Sour Cream Coffee Cake (Make-Ahead!) ⋆ Design Mom

Though I’m not a coffee drinker, I grew up in a family who made coffee cake almost every weekend. I love to eat it, and appreciate the fact that it’s cake you can legitimately serve for breakfast. : ) This sour cream version is pretty much heavenly.

Make-Ahead Sour Cream Coffee Cake | Design Mom

But the pace of slow holiday mornings might be the best part. There’s nowhere to be, nowhere to go. Granted, I’m a stay-at-home mom, so technically, all of my mornings could look like this, but you and I both know they don’t. There are zoos to be visited, and music classes starting at 9:00, and grocery shopping to do, and definitely not any grandmas around to help get everyone breakfast.

But next week? There will be many, many cups of coffee, and pancakes and egg bake, and leisurely breakfasts left and right. I’m not sure what your Christmas morning entails, but I hope it involves a slow and delicious breakfast.

This coffee cake is a regular in my family, for almost all occasions (like hey! it’s Saturday!). And it’s one of my favorite brunch items. It’s a simple sour cream coffee cake — not overly sweet, and so super moist from the sour cream. There’s also a double layer of pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon inside. Because we are gluttons, we like to add a buttery, sugary glaze to an already buttery, sugary cake, and trust me, the holiday calories are worth it.

What makes this such a holiday brunch winner is that it can be made ahead and still fool your guests into thinking you were up at 4 a.m. baking. You can make it the day ahead of your brunch. Cooled completely and wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, you’re not losing any moistness or flavor. Alternately, this cake can be made weeks ahead of any event and frozen. It still has the taste and texture of a freshly made coffee cake once thawed and glazed.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

yields 1 bundt-pan-sized coffee cake

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
cooking spray

Filling:
1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons brown sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon

Glaze:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
½ cup powdered sugar, sifted*
¾ teaspoons vanilla extract
½ tablespoon hot water*
(*may need more of either of these to achieve a smooth, pourable consistency)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*.
LIBERALLY grease the bundt pan. I spray mine with cooking spray and then use a greased paper towel to wipe the spray into every nook and cranny of the pan. Twice. Don’t be shy about greasing the pan!

Cake:
1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy.

2. Add and thoroughly beat in the eggs and vanilla.

3. Fold in the sour cream.

4. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into the sour cream batter. Fold in the dry ingredients until thoroughly combined

Filling:
Mix together the pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl, and set aside.

Assemble:
1. Spread a scant 1/3 of the batter into the bottom of the prepared bundt pan (a rubber spatula works great for this).

2. Sprinkle half of the filling over that.

3. Then spread another 1/3 of the batter on top of the 2 layers you already have. (This can be tricky…some of the filling mixture will mix into the batter…that’s okay. Just try to spread an even amount of the batter all around the bundt pan.)

4. Cover this layer of batter by sprinkling the rest of the filling mixture over it.

5. Spread the final 1/3 of your batter over the top. Do your best to smooth the batter around evenly. (I then wipe off any rogue batter on top or center of the bundt pan with a paper towel so it won’t burn).

Bake:
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until golden (not brown!) on top. Let the cake cool ENTIRELY before removing it. To remove, use a butter knife to loosen the edges and center of the cake from the pan, and then carefully turn it out onto a plate.

Glaze:
Mix together the glaze ingredients with a spoon in a small bowl just before pouring onto cake and serving.

Make-Ahead Options:
If serving the next day, allow to cool completely and then wrap in a couple layers of plastic wrap. I’d suggest wrapping just the cake and not the cake on a plate to keep away the most air from the cake. (Leave off glaze until just before serving!)
If serving in the future, allow cake to cool completely and wrap in several layers of plastic wrap, just like option #1. Store in your freezer for up to a month. When ready to serve, unwrap layers of plastic and rest a tea towel over the cake as it thaws. It will need at least 5 hours to thaw thoroughly. (Leave off glaze until just before serving!)

Storage:
Once cut, this cake can live on your counter, covered, for 2 days. After that it should go in your refrigerator.