Coffee Cake

I love coffee cake. And yes, I know, it is just about the worst thing I could eat for breakfast. I metabolize all that white flour and sugar in about 30 min and end up grumpy and still hungry, not to mention feeling a little sluggish and uninspired. But still, I LOVE coffee cake. And now that I am grown-up and a little better at taking care of my needs, I make sure to fry and egg or two, have some sausage or bacon, and then have my slice of coffee cake. 

This is my favorite coffee cake, adapted and sized down. An incredible mentor and friend named Cassie created this recipe, and since she regularly cooked for small armies, I sized this down to what a "normal" person might make. This cake freezes incredibly well, so if you have an extra cake pan around, freeze this before baking, and pull out of the freezer to bake when you really get the coffee cake urge. This also really lends itself to additions: I throw in nuts, frozen blueberries or sliced pears when I have them. 

Coffee Cake

Preheat oven to 350*

Butter a 9" cake pan. 

Combine in mixing bowl and mix until just blended. Do not over mix:

         2 1/4 cups flour

         ½ tsp. salt

         1 T. cinnamon

         3/4 tsp. ginger

         1 cups sugar

         3/4 cups melted butter

 Remove 3/4 cups of this mix to another bowl. This will be the topping.

 Add to remaining mix:

         1 tsp. baking soda

         1 tsp. baking powder

         1 eggs

         1 cups milk or buttermilk

Mix fully, but again, do not over mix. 

Pour this into your prepared pan, and then sprinkle your saved topping over it, distributing it evenly.  

Bake at 350 F for 40-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.