Simple and classic, this buttery cinnamon crumb coffee cake is anything but plain! Sour cream ensures a moist, light (not overly dense) breakfast cake, and there’s double the brown sugar cinnamon crumb streusel. Enjoy a thick ribbon of streusel inside and plenty of crumbs on top, both made from the same mixture.
I originally published this recipe in 2015 and have since added new photos and a few more success tips. I’ve also made two small changes to the recipe, which are reflected in the printable recipe below.
Cake for breakfast… well, don’t mind if I do! I’ve published quite a few coffee cake recipes over the years, and this is my go-to, absolute favorite sour cream version.
I’ve made so many variations of this one over the years, including doubling the crumb so there’s more swirl INSIDE and ON TOP of the cake. That’s the version you’ll find in the printable recipe below. (Because what’s the point of crumb cake if it’s all cake and no crumb?! Double the crumb = double the fun!)
One reader, Crystal, commented: “This is delicious! The crumb is surprisingly light and tender… This is my first foray into coffee cake, and I don’t think I need to look any further. ★★★★★”
Another reader, Stacey, commented: “My family loved this recipe! I’ve made MANY sour cream coffee cake recipes over the years. This is by far THE BEST!! ★★★★★”
You Will Love This Cinnamon Crumb Coffee Cake
This cinnamon crumb coffee cake is the original and “plain” version of my raspberry almond crumb cake, cranberry Christmas cake, and blackberry cream cheese crumb cake.
Compared to my New York-style crumb cake recipe, it’s smaller and softer—with a lighter, more cake-like crumb. It also has a delicious cinnamon swirl inside and vanilla icing on top, similar to cinnamon swirl quick bread, cinnamon swirl banana bread, and crumb cake muffins. The best part? Make just 1 cinnamon crumb mixture and use that for the filling AND topping.
- Texture: Tender, fluffy cake paired with a soft crumb topping. Each slice boasts a cinnamon-y ribbon running through the middle.
- Flavor: Classic coffee cake flavors of butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
- Ease: Prepare 1 mixture for both the cinnamon swirl and the crumb topping.
This coffee cake is delightful alongside a cup of coffee or tea (or a mimosa!). Make it for a birthday breakfast, a coffee catch-up with a friend, or a morning meeting—really any time you want to make the morning a little special. It’s always a favorite among these Easter brunch recipes, too!
Key Ingredients (Especially Sour Cream!)
- Brown Sugar: Moist brown sugar is the key to a crumb topping that’s soft, not crunchy.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is sturdy enough to support the heavy crumb layer. I was tempted to use cake flour in the recipe to achieve an ultra-soft crumb, but found that all-purpose gave a more ideal texture for a breakfast cake.
- Cinnamon: We can’t have cinnamon crumb cake without it!
- Butter: You need cold butter for the streusel and room temperature butter for the cake. Cream the softened butter with sugar, which produces a wonderfully cakey texture. If you’re a beginner baker, this tutorial on how to cream butter and sugar will be helpful.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda: These leaveners help the cake rise.
- Salt: Flavor enhancer.
- Granulated Sugar: We’ll cream the butter + sugar together for the base of the cake batter.
- Eggs: Bind ingredients together, and make the cake tender and rich.
- Vanilla Extract: If you have homemade vanilla extract, use it!
- Sour Cream: The magic moist maker! Just like in this white cake, sour cream makes the cake incredibly moist and lush.
- Milk: Just a little to thin out the batter so you can spread it in the pan.
Make the Cinnamon Crumb Mixture First
To keep things simple, there’s only 1 cinnamon crumb mixture. Layer 1 cup (practically half) in the center of the coffee cake and sprinkle the rest on top. You need brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and cold, cubed butter. The butter must be chilled. Why the emphasis on cold? The streusel mixture needs to maintain some of its structure in the oven or else both layers will sink to the bottom.
