The Hippocratic Cupcake

Don’t you love ‘style’ foods? New England style clam chowder or Chicago style pizza…is it really from those places? Anyway, this coffee cake recipe is from the Baked cookbook, whose authors are from New York, so perhaps this is true to form. Well, at least that’s what the story leading up to the recipe says. I mean, I’m just a girl from Central Mass…what do I know?

Well regardless of the authenticity, this stuff is goooood. This sucker has about 2 inches of crumb topping on top, which is clearly my favorite part of the cake. Perhaps one day I will make a cake purely out of topping. On second thought, that might be a little extreme. Seriously though, the cake weighs a ton, probably mainly because of that hefty crumb topping. This is one of those cakes that you’ll cut into and before you realize it, half the thing is gone–mainly because people will take off a piece here and then another piece there. Perfect with a cup of coffee or during the afternoon while sneaking slices off, you won’t be disappointed!

New York Style Crumb Cake

from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented

For the Topping

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2  tbs cinnamon
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

For the Cake

 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks (12 tbs) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups sour cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a glass 9 x 13 pan.

First make the crumb topping. Stir together sugars, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Add melted butter and whisk to combine. Fold in the flour, then set aside.

For the cake, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl. In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add 1 egg, beating until incorporated. Repeat with the second egg. Scrape down the sides and mix for an additional 30 seconds. Add the sour cream and vanilla mixing until just incorporated. Add the dry ingredients in 3 portions. After each addition, only  mix until it’s just incorporated.

To assemble the cake pour the batter into your pan. Scoop up the crumb topping and make ball out of the topping. Break off large chunks and drop them evenly over the surface of the batter. This should be thick–I mean seriously thick.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Rotate the pan twice while baking. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes before serving.

Keep the cake tightly covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012, 12:00 pm   |   Baking, Cake  |  RSS feed |  Respond  |  Trackback