Cocoa-Swirl Coffee Cake with Hazelnut Crumb

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cocoa-swirl coffee cake with hazelnut crumb
Credit: Johnny Miller
Prep Time:
25 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 45 mins
Yield:
8 to 12 Serves

It looks fancy, but this streusel-topped marvel is a blessedly low lift—you don't even need to pull out your mixer. The cake is extra-tender thanks to a reverse-creaming technique; yogurt in the batter adds moisture and tang, and a hazelnut topping caps things off with a heavenly crunch.

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant and golden brown and skins are loosened. Rub nuts in a clean kitchen towel to remove skins, then coarsely chop.

  2. Brush a 9-by-2-inch square cake pan with butter. Line with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Butter parchment, then dust with flour, tapping out excess. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using your fingers, work butter into mixture until it has the texture of coarse meal. Remove and reserve 2/3 cup of mixture.

  3. Make a well in center of remaining mixture in bowl and add eggs, whisking to break up, then add yogurt and vanilla. Whisk to combine into a batter (you might see some small specks of butter; that's okay). Scrape about three-quarters of batter into prepared pan, then whisk cocoa into remaining batter. Dollop evenly over top and swirl with a toothpick or skewer.

  4. Return reserved flour-butter mixture to bowl and stir in hazelnuts until a granola-like mixture forms. Sprinkle over top of batter in pan, squeezing to create clumps. Bake until top of cake springs back when lightly pressed, about 45 minutes. Let cool in pan 10 minutes.

  5. Using overhangs, lift out of pan and transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Cut into 12 squares. Cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

Cook's Notes

You can replace the cocoa with equal amounts of instant espresso powder or ground freeze-dried berries.

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