Use a pastry cutter to cut the cold butter into the other ingredients. You could also use 2 forks, or a food processor. Look how crumbly it gets:
Expect a Thick Coffee Cake Batter
Refrigerate the crumb mixture as you make the cake batter. The batter is rich and thick, and you need to divide it in half so you can layer in some of the cinnamon crumbs. The old version of the recipe created such a thick, heavy batter that it was difficult to divide and spread into the pan. By adding a little milk (just 2 Tablespoons!), the batter is much easier to divide and spread.
You need an 8-inch square pan for this recipe. See below for other size variations. Line it with lightly greased parchment paper so you can easily remove the cake from the pan as a whole, or just directly grease the pan. (Either way works.) Eyeball half of the cake batter and smooth it into the bottom of the greased pan. It does NOT have to be exact, nor perfect. Layer 1 cup (about half) of the cinnamon crumbs on top:
Now spread the remaining batter on top. This can be tricky since you’re spreading thick batter on an unstable crumb foundation. Just do your best. Top with remaining crumbs:
Bake, and then top with vanilla icing. The icing is optional, but always a fabulous (and pretty) finishing touch. You could even turn it into a delicious orange icing by replacing the milk with orange juice.
Cinnamon Crumb Coffee Cake Success Tips
- Pay attention to ingredient temperature. The butter in the crumb mixture should be cold, and the butter, eggs, and sour cream in the cake batter should be room temperature.
- Do your best to spread the thick batter. The top layer can be hard to spread on top of the cinnamon crumb layer, but it doesn’t have to be perfect. Don’t overthink it.
- Use a metal pan or a glass pan. If using ceramic, the coffee cake may take longer to bake. If using extra dark metal, the cake may take less time.
FAQ: Why Is This Called Coffee Cake?
I get this question a lot. 🙂 There is no coffee IN this cake! “Coffee cake” gets its name not because of the ingredients in the cake, but because it’s a breakfast cake to be enjoyed WITH coffee.
Variations & Different Pan Sizes
- Add some extras! Try it as cranberry Christmas cake (with pecans) or raspberry almond crumb cake; or mix and match your favorite add-ins and flavors. Chocolate chips are always a good idea. (Fold 1 cup/180g into the cake batter.)
- Add a cream cheese layer, like in this blackberry cream cheese version.
- Bake in a 9×5-inch loaf pan—no changes to the ingredients; bake time is about 40 minutes.
- Bake it in a 9-inch round cake pan—no changes to the ingredients and bake time.
- Bake in a 9×13-inch pan—see recipe Notes for exact instructions/ingredient amounts. My team and I tested a few versions of this larger size, so use the precise amounts in the Notes below. This is a wonderful size if you’re feeding a crowd:
Sour Cream Coffee Cake (with Crumb Topping)
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
- Yield: serves 9-12
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Every baker should have a classic, old-fashioned and buttery coffee cake recipe in their back pocket and this one is my gold standard, baseline recipe. You’re welcome to borrow it! An 8-inch square pan is required, but see the recipe Notes for other sizes.
Ingredients
Cinnamon Crumb Mixture
- 2/3 cup (135g) packed dark or light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup (95g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
Cake
- 1 and 1/3 cups (166g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (120g) full-fat sour cream, at room temperature*
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk (any kind, dairy or nondairy, is fine)
Vanilla Icing (Optional)
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) heavy cream or milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line an 8-inch square pan (9-inch square is too big, see Notes for other pan sizes) with lightly greased parchment paper or directly grease the pan. I usually use this square pan or this square pan.
- Make the cinnamon crumb mixture: Combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Cut in the chilled butter with a pastry cutter or two forks (or use a food processor or your hands) until the mixture is in pea-sized crumbs. Some larger crumbs are OK. You’ll have a little over 2 cups of crumb. Refrigerate until step 5.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a silicone spatula as needed. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until combined. Beat in the sour cream. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a silicone spatula and beat again as needed to combine. Mixture will be lumpy.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and beat on low speed until just combined. Finally, beat in the milk. Do not overmix this batter. The batter will be thick. You’ll have about 2 and 1/2 cups of batter.
