Sourdough Coffee Cake

Sourdough coffee cake is a deliciously sweet, sourdough, vanilla cake layered with a cinnamon filling and topped with brown sugar crumble. It’s the most scrumptious breakfast treat for the holidays or the weekend.

It’s the week of Christmas and all through the house is lots of Christmas cheer, wrapping that needs to be completed, and the sweet smell of cinnamon. 

Holiday traditions are important in our family. I love making Christmas fun and special for the kids.

These are memories I want them to look look back on with great fondness. 

My mom always had holiday music softly playing in the background during my Christmases while I was growing up – as well as cookies being rolled out, cut, and decorated by little helping hands.

She always tried to make those little moments special.

Christmas mornings are so wonderful. It’s not just the gifts. It’s spending quality time together to celebrate our Savior, while enjoying some yummy treats like this sourdough coffee cake. 

This yummy recipe makes the best Christmas breakfast (sourdough cinnamon rolls and cranberry bread also rank very high). 

Tips For Making This Sourdough Coffee Cake

• You can make the quick version the day of, or start the day before to allow it to ferment. Fermentation not only helps break down the grain and reduce phytic acid, but it also adds a deliciously tangy flavor.
• You can make this dairy-free by using coconut oil rather than butter in the crumb topping. Also, swap out the milk for almond or coconut milk. The flavor will be slightly different, but still very yummy.
• You can use all-purpose or einkorn flour. See notes in the recipe card for amounts. I like to use einkorn flour, if the flour isn’t being fermented, for easier digestion. Either flour will work well. 
• If you are new to sourdough, make sure to check out how to make a sourdough starter here. It is much easier than you think.

What makes a coffee cake a coffee cake?

It is typically a sweetened cake served with coffee. It doesn’t taste like coffee, but there are many varieties of this classic.

What do I do with my leftover sourdough starter?

You can make this recipe with active or sourdough discard. Either will work. For more recipes using leftover sourdough starter, make sure to check on this sourdough discard recipe post.

What type of flour can I use to make this recipe?

You can use all-purpose or einkorn flour. Typically, when you are swapping out einkorn for AP flour, you will need slightly more einkorn because it absorbs less liquid then AP, and the dough tends to be stickier.

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Tools you may need:

Stand mixer

Measuring cups and spoons

Baking dish

Cast iron skillet (optional, I use it to melt butter and coconut oil)

How To Make Sourdough Coffee Cake – Quick Version

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease baking dish with coconut oil or butter.

Melt butter and combine with brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour. I like using einkorn flour when I’m not going to ferment it, but regular, all-purpose flour works, as well.

Make The Cake:

In a stand mixer or large bowl, cream together melted coconut oil, brown sugar, and regular sugar, until well combined.

Add egg, vanilla extract, sourdough starter, water, and milk to the sugar mixture; combine.

In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. 

Slowly incorporate the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. I like to turn on my stand mixer at a lower speed. Then, I add about a third of the dry ingredients at a time until it comes together.

Place half of the cake mixture into the baking dish. Spread the cinnamon filling over the cake mixture evenly. 

Spread the remaining cake batter over the cinnamon filling, then sprinkle the crumb topping on top.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean (the cinnamon topping will still stick to the toothpick, but the cake should be clean).

How To Make Long Fermented Sourdough Coffee Cake

The night before or 8-24 hours before baking, combine oil, flour, sourdough starter, and water.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 and grease a baking dish.

Add the remaining cake ingredients. Mix until it just comes together. Be careful not to over mix. Using a stand mixer will make it much easier, I promise.

Prepare the crumb topping and cinnamon filling in separate bowls.

To the baking dish, add half of the fermented cake batter. 

Spread the cinnamon filling over the cake batter, add remaining cake mixture, then top with crumb topping. 

Bake for 45 minutes. 

Allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving.

To store:

This sourdough coffee cake tastes best when eaten the same day. Store in an air-tight container up to three days. 

You can also freeze the cake for up to three months. Cut into individual portions and freeze individually. Thaw and reheat for a few minutes before serving.

If you try this recipe and love it, I would appreciate if you could come back, comment on the post, and give it 5 stars! Thanks.

Find More Delicious Breakfast Recipes:

• Breakfast Pizza With Sourdough Crust
• Sourdough Biscuits And Gravy From Scratch
• Berry Kefir Smoothie
• Sourdough Pancakes
• Sourdough English Muffins