Cinnamon-Crisp Coffee Cake

Yield: 9–16 servings

Ingredients

Crumb Topping:

• 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour
• 6 Tbsp (75g) granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp (14g) confectioners’ sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp salt
• 6 Tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, cubed & room temp*
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling:

• ¹/₃ cup (66g) granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

Cake:

• 2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup (149g) granulated sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, cubed & room temp*
• 2 Tbsp (20g) Bob’s Red Mill Vegan Egg Replacer
• ¼ cup (57g) water
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup (245g) buttermilk, room temp**

*Cube your butter while it’s still cold. Trying to cube room temp butter is a greasy pain in the booty.

**If you don’t have buttermilk, mix ½ cup + 7 Tbsp (213g) whole milk with 1 Tbsp white vinegar and let sit for 15 minutes.

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and line an 8" x 8" metal baking pan with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Start by making the crumb topping. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, cinnamon, and salt. Add cubed butter, tossing around gently to coat. Add vanilla. Using a pastry blender or fork, cut in butter and vanilla until mixture starts to come together. Ditch the spatula and get in there and mix with your hands to fully work in the butter, making sure to seek out any dry bits hiding at the bottom of the bowl. Set aside.
3. Next, make the filling by whisking together the sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
4. Cake batter time! In the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add butter. Attach paddle to mixer, then beat on low until mixture looks kinda sandy, 1–2 minutes.
   NOTE: Think this method is funky? It’s KAB-recommended, and it’s called reverse creaming!
6. Whilst dry ingredients and butter are reverse creaming, mix vegan egg replacer and water in a small bowl. Let sit for a couple of minutes to thicken up.
7. Add vegan egg replacer mixture and vanilla to butter mixture. Beat until combined, pausing to scrape down the bowl as necessary.
8. With mixture running on low, slowly pour buttermilk into batter. Once combined, scrape down bowl, then mix again on low for 30 seconds.
9. Pour half of batter (roughly 420g) into prepared pan, smoothing the top with offset spatula or the back of a spoon.
10. Evenly sprinkle filling mixture across batter.
11. Pour remaining batter over filling, spreading and smoothing with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon.
12. Evenly sprinkle crumb topping over batter, gently pressing to adhere.
13. Bake for about 45 minutes or until middle is set. Coffee cake is done when a wooden pick inserted in the centre comes out clean with only a few fluffy crumbs attached.
14. Transfer pan to wire rack and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
15. Remove coffee cake from pan by pulling up on the parchment paper. Place on wire rack to cool a wee bit more.
16. Cut and serve warm or at room temperature.

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Slightly adapted from: King Arthur Baking