Tuesday, October 20, 2009

No Clever Title Just Good Coffee Cake

This wonderfully aromatic coffee cake comes from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott. This is the new book that was chosen by The Cake Slice Bakers to bake from throughout the following year. I'm really looking forward to simpler pound cakes and home style confections. Don't get me wrong, I'll always have a special place in my heart for statuesque triple layer beauties.

This cinnamon pecan coffee cake was really tasty. The streusel was buttery and cinnamony and the cake itself was dense and light at the same time. When I saw the picture of this coffee cake, I thought the little black pieces were chocolate chips, which only made me want to make it all the quicker. But as I started to read the recipe, I realized they were raisins. I like raisins, but not in coffee cake, so I left those out and added extra pecans for more crunch. It also had a pronounced cinnamon flavor since I used Red Ape Cinnamon again. I've been adding it to all my cinnamon dishes and Mr. H says we're going to turn into apes!

This recipe makes an entire 9x13 pan of coffee cake so I halved the recipe and baked it into an 8x8 in Pyrex (it baked for the same amount of time). It was excellent hot, right out of the oven with a cup of coffee and some salty bacon. But it was also good the next day heated slightly and topped off with a pat of butta love. This would be a nice alternative to cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning!

Cinnamon Pecan Coffee Cake from Southern Cakes

Printable Version

For the Cake:

  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs

For the Cinnamon Raisin Filling:

  • 1½ cups light brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 3 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1½ cups raisins
  • 1½ cups coarsely chopped pecans
  • ¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter, melted

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13 by 9 inch pan.

To make the filling, combine the light brown sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl and stir with a fork to mix everything well. Combine the raisins and pecans in another bowl and toss to mix them. Place the cinnamon mixture, nut mixture and melted butter by the baking pan to use later.

To make the cake batter, combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Stir the vanilla into the milk. In a large bowl combine the butter and sugar and beat with a mixer on high speed until pale yellow and evenly mixed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl to ensure a good mix. Add the eggs and beat for another 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl now and then, until the mixture is smooth and light.

Use a large spoon or spatula to add about a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir only until the flour disappears. Add a third of the milk and mix in. Repeat twice more until all the flour and milk mixtures have been incorporated. Stir just enough to keep the batter smooth.

Spread half the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Sprinkle half the cinnamon mixture over the batter followed by half the melted butter. Scatter half the raisins and nuts over the top. Spread the remaining batter carefully over the filling, using a spatula to smooth the batter all the way to the edges of the pan. Top with the leftover cinnamon, butter and nut mixture, covering the cake evenly.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the cake is golden brown, fragrant and beginning to pull away from the edges of the pan. Place the pan on a wire rack and allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before serving in squares right from the pan. The cake is delicious hot, warm or at room temperature.

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35 comments:

  1. That cake looks so fluffy! YUM :)

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  2. this coffee cake looks good with..um, coffee..heehee..I'm a coffee person.

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  3. What a great recipe! I love to put a lot of cinnamon in cakes, it gives such a nice flavour! :)

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  4. Your cake looks wonderful Monica and absolutely packed full with pecans. I agree it tasted even better the next day and tasted like sticky buns!!

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  5. It is 6:49 am and I wish I had a huge slab of that right now. Glad you left the raisins out, not a big fan!!!!!

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  6. Love that pat of butta love! Nice saying.:)

    Looks and sounds like a fantastic coffee cake and quite easy, I think Ill be sending this one off to the firehouse soon. I am in TOTAL agreement with the pecan issue, nice choice.

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  7. sometimes you don't need a name, and this looks great. If I try this I will add chocolate chips. I have been looking for a great coffee cake recipe.

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  8. Mmmm, coffee cake is one of my favorite things! My mom used to make it for us the night before and we'd have these amazing and yummy breakfasts! Will be trying this as well. Your blog is too good! The recipes are piling up on me! :)

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  9. Oh, I can just imagine this on Christmas morning...although I wish I had a slice right now. :D

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  10. Great job on your coffee cake and it sure does look delicious. Could do with a slice right now!

