Pet Milk Coffee Cake

This coffee cake uses evaporated milk (Pet milk) to create a batter that’s richer and more tender than regular milk ever could. The layering technique is what makes this bundt cake special: crumb topping, then batter, then more topping, then more batter, creating a cinnamon-nut swirl running through the entire cake.

The batter starts as a crumb mixture. Flour, sugar, and fats get beaten together first, and half a cup of those crumbs get pulled out for the topping before the wet ingredients go in. This gives the topping and the cake the same buttery base, so they bake together seamlessly.

The brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped nuts in the topping caramelize during baking into pockets of crunchy sweetness. When you invert the bundt, the bottom layer becomes the top, giving you a gorgeous, nutty crown.

Kitchen Tips

• Grease the bundt pan thoroughly, especially all the ridges. This cake is too good to leave stuck in the pan.
• Spread each layer evenly. Uneven layering means some slices get all the crumb topping and others get none.
• Cool completely before inverting. A warm coffee cake crumbles when turned out of a bundt pan.

Variations

• Cream cheese drizzle: Mix softened cream cheese with powdered sugar and a splash of vanilla, thin with milk, and drizzle over the cooled cake.
• Apple cinnamon: Layer thin apple slices between the crumb topping and batter for a fruit-studded version.