Apple Crumb Coffee Cake

This is a yeasted coffee cake, the German style (think Streuselkuchen) rather than the American chemical-leavened version. Yeast gives the cake a tender, slightly bready crumb that holds up under a thick layer of sliced apples and a cinnamon-sugar butter crumble. It tastes closer to a brioche-and-pastry hybrid than to a typical coffee cake.

The technique runs longer than a quickbread but the work is simple. The dough comes together in a stand mixer (yeast bloomed in warm water, then creamed butter, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and flour), spreads into a 9×9 pan, gets layered with apples and crumb topping, then rises a full hour before going into the oven. That rise is what produces the tall, open texture.

Three large apples, peeled and sliced, form the fruit layer. A simple crumble of sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter goes on top. As the cake bakes, the apples soften and weep slightly into the cake, the crumb topping crisps and turns golden, and the yeasted base puffs up around everything.

Serve warm with coffee for brunch, or slice and pack for a portable breakfast.

Pro Tips

• Make sure the water is warm but not hot (around 110°F / 43°C); hot water kills the yeast.
• Use a tart firm apple like Granny Smith; sweet, soft apples turn to mush during the long bake.
• Cover loosely with foil if the crumb topping browns before the cake finishes baking.
• Resist cutting hot; the cake firms up considerably as it cools.

Variations

• Swap the apples for sliced peaches, plums, or pears in late summer.
• Stir a quarter cup of chopped pecans into the crumb topping for a nuttier finish.
• Drizzle with a vanilla glaze (powdered sugar plus a splash of milk) after cooling for a sweeter, bakery-style cake.