Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Hello. My name is Kim. I graduated from UCLA, have 7 years experience working with kids and clerical/front desk work, was supervisor of a museum store, and bake whenever I’m bored. Want to hire me?

Hah! I wish it was that simple. I’ve been on the job hunt ever since I moved up here on Monday. Okay, I know that you don’t normally find a job in a week, but here’s to wishful thinking! Patience.. patience.. patience.  My goal is to turn in an application a day, in hopes of finding a job that will suit me. Until then, I’ll bake my little heart away.

I’ve always been a fun of coffee cakes; they’re light, versatile, and easy to pack. The best part? The crumb topping! My cake may look a little off to you because I baked it in a bundt pan rather than a tube pan. Note to self: Bundt pans are not made for inverting twice. It doesn’t really matter what it looks like, just as long as it tastes good. And oh boy, this coffee cake tasted like a buttery soft cloud of joy.

From The Meaning of Pie.

Streusel: (you will divide this between 2 bowls)

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
• 1 cup pecans, chopped

1. Mix together the flour, both sugars, and cinnamon. Take 1½ cups of this mixture and set it in a separate bowl. This second bowl will be for the inside of the cake and I will call it LAYERING streusel. In this second small bowl of layering streusel, add an additional ¼ cup of brown sugar and mix it in. Set aside. 
2. Add the butter and pecans to the original bowl. This will be the TOP streusel. Using a food processor or your hands (the best tools in the kitchen!), work the butter into the TOP streusel mixture until all of the topping is moistened. Set aside.

Cake:

• 12 Tablespoons unsalted butter (1½ sticks)
• 4 large eggs
• 1½ cups sour cream (divided use)
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2¼ cups all purpose flour
• 1¼ cup sugar
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10 cup tube pan. In a bowl, combine the eggs, 1 cup of the sour cream and the vanilla.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt for about 30 seconds. Next, add the butter and 1/2 cup remaining sour cream and mix on low until just combined. Turn up the speed of the mixer to medium and mix for an additional 30 seconds.
3. Slow down the mixer and add the first egg and sour cream mixture in 3 separate additions, beating for 30 seconds and scraping the bowl after each addition to make sure everything is combined. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for an additional minute.
4. Add 2 generous cups of batter to the bottom of the prepared tube pan and spread it evenly. Evenly sprinkle half of the LAYERING (not nuts) streusel on top of the batter. Add one and a half cups more of the batter on top of the streusel. Sprinkle on the rest of the LAYERING (no nuts) streusel. Top with the remaining batter and sprinkle on the TOP (with nuts) streusel.
5. Bake for approximately 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove the pan to a rack and allow the cake to cool in the pan for 30 minutes before removing.
6. Re-invert it so that the streusel side is on the top.