The Best Coffee Cake Recipe Without Sour Cream

Delicious, buttery, and tangy, you won’t believe how good the coffee cake without sour cream tastes.

So many recipes add sour cream for that zing, but let me tell you, buttermilk is king when it comes to making that bakery-fresh coffee cake to start your morning. 

And this is the best coffee cake recipe without sour cream.

A Tender Cake

Talk about a tender and moist cake, even with the absence of sour cream.

The cake is light and fluffy underneath the streusel topping.

Don’t sleep on this one, though likely you’ll be dreaming of the crunchy streusel topping. It will most certainly be your motivation to jump out of bed when the alarm clock goes off.

And it can serve as an afternoon snack, dessert, or treat to enjoy any time with the ones you love.

A Great Recipe For Coffee Cake Without Sour Cream

As I mentioned, this coffee cake recipe is made without sour cream. I use buttermilk instead, which gives it even better results, in my opinion.

If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make it by mixing one cup of milk with a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar. Stir it up first before adding it in and let it sit for a few minutes, though real buttermilk is best.

The streusel topping is a bit different than a typical topping. It combines sugar, brown sugar, and butter for a thinner topping.

Ingredients For The Easy Coffee Cake Recipe

Streusel Topping

• White granulated sugar
• Ground cinnamon
• All-purpose flour
• Cold butter, cubed

Coffee Cake

• White granulated sugar
• All-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Cold butter, cubed
• Egg
• Buttermilk
• Vanilla extract
• Milk

Full recipe with measurements and instructions listed at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.

Watch How To Make Coffee Cake Without Sour Cream

How To Make Delicious Coffee Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish.
2. For the streusel, add the sugar, cinnamon, and flour to a medium mixing bowl and mix.
3. Next, add the cubed butter and cut it in until it resembles the shape of peas and set aside.
4. For the cake, add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix.
5. Cut in the butter until it resembles the shape of peas.
6. Add the buttermilk, milk, egg, and vanilla extract, and mix well.
7. Pour the cake into the prepared baking dish and top with the streusel.
8. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. The top will be crusty and melted.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Streusel Topping

Start by adding white sugar to a medium bowl.

Next, add the ground cinnamon to the bowl.

Add the flour to the mixing bowl.

Add the cubed butter and cut it into the dry mixture with a pastry cutter. Cut until the mixture resembles the shape of peas.

This is what the streusel will look like when it’s done. You can set it aside while you get the cake ready.

Coffee Cake

For the cake, grab a large bowl and add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix.

Add the cold cubed butter to the bowl and cut it in until it resembles the shape of peas.

Pour the buttermilk and milk into the bowl with the dry ingredients.

Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan.

Sprinkle the streusel crumb topping over the top of the cake batter.

Bake the coffee cake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean in the center of the cake.

The cinnamon streusel on top of the cake will be nice and melted and crunchy. And the cake will be golden brown.

What Is Coffee Cake?

With a name like coffee cake, you’d think it has coffee in it. But nope!

There’s no java in here. It’s merely a cake made with white sugar, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, butter, egg, buttermilk, vanilla extract, and milk.

The best way I can describe it is like a moist cake with a nice streusel topping made with a delicious cinnamon sugar mixture that just seals the deal.

It’s the kind of cake that’s sweet without being excessively sweet, and the perfect thing to serve when friends and family drop by. And yes, the fluffy cake goes beautifully with a hot cup of coffee which is where the name comes about.

More Delicious Desserts

• Red velvet cake mix cookies – this is one of those great recipes that combines cake mix into a delicious cookie.
• Pumpkin streusel muffins with icing – these muffins are delicious any time of year, but especially in the fall. The recipe creates a simple batter that tastes great with pumpkin.
• Moist buttermilk chocolate cake recipe – this is a wonderful treat that combines the zing of buttermilk and the flavor of chocolate.
• For something a little different, try this strawberry ice cream cheesecake from Woman’s Day.

The Best Coffee Cake Without Sour Cream

This coffee cake without sour cream is a wonderful way to bring this classic breakfast/dessert back to the table. I love to make mine ahead to enjoy on a lazy morning or when I know guests will be coming over. 

Just brew up a pot of good coffee to go with it, and you’ll be in business! It’s old-fashioned coffee cake at its finest!

The cinnamon coffee cake is perfect for after a holiday meal or anytime. Just add a scoop of ice cream on the side, and you’ve got one amazing dessert.