Classic Coffee Cake Recipe (2024)

This Classic Coffee Cake Recipe is soft and tender with a ribbon of cinnamon in the middle and a crumbly buttery brown sugar topping!

Coffee Cake is one of our FAVORITE weekend breakfasts, served with fruit salad or a side of Fluffy Scrambled Eggs.

This recipe for coffee cake is tried and true, best eaten nice and warm with a tall glass of milk, coffee, or hot chocolate.

Classic Coffee Cake

My favorite thing about coffee cake is that it can be enjoyed for dessert, breakfast, or an afternoon snack! Coffee cake does not have coffee in it, but is meant to be eaten with tea or coffee.

I made this coffee cake recipe without sour cream and it is one of my favorites because of the lovely crumbly topping with brown sugar and the nice cinnamon sugar filling going right through the center of the cake. So delicious!

Ingredients Needed

Here’s the basic list of ingredients you’ll need in order to make this Classic Coffee Cake. As always, you can find the full list of ingredients located in the printable recipe card below.

• Eggs
• Sugar – brown and white granulated for the topping and cake
• Flour – all-purpose
• Vegetable Oil – or canola oil
• Baking Powder – rising agent for the cake
• Cinnamon – the star of the show, adds so much flavor!
• Butter – for the topping

How To Make Coffee Cake

It’s easy to make the coffee cake batter and simple four-ingredient filling/topping. Don’t forget to preheat the oven to 350℉ before you start.

Mix Wet Ingredients

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, milk vegetable oil, and vanilla extra and mix until combined and smooth.

Mix Dry Ingredients

Add into the wet ingredients the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk until combined. Set aside.

Make Topping

In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, cold butter, and flour.

Use clean hands to pinch the butter into the brown sugar and flour, creating a crumbly and coarse topping.

Assemble the Cake

Pour half of the cake batter into a greased 9 inch by 13 inch baking dish.

Sprinkle 1/3 of the brown sugar topping over the batter. Pour the remaining cake batter over the top, then sprinkle the remaining brown sugar topping over the batter.

Bake Coffee Cake

Bake the cake for 40-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool slightly before serving. You may serve the cake warm or let it cool completely, but I believe coffee cake is best when served warm.

Recipe Tips and Substitutions

• Once you add in the dry ingredients, mix the batter until combined and no flour pockets are left but don’t mix it too much. Overmixing can cause it to have a rubbery texture when baked.
• The vegetable oil can be swapped for melted butter if you want an even more rich taste.
• Switch out a teaspoon of vanilla for almond or rum extract for a different but delicious flavor profile!

Make Ahead and Storage

It’s really easy to make this coffee cake ahead of time!

Make Ahead: You can make it the night before and bake it or simply refrigerate it before baking and bake it in the morning.

To Store: Cover with plastic wrap once cooled and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

To Freeze:Once cooled, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Common Questions

More Delicious Breakfast Cake Recipes

Sometimes cake for breakfast is the thing to do, especially for holidays or weekends! Here are some of our favorites. Make sure to try at least one!

• Cinnamon Roll Sheet Cake
• Cream Cheese Raspberry Coffee Cake
• Super Easy Dutch Baby Pancake Recipe
• Buttermilk Cranberry Cake

This is a much loved coffee cake recipe in our house. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!