Every time I tested this apple coffee cake, I swore I'd share it - only to end up keeping it all for myself! The cake is soft and buttery layered with tender, cinnamon apples and topped with a sweet streusel topping. It's basically dessert disguised as breakfast. Perfect for lazy mornings or special occasions like Christmas, Mother's Day, Easter, or anytime you're feeding a crowd. Bonus: it's vegetarian.
Think of this apple cinnamon coffee cake as the best of both pie and cake worlds: all the flavors of classic apple pie wrapped up in a moist, buttery cake with crumble topping that you can enjoy for breakfast! It fills your kitchen with the smell of fall spices and makes every piece feel like the ultimate comfort food! With step-by-step instructions, this foolproof recipe is one of the best coffee cake recipes to keep on repeat.
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Ingredients
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
Use a kitchen scale! Measuring flour by volume (in cups) is notoriously unreliable, so if you must measure the flour in cups, use the scoop and level method for best results. Our recipe lists the gram measurements first followed by the volume measurements in the ingredients list.
- Apples. Select a variety that bakes well, like Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or Pink Lady. We love Honeycrisp for the crisp, sweet flavor, but if you prefer more tartness, go with Granny Smith or a combination.
- Butter. The secret to this cake batter is COLD BUTTER. Cutting cold butter into the dry ingredients creates tiny flour-coated pockets of fat that work magic in two ways. First, they slow down gluten development, giving the cake a softer, more tender crumb. Second, as the cake bakes, these pockets melt and release stem, adding lift and moisture without heaviness. PRO TIP: We use unsalted butter in our baking so we can control the flavor and salt level in the recipe.
- Greek yogurt. This addition keeps the cake moist, soft, and tender. Its natural acidity also acts with baking soda to give the cake extra lift when baking, making it light and fluffy.
- Flour. Stick with all-purpose flour. There really is a difference in flour brands - we found King Arthur or Bob's Red Mill consistently give the best texture in our baked goods.
- Milk. Whole, 2% or 1% milk all work great. We don't recommend using non-fat milk.
A note on butter in streusel topping
Cold butter is the key to tender, moist apple coffee cake, but when it comes to the streusel topping, soft butter works best. Using softened butter in the streusel ensures the dry ingredients are thoroughly blended, so you don't end up with any dry patches. The result is a golden, crisp crumb topping with perfect texture in every bite. For more tips on mastering streusel, check out this helpful post, Cinnamon Crumble Topping, from our friends at Life As A Strawberry.
Riffs and substitutions
- This is also delicious with pears or peaches - like in our Peach Coffee Cake recipe.
- Substitute buttermilk for the vinegar and milk.
- Add some fresh lemon zest to the batter for a bright citrus note.
- Add some toasted, chopped walnuts or pecans to the streusel topping for extra crunch.
- Once the coffee cake has cooled, finish with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, a drizzle of cream cheese glaze, or a powdered sugar glaze.
How to make apple crumb coffee cake
BEFORE YOU START: Read through the entire recipe.
Some ingredients - like butter, cinnamon, flour, and sugar - are used in multiple steps, it's important to measure carefully and add the right amounts at the right time.
Make the crumble topping
Use a fork to mix the softened butter, flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon until you have a crumbly mixture. Make sure all the ingredients are well mixed - no dry bits left - and the mixture holds together when pressed between your fingers. Set this aside while you prepare the apples and batter.
Prepare the apples
Melt butter in a skillet. Add the peeled, cored, diced apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Stir to combine, cover and steam over medium-low heat until the apples are JUST slightly softened - about 5 minutes. Set aside while you mix the batter.
Make the batter
Since this is a large batch - for a crowd - we're using a food processor to cut in the butter with the flour and sugar. This is a major time saver compared to using a pastry cutter or our hands. However, either of these methods will work just fine if you prefer not using a food processor.
Using the steel blade, add the flour, sugar, and small cubes of butter to the food processor bowl. Fit the lid on and pulse until the mixture resembles small peas. Don't pulse too long or you will over mix which creates a dry, dense coffee cake.
