Indulge in the ultimate plant-based treat with this absolutely gorgeous and undeniably delicious vegan coffee cake. It’s a truly decadent dessert, featuring a generous layer of rich cinnamon brown sugar filling perfectly nestled between two incredibly fluffy and moist cake layers. The entire creation is then crowned with a delightful, crumbled streusel topping and drizzled with a sweet, delicate glaze. This recipe delivers a perfect dairy-free and egg-free delight that doesn’t compromise on flavor or texture, making it an ideal choice for any occasion.
Why This Vegan Coffee Cake Recipe is an Absolute Must-Try
Prepare to be amazed by a vegan coffee cake that truly stands out from the crowd. This isn’t just another plant-based dessert; it’s a culinary masterpiece that will impress even the most discerning palates. Here’s what makes this recipe exceptionally good and why it deserves a spot in your baking repertoire:
- Unbelievably Moist and Fluffy Cake Texture: Forget dry or crumbly vegan baked goods. This cake boasts an incredibly moist and fluffy texture that simply melts in your mouth with every bite. The carefully balanced wet-to-dry ingredient ratio ensures a tender crumb that holds up beautifully, making it a truly satisfying experience. The delicate coffee cake layers are the perfect canvas for the rich flavors within.
- Perfectly Crisp Streusel Topping: The crumbled streusel topping bakes up wonderfully crisp, providing a delightful textural contrast to the soft cake below. Its buttery, sugary, and slightly spiced notes add an extra layer of complexity and a satisfying crunch that makes this coffee cake utterly irresistible. This golden-brown crumble is a signature element that elevates the entire dish.
- Versatile for Any Occasion: This vegan coffee cake strikes the perfect balance between casual and celebratory. It’s decadent enough to grace your holiday brunch table or a special occasion dessert spread, yet simple and approachable enough to be a delightful weekday treat with your morning coffee or an afternoon pick-me-up. Its inviting aroma and comforting flavors make it a welcome addition to any gathering.
- Accommodates Diverse Dietary Needs: Crafted as a completely vegan recipe, it is naturally free from dairy and eggs, making it suitable for those with allergies or following a plant-based lifestyle. Beyond that, it’s remarkably adaptable: easily transform it into a gluten-free coffee cake by opting for gluten-free all-purpose flour, and with simple sugar substitutions, you can even make it added-sugar free, catering to a wider range of health-conscious choices.
- Rich and Balanced Flavors: The star of this coffee cake, the rich cinnamon brown sugar filling, creates a warm and inviting flavor profile that complements the sweet cake and streusel. The sweet glaze adds a final touch of sweetness and moisture, bringing all the elements together in perfect harmony. It’s a symphony of sweet, spiced, and comforting notes that will leave you craving more.
Essential Ingredients for Your Vegan Coffee Cake
Creating this magnificent vegan coffee cake relies on a few key ingredients that come together to deliver its signature moistness, flavor, and texture. Understanding their roles and potential substitutions can help you tailor the recipe to your preferences and dietary needs.
All-Purpose Flour: The foundation of our cake. For a robust and classic texture, standard all-purpose flour works wonderfully. If you’re aiming for a vegan coffee cake that’s also gluten-free, a high-quality gluten-free all-purpose flour blend is your best friend. Many modern GF blends already contain xanthan gum, which is crucial for elasticity and structure in gluten-free baking. If your chosen GF flour doesn’t include it, add approximately ½ to ¾ teaspoon per 3 cups of flour to ensure your cake isn’t crumbly. Always check your blend’s ingredients carefully to avoid over-gummification, which can result in a gummy texture.
Sugars – A Symphony of Sweetness: This recipe intentionally incorporates a variety of sugars – granulated white sugar, brown sugar (for the filling), light brown sugar (for the streusel), and powdered sugar (for the glaze) – each contributing a unique sweetness and moisture profile.
- Granulated White Sugar: Provides clean sweetness and helps with browning in the cake batter.
- Brown Sugar (Dark & Light): Essential for the deep, molasses-rich flavor in the cinnamon filling and the moist, chewy texture of the streusel. You can deepen the flavor of the cake itself by substituting brown sugar for some or all of the granulated sugar in the cake batter, imparting a richer, warmer caramel-like note.
- Powdered Sugar: Used for the optional glaze, it dissolves easily to create a smooth, pourable consistency.
To make this dessert added-sugar free, you have excellent alternatives. Coconut sugar can replace granulated and brown sugars for a more natural, less processed option with a slight caramel flavor. For a truly sugar-free experience, erythritol-based sweeteners like Swerve (granular, brown, and confectioners’ varieties) can be used proportionately where traditional sugars are called for, ensuring a delicious outcome without the added sugar content.
