Monday, June 23, 2014

Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake

Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake 1

It's Secret Recipe Club time again, and this month I was assigned to Rebkah's delightful blog Making Miracles.  And Rebekah does indeed make miracles.  Rebekah began her blog several years ago to share her experiences through surrogacy, a journey which enabled her to bring four beautiful girls into the world for couples who desparately wanted babies but were unable to do so without help.  If that's not miraculous I don't know what is.  Since then Rebekah's blog has continued to share stories of her own son, her day to day family life, and of course recipes from her kitchen.

I found lots of dishes I wanted to make and share with you:  Bacon, Egg & Potato Breakfast Tacos (who wouldn't want to start the day with those);  as a salmon addict, I cant wait to try this Molasses Glazed Salmon;  the Shrimp Lemon Pepper Linguine is totally my kind of dish;  and I've lost count of the number of times I've made these insanely good Roasted Brussels Sprouts in the last month.  But feeling, as I did, the need for cake today, it was Rebekah's Cinnamon Coffee Cake that won out.

Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake 2

Rebekah adapted this recipe from another source, and I too made a few minor changes.  Like Rebekah, I halved the recipe.  I used brown sugar instead of white in the topping, and I replaced sour cream in the recipe with Greek-style natural yoghurt.  Also like Rebekah, I only did two layers to the cake instead of three, because really I'm just a bit lazy and didn't want to be fussing round with it.

This cake turned out to be deliciously moist and flavourful, soft and tender on the inside with a delightfully crunchy exterior.  This was the perfect accompaniment to an afternoon cuppa, and would also be a great cake to take on a picnic.  My only regret ... that I couldn't actually sit down with Rebekah and have a natter about her life and her travels over a good brew and a piece of this cake ... maybe one day.

Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake 3

Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake Recipe
Adapted from recipe from Making Miracles
Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

For filling & topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

For cake:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 cup natural Greek-style yoghurt

Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F).  Lightly grease a 20cm (8 inch) springform or loose-bottomed cake tin, and line the base with non-stick baking paper.

Combine filling and topping ingredients together in a small bowl, and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until fluffy. Add the vanilla, then add the eggs one at time, beating well after each addition.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the dry ingredients alternately with the yoghurt to butter, sugar and egg mixture, beating after each addition just enough to combine.

Spoon half the batter into the prepared cake tin and sprinkle with 1/2 of the filling mixture. Spread with the remaining cake batter, and top with the remaining filling mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 70 minutes or until centre is done.

Allow cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before removing and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack.

Hope you enjoy this cake as much as I did, and visit the links below to check out all the other great dishes my Secret Recipe Club friends made.

Secret Recipe Club



48 comments:

  1. Can I join you for the coffee break? The cake looks phenomenally delicious and tempting!

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    1. Thanks, Angie. Yes, you can certainly join me for coffee break any time :-)

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  2. It sounds delicious! Is it called coffee cake because it is good with coffee?

    Ciao
    Alessandra

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    1. Thanks, Alessandra. I used to always imagine that a coffee cake, was a cake flavoured with coffee, but yes it seems that it is in fact a cake to serve with coffee. And this really is perfect with coffee.

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  3. What an absolutely GLORIOUS looking cake and I would be happy to join you ANY day if the week for coffee and cake! Karen

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    1. Thanks, Karen. Wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to meet and enjoy coffee and cake together. If you ever come to New Zealand, make sure you come visit :-)

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  4. I bet this smelled delicious. Makes for one happy morning! Great pick!

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    1. It did smell amazing, Emily, and of course with the cinnamon topping, you get the lovely fragrance with every mouthful too.

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  5. Aww - I totally want to sit down and have some tea and coffee cake with you! What a sweet post, and your photos are gorgeous!! Thanks for visiting me and my blog this month. :)

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    1. Thanks, Rebekah. I really enjoyed your blog, and I'll definitely be back again :-)

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  6. We were on a coffee cake kick for a while. This post makes me want to be again!

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    1. Lauren, this is the first time I've made coffee cake - definitely won't be the last :-)

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  7. Oh I would adore a slice of this and a cup of tea, and that swirl through the centre - swooning! Perfect pick for SRC!

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    1. Thanks, JJ. I loved the ripple of cinnamon and nuts through the middle too.

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  8. I wonder if I could substitute a rice flour or gluten free type mix, that cinnamon has me longing for a piece. Very pretty.

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    1. Tina, I've not really done any gluten free baking, but I'm sure you could experiment with alternative flours for a gluten free result.

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  9. This cake is screaming my name.... I think my department would love if I brought this one to work

    love the crunchy top... superb coffee cake!

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    1. Thanks, Sally. This would be a great cake to take into work - your colleagues will love you for it :-)

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  10. That is one gorgeous coffee cake. Apparently it has been far too long since I have made one before too.

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    1. Thanks, Erin, and thanks for stopping by. Hopefully there will be coffee cake in your life again soon :-)

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  11. This looks GORGEOUS! I would love a piece right now! I might make this over the 4th of July weekend since we'll have lots of houseguests for the holiday :-)

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    1. Thanks, Susan - I'm sure your house guests would love this cake - it's a good cake to feed a crowd.

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  12. A slice of this with a cup of tea is my dream come true for breakfast! Awesome pick this month :)

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    1. Thanks, Melissa. I can confirm that this is great for breakfast :-)

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  13. This came out BEAUTIFULLY! I'd like a piece with my coffee right now :)

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    1. Thanks, Jess. You brew the coffee, I'll send the cake :-)

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  14. I think my mother would love this cake. Perhaps I will make it and take it to the Memory Center where she can share it with "her gang" as she calls them.

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    1. Thanks, Wendy. I'm sure your mum and "her gang" would love some of this cake :-)

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  15. That coffee cake is stunning!

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  16. This is just screaming for a cup of tea to go along with it!!! Looks delicious..great SRC pick!

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    1. Thanks, Asiya. Great with tea, coffee, probably even hot chocolate too :-)

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  17. Beautiful photos! I will definitely have to try this. Great pick!

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  18. Oh I love coffee cake and this one looks delicious!

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  19. Yummy! My mom used to make a similar coffee cake that was amazing..I think I need to pull out that recipe.

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    1. Thanks, Kirstin. Sounds great Kristin, maybe you can share your mum's recipe sometime :-)

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  20. I loooove coffee cake and this one looks SO wonderful! I had Rebekah's blog for the SRC a while back and loved her story, too. Isn't it neat how the SRC connects us to so many cool people?

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    1. Thanks, Amy. You are so right - SRC is a great way of connecting with other bloggers - maybe we'll even get to meet some of them one day :-)

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  21. What a wonderful cake! My mouth was watering as I read your post, Sue! I've pinned the recipe and hope to make it soon. I'm just off to visit Rebekah's blog. Thank you for introducing me to it :-)

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    1. Thanks so much, April. Hope you enjoy the cake, and I know you will enjoy visiting Rebekah's blog.

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  22. I am drooling at the sound of this cake! Great pick for SRC.

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  23. saw this recipe the other day and made it within a few hours. Big hit, slices were disappearing before it even cooled down!!! great recipe!! thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks you so much. I'm so pleased you made the cake and that you enjoyed it so much. I know I'll be making it again.

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  24. If my husband would fall in love with a cake, this would be it. It is perfect.

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    1. I think a lot of people would fall in love with this cake, Chaya. It's not particularly sweet which I think makes it quite appealing. Thanks for visiting.

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