For more info on cutting in butter, visit our Peach Coffee Cake post.
Pour the butter-flour mixture into a large mixing bowl. Make sure the butter is fully cut in and there are no large pieces left. If there are, cut them in with your fingers. Add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the mix and stir well. Place the entire bowl in the refrigerator while you mix the wet ingredients. This helps keep the butter cold which is essential to a light, fluffy coffee cake. If the butter is soft, leave the bowl in the fridge for 10-15 minutes to firm up the butter before you continue.
Whisk the wet ingredients; egg, milk, Greek yogurt, and apple cider vinegar together in a large measuring cup. Add the milk mixture to the flour-butter mixture and use a spoon or spatula to stir until just combined and all dry ingredients are mixed in. This is a very rough batter, it will not be smooth like a cake.
Assemble the coffee cake
Spread the batter into a prepared baking dish. We find an offset spatula helps to spread this evenly.
Spread the steamed apples evenly over the batter going all the way to the sides of the dish.
Crumble topping and bake
Use your hands to break up any clumps of streusel topping and spread over the top of the apples. Cover the apples evenly. Use as much or as little of the crumble as you like - we use all of it for a great texture and flavor on the apple crumb cake.
Bake 40-50 minutes or until the cake is baked all the way through.
The bake time will depend on the pan you use and how accurate your oven is.
Check at 40 minutes and add time as necessary.
How many does this serve?
This homemade apple cake is meant to serve a large group but can be cut into as large or small of pieces as you like. We've cut this into 15, 18, 20, 24, and even 30 pieces. If you're serving a variety of different pastries, we recommend cutting this into smaller pieces - people love trying some of everything!
Time saver and make ahead tips
This can be made up to 3 days in advance, cooled completely, and stored in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to serve. To reheat, warm individual pieces in the microwave, or cover the whole cake and place in a 300° F oven. Be careful not to overheat - it can dry out the cake and make the texture tough.
Want to bake this fresh in the morning with little prep? Follow this timeline and have this ready to bake in no time.
- Make the streusel in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge up to a month or freeze for up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature before using.
- Steam the apples up to 3 days ahead of time and store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to assemble.
- Cut the butter into the dry ingredients and stir in the remaining dry ingredients up to a week in advance. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- When ready to bake, mix the wet ingredients together, combine with the prepped dry mix, assemble the coffee cake, and bake.
If you love coffee cakes with fruit
try our Blueberry Coffee Cake or Peach Coffee Cake.
Saving Leftovers
The FDA recommends discarding any perishable food that has been out at room temperature for more than 2 hours. Since this has cut apples, we consider it to be perishable.
If you are within the FDA recommendations, this will last in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Serve room temperature or reheat in a 300° F oven for 5-8 minutes or until warm. We recommend covering the coffee cake while heating to keep it from drying out too much.
Other favorite brunch recipes
Common coffee cake FAQ's
A coffee cake refers to any cake, with or without fruit, that is eaten while drinking a hot beverage - like coffee or tea! It doesn't refer to a cake with coffee IN the recipe.
A buckle is a cake that has fruit in the batter and a streusel topping.
This easy apple coffee cake recipe is both a coffee cake AND a buckle!
We don't recommend this. There are leavening agents in the batter that become active once the liquid is added. Instead, prepare each item the night before, mix wet and dry ingredients and assemble in the morning. See the post above for more on this.
You can also bake this the day before and reheat in a low oven until warmed through.
We don't recommend freezing this apple crumble cake after it has been baked. The cake can become mushy from the apples when it is thawed.
📖 Recipe
Apple Coffee Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 15-30 pieces 1x
Description
This apple coffee cake is basically dessert disguised as breakfast. Soft, buttery cake with tender, cinnamon apples , topped with a sweet streusel topping - it's like a piece of apple pie but in a cake. Perfect for lazy mornings, holidays, or feeding a crowd, this easy recipe is always a hit. Bonus: it's vegetarian.
