Gluten-free coffee cake is the easy, 30 minute dessert you've been searching for! A light and sweet cake topped with cinnamon, chopped nuts, and brown sugar? Sign me up!
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About This Gluten-Free Coffee Cake
I made this recipe in elementary school for a Girl Scouts Bake Off and won 1st prize! It's no surprise it's just as amazing gluten-free. After discovering it in my recipe book once more, I decided to make some tweaks and determine if it still lived up to the hype.
It tasted exactly like I remembered! And it only takes 30 minutes to bake, making this coffee cake not only a winner for being scrumptious, but also for being quick and easy.
Ingredients You Will Need
Gluten-Free Flour Blend: Thanks to a top-quality gluten-free flour blend like Cup4Cup, this coffee cake has become one of the most popular recipes on my website. Cup4Cup has been my favorite and go-to for every baking experiment in the last ten years, including empanadas, naan, focaccia, scones, and soda bread. I highly recommend it for baking with pastry and baked goods, and this coffee cake comes out best with Cup4Cup!
You will also need:
-Granulated sugar: This will be the sweetness for our cake recipe.
-Baking soda & baking powder: These will provide rise for our coffee cake and make it nice and bouncy!
-Salt: To balance out the sweetness of the sugar.
-Melted butter: This will provide the fat and liquid content for the cake.
-Egg: Egg will provide structure and moisture for the cake.
-Buttermilk: The main source of liquid for the coffee cake! It works super well with Cup4Cup flour.
-Brown sugar: This will be the sweetness for our coffee cake topping.
-Chopped walnuts or pecans: These will add crunch to our topping, but you can leave them out if you don't like nuts or have an allergy.
-Ground cinnamon: Cinnamon is the perfect addition for this topping! And gives the coffee cake that homey smell and taste.
How To Make Gluten-Free Coffee Cake
First, you'll combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a whisk.
Then, in another bowl you'll whisk together the melted butter, egg, and buttermilk.
Finally, you'll pour the wet ingredient mixture into the dry and stir to combine. It will be very thick, and that's fine! Then, you'll spread the batter into a greased square pan.
Lastly, you'll combine the brown sugar, chopped nuts, and cinnamon with a spoon, and sprinkle it over the top.
Bake the gluten-free coffee cake for 30 minutes, and then make sure to let it sit for 20 minutes once it comes out of the oven.
Troubleshooting & Tips For Baking
Measuring Gluten-Free Flour: Be careful how you measure your gluten-free flour. Be sure to spoon your flour into your measuring cup, then level off with the back of the knife. This makes sure you get an accurate amount.
Follow. The. Recipe: This recipe is specifically formulated using Cup4Cup Multipurpose gluten-free flour. If you decide to change anything or substitute other ingredients, they may come out differently than expected and I cannot speak to your results. My experience is in gluten-free and dairy-free baking, but not allergy-free, vegan, or egg-free. You can always email me: [email protected] with any questions and I'm happy to help troubleshoot the best I can.
Be aware that this coffee cake batter is THICK! It produces a very dense cake but I think that's part of what makes it so good.
Can I Make This Coffee Cake Dairy-Free?
Yes, and I've tried it. It will not be as fluffy, but it still tastes good! Consider using a dairy-free alternative to Cup4Cup flour, which contains milk powder. I would suggest Bob's Red Mill 1:1 GF Flour (blue bag). For dairy-free buttermilk, you can substitute your favorite non-dairy milk and yogurt in equal amounts. In place of melted butter, you can use dairy-free butter like Earth Balance or melted coconut oil.
Can I Leave Out The Nuts In The Topping?
Yes, of course! If you have a nut allergy or just would prefer to leave them out, that's fine! Just use cinnamon and brown sugar instead.
