I’ve had this cookbook made by my mother-in-law for nearly 30 years. I still have not made everything in it! Our family got an order of Palisade Peaches that are grown out on the Western Slope of Colorado. I really wanted to make a Peach Coffee Cake. I remembered seeing a coffee cake in my MIL’s cookbook and wondered if it could be adapted. This is how Golden Crunch Peach Coffee Cake came to be born.
I made her cake exactly as written but added a layer of fresh peaches in the center with crunch filling. I also added a cinnamon glaze to drizzle over the top. It. Is. So. Good. This is a great cake to make for a dessert after dinner OR make it for brunch or breakfast. Eat it with a hot cuppa coffee, tea or cocoa on the side.
What is Coffee Cake?
In America, this is what we call coffee cake. Even though America has only been a country for 250 years, this cake that we call coffee cake has been around since the 1600’s when the coffee beverage was introduced. Coffee became a thing and instantly the tradition of pairing the hot and bitter beverage with a sweet yeast bread or cake became very popular. In countries like Germany and Denmark they have been serving baked goods like Kaffeekuchen since the 1600’s.
Immigrants from Germany and Scandinavia brought their recipes for Kaffeekuchen to America with them and the name Coffee Cake appears in print in 1850’s America. All American’s adopted the tradition of eating cake or bread with their coffee. American bakers adapted the yeast-based pastries into quick breads using baking powder and added streusel toppings.
This Coffee Cake is exactly that. A sweet quick bread like cake using baking powder and a delicious streusel top. Most coffee cakes today feature butter and cinnamon!
For this Coffee Cake, begin by measuring the dry ingredients together in a medium or small mixing bowl and set aside. Next, cream the butter and white sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla extract.
Alternate adding the dry ingredients with the milk, completely mixing between each addition. Begin and end with dry ingredients.
Prepare a 9×13 baking dish by lightly spraying or rubbing with olive oil or soft butter. Pour half of the prepared batter into the baking dish. Spread even with a rubber spatula.
If you are looking for a beautiful baking dish like ours, then Click HERE and check out our shop, which contains several of our favorites.
Slice 2 washed peaches over the top. We used fresh, but canned or frozen should work just fine.
Mix together the streusel the ingredients, except the nuts. Once the butter/sugar mixture is like wet sand, then fold in the nuts. Sprinkle half of the streusel mix over the peaches.
Pour the rest of the batter, scraping the bowl clean, carefully over the top of the peaches and other layers. Carefully spread the batter the cover the other layers. Sprinkle the rest of the streusel over the top.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Mix together the glaze ingredients using a fork or small whisk. Drizzle the glaze over the cake while it’s still HOT.
Let the cake sit and cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting into it and serving.
FAQ’s –
- Can I make this ahead? YES! This cake stays tasting fresh for at least a week and even LONGER! Just keep covered tightly on the kitchen counter.
- Can I freeze this cake? YES! Bake in a foil pan and after it has cooled completely wrap with aluminum foil and plastic wrap, then freeze without the glaze on. When ready to serve, thaw on the kitchen counter for 3 hours. Remove the plastic wrap and bake at 300 degrees F while covered, for 20-25 minutes, just to warm it. Mix up the glaze and drizzle it on before serving.
- Can I use other fruit besides peaches? YES! Use blueberries, strawberries, pears, raspberries etc! Any added fruit that like would be good.
If you like this recipe, then check out these others –
- Grandma Jenson’s Coffee Cake
- Peach Upside Down Cake
- Applesauce Bread
- Cinnamon Muffins
- Apple Crumble Cake
- Peaches & Cream Croissant Pudding
Golden Crunch Peach Coffee Cake
Equipment
- 9×13 baking dish
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp table salt
- 1 Tbsp. baking powder
- ½ cup butter 1 stick or 8 Tablespoons
- 1½ cups white sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk (2% or whole)
Filling and Topping
- 3-4 fresh peaches, sliced
- 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 2 Tbsp. butter, soft
- 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup walnuts, chopped
Cinnamon Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2-3 Tbsp. milk
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder together in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, use a stand mixer or electric hand mixer to cream the butter and sugar for about 3 minutes. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract. Cream together for another 3-4 minutes.
- Alternately add in the dry ingredients and the milk. Add in half of the dry ingredients. Fully mix in. Add in the milk. Fully mix in. Add in the rest of the dry ingredients. Mix until all is fully incorporated and smooth.
- Prepare a 9×13 baking dish. Lightly spray or rub with olive oil, the bottom and sides of the dish.
- Pour half of the batter into the baking dish. Wash and dry the peaches. Thinly slice and spread out over the batter. Discard the pits.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the filling. Measure in the brown sugar, butter, flour, cinnamon. When this is mostly combined, add in the chopped walnuts. Sprinkle half of this mixture over the peaches.
- Pour the rest of the batter over the peaches and crumble. Use a rubber spatula to spread and gently smooth out evenly.
- Finish off by sprinkling the rest of the crumble mixture evenly over the top.
- Bake at 350℉ for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cinnamon Glaze
- Measure the powdered sugar and cinnamon into a small bowl. Slowly add the milk, mixing between adding 1 Tablespoon at a time, until you reach the desired consistency. Drizzle the glaze over the hot cake.
- Wait at least 10 minutes before cutting to serve. This cake is delicious both hot and cold. Serve with a scoop of ice cream for dessert, or a hot cuppa coffee, tea, or cocoa for breakfast. Keep covered or in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.