November 4, 2012

44/52 Coconut Chai Coffee Cake

Reuniting with a friend after 20 years. Even though you're just 35 years old.
That's what I did this week. Exciting, isn't it?

An occasion like that calls for a special cake.
Nothing fancy. Suiting the season. Warm, cozy, comforting.
Serving as good company when you're trying to catch up on such a long period of time.

When Tracy Shutterbean posted a picture of this Coconut Chai Coffee Cake on Instagram not too long ago, I instantly knew that this would be it:

Coconut Chai Coffee Cake
Adapted from Tracy Shutterbean

Crumbles: 
115 g (1/2 cup) butter, melted 
85 g (1/2 cup) all-purpose flour 
150 g (3/4 cup) packed light brown sugar 
80 g (1 cup) unsweetened flaked (or shredded) coconut 
1 teaspoon ground cardamom 
1 teaspoon ground black pepper 
1 teaspoon ground ginger 
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 
1/2 teaspoon salt 

Cake: 
325 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour 
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
350 g (1 1/2) cups packed light brown sugar 
115 g (1/2 cup) butter, room temperature 
250 g (1 cup) plain yogurt (or sour cream) 
2 large eggs 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F). 
  • Mix all crumble ingredients together until combined. Put in the fridge. 
  • For the cake, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and put aside. 
  • Beat together sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the yogurt (and/or sour cream). Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Stir in the flour mix until just combined. 
  • Pour batter into prepared spring form pan and spread evenly. 
  • Sprinkle the crumbles over the top. 
  • Bake for 50-55 minutes. Let cool before serving. 
My modifications: 
None. 
Except for using 2/3 yogurt and 1/3 sour cream. 
And shredded coconut instead of flaked because that's all I could get. And I think it might be even better because you can actually crumble it on top so that it gives you nice round crumbles.  

The taste: 
Just heavenly.
Spicy. Warm. Comforting. Autumnal. A tiny bit christmassy.
Moist inside. Crumbly on top.
Perfect for any reunion. Or any occassion in fall and winter.
I think this is one of my favorites of the 44 bakes I've made this year so far. 

What would you bake for a special reunion? 

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