If I had to answer the If you were stranded on a deserted island, what three things would you bring? question, coffee cake would probably make the cut. It’s been a life-long love affair, and I don’t see that changing any time soon. I was the child who picked at the crumbs so all that was left was the naked cake. Don’t get me wrong, the cake is great! But I could nibble at those crumbs like it was my job. (Sorry, Mom!)
I decided to bake this coffee cake in muffin cups to make single servings (recipe adapted from this great blog). These would be great to bake if you ever have family or friends staying overnight. Imagine these on the breakfast table with coffee! You’d have one happy guest.
As the muffins came out of the oven, it slowly dawned on me that I had no idea how I was going to get them out of the pan. You can’t exactly turn them upside down! What I found to work best was to very gently turn each muffin in its cup before sliding it out. It worked surprising well, and I didn’t sacrifice a single muffin!
You’ll notice that a lot of crumbs were left behind in the now-empty muffin pan. Don’t you dare throw those away! I placed mine in a glass container to keep in the fridge for a few days. I have a hunch they will pair nicely with vanilla ice cream.
Now that I am in a full-blown crumb comma, I will leave you with the recipe below. Are you baking anything special this weekend?
Mile-High Coffee Cake Muffins (adapted from Offbeat + Inspired)
Prep time: 25 minutes | Bake time: 20 minutes | Yields: 12 muffins
Ingredients for the crumb:
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
- 3 1/2 cups cake flour
To make the crumb topping, combine sugars, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Pour the melted butter over the mixture and stir with a spatula until fully incorporated. Stir in the cake flour until a sugary dough is created. Set the bowl aside to cool.
Ingredients for the cake:
- 1 1/4 cups cake flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 tbs unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup buttermilk*
Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat a standard 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Use an electric mixer to add in the softened butter, and beat until the mixture forms small, moist crumbs.
In a small bowl, combine the egg, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and buttermilk. Lightly whisk ingredients until smooth, and then add this to the dry ingredients. Mix together until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
Spoon the batter into the muffin pan, filling each cup about 1/3 of the way up. Next, cover each muffin cup with a generous amount of crumbs.
Bake muffins for 10 minutes in the bottom third of the oven. Switch to the upper third, and bake for an addition 8-10 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. If you’d like browner crumbs, turn the oven to broil for the last two minutes. (Warning: Do NOT leave the kitchen during this time, as the crumbs can easily burn!)
Remove muffins from the oven and let cool for five minutes. Transfer muffins to a cooling rack with a cookie sheet placed underneath. Once they are completely cool, dust muffins with powdered sugar and serve!
*To make 1 cup of your own buttermilk, measure 1 tbs of lemon juice in a 1 cup measuring cup. Fill remainder with milk. Stir, let sit for 5 minutes, and use what you need!
From Scissors & Sage
SCISSORS & SAGE 
Single servings? hah… sounds more like sit at one time and eat ten to me. I have a weakness for coffee cake. I will eat a whole one from costco in probably two days flat… Just because I try and restrain myself.
Thanks for sharing!
Ala
https://pineatenjoy.wordpress.com/
I know what you mean, Ala! You can never have too much coffee cake!
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