Buttery Coffee Crumb Cake

My birthday is tomorrow, March 3rd, but Ryan took me out tonight because he is working on the actual day. We went to a restaurant — indoors, vaccinated, first real indoor restaurant experience in a year — a Polish place on Milwaukee Avenue that I have been to twice before and love for reasons that include: the beet salad, the pierogi, and the fact that they have a vodka selection that Babcia Rose would respect. We sat at a real table. A server brought us things. We ate them. This sounds ordinary and was extraordinary.

I ordered the pierogi first and then the pork schnitzel with spaetzle and Ryan ordered a bowl of borscht and the duck and we ate everything and got dessert, which we almost never do, a poppy seed cake with honey cream that I ate entirely and then said I was going to recreate it. Ryan said I should. The poppy seed cake is going on the list. Everything goes on the list eventually.

I have been thinking about what 26 means in a year where 25 meant a pandemic engagement. It means: getting married in three months. It means: teaching children who survived a year of distance and are slowly coming back. It means: a new kitchen that is warm ivory and a stand mixer on the counter and a partner who books birthday dinners when he is working on the actual birthday and comes home smelling like hand sanitizer and I love him entirely.

Patty called at 7:15 on the actual birthday to sing, which she always does, and Babcia Rose called to pray at me in Polish, which she always does, and Steve called in the evening and said "Twenty-six. Huh." which is the identical Steve Kowalczyk birthday speech from every year and I hope it never changes. This is my family. I am marrying into another one. That is the year. That is exactly the year.

The poppy seed cake at that restaurant — honey cream and all — is the kind of dessert that makes you put your fork down for a second just to appreciate it, and I knew before we left that I was going to chase that feeling in my own kitchen. I can’t replicate it exactly yet, but this Buttery Coffee Crumb Cake is where I started: the same warmth, the same this-is-worth-celebrating weight in a single slice, the same energy of a dessert you almost didn’t order and then did and were right to. It belongs in the new kitchen. It belongs on the list.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 40 min | Total Time: 1 hr | Servings: 12

Ingredients

For the cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup full-fat sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder, dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
For the crumb topping:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
Pinch of flaky salt

Instructions

Heat the oven. Preheat to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan and line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides for easy lifting.
Make the crumb topping. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, espresso powder, and cinnamon. Add the cold butter cubes and use your fingertips to work them in until the mixture resembles coarse, clumpy crumbs — you want some pea-sized pieces. Finish with a pinch of flaky salt. Refrigerate while you make the batter.
Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed for 3–4 minutes until pale and fluffy. Scrape down the sides as needed.
Add eggs and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and the dissolved espresso mixture and mix until just combined. The batter may look slightly curdled — that’s fine.
Add dry ingredients and sour cream. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. With the mixer on low, alternate adding the dry ingredients and the sour cream in three additions (beginning and ending with the dry ingredients), mixing just until each addition disappears. Do not overmix.
Assemble. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Scatter the cold crumb topping over the entire surface, pressing it on very gently so the clusters hold.
Bake. Bake for 38–42 minutes, until the crumb topping is deep golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs. The edges will pull slightly from the pan.
Cool and serve. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before lifting out and slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature. A drizzle of warmed honey over each slice is encouraged.

Nutrition (per serving)

Buttery Coffee Crumb Cake — The One That Goes on the List