- Carefully spread about half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle 1 cup (about half) of the crumb mixture evenly on top. Carefully spread the remaining batter on top (every last drop of it!). This can be a little tricky since you’re spreading thick batter on top of crumbs, but do your best. I usually use a spoon or small offset spatula. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture evenly on top.
- Bake for around 35–40 minutes or until the cake is baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it is done. Allow cake to cool in the pan set on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
- Make the icing: Whisk all of the icing ingredients together. Drizzle over warm cake.
- Lift the cake from the pan using the overhang parchment paper around the sides and slice into squares. Or, if you didn’t use parchment, slice directly in the pan. Serve cake warm or at room temperature.
- Cover leftovers tightly and store at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The cake can be baked and covered tightly at room temperature overnight. Make the glaze the next morning and drizzle over cake before serving. Cake, with or without icing, can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8-inch Square Baking Pan (such as this one or this one) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Pastry Cutter | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Small Offset Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Sour Cream: Sour cream creates a bakery-style tender and thick crumb. Do not skip it. If needed, you can substitute full-fat or low-fat (not nonfat) Greek yogurt.
- Loaf Pan: If you’d like to bake this coffee cake in a 9×5-inch loaf pan, adjust the bake time to about 40 minutes.
- 9-inch Round Pan: This recipe is too small for a 9-inch square pan; however, it fits wonderfully in a 9-inch round cake pan. Same instructions and bake time.
- 9×13-inch Pan: If you want to make this cake in a 9×13-inch pan, you need to just about 1.5x the recipe. My team and I tested the exact amounts and here is what you’ll need. The instructions are exactly the same, just use the following amounts. Crumb: 1 cup (200g) packed dark or light brown sugar, 1 and 1/4 cups (156g) all-purpose flour, 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 10 Tablespoons (1 stick + 2 Tbsp or 145g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed. Cake: 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks or 170g) unsalted butter, 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar, 3 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, 1 cup (240g) sour cream, 1/4 cup (60ml) milk. The icing recipe makes a lot, so it’s plenty for the larger cake. Bake time is closer to 45 minutes. Makes 24 servings.
- Update in 2022: After making this recipe for 7 years straight, I’ve made 2 small updates to produce an even better sour cream coffee cake. The recipe above has more crumb filling/topping than the 2015 version and it also includes a touch of milk to smooth out the batter. If you wish to make the old version, skip the milk and halve the amounts for the crumb filling/topping.
- Why is this called coffee cake and there is no coffee in the cake? “Coffee cake” gets its name not because of the ingredients in the cake, but because it’s a breakfast cake to be enjoyed WITH coffee.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Sally you did it again! I used a muffin tin for this recipe and it worked out great (ceramic at 350 for about 30 min). They came out with a flat top but that’s probably because I put a lot of the topping on lol but it doesn’t affect the texture or taste.
Only had low-fat Greek yogurt which worked perfectly. I browned half the butter that goes into the batter which seems to have worked out great because they’re delicious. King Arthur’s 1:1 GF flour worked out very well for this recipe, def going to save this one.
Honestly the best coffee cake, it’s so moist!! The crumble is perfect . Sally has never disappointed me
Honestly the best coffee cake ever!! You have never disappointed me
Would it be possible to use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream?
Hi Olivia, sour cream creates a bakery-style tender and thick crumb. We do not recommend skipping it in this particular recipe. If needed, you can substitute full-fat or low-fat (not nonfat) Greek yogurt.
This coffee cake has the best actual cake part that I’ve ever had. (The cinnamon bits are always good even in mediocre cakes.) I found it was even better the next day than while it was warm. I forgot to put icing on it and it was still delightful.
