I never really knew there was a difference between “crumb cake” and “coffee cake” until I googled it, but there is! I knew right away that I was more a lover of crumb cake than coffee cake and thus I came up with this recipe. I hope you like it as much as my friends do! They request it any time we have a weekend at my house.

So what is the difference between coffee cake and crumb cake? The biggest difference is the amount of streusel topping. While coffee cake has less of it, a crumb cake has plenty, some would say almost half topping to half batter! Not only that, but the topping is thicker with more large crumbles. Coffee cake got its name as it became a favorite delicacy to have with a cup of Jo, but crumb cake can be added to any meal course or stand alone for a snack. Not a coffee drinker? New York Style Crumb cake tastes just as good washed down with a glass of milk or some hot tee.

Now let’s go over the “New York” style crumb cake terminology. Streusel kuchen, aka crumb cake, is thought to have originated in Germany and was primarily a “yeast-based” cake. New York style crumb cake is a “cake-batter” recipe so it doesn’t require the extra rise time as when using yeast in a recipe does. Fine by me! Anything that takes less time to prepare and ends up in my tummy faster earns extra points!

Typically, I list other ingredients that go well in a recipe; however I like this one to stand on its own. You could add blueberries or cut up strawberries, Next time check out my blueberry sconce recipe or my Banana Bread with Two Layers of Streusel recipe where you can enjoy a double layer of extra streusel .

New York Style Crumb Cake Ingredients

Dark Brown Sugar: I like to use dark brown sugar, but you can substitute for light. Dark adds a more robust flavor.
Granulated Sugar: Using two types of sugar helps with the topping’s texture and adds a more mild sweet taste to the cake layer.
Flour: I use an all-purpose flour. Be sure to spoon your flour into the measuring cup then run a knife across the top to level it off. If you dig your measuring cup directly in the bag then scoop the flour up, you will get a higher amount of flour and your crumb cake will feel heavier and drier.
Cinnamon: I find that the cinnamon is an essential ingredient and adds a warm, earthy, depth to the crumble topping.
Butter: If you use unsalted butter, you can add salt, if you use salted, omit the 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
Salt: Stated above, omit the salt if your butter is salted.
Baking Soda and Baking Powder: By adding the baking powder in addition to the usual baking soda, the crumb cake will get additional lift.
Eggs: You will want these to be at room temperature . Set in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes.
Vanilla: Enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
Sour Cream: Aids in creating moistness. Do not use a fat free sour cream or your consistency will be off.

Putting Your Crumb Cake Together

I usually make more topping than called for in recipes but the ingredient quantities listed in the recipe card represent more than enough to give you a good percentage of crumb topping to batter.

As we move onto the cake mix you may be wondering how you “half an egg.” Check out the following photos to see a special measuring beaker that does just that. I use it often for measuring half an egg. The typical large egg is approximately 3 tablespoons, for this I use the largest measuring beaker. It’s easy to scramble an egg and measure it out in this easy to pour measuring cup. You pour slowly and check often until you reach 1 1/2 tablespoons. If you don’t have this measuring beaker, simple use a measuring tablespoon to do the job.

Helpful Tips

Dark vs light brown sugar: Regular light brown sugar will work as well, I like to use the dark brown sugar to make the streusel a more prominent flavor against the batter.

Pasty looking crumb topping: After melting the butter let it sit for a minute or two, mixing butter that is too hot in with the sugars will cause the sugars to melt. You want to be very careful while mixing any type of topping, especially when you are using such a thick layer. Just mix until your topping starts to clump together, then stop.

Using yogurt: This is one of those recipes where you want to go all in. If however, you only have a low fat yogurt you can use that. I would not recommend using a greek yogurt as the tang may be offsetting to the richness intended with the sour cream and streusel topping.

Measuring the proper egg amount without the measuring device. You can still scramble your eggs into a bowl. Use a measuring tablespoon and take out your 1 1/2 tablespoons.

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New York Style Crumb Cake

This New York Style Crumb Cake is soft, super moist and loaded with a buttery brown sugar and cinnamon crumble that is out of this world.

Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword New York Style Crumb Cake

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 9 servings

Calories 435kcal

Author Sharon Knott

Ingredients

Crumb Topping

• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 stick butter (melted)
• 1¼ cup flour (spooned into measuring cup/level)

Crumb Cake

• 1¼ cup flour (spooned into measuring cup/level)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 6 tablespoons butter
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1½ large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup sour cream (full fat)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 °F. Grease or line an 8 X 8 inch pan with parchment paper or grease a cupcake tin.