Vegan Butter: Crucial for the rich, buttery flavor and crumbly texture of the streusel topping. Choose a high-quality stick vegan butter for the best results, ensuring it’s firm and cold for the streusel, but can be melted for other applications if specified.
Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk: Provides moisture and activates the leavening agents in the cake. Almond milk, soy milk, oat milk, or cashew milk are all excellent choices. Ensure it’s unsweetened to control the overall sweetness of the cake. The type of non-dairy milk can subtly influence the flavor profile and richness.
Apple Cider Vinegar: This seemingly small addition plays a vital role in vegan baking. When combined with non-dairy milk, it creates a vegan “buttermilk” effect, helping to tenderize the cake and activate the baking powder, contributing to its light and fluffy texture.
Unsweetened Applesauce: Acts as an excellent egg replacer in this recipe, providing moisture and binding properties without adding extra fat. It also contributes a subtle sweetness and helps keep the cake wonderfully moist.
Vanilla Extract: A staple in almost all baked goods, vanilla extract enhances and rounds out all the other flavors, adding a comforting aromatic note.
Baking Powder & Salt: The primary leavening agent for lift and fluffiness, and salt to balance the sweetness and enhance overall flavor.
Expert Baking Tips & Exciting Variations
Achieving the perfect vegan coffee cake is a rewarding experience, and these expert tips will help ensure your success. Plus, explore some exciting variations to customize this delightful dessert.
- Precision in Baking Time is Key: Like many baked goods, coffee cake continues to cook slightly as it cools outside the oven. It’s vital not to overbake it, as this can lead to a dry texture. Oven temperatures and altitudes can significantly affect bake times, so I recommend starting to check your cake’s doneness around the 25-minute mark. Insert a toothpick or a thin butter knife into the very center of the cake. If it comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs clinging to it, your cake is ready to be removed from the oven. Resist the urge to leave it in for “just a few more minutes.”
- Optimal Storage for Freshness: To maintain its incredible moistness and extend its shelf life, any leftover vegan coffee cake should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This method can keep the cake fresh and delicious for up to two weeks, though it’s so good, it rarely lasts that long! If you prefer to store it at room temperature, an airtight container is still essential. When stored correctly, it should remain fresh for 3-5 days. Always ensure the cake is completely cooled before storing to prevent condensation.
- Elevate with Toasted Walnuts: As written, this recipe is naturally nut-free, provided you choose a nut-free non-dairy milk (like oat or soy). However, if you’re a fan of added crunch and nutty flavor, finely chopped walnuts make a fantastic addition to the streusel topping. Simply fold them into the streusel mixture before crumbling it over the cake for an extra layer of texture and rich taste. Pecans would also be a delicious alternative!
- Transform into Vegan Blueberry Coffee Cake: For a delightful fruity twist, easily convert this into a vegan blueberry coffee cake. Gently fold ¾ to 1 cup of fresh blueberries into the coffee cake batter just before you pour it into the baking dish. The blueberries will burst with juicy sweetness during baking, creating a vibrant and refreshing variation. If using frozen blueberries, toss them with a tablespoon of flour first to prevent them from sinking to the bottom.
- Mini Vegan Coffee Cake Muffins: This recipe adapts beautifully into individual coffee cake muffins. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and layer the batter and filling as you would for the cake: a base layer of cake batter, followed by the cinnamon-sugar filling, then another layer of cake batter, and finally, a generous sprinkle of streusel topping. Muffin bake times will be shorter, typically ranging from 15-20 minutes, possibly up to 25 minutes depending on your oven. Start checking for doneness with the toothpick method around 12 minutes. Once baked, let them cool slightly before enjoying, and finish with the glaze as directed in the main recipe.
- Don’t Skimp on the Glaze: While optional, the sweet glaze adds a beautiful finish and an extra touch of moisture and sweetness that truly completes the coffee cake experience. Drizzle it generously once the cake has fully cooled.
- Room Temperature Ingredients (for the cake batter): For the cake batter itself, ensure your non-dairy milk and applesauce are at room temperature. This helps them emulsify better with the melted coconut oil, resulting in a smoother batter and a more even bake.
More Delicious Vegan Recipes You’ll Absolutely Love
- Vegan Peach Cobbler
- Vegan Key Lime Pie
- The BEST Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan Banana Pudding
- Vegan Biscuits and Gravy
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Decadent Vegan Coffee Cake with a Crumbly Streusel Topping
Cheryl Malik
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Ingredients
For the Cinnamon-Sugar Filling
- ¾ packed cup brown sugar see Notes
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
For the Streusel Topping
- 6 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1 packed cup light brown sugar see Notes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
For the Coffee Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar see Notes
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup coconut oil melted
- 1 ¾ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
For the Glaze (Optional)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar see Notes
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Equipment
- Oven
- 9×13 Baking Dish
- Parchment Paper
- Small Bowls (2)
- Hand Mixer
- Large Bowls (2)
- Whisk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit (175°C). Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides for easy removal later.
