I made the coffee cake and my sweetheart Peggy and I are most pleased. Instead of using a single baking dish I used large muffin tins with paper inserts, such that the recipe as shown below made 12 large individual servings of coffee cake. I used some of the special ingredient combinations that you can find in superior muffins, like dried chopped cranberries and chopped walnuts. I also doubled the amount of chopped walnuts and used half of them in a crunchy sweet cinnamon topping.
Note that you can make the coffee cake using a conventional 9"x13"x2" glass baking dish instead of the muffin tins. If you do that then grease all of the interior of the baking dish with butter before dispensing any batter into it. Also, you may have to increase the baking time by 10 or 20 minutes.
You definitely want to make this coffee cake. I enjoy it best served warm with butter on the side, and of course the requisite cup of coffee. Yummy!
Ingredients:
Batter:
3 cups of all purpose flour
1 tsp. of sea salt
1 tsp. of baking soda
1 cup of softened butter
2 cups of sugar
1 tbsp. of pure vanilla extract
2 cups of sour cream
4 extra large or jumbo eggs
1/2 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup of chopped dried sweetened cranberries
1/2 cup of diced fresh or canned pineapple (optional)
Filling/Topping:
1 tbsp. of ground cinnamon
3/4 cup of sugar
3 tbsp. of soft butter
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
Directions:
Set the oven temperature at 350ºF.
Mix the first three ingredients of the Filling/Topping in a one quart bowl until well combined, then take half of the mixture and put it into a small bowl. Set that bowl aside.
Add the 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts to the original bowl and mix well. Set that bowl aside.
Now prepare the batter.
Mix the salt, baking soda and flour in a 2 quart bowl with a whisk. Set it aside.
Use an electric mixer and the mixer bowl and mix the 2 cups of sugar and the softened butter on low to medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Add the eggs and then the vanilla and continue mixing for two minutes on medium speed.
Reduce the mixer speed to low.
Add about 1/3 of the flour/salt/baking soda mixture and then 1/3 of the sour cream to the electric mixer bowl and mix for half a minute to one minute, just to combine the ingredients.
Repeat that process twice with the remaining dry mixture and sour cream, mixing after the last additions only until the batter is smooth.
Add the chopped walnuts, the chopped dried cranberries and (optionally) the diced pineapple and mix them into the batter on low speed for one minute.
Use 1/3 of the batter, evenly dispensing it into each of 12 paper muffin cups in one or two muffin tins. That will fill each cup roughly 1/3 full. Alternatively, if you are using a butter greased glass baking dish instead of muffin tins then simply dispense 1/3 of the batter evenly in the baking dish.
Use 1/2 of the cinnamon, sugar and butter mixture and sprinkle it into the 12 muffin cups (or glass baking dish) on top of the batter.
Repeat dispensing of the next 1/3 of the batter, then use the other half of the cinnamon, sugar and butter mixture as before.
Fill the muffin cups (or glass baking dish) with the remaining batter.
Use the chopped walnuts, cinnamon, sugar and butter mixture and sprinkle/dispense it evenly over the top of the batter.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes if you are making the cake in muffin tins, or until a toothpick inserted close to the center of a muffin cup comes out clean. You may have to bake the cake a bit longer if you are using a glass baking dish.
Cool the coffee cake(s) for 15 minutes on a wood cutting board.
The coffee cake(s) are now ready to serve with some butter on the side and with a cup of coffee, or milk for the kids. I like to cut an individual muffin size coffee cake serving into four pieces and put about 1 teaspoon of softened butter on each piece to melt. Yummy!