Mother Lovin' Coffee Cake

If you love your mother, then make her this cake for brunch on Mother's Day. It will make up for all the times you sassed her, threw temper tantrums, upchucked on her pants, left sippy cups of milk to spoil under the car seat, told your teacher you were pretty sure she was 57 (when she was 30), kept her up all night nursing, kept her up all night wondering why you had broken your curfew, rolled your eyes at her, shrugged off a hug, crashed her car, or lied right to her face.

She's probably forgiven you already, but this very cake will make all those tortuous years she spent raising you almost a figment of her imagination.



This cake's rich and buttery crumb is moistened with a touch of sour cream and a perfect ribbon of brown sugar crumbs ripple through the center. Topped with more crumbs and a glaze made from pure maple syrup, this is honestly the best coffee cake I have ever tasted.


So delightful is this cake, that your mom, in a moment of pure bliss and delusion, might even ask you to move back in with her. You should politely refuse, of course, but offer to make this cake again sometime....And if you're lucky, your kids may make it for you someday too.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Recipe Adapted from Barefoot Contessa
Printable Recipe

Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: serves 8-10

Ingredients:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 extra-large eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups whole fat sour cream
2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Crumb Topping:

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Icing:

1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons real maple syrup

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan.

2. Beat butter and sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer for 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and beat until thoroughly combined. Add vanilla.

3. In another small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Add half the flour mixture to the bowl and beat gently. Add the sour cream to the bowl and beat again. Then add the last half of the flour mixture, beating only until just combined.

5. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl and to make sure that all the ingredients are totally incorporated.

6. Make the crumb topping. Mix the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt together in a small bowl. Add the butter and cut in using a pastry cutter, two knives or your fingers until small crumbs form.

7. Pour half the batter into the prepared tube pan and spread evenly around. Sprinkle half the crumb topping onto the batter, then top with the remaining batter. Carefully spread the batter around to cover the crumb topping, then sprinkle the top with the remaining crumbs.

8. Bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool on a rack in the pan for 30 minutes then carefully remove from the pan and transfer the cake to a serving plate, crumb side up.

9. Make icing by whisking powdered sugar with maple syrup until smooth. Drizzle over the top of the cake and serve warm or at room temperature.

Rain, Rain Go Away Already!

Oh my goodness, what nasty, nasty weather we have had here on the Cape. At least some of us are still smiling! Yesterday afternoon we were caught at the beach in a really scary electrical storm that blackened the sky and poured torrential rain on us as we made our way home, our car carving a huge wake in the flooding streets. When we finally made it back to the house, the thunder was so very loud it literally shook us to our bones (and rattled our nerves a bit too). Nearby lightning sadly struck and killed a fisherman, and I am so thankful we were able to get out when we did. The powerful forces of nature never cease to amaze me. Today, my poor mom was soaked through when I dropped her off at the bus (back to the airport), as another amazingly powerful storm ripped through our area with reports of golf-ball-sized hail and another man struck by lightning (he survived thankfully)...suffice it to say that it was not a great way to end a rather wet and gloomy (but hopefully fun anyway) week's vacation.

Though sun was promised for this upcoming holiday weekend, it looks as if more storms are headed our way, which could literally rain on our parades. And how about those farmers? They've got to try to make a living in this mess! Sigh. It's JULY, Mother Nature...how about a little break? A little sunshine would do us all good, I think.

Despite the weather, I'm forging ahead with plans for summer meals...starting with a delicious blueberry cake for breakfast. Because ours are not quite ripe yet, I used some from the freezer. I would advise you to buy extra blueberries when they come to market and tuck them away in yours so you will have a supply all year long. This wonderful recipe is adapted from my newly purchased book by Laura Brody called, The New England Table. I also have her book The Cape Cod Table, which is filled with delicious recipes and lovely photographs, as well.

Blueberry Buckle

makes 8 slices

for the topping:

4 T butter, room temp

1/2 C sugar

1/3 C flour

1/2 t cinnamon

for the cake:

2 C flour (unbleached AP)

2 1/2 t baking powder

3/4 t salt

3/4 C sugar

3/4 C whole milk

4 T butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 t vanilla extract

1 extra large egg

1 pint (2 C) blueberries, fresh or frozen is fine

Preheat oven to 375 degrees with a rack in the center of the oven. Butter an 8 or 9 inch, round cake pan.

Make topping. Mix ingredients together in a bowl with your fingers or a fork until crumbly. Set aside.

To make the cake, mix the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Measure milk in a 2 cup measuring cup, then add milk, butter, egg and vanilla extract. Stir with a fork to combine. Pour into dry ingredients and stir gently, until it just comes together. Carefully fold in blueberries, taking care not to over mix. Pour into prepared pan, sprinkle with topping and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. It should be golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake should come out clean. Cool on a wire rack before cutting.

Scrumptious Saturday Breakfast

Sometimes I need coffee cake like a need a cup of coffee in the morning. I crave its warmth, its comforting aroma, and its buttery crumb-swirled middle. Most mornings, I have not the time, nor the patience to make an entire coffee cake. And who can really wait a whole hour for it to bake anyway? Not me and certainly not my hungry kids. Luckily, coffee cake muffins can be yours in 20 short minutes...well, 30 if you count the prep time. It's all the goodness and flavor of the original in less than half the time. You know you want some...

Coffee Cake Muffins

makes one dozen

1 stick of butter

1 1/8 C sugar

2 extra large eggs

1 t vanilla extract

3/4 C sour cream

2 C cake flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t kosher salt

streusel:

1/2 C light brown sugar, packed

1/3 C AP flour

1 t ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

2 T cold butter, cut into pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a muffin tin. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and mix until combined. Stir in vanilla extract. In a smaller bowl, sift together dry ingredients, then gently stir into the butter mixture, in two additions, alternating with the sour cream. Mix just until combined.

Make streusel. Mix dry ingredients together. Cut in butter using a pastry cutter, two knives, or your fingers, until the mixture resembles coarse sand.

Fill each muffin cup 1/4 of the way, then sprinkle about 1 T of the streusel mixture onto each. Spoon the remaining batter into the cups (until each muffin cup is about 2/3 full) then top with remaining streusel. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the muffin comes out clean.