Crumb Topping

• In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, granulated sugar, ground cinnamon, salt. Stir in the melted butter with a fork, then fold in flour making sure to keep the topping in large pieces. (If you over blend it will look more like a paste.) Set aside.

Crumb Cake

• In another bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
• Beat the butter and granulate sugar on high speed until smooth and creamy, approximately two minutes depending on your mixer. Be sure to scrape down the sides since the mixture amount is small enough to be flung to the side often.
• Add eggs, vanilla and sour cream and beat on high. The mixture may look like it has not blended well but that is okay.
• Keep scraping the sides of the bowl while adding the dry ingredients. Beat on the lower speed until smooth but do not overmix. You are going for a more sticky, thick batter.
• Spread half the batter in your loaf pan or muffin tins.
• Add half the steusal topping and press down with your fingers or a spatula or large spoon until the topping has a flat appearance.
• Spoon in remaining cake batter mix and level.
• Add the remaining streusel, still pressing down in the batter mix until smooth.
• Bake for 45-60 minutes. Be sure to check at the 45-minute mark since different pans cook for different times. I used an 8 X 8 pan. If you use a cupcake tin, bake for 25 minutes then check every few minutes. Use the toothpick test in the center, it's done when the toothpick comes out clean. I covered the crumb cake at about 30 minutes to keep the topping from browning too much.
• Let cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes prior to taking out. You can drizzle with an icing or dust with confectioner's sugar, although I like it just as it is.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 435kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 86mg | Sodium: 363mg | Potassium: 91mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 675IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 2mg

The post New York Style Crumb Cake first appeared on Plated for Two.

The post New York Style Crumb Cake appeared first on Plated for Two.

At some point in my life, along came this incredible chocolate cherry cake that quickly became a mainstay for holidays as well as the number one requested birthday cake during those special occasions.

As time went on, and the kids grew up and all went their own way, I was left with years that went by with no one to make and share this cake with. As much as I LOVE chocolate, I can’t consume an entire 9 X 13 pan of this decadent dessert.

I sat down one day to contemplate “halving” this recipe and decided too much uneaten cake would go to waste. Then it hit me. I could make a smaller cake and use the rest of the batter for cupcakes that I could individually freeze and take out at my whim.

This recipe will concentrate on making a small batch so in essence, the cake is split into two. I used a loaf pan for the main cake and placed the rest of the batter in cupcakes which I wrapped at frozen for a later date. How high you want your loaf cake to be is up to you, the batter grows 1.5-2 times.

I did the traditional chocolate stovetop frosting on the cake only because the edges of the pan need to be able to stop the flow of warm frosting prior to setting up. Because the cupcakes are more rounded I opt for a stiffer cream cheese frosting. 

Check out my Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting recipe. You can freeze the cupcakes individually and pull them out and defrost prior to frosting them.

Cherry Chocolate Cake Ingredients

• Chocolate Cake Mix in a Box: I specifically like to find a “fudge” or “dark chocolate” cake mix. The brand isn’t important. Don’t get a chocolate cake that has an additional chocolate fudge sauce packet since you are already adding cherries.
• Cherry pie filling: Look for a 21 oz. can of cherry pie filling. You may already have your favorite brand.
• Egg: I always buy the large size.
• Almond Extract: Adding almond extract is optional. Sometimes I add it and sometimes I don’t.
• Sugar: Use granulated sugar for the icing, it mixes well with the chocolate.
• Butter: Salted or unsalted is fine.
• Milk: Use 2% or whole milk, in a pinch 1% is fine.
• Chocolate chips: Semi sweet either in regular size or mini size.

How to Make this Delicious Cake

1. Preheat oven.
2. Grease bottom of loaf pan.
3. Place liners in cupcake tins.
4. Mix eggs, cake mix, almond extract.
5. Fold in cherry pie filling.
6. Distribute cake batter into a loaf pan and cupcake tin.
7. Bake then let cake cool. (Cupcakes will be done sooner than cake pan.)
8. Make icing.
9. Pour icing on cake.
10. Let icing set up before serving.
11. Freeze cupcakes individually.