- In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, all-purpose flour, and cinnamon thoroughly to create the fragrant cinnamon-sugar filling. Set this mixture aside for later use.
- In another separate small bowl, use a hand mixer to blend together the vegan butter, light brown sugar, and all-purpose flour until crumbly, forming your streusel topping. Ensure the butter is well incorporated. Set this mixture aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together all the wet ingredients for the coffee cake: applesauce, vanilla extract, melted coconut oil, unsweetened non-dairy milk, and apple cider vinegar. Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes; this allows the “vegan buttermilk” to activate and tenderize the cake.
- In a separate large bowl, combine and whisk together the dry ingredients for the coffee cake: all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make sure they are well distributed. Set this dry mixture aside.
- Once the 5 minutes are up for the wet ingredients, slowly pour the wet mixture into the large bowl containing the dry ingredients for the coffee cake. Mix gently until the ingredients are just combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can lead to a tough cake. A few lumps are perfectly fine.
- Pour approximately half of the coffee cake batter into your prepared 9×13 inch baking dish. Spread it evenly to form the bottom layer. Then, sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar filling generously over the top of this cake layer, ensuring it extends evenly to all edges.
- Carefully spoon the remaining coffee cake batter over the cinnamon-sugar filling, spreading it gently to cover the layer. Finally, evenly crumble the streusel topping over the entire surface of the cake batter.
- Place the baking dish into the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes. To check for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake; it should come out clean or with only a few moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Once baked, remove the coffee cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the baking dish on a wire rack. While the cake cools, if desired, whisk together all the ingredients for the glaze in a small bowl until smooth.
- When the cake is fully cooled, carefully lift it from the baking dish using the parchment paper overhang. Drizzle the prepared glaze over the top of the cake in an artistic pattern. Cut the vegan coffee cake into squares and serve immediately to enjoy this delightful treat.
Recipe Notes & Customizations
- Vegan Sugar Selection: It’s important to note that not all granulated sugars are vegan, as some brands process their sugar using bone char. To ensure your coffee cake is truly plant-based, always opt for organic sugar, unrefined sugar, or look for brands that explicitly state their product is vegan. This applies to all sugars used in the recipe.
- Making it Added-Sugar Free: For those monitoring their sugar intake, this recipe is easily adaptable. Substitute all granulated, brown, and powdered sugars with an appropriate sugar-free alternative like Swerve. Ensure you use the granular Swerve for granulated sugar, brown Swerve for brown sugar, and confectioners’ Swerve for powdered sugar to maintain the correct consistency and sweetness level.
- Crafting a Gluten-Free Version: To create a delicious gluten-free vegan coffee cake, simply swap the all-purpose flour for a high-quality gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. If your chosen GF blend does not contain xanthan gum, add about ½ to ¾ teaspoon to the cake batter flour, and proportionate amounts to the filling and streusel flours. Xanthan gum is vital for providing structure and preventing crumbling in gluten-free baked goods.
- Additional Topping Ideas: Beyond walnuts, consider adding a sprinkle of shredded coconut, chocolate chips (ensure they are vegan), or a dash of cardamom to your streusel for an extra layer of flavor complexity.
This recipe is designed to yield approximately 16 generous servings, with each square considered one serving. However, the actual number of servings can be adjusted based on your desired portion sizes and how you cut the squares.
The nutritional values provided here are general guidelines, reflecting the information for a single serving (1 of 16 squares) using the specified ingredients without optional additions. Please note that actual macronutrient values may vary slightly depending on the specific brands and types of ingredients you choose to use.
To accurately determine the weight of one serving for precise dietary tracking, prepare the recipe as instructed. Once the entire cake is finished and cooled, weigh the total baked cake (excluding the weight of the baking dish). Then, divide this total weight by 16 to get the approximate weight of one serving.
Nutrition Information
The total number of servings provided is an approximation. The actual number of servings will ultimately depend on your preferred portion sizes when cutting the cake.
The nutritional values presented are general guidelines. They reflect information for a single serving, calculated based on the listed ingredients and excluding any optional additions. Be aware that actual macronutrient values can vary slightly depending on the specific brands and types of ingredients you choose.
To accurately determine the weight of one serving for your specific cake, prepare the recipe as instructed. After the cake is fully baked and cooled, weigh the entire finished cake (without including the weight of the container). Divide this total weight by your desired number of servings to find the weight of each individual portion.