I first fell in love with coffee cake at Hobee’s years and years ago. If you’ve ever been to this Silicon Valley staple, you know about their “World-Famous Blueberry Coffeecake.” It’s light and fluffy and piled high with crumbs (the mark of a true New York-style coffee cake). Paired with a cup of hot coffee, it could be a meal in and of itself.
So when my dad asked me to bake something for my grandparents, both coffee drinkers, I knew exactly what to make. (They each recently celebrated a birthday and the family was gathering at one of their favorite Chinese restaurants for dinner. Since dessert is usually included with the meal, and my aunt was surprising them with tiramisu from Satura Cakes, a breakfast treat they could enjoy the next day was ideal.)
These coffee cake muffins are moist, buttery and, best of all, topped with a generous layer of crunchy, cinnamony crumbs – just the way I like it. This recipe makes five jumbo muffins, but they go quickly; consider making a double batch so you can share some and keep a few for yourself.
Recipe adapted from The Sugar Hit.
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup light or dark brown sugar
- 1½ tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (see notes*)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ cup buttermilk (see notes**)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Melt the butter in a small bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until well combined. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream together the butter and granulated sugar until smooth.
- Add the egg yolk and beat until pale yellow.
- Add the remaining ingredients and stir until well combined, being careful not to overmix.
- Divide the cake batter evenly among five greased muffin cups. Sprinkle crumb topping over the batter.
- Bake the muffins 25-30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. The muffins are done when a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let muffins cool slightly before removing them from the pan.
**I rarely buy buttermilk because it’s so easy to make with ingredients you likely have on hand. Just pour 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar in a measuring cup and add enough milk to hit the 1-cup line. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes until curdled.
The cinnamon crumb muffins are AMAZING!!!! I tried it with a whole stick of butter and with only 4 TBS. Both are good but we preferred the ones with less butter. Thank you for sharing this!
So glad you liked the recipe, Paula!