Say hello to the world’s perfect (mini) coffee cake. And by perfect, I mean perfect. It’s light, fluffy, cinnamon spicy, and has the ideal ratio of cake to crumbles.
There was a moment as I was testing this cake for the first time, dropping handfuls of sugar and butter crumbles over the cake batter, that I was like, okay, this is an excessive amount of streusel, even for me. I’m going to have to cut this down. But nope. Once everything bakes up, it turns out that excessive is just right when it comes to coffee cake. The crumb layer is thick and decadent, making up about a third of the cake’s height, but paired with the light, not-too-sweet vanilla cake underneath, it’s perfect. With every bite, you get just the right amount of moist, fluffy cake and buttery, crumbly, crunchy streusel. This little cake is stellar enough that you can serve it on its own with just a good cup of coffee alongside. Or make it a part of a breakfast spread. The cake needs at least 15 minutes to cool, and that’s plenty of time to fry up some bacon, scramble some eggs, cut up a little fruit, and maybe make a mimosa or two. The cake will serve four, especially when served with a full breakfast, so invite a couple friends over and enjoy!
Ingredient Notes
Unsalted butter: This recipe calls for unsalted butter, but if you only have salted, not a problem. Simply reduce the salt to a pinch (both in the streusel and the cake), and you’ll be good to go. Sour cream: The cake calls for a couple tablespoons of sour cream in the batter, which helps give it a fantastic moist texture. In a pinch, you can substitute plain unsweetened yogurt instead.
Can I double this recipe?
Sure. You can double the recipe and bake it in an 8×8-inch baking dish. Just extend the baking time as needed.
I don’t have a 7×5-inch baking dish. What else can I use?
You can also bake this in a 6-inch round or square pan. If using a 6-inch round pan, extend the baking time slightly since the cake will be a little thicker and need a slightly longer baking time.
More Small Cake Recipes
Small Red Velvet Cake Small Lemon Pound Cake Mini Chocolate Sheet Cake Small Banana Cake
More Small-batch Breakfast Recipes
Small-batch Cinnamon Rolls Crêpes for Two Pancakes for Two Small-batch Muffins One-banana Banana Bread
Mini Coffee Cake Recipe Tips
If you are making this in a cold kitchen during the winter, your room-temperature butter might be a little too cold to cream easily. You can microwave the softened butter for just a couple seconds, long enough to further soften, but not melt it. When testing the cake for doneness, make sure the streusel is not scraping off wet batter from your toothpick or cake tester, making the cake look done while still under-baked. Use the cake tester to clear a very small hole in the topping so you can accurately test your cake.
Adapted From Cooking Classy This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using them. There is absolutely no additional cost to you.
