A small batch recipe for gluten free coffee cake with almond as the star flavor! An almond flour blend and sucanat sugar make the cake gluten and refined sugar free, while layers of moist sour cream cake hold a cinnamon sugar filling and almond flavored streusel topping. Finish with an almond glaze and you have a heavenly breakfast treat!
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time45 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr5 minutesmins
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Almond, Almond Flour, Coffee Cake, Gluten Free, Small Batch
Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Lightly grease a 6-inch square cake pan, then line it with a strip of parchment paper long enough to hang over the sides of the pan.
How to use the sucanat sugar - The sugar is very coarse, and in order for it to bake well into the cake, we must grind it first (see photos in post). I use a smallNutri-Bullet blender to grind the sugar. A coffee/spice grinder will also work.
Cake Filling
Grind the sucanat into a powder. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
1 ½ tablespoons sucanat sugar, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Streusel Topping
Grind the sucanat into a powder. In a small bowl, stir together the almond flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Add the butter cubes and mix into the flour - using your fingertips or two forks - until the flour is moistened and crumbly. Sprinkle the almond extract over the top and give a little stir to incorporate.
¼ cup blanched almond flour, ¼ cup sucanat sugar, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes, ¼ teaspoon almond extract
Almond Coffee Cake
In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, egg, and almond extract until thoroughly combined.
3 tablespoons full fat sour cream, room temperature, 1 large egg, room temperature, ½ teaspoon almond extract
Grind the sucanat into a powder. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the almond flour, arrowroot flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, baking powder and soda, salt, and sugar. Add the butter cubes. Using a hand held mixer, mix on medium speed until the butter starts to moisten the dough and it resembles coarse sand. Note - See the notes section below for details on using a stand mixer.
½ cup blanched almond flour, ¼ cup arrowroot flour, 2 tablespoons coconut flour, 2 tablespoons tapioca flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅓ cup sucanat sugar, 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
Add the sour cream mixture to the flour mixture and continue to mix on medium speed until you get a smooth batter. A few lumps are ok. Let the batter rest for at least 5 minutes to allow the flours to hydrate and flavors develop.
Pour half of the batter into the prepared cake pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar filling over the batter, then dollop the remaining cake batter on top. Gently smooth the batter to the edges of the pan with an offset spatula.
Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the top. Bake the cake for 38 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. If the streusel starts to brown too quickly, place a piece of foil loosely over the top of the cake.
Cool the cake in the pan set on a wire cooling rack for 10 to 15 minutes. Gently lift the cake out of the pan using the parchment overhang, and cool on the rack completely.
Almond Glaze
When ready to serve, make the glaze - In a small bowl, stir together the powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of milk. For a thinner consistency, add 1 more teaspoon of milk. Stir in the almond extract, if using. Note - You may find there is enough almond flavor in the cake to omit it in the glaze.
¼ cup powdered sugar, 2 to 3 teaspoons milk or water, ⅛ teaspoon almond extract
Drizzle the glaze over the top of the cake, slice, and Enjoy!
Notes
Serving Size - This recipe makes a 6-inch cake that can serve 2 to 4 people - or more - depending on how large you cut your slices.
Sucanat Sugar - Sucanat is unrefined pure dried sugar cane juice. From the bag, the sugar is very coarse and doesn't always dissolve well into batters and doughs. Therefore, it needs to be ground into a powder first. I use a small blender or spice grinder.
Alternative to Sucanat - I have provided conversions in the recipe card if you prefer to use granulated white sugar instead.
Almond Extract - I love almond extract, but some people find it very assertive. You can always omit the almond extract in the glaze and streusel topping.
Reverse Creaming - We use the reverse creaming method - adding the butter to the dry ingredients first - to produce a tight crumb. Which is characteristic of a coffee cake.
Stand Mixer - Kitchen Aid offers a small 3-quart mixing bowl that works on the standard tilt-head stand mixer and attachments. I find this a must-have for small batch baking!