Buttermilk Coffee Cake

A One-Bowl Buttermilk Coffee Cake With Built-In Streusel

This old-fashioned coffee cake pulls a clever trick: the streusel topping comes from the same crumb mixture as the cake itself. Cut butter into the flour-and-spice base until crumbly, set aside a cup for the top, then mix buttermilk into the rest. One bowl, one mixture, two textures (tender cake below, crumbly cinnamon top).

Buttermilk plus baking soda is the chemistry doing the heavy work here. The acid in buttermilk activates 2½ teaspoons of soda for a tall, tender rise without any baking powder, and the leftover acidity gives the cake its characteristic tang. Cinnamon and ground cloves are the spice combo that pushes this past basic into bakery territory: cloves bring that warm, slightly medicinal depth that turns a coffee cake into something memorable instead of forgettable.

Makes a 9 by 13 pan, which means there’s enough to feed a brunch crowd and freeze leftovers for weekday breakfasts.

Pro Tips

• Cold butter is essential. Room-temp butter makes paste, not crumbs. If your butter has softened, refrigerate it for 15 minutes before cutting in.
• Use a pastry cutter or two knives. A food processor makes the mixture too uniform and you lose the crumbly texture.
• Don’t overmix once the buttermilk goes in. Stir just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Overworked batter turns tough.
• Cover the top loosely with foil if it’s browning too fast at the 40-minute mark.
• Cool 15 minutes in the pan before slicing. Hot coffee cake crumbles; warm coffee cake slices clean.

Variations

• Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to the buttermilk for a bakery-style depth.
• Stir in chopped walnuts or pecans along with (or instead of) the raisins.
• Drizzle a powdered sugar icing over the cooled cake for a sweeter finish.