Mom’s Coffee Cake with Seasonal Fruit

This recipe comes compliments of my Mom – a fantastic baker herself. This is a great cake because it is so versatile. Topped with a sweet, buttery, crumble topping and the fruit of your choice, this cake changes with the seasons and becomes something fresh and new all year long. It’s not fancy, but it’s just a really good, simple, coffee cake (and, no, that doesn’t mean it’s coffee-flavoured, as some Kiwis have mistakenly thought when they’ve sampled this cake and said, after some confusion, that they can’t taste coffee at all (lol) – perhaps they don’t use the word “coffee cake” here, I don’t know).

I chose to top my cake with nectarines because they are currently in season here. They were a little under ripe when I used them, though, and the flavour didn’t end up coming through very strongly. Choose whatever fruit you enjoy and that is in season – apricots, cherries, plums, peaches, or apples all work excellently (you could try raspberries, too, although I’ve never tried them).

Mom’s Coffee Cake with Seasonal Fruit

Topping

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter

Cake

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk

Glaze

• 3/4 cup icing sugar
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp almond flavouring

In a small bowl, mix ingredients for topping with a fork until crumbly and set aside.

Mix dry ingredients in large bowl and set aside. With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk to this mixture and beat lightly to combine. Pour batter into 9″ spring-form pan (I line the bottom of mine with parchment paper). Arrange fruit on top of the batter (just place it on top – don’t press it into the batter). Sprinkle with crumble topping.

Bake at 350° for about 55min.

Let cool completely before drizzling with glaze.