Comfort…warmth…memories.
All these come to mind with a whiff
of cinnamon.
For many years, I have sprinkled a little cinnamon on my
coffee grounds to flavor my morning cup. Even in the summer, I will make
cinnamon coffee to wrap myself in this aroma that inspires images of crisp
autumn air, brilliant blue sky, colorful leaves, pumpkin pie, and Christmas
cheer. As the seasons change, the more cinnamon coffee starts my day.
Ever since The Picky Eater passed away last year, I drink
cinnamon coffee almost every day.
I often wondered why I find this spice so comforting. Then
I read
The Cake Therapist by
Judith
Fertig. The main character, pastry chef
Claire
“Neely”
O’Neil, can read people’s feelings through flavors.
Then she customizes a delicious confection in the flavor to fit the person. In
the book, her character explained:
“When I
lived in New York and went to Chinatown,
I learned that these flavors and their meanings were actually a foundation of
ancient Chinese medicine.
Salty
translated to fear and the frantic energy that tries to compensate for it or
hide it.
Sweet
was the first flavor we recognized from our mother’s milk, and to which we
turned when we were worried and unsure or depressed.
Sour
usually meant anger and frustration.
Bitter
signified matters of the heart, from simply feeling unloved to the most
overwhelming loss of a great love. Most spices, along with coffee and chocolate,
had some bitterness in their flavor profile. Even sugar, when it cooked too
long, turned bitter. But to me, spice was for grief, because it lingered
longest.”
In the book, Neely associates cinnamon with remembering.
Perhaps my longing for cinnamon makes sense.
During one scene in the book, the characters enjoyed a sour cream coffee cake
full of cinnamon, and I knew I had to make one myself. This recipe is inspired
by one I found from
Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. I like how she baked it in a tube pan instead of a bundt
or cake pan. However, I wanted more cinnamon flavor than I found in her recipe.
And I didn’t have sour cream on hand, but yogurt worked just as well.
This coffee cake is moist, flavorful, and delicious. I
shared it with some of my neighbors, and they
agreed.
I see myself making it often in the future.
Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Serves 8 to 10
For streusel:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup chopped pecans
For cake:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups plan whole-milk yogurt
For glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a
10-inch tube pan. Set aside.
To make the streusel: Place all of the ingredients except
the pecans into a bowl. Using your fingers, a pastry cutter, or two knives,
break up the butter bits into the rest of the ingredients until crumbly. Stir
in the pecans. Set in the refrigerator until needed.
To make the cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together the
flour, baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt and cinnamon until well
combined. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream
together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the
eggs, one at a time, until blended. Mix in the vanilla and the yogurt. Turn the
mixer speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients, and blend until just
combined. Scrape the side and bottom with a spatula to make sure all of the
ingredients are blended.
Remove the streusel from the refrigerator. Spoon half of the
cake batter into the prepared tube pan and smooth into an even layer. Sprinkle in half of the streusel
mixture, and then spoon the remaining cake batter into the pan. Sprinkle the
remaining streusel mixture over the top. Place in the oven and bake until a
cake tester comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 30 minutes. To make
the glaze: Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and vanilla until
smooth. The mixture should be slightly runny.
Remove the cake from the plan onto a serving dish or cake
stand. Drizzle the glaze over the top.