Thank you for another great recipe Sally!! I made the 9×13 version for a church breakfast potluck and it was a huge hit! Your recipes never fail me!
I keep using this recipe because it is just perfect in flavor and size. The texture is amazing and I add a tablespoon of rum into the batter for a differenct kick.
That is an AWESOME idea I can’t wait to try.
great recipe! crumb coffee cake has always been my favorite. I even forgot to put in the baking powder and it still rose nicely and turned out perfectly
Hey there! I was wondering, can you taste the sour cream in this cake? Since I don’t really like the taste of it on it’s own, but I understand that it make a big impact on the texture and taste of the cake
Hi Mary! This cake doesn’t taste explicitly like sour cream, it just gives richness and a little tang.
Thanks a lot for your response! I really appreciate it
Hi Sally!! I have made this twice (the first time it was gone in the blink of an eye) and it is absolutely delicious. However, I’m having a hard time with the crumb topping. I’m careful to make sure the butter stays cold, and I get the pieces broken down to what I believe is the correct size, but when I pull the cake out of the oven the top is more like a wet sandy sugar rather than crumbly mixture. It still tastes great but is lacking a little visual appeal. Any tips for this?
Hi Laura, happy to help troubleshoot. It sounds like perhaps your crumb topping could benefit from slightly more flour here. Also, instead of keeping it in the refrigerator before adding it to the top of the cake, keep it in the freezer. That will help ensure the crumbles hold their shape a little better. Hope this helps for next time!
I’ve made this recipe twice now. First time for hubby and he loved it so much that I made it again last night for an event at my church this morning. I received so many compliments!
Can I use a tube pan for this?
Hi Janice, there isn’t enough batter for a Bundt or tube pan. However, if you try the 9×13-inch pan recipe/ingredient amounts (in the Notes), that would likely be enough. We’re unsure of the best bake time.
I think this recipe tastes good but it is awfully sweet for me. Can I eliminate the middle layer of streusel and just put some of the mixture on top? Seems like the 2015 recipe would be better for me. What do you suggest? Thank you for your help.
Hi Ronald, you certainly can halve the topping and not use it in the middle, that should be fine.
I made this following the changes for the 9×13 pan. The flavor was perfect but it didn’t rise much and seemed heavy. Not sure what I did wrong. My crumble looked flat instead of textured and light. I am going to try again but wanted to see if you had any suggestions.
Hi Dorthy! Make sure your baking powder and soda are fresh. We find they lose strength after just 3-4 months. Use proper room temperature butter and other room temperature ingredients and be careful not to over-mix the batter (which can lead to dense baked goods). Hope these tips help for next time!
Thank you! I will try again.
Would this work as muffins/mini muffins
Hi Ahna, You can certainly make this as muffins or mini muffins—you can layer the batter and crumbs into muffin liners. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Enjoy!
This was the first coffee cake I made and it was so delicious! I was a little bit worried I made a mistake when I realized how tricky it was to spread the cake dough and crumble in the 8 inch pan, but it turned out delicious. Thank you for another amazing recipe, Sally! Looking forward to trying more recipes from your website 🙂
Would it still turn out good if I made it GF ?
We haven’t tested this recipe with gluten free flour. If you give it a try, we recommend using a 1:1 gluten free flour substitute. Let us know if you give it a try!
One trip to urgent care, one tetanus shot, and a round of stitches later, I successfully made this recipe!!!
This was my first coffee cake and it turned out perfectly, my family loved it!
I love the way your recipes are so specific. It really helps non-bakers like me to be successful! This is in the oven as I write and smells HEAVENLY! Thanks for the inspiring recipe ls. May God bless you.
Could I make this into a pumpkin coffee cake?
Hi Stevie, here is our pumpkin coffee cake instead. Enjoy!
I love thus recipe and it has become a favorite in my house. Will make this again and again
This recipie is yum! I’ve made it a few times and had lots of delicious success. This last time I had some trouble though.
