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Cream cheese coffee cake is a cross between crumb cake and cheesecake! A real treat!
Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Here’s a cake where you get the best of both worlds. Since it has a cheesecake layer sandwiched between coffee cake and crumbs, it’s perfect for those who love coffee cake and cheesecake!
The cake itself is rich and buttery. So are the crumbs and there’s plenty of them too. I think that the crumbs are peoples’ favorite part of any coffee cake. Entenmann’s (famous to NYers) even make a cake that’s mostly crumbs due to their popularity.
Now if you didn’t think you could get much better than that, here’s this cake with it’s luscious cheesecake layer.
The Cheesecake Layer
This is where this simple recipe gets a bit tricky.
It’s always hard to spread a tenuous mixture, such as this cheesecake filling, over any batter. Trying to do it with a dry spatula can be daunting. My suggestion is to use a wet spatula because it’ll make the process a lot easier.
However, the easiest way I have found is to drop the cheesecake batter evenly across the top of the other layer than using your wet (but surgically clean) fingers to spread it evenly. I know it sounds gross, but it’s the best method to get the job done. And after all, the cake is going to be baked so worries about bacteria are eliminated.
These tips are good for the bottom layer as well.
Easy Crumbs
The way I make crumbs is easy and they come out perfect every time.
My “secret” if you can call it that is starting with melted butter. Any time I made them the other way by cutting the butter in, they’d melt and didn’t even look like crumbs. I picked up that trick years ago with a cranberry coffee cake. That cake was quite forgettable, but the crumb method used was a keeper.
The flour is variable when you make crumbs this way so start with the minimum amount (which is given in the recipe) and add more if you need it. It’s one of those methods where your eye will tell you if it’s right.
The Recipe
Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 egg
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
Filling:
- 16 oz cream cheese
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 egg
Topping:
- 1/2 cup walnuts chopped
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup butter melted
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup flour approximate
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Coat a 9x13-inch baking dish (the best approximation outside the US is a 3L rectangular baking dish) with non-stick spray.
- For the cake:
- Mix the flour, baking soda and baking powder in a small bowl; set aside.
- Beat the sugar, butter and egg until smooth. Add the sour cream and vanilla; mix well. Stir in the 3 cups of flour mixture until a sticky dough forms. Spread 1/2 of the dough evenly in the prepared pan. TIP--I distribute portions evenly around the pan them pat it to fit with wet hands. Alternately, you could use an offset spatula, but the damp hands work better.
- Beat the cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and egg in another bowl until very smooth. Spoon mixture over the dough in the pan and spread it as evenly as you can.
- Drop the remaining dough by spoonfuls over the cream cheese mixture.
- Mix the topping ingredients together. If the crumbs seem a bit wet, add a tablespoon or two more of flour. Sprinkle the topping over the crumbs.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
