Love, love, love the texture. Can't think of a coffee cake that can't possibly be elevated with streusel. Who doesn't desire the crumbly crunchy topping of a tea time treat? And in this case, made more amazing with the addition of pecan bits.



This vanilla based cake is swirled with a lovely cinnamon and chocolate ribbon, into which I added a good dose of hemp hearts for an extra boost of nutrients. The texture hovers between a rich pound cake and a cakey muffin. Satisfying, without being overly filling. Is absolutely divine with your afternoon beverage of choice. We can safely conclude that it has all the qualities of a wonderful tea time treat.

Oh, and did it occur to you that it makes a wonderful hostess gift?

Streusel topping:
3/4 cups granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup flour
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, diced small
1 cup toasted pecans, chopped

Filling:
3/4 cup brown sugar, light or dark
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp hemp hearts, optional

Cake:
3-3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup butter
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1-1/4 cups milk

Directions:
1. Lightly grease and line the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch pan (or two loaf pans)

2. Make the topping by whisking together the sugar, salt, flour, and cinnamon. Add the butter, rubbing it in till well combined. Set the topping aside.

3. Make the filling by mixing together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa powder. The cocoa powder is used strictly for colour, not flavour; leave it out if you like. Set it aside.

Making the coffee cake:
4. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, salt, sugars, baking powder, and vanilla until well combined and smooth.
5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

6. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream or yogurt and milk till well combined. You don't need to whisk out all the lumps.
7. Add the flour to the butter mixture alternately with the milk/sour cream mixture, beating gently to combine.
8. Pour/spread half the batter (a scant 3 cups) into the prepared pan(s), spreading all the way to the edges. It won't be much batter, but it'll bake to quite a bit. Trust me on this.

9. Sprinkle the filling evenly atop the batter.
10. Spread the remaining batter atop the filling. Use a table knife to gently swirl the filling into the batter, as though you were making a marble cake. Don't combine filling and batter thoroughly; just swirl the filling through the batter.
11. Sprinkle the topping over the batter in the pan.

12. Bake the cake until it's a dark golden brown around the edges; medium-golden with no light patches showing on top, and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 to 50 minutes for the 9x13 inch pan.

13. Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for 20 minutes before cutting and serving. Serve cake right from the pan.