The crumb was mostly swallowed up by the batter. I followed all amounts correctly, my crumb wasn’t overmixed, although some pieces were coin sized and others were probably loose sugar, but the majority were pea sized.
I layered as instructed using a cup measure to portion out.
Any ideas as to what went wrong? I’ve got about 25% crumb showing on each cake. (I doubled the recipie)
Hi Eliza, it sounds like the doubling could be the culprit here. Doubling can make it easy to over- or under-work the crumb, which can cause it to lose shape and “melt” into the cake. For next time, we’d recommend making the crumbs separately, making sure to keep the butter extra cold. Hope this helps!
I just made this for the first time, but definitely not the last ! The cake crumb was soft, but not crumbling apart and the brown sugar crumble caramelized into deliciousness. Sour cream is a rarity and expensive where I live, so I subbed with homemade yogurt. I also skipped the additional milk as the yogurt was thinner than sour cream. Baked for 35 minutes in an 8 inch square pan. It turned out perfectly, just like all of Sally’s recipes that I have made. Sincere thanks !
We’re so glad it was a hit, B!
I’ve made this recipe many times and it is always amazing! Could I make these as cupcakes? Curious what the bake time would be?
Hi Lizabeth, You can certainly make this as muffins—you can layer the batter and crumbs into muffin liners. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Enjoy!
hi! when i was making this, the crumb mixture wasn’t very “crumby” it was very very smooth for what it looked like, I even added extra dry ingredients and it was still much like a brown sugar batter, what did I do wrong and how can I fix it?
Hi Izzi, be sure that your butter is nice and cold when cutting it into the crumb mixture. Be careful not to overwork the butter, which can cause the crumb mixture to turn into more of a paste than a crumb. Hope this helps for next time!
What a delicious recipe! The cake is nice and moist, and the crumb topping really stands out. The recipe was easy to follow and comes together quickly. This was perfect and easy for a novice baker like myself!
This made a LOT of the crumb topping and not enough of the actual cake batter?? Would not make again 🙁
Hi Rachel, did you make any ingredient substitutions or double the crumb topping by chance? There is a lot of crumb topping, but you’ll have about 2 and 1/2 cups of batter which should be plenty for the two layers of cake. Thank you for giving this one a try!
Sorry, I forgot to write this. I give a five stars if there was 10 stars I’d give it that this was very tasty. Very delicious and I definitely will be making this again. I thank you so much like I said I did have to bake it a Little bit longer 65 minutes 70 minutes somewhere in there, but that was not an issue at all. Very delicious thank you again.
This came together so quickly and I super enjoyed it. It’s a Really tasty recipe thank you so much. I did have to cook it about 65 to 70 minutes before it was done, but that was no problem came together fastly quickly and it’s really delicious. Thank you.
First time I have ever made a coffee cake and was thoroughly pleased, so much so that I will make it for out Thanksgiving get-together and for our Christmas Brunch this year on December 28. I even took it to work and it went over more than very well.
On a side note: Sally, can I get an original autographed picture with a “special note” for a co-worker?
I’m so glad you and others enjoyed the coffee cake! Glad it will be a repeat recipe, too. I’d be happy to sign a bookplate, which is a branded label you can place inside one of my cookbooks, if your coworker has a copy! Email me any time sally@sallysbakingaddiction.com
I loved this recipe. I prepped it the night before, which means I made the cinnamon crumb (in my mini food processor), and stuck it in the fridge. I measured out the sour cream and milk and put them in the fridge to pull out in the morning so they could come to room temp. I put the butter and sugar in my mixing bowl an covered it so the butter would be room temp. I measured and mixed all the dry ingredients. I even lined my baking dish with parchment. It came together so quickly in the morning. Mine needed to bake longer but that was no problem. Highly recommend. Perfect amount of crumb, wonderful flavor and texture. I will definitely make again.