How To Serve Coffee Cake
I suggest trying this coffee cake for a gluten-free weekend brunch, for a special dessert, or my personal favorite - for breakfast! It's perfect with a cup of tea, or like the name suggests- coffee! Serve it warm, room temperature or cold - you'll want to eat it regardless of how hot or cold it is.
And if you are having a gluten-free brunch, might I also suggest these gluten-free egg cups with your favorite veggies, a batch of gluten-free lemon blueberry scones, and maybe some fresh fruit salad too!
How To Store Coffee Cake
Coffee cake should last 2-3 days after baking, so it's best served fresh! Keep it covered at room temperature, or warm up in the microwave for a few seconds if needed if it starts to harden. This is a very common tendency for most gluten-free baked goods, so it's best to enjoy it soon after baking and cooling. Enjoy!
More Gluten-Free Baking Recipes
Feel like an easy quickbread? This banana bread with walnuts hits the spot.
Looking for a scones recipe? Bake a savory version with bacon, cheddar, and chives.
Want to practice your pie making skills? Check out this gluten-free peach pie with lattice design.
Ready to take your baking skills to the next level? Try these delightful, buttery, and flaky gluten-free croissants.
Discover all the gluten-free baking recipes on the blog right here.
Here's how to make this winning gluten-free coffee cake!
If you love this recipe, please leave a comment! Thank you so much!
Gluten-Free Coffee Cake Recipe
Gluten-Free Coffee Cake
A delightful coffee cake!
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten-free flour blend, like Cup4Cup
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon granulated salt
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease an 8x10 inch glass dish (or one of a similar size, just make sure the sides are at least 2'' deep).
Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk until incorporated (except the brown sugar, walnuts, and cinnamon).
In a medium-sized bowl, combine butter, egg, and buttermilk, and whisk to combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and mix with a large spoon until combined. The batter will be very thick and dense! Pour batter into the greased pan and spread evenly.
In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, walnuts, and cinnamon with a spoon. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the batter using your fingers.
Bake for 30 minutes. Allow coffee cake to sit in the pan for an additional 20 minutes before slicing.
Notes
Storage: Coffee cake should last 2-3 days after baking. Keep it covered at room temperature, or warm up in the microwave for a few seconds if needed. Enjoy!
Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 410Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 39mgSodium 528mgCarbohydrates 72gFiber 2gSugar 38gProtein 9g
The nutrition information on each recipe card is provided as a courtesy and for your convenience. The data is calculated by Nutritionix. You are encouraged to make your own calculations based on your ingredients and preferred nutritional facts calculator. While I try to make sure they are accurate, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of these calculations.
Do you like gluten-free coffee cake?
What's your favorite type of cake?
Leave me a comment below if you've tried this recipe!
Naomi says
OH MY GOSH! I just wanted an easy coffee cake for breakfast and this was amazing! Came together super quickly, baked up beautifully and is so good! Texture is perfect. Not too sweet. Perfection! Thank you!
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
YAY! So happy you enjoyed it, Naomi! Thank you for leaving a comment!! 🙂
Donna Cieslak says
This recipe is awesome!!!! The best yet but what would the baking time be if I did muffins or used a metal pan I baked it in a ceramic casserole dish Can I turn this recipe into a sandwich bread Would I leave out the sugar add more salt or what It’s great Donna
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
Thank you so much Donna! I've made it in both metal and ceramic dishes and it hasn't changed the baking time. I'm not sure about doing muffins as this is a cake, and not a quickbread. I would not recommend turning this into sandwich bread, however, as that is not how it was intended.
Donna Cieslak says
Do you have a hard copy cook book I could buy?
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
I don't! But I'm flattered you asked, Donna! For now, all of my recipes are just here on my website. There's over 100 and plenty of baking ones, so I hope you find some more you enjoy!
Edna says
Hi,
Love this cake but where is the coffee, and when do I add it or is this cinnamon bread. Confused- Ciara
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
Hi there - sorry for any confusion, coffee cake does not actually contain coffee, it's just normally served with coffee.