Ingredients
Streusel topping
- 160 grams brown sugar (⅔ packed cup)
- 120 grams flour (1 cup)
- 14 grams ground cinnamon (2 Tablespoons)
- 140 grams unsalted butter, softened to room temperature (about 10 Tablespoons)
Apple layer
- 28 grams butter (2 Tablespoons)
- 400 grams fresh apples peeled, seeded, and small diced (1-2 apples)
- 30 grams brown sugar (2 Tablespoons)
- 6 grams cinnamon (1 Tablespoon)
Coffee cake batter
- 400 grams all purpose flour (3 ⅓ cups)
- 201 grams sugar (1 cup)
- 18 Tablespoons cold butter (1 ½ cups=2 ¼ sticks)
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 28 grams Greek yogurt (2 Tablespoons)
- 1 egg, beaten
- 30 grams apple cider vinegar (2 Tablespoons)
- 240 grams milk (1 cup)
Instructions
Prepare Streusel topping
- Add flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and softened butter to a mixing bowl. Mix with a fork until all ingredients are thoroughly combined - no dry bits remaining.
- Set aside while you prepare the rest of the coffee cake.
Prepare apples
- Melt butter in a saucepan.
- Add peeled, diced, fresh apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon and stir to combine. Cover and steam over medium-low heat for 5 minutes or until apples just begin to soften.
- Set aside.
Prepare batter
- Heat oven to 350° F.
- Butter and flour a 13 x 9 inch baking dish.
- In the bowl of a food processor with the steel blade combine flour, sugar, and cold, diced butter. Use short pulses to cut the butter into the flour-sugar mixture. The mixture should resemble very small peas. This can also be done using a pastry cutter or your hands.
- Transfer this crumbly mixture to a large mixing bowl. If there are any large butter pieces left, cut them in with your fingers. Stir in the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Place the entire bowl in the refrigerator while you mix the wet ingredients to keep the butter cold. If the butter is soft, leave it in there for 10-15 minutes to firm up. - In a large measuring cup or small mixing bowl, combine the Greek yogurt, egg, apple cider vinegar, and milk. Whisk until completely combined.
- Remove the flour-butter mixture from the fridge and add the liquids, stir with a spoon just until combined. NOTE: you want this to be a 'rough' batter, not smooth, so be careful not to over mix - mix just until all of the dry ingredients are combined with the liquid.
Assemble the coffee cake and bake
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared 13 x 9 baking dish, making sure it reaches all the way to the edges and corners. We find an offset spatula helps with this step.
- Top the batter layer with the apple mixture and spread out evenly to the sides of the pan.
- Top the apples with the prepared streusel. Break the crumble topping up as you go if needed, so the pieces are more uniform in size and cover the entire top of the coffee cake.
- Bake at 350° F for 40-50 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting.
- OPTIONAL: Dust the top with powdered sugar, a drizzle of cream cheese glaze, or a powdered sugar glaze.
- Serve.
Notes
Use a scale. Measuring flour by volume is notoriously unreliable, use a kitchen scale if you have it. No scale? Use the scoop and level method for best results.
Substitutions and additions. Add some toasted, chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts) to the crumble topping. Use pears or peaches in place of apples.
Butter. Keep the butter in the streusel topping soft, but not melted. Keep the butter in the batter cold, return to the fridge - before adding liquid - if it starts getting soft.
Baking pan. This recipe is sized for a crowd and we use a 13" x 9" glass baking dish. Cut the coffee cake into any size you want. We've cut this into 15-30 pieces - 15 large pieces, 24 medium pieces, and 30 small pieces).
Reminder: If reheating, do not place a cold glass or ceramic dish into a hot oven. The temperature difference can cause the dish to break.
To prepare ahead of time and bake in the morning:
• Prepare streusel and apples up to 3 days in advance - store in airtight containers in the fridge.
• Cut butter into dry ingredients, add leavening agents and salt, and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
• When ready to bake, continue with the instructions above (starting at mixing the wet ingredients together).
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 382
- Sugar: 24.5 g
- Sodium: 101.6 mg
- Fat: 19.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 48.3 g
- Protein: 4.2 g
- Cholesterol: 61.4 mg
Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment and star rating below to let us know how it turned out!
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