addition to the mayonnaise improved richness and springiness.

Does butter or oil make a cake more moist? ›

Why does oil give cake superior texture? Butter is 18% water, so when the batter is baked, some of its liquid evaporates. Replacing the water from the butter with oil means there's more fat left in the cakes to ensure tenderness.

What coffee is best in cake? ›

Because espresso powder is so finely ground and concentrated, it's great for drier doughs like cookies and cakes, where you want a coffee flavor but you don't want to mess with the texture.

How do you intensify coffee flavor? ›

Coffee + Coconut

If you like your coffee milky, why not add a dribble of coconut milk or creamed coconut. Stir it in or blend it in for a smooth, creamy finish. The coconut seems to enhance and almost intensify the coffee flavours instead of masking any of them.

How do you keep coffee cake moist? ›

Melted butter is key for moist coffee cake, but this dessert tends to get drier over time. If you want to prevent coffee cake from getting stale for as long as possible, storing it in an airtight Tupperware is your best bet.

What is another name for crumb cake? ›

Streuselkuchen (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtʁɔʏzl̩ˌkuːxn̩]; "crumb cake"), also known in English-speaking countries as crumb cake, is a cake made of yeast dough covered with a sweet crumb topping referred to as streusel.

What is the real name for coffee cake? ›

It wasn't until 1763 before coffee cake was first mentioned, though technically even then by another name, the German “gugelhupf”.

What is the difference between a coffee cake and a streusel cake? ›

The primary difference is in the crumbs. While coffee cake may have a small streusel on top or layered inside like a ribbon filling, crumb cake has a much thicker layer of streusel topping and is essentially half crumb, half cake.

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