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Deliciously Decadent Chocolate Cherry Cake

Moist and chocolatey with a hint of tangy cherry flavor, this fast, easy to make cake is sure to satisfy any sweet tooth.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword chocolate cherry cake, chocolate icing

Prep Time 5 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 630kcal

Author Sharon Knott

Ingredients

Cake

• 1 box chocolate cake (dark chocolate cake mix in a box)
• 1 can cherry pie filling (don't use fresh cherries)
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon almond Extract (optional)

Chocolate Icing

• ½ cup sugar it mixes well with the chocolate.
• 2½ teaspoon butter (salted or unsalted is fine)
• ⅛ cup milk (2% or whole-in a pinch 1% is fine)
• ½ cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

Cake

• Preheat oven to 350 F
• Grease bottom and sides of loaf pan.
• Place liners in cupcake tins. You will use these after you pour the desired amount into the loaf pan.
• Mix eggs, cake mix, almond extract. This cake is best mixed by hand as it all comes together easy enough since there aren't eggs and butter to cream together.
• Gently fold in cherry pie filling.
• Distribute cake batter, first filling the loaf pan about 1/3 full. This cake rises considerably. Pour the remaining batter into the muffin tins.
• Bake then let cake and cupcakes cool. (Cupcakes will be done sooner than cake pan.)

Chocolate Icing

• Combine sugar, butter and milk in saucepan.
• Bring to boil for one minute. You will see the hot liquid bring big bubbles to the surface and then pop. When it reaches this point, make note and take off heat after the minute.
• Add chocolate chip and still in until smooth.
• Pour icing in cake tin. Icing will flow to the edges and then set up.
• Let icing cool before eating.

Cupcakes

• Wrap cupcakes individually in plastic wrap then place in a bag and freeze.
• Defrost in refrigerator then take out and keep in an air tight container. Frost with a sour cream frosting.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 630kcal | Carbohydrates: 107g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 34mg | Sodium: 640mg | Potassium: 473mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 52g | Vitamin A: 314IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 142mg | Iron: 5mg

The post Easy Chocolate Cake with Cherries first appeared on Plated for Two.

The post Easy Chocolate Cake with Cherries appeared first on Plated for Two.

For my entire life my Mom would bake loaves of banana bread and pass them out at our family gatherings or include them with gifts for our birthday.

I can’t blame her, she saw we looked forward to it and really loved seeing the big smiles that ensued as we unwrapped our baked gifts first and immediately took a sliced. Though she is no longer with us, I know she would have loved this version even better.

Departing from a traditional banana bread recipe wasn’t hard once I decided to marry my favorite streusel topping from my New York Style Coffeecake with my mom’s banana bread. I also decided, unlike my coffeecake, which has the streusel only on the top, to also place a layer of this goodness in-between.

I think I knocked it out of the park when I saw my own kids’ eyes shoot up when taking their first bites.

There is nothing more maddening then buying bananas and having to wait a week for them to be usable, all the while fending everyone in the house off from eating them. So, if you suddenly get an inclination to bake some banana bread and have to buy bananas, look for the bin that has bananas that are very ripe and sold at a discount. They are usually on smaller racks on the side, but sometimes these are on racks by the checkout, so look there as well.

Ingredients for Banana Bread

Bananas: The thing I love the most, besides the banana bread itself, is the fact that you make it using up bananas that have gotten too ripe to eat and would otherwise go in the garbage. Use bananas that have not reached the over-ripe stage or you will end up with a banana bread that doesn’t taste like bananas at all. The real taste comes out when the more the bananas ripen as the sugar content is higher the riper they are.
Egg: I like to bring my eggs to room temperature which should never be done by leaving out as it can take an hour to achieve this. A much faster and safer way is to place your egg/s in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes. Be sure the water is not too hot, or it will cook your egg. When it’s no longer cold to the touch, you know it’s ready. Room temperature yolks blend better with the egg whites which in turn blends more evenly with the batter and helps the dough rise more easily. It’s also easier to half an egg.
Sugar: Because I use dark brown sugar in the streusel, I like to keep white granulated sugar in the bread.
Butter: Leave your butter out and let it get to room temperature before using it in the banana bread mixture, as with the eggs, room temperature butter will just blend better.
Vanilla: Like salt is to adding a savory taste to cooking, vanilla enhances all the other flavors in your baked goods. You don’t really taste a “vanilla” taste, but if you leave it out, your recipe will taste flatter.
Salt: Like vanilla, salt also helps to enhance the flavors in your recipe.
Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon adds that extra depth of warm comfort.