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  11. Wow. Those extra pecans really take it over the top. It's beautiful. My whole family was crazy about this when I made mine. It's a keeper.

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  12. wow your cake looks lovely and delicious! I really liked this cake too.

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  13. Ha-ha! (I have a stupid grin on my face!) You thinking my babies aren't getting cinnamon rolls or that I should have a back up plan!? LOL! :)

    Yes, I very much think that the kiddos (& I) would love this!
    ~ingrid

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  14. Your cake looks great, light and tender. I am sure my kids would love having it in the morning.
    Mimi

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  15. there's a reason I keep "forgetting" about this blog...ha ha ha. I love your recipes...and the ones I've tried make me love food even more...MMMMMMMM

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  16. Your cake looks super! Love reading your blog!

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  17. Mmmm.... that looks SO good. Perfect for a Saturday morning breakfast treat. :)

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  18. I've been looking for a new coffee cake recipe b/c well... I hate to admit this but... I've been using the Bisquick recipe! haha because it's actually really good!
    But this one looks FAR better!
    Thanks for sharing Monica!
    -Mini

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  19. This looks so light. Big pecan fans here so I go with your decision on the addition of extra and leaving out the raisins.

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  20. Yours turned out so well!! I really enjoyed this cake and would love it with some chocolate chips instead of raisins.

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  21. I thought there were chocolate chips in there at first glance...and that wouldn't be bad either!

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  22. Sadly, I missed the deadline to make this. I still plan to, though. I happen to love raisins! Great job on the recipe. I see this on a lazy Sunday morning, with a hot cup of coffee. Wonderful!

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  23. Your cake looks lovely - thanks for the warm welcome into the group :)

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  24. I just love a good coffee cake, or for that matter any cake! It looks delicious Monica, like all your cakes do!

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  25. Dear Monica I like you photo as certified bowl lickers ! Great photos and cake !! Love

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  26. Hi Monica!

    Thank you so much for stopping by my blog and saying hello- it was really wonderful to hear from you. As a newbie Cake Slice baker, I’m so glad to meet the other members- I’m looking forward to getting to know you better as we bake our way through Southern Cakes :)

    Your cake looks absolutely beautiful and super delicious. You did a truly fabulous job! I love the work you’re showcasing on your site, and can’t wait to see all your upcoming scrumptious creations!

    Have a wonderful rest of your week, and a relaxing weekend. Hope to hear from you again soon!

    Fondly,
    Joy

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  27. Great pic! Looks yummy! I love your cinnamon..never heard of that brand. :-)

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  28. You always make the most glorious looking cakes!

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  29. This has the perfect coffee cake texture! I would've omitted the raisins too. Way to go with the cinnamon, pour it on. I love that stuff. Especially when a streusel topping's involved :)!

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  30. What a beautiful coffee cake with that thick cinnamon later, it looks delicious! I like that you added extra pecans too - yum!

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  31. Thanks so much for the welcome! Your coffee cake looks awesome! The layers are really distinct, mine kind of got mixed up. You described it exactly, being dense and light at the same time. Love your photos!

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  32. OOH Monica I love your action shots! Very cool! You must have a photo assistant.

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  33. Thank you!! I've been searching high and low for a really good coffee cake. I've tried sooo many. This is in the oven as we speak.

    I used walnuts since that's what I had on hand, and also left out the raisins.

    My batter was quite stiff, it was a bit tricky spreading it into the pan. The method of layering the cinnamon-sugar, butter, and nuts was also new to me (usually it's all dumped together), so I'm curious as to what kind of texture the streusel will have. Hope it tastes great, thanks again!!

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  34. Hi Anonymous- I hope you enjoyed the coffee cake! Thanks for stopping by to let me know you made it.

    ~Monica

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Thank you for your supportive comments. I appreciate each and every one of them!