Sour Cream Coffee Cake

From the book Barefoot Contessa Parties! by Ina Garten

Introduction

This is the ultimate breakfast treat. My goal was a homemade version of a Drake's Cake, but better. As if the cake wasn’t delicious enough, I decided to drizzle maple icing on the top and give it an extra-special flavor. This recipe can also be made into muffins.

Ingredients

Cake

Streusel

Glaze

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan.
2. Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 4 to 5 minutes, until light. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift together the four baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Finish stirring with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.
3. For the streusel, place the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and butter in a bowl and pinch together with your fingers until it forms a crumble. Mix in the walnuts, if desired.
4. Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread it out with a knife. Sprinkle with ¾ cup streusel. Spoon the rest of the batter in the pan, spread it out, and scatter the remaining streusel on top. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
5. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Carefully transfer the cake, streusel-side up, onto a serving plate. Whisk the confectioners’ sugar and maple syrup together, adding a few drops of water if necessary, to make the glaze runny. Drizzle as much as you like over the cake with a fork or spoon.

Notes

If you don’t have cake flour, you can substitute 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour plus 1/4 cup cornstarch.

If the eggs are cold, place the whole eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes before cracking them.

This content is from the book Barefoot Contessa Parties! by Ina Garten.