Ingredients for Streusel

Basic pantry staples are all you need for my streusel recipe:

Flour: I have only tried this recipe with all-purpose flour, I think it lets the banana shine through. If you try any of the other specialty flours, let me know.
Brown sugar: Using a higher ratio of brown sugar to granulated sugar helps the streusel clump better. In this recipe I also prefer the slightly richer, more robust taste of the dark brown sugar as opposed to the light which seems to get lost with all the other flavors.
Granulated sugar. Regular granulated sugar balances the streusel.
Salt. The small amount of salt in this recipe balances out the sweetness and keeps the topping from being overly sweet.
Butter. This is what brings the streusel together and makes the crumbly, clumpy crumble topping. Say that fast three times!

Banana Bead with Streusel Topping Instructions

In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients, set aside. I like to mix the ingredients together than use my hand and gently create some clumps. I place all the clumps together and gently break them up with a fork into smaller pieces.

Banana Bread Batter Instructions

Mash bananas with a fork or use a blender.
Stir in butter and sugar and mix well.
Whisk in eggs and vanilla extract.
Combine dry ingredients and stir into wet mixture.
Pour half into loaf pan.
Place a layer of streusel.
Pour rest of batter in loaf pan.
Top with remaining streusel.
Bake in oven for 60-70minutes.

Banana Bread with Streusel Topping Questions and Tips

Can I use regular brown sugar for the streusel, I don’t have dark? Yes, you can use the regular, lighter brown sugar.

Why use melted butter instead of chilled? Unlike many other streusel toppings, I use melted butter rather than cold butter. Not only do you save time by not cutting the hard butter in, but you mix it minimally, so you don’t end up with a paste. I use unsalted butter in my recipe to best control the flavor. If you only have salted butter on hand simply omit the salt that is called for in the recipe.

How long can I store this? Wrap and store in the refrigerator or counter for up to 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 2 months.

What does a cold egg in my recipe do? Eggs are the glue to any recipe and when you add cold eggs you may end up with lumpy batter as the ingredients won’t blend as easily. The recipe may also take longer to bake.

Why shouldn’t I overmix my banana bread? Overmixing your banana bread will produce more gluten which will make your bread denser and more rubber-like.

How do I ripen a banana faster? Place your bananas in a brown paper bag for a couple of days. Be sure to check them daily.

Is there such a thing as a “too ripe” of a banana? Yes, bananas should have uneven brown spotting all over, but not a solid brown or black appearance . We have seen what a super dark bruise on a peel looks like underneath, the banana is darker in color and has a waterier texture. You don’t want there to be too much sugar conversion that your bananas make your recipe runny.

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Banana Bread with Streusel Topping

Departing from a traditional banana bread recipe wasn’t hard once I decided to marry my favorite streusel topping from my New York Style Coffeecake with my mom’s banana bread. I also decided, unlike my coffeecake, which has the streusel only on the top, to also place a layer of this goodness in-between. I think I knocked it out of the park when I saw my own kids’ eyes shoot up when taking their first bites.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword banana, banana bread, streusel topping

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 460kcal

Author Sharon Knott

Ingredients

Crumb Topping

• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons butter (1-stick melted)
• 1¼ cup all-purpose flour

Banana Bread

• 1½ very ripe bananas (the riper, the better)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 4 teaspoons butter (½ stick- melted)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

Crumb Topping

• In a small bowl, mix dark brown sugar, flour, ground cinnamon and salt.
• Stir in the melted butter with a fork, then fold in flour making sure to keep the topping in large pieces. If you over blend it will look more like a paste. Set aside.

Banana Bread

• Preheat oven to 350 °F. Spray a loaf pan or butter and lightly flour it.
• In a separate bowl from the crumb topping mixture, combine flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Set aside.
• Beat the butter, banana and granulated sugar on high speed until smooth and creamy, add egg and vanilla and continue to beat until mixed. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• Add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until blended. Over blending will result in a heavier cake.
• Pour half of mixture in loaf pan and distribute evenly to the edges. Place half of the crumb topping on.
• Pour remaining batter gently on the top of the streusel, moving the batter to edges with a knife, being careful not to pull the layer of streusel in with it.
• Pour remaining streusel on the top and distribute evenly.
• Bake in oven for 60-70 minutes.
• Tip: I usually loosely cover the loaf pan after 45 minutes so the topping doesn't brown too much.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 460kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 540mg | Potassium: 181mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 47g | Vitamin A: 613IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Banana Bread with Two Layers of Streusel first appeared on Plated for Two.

The post Banana Bread with Two Layers of Streusel appeared first on Plated for Two.