And although I’ve never had or heard of a cocoa crumble, I made it.
I was brainstorming about this cake on a long run (I’m running a half marathon this weekend), which is where most of my recipes begin to crystallize. I had chocolate cake on my brain, and a crumble-topped coffee cake, and I married the two. The cake is an easy, no mixer cake with plenty of smooth, chocolate flavor. It’s sweet enough, but not too sweet, and can do double duty for brunch as a coffee cake or enjoy it as a casual after-dinner cake. There are two special items in the batter to help the cake develop great flavor and stay springy soft.
The first is a quarter cup of brewed coffee. The cake doesn’t taste like coffee was dumped in the cake and I don’t recommend substituting for it even if you don’t like coffee. Any time you’re baking with chocolate or cocoa for chocolate cakes, muffins, brownies, or donuts, adding coffee helps to accentuate and intensify the chocolate flavor. Rarely, however, does it pack enough punch to actually change the overall flavor profile of the item.
The second signature ingredient is BAILEYS® Coffee Creamers Chocolatini. It’s a creamy, alcohol-free flavor that tastes like a sophisticated chocolate martini met creamy chocolate milk. If you can’t find the Chocolatini flavor, try BAILEYS® Coffee Creamers Mudslide or even chocolate milk may be substituted. This isn’t the first time I’ve baked a cake with coffee creamer and won’t be the last. The creamer, in conjunction with Greek yogurt and a splash of oil, create a cake that’s soft, moist, and bouncey. Before baking, the cake is topped with those lovely cocoa crumbles. I had a hard time not wanting to just eat the bowl of them. The crumbles add another layer of chocolate flavor, while also providing texture.
The cake has enough density and heft to sink your teeth into and be satisfying, yet it’s still light and fluffy. And those buttery soft crumble pieces are worthy of crumble-picking. You know, going around to all the other pieces of cake, picking off that topping, and putting it on your piece. Guilty as charged.
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