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Cinnamon Crunch Yogurt Coffee Cake. Vanilla yogurt coffee cake swirled with sweet cinnamon and espresso CRUNCH. This middle layer of CRUNCH throughout the cake creates a perfectly gooey center. Then simply top the cake with the remaining CRUNCH and bake! This is such a delicious, perfectly moist, and light cake. It’s especially delicious when eaten warm! Each soft, sweet slice has a little cinnamon espresso crunch with every bite. It’s easier to make than you’d think! Everyone loves this special yogurt coffee cake!
This might feel like a slightly indulgent recipe for January. But as I’ve been saying, just because the holidays are over doesn’t mean we should ignore winter baking.
These bitter-cold, short winter days are some of the best of the year to cozy up in the kitchen and bake your favorite banana bread or chocolate-filled cookies! Life, especially in January, is a balance. You have to treat yourself too!
And when it snows here, which has been a lot this month, all I crave is a baking day.
I made this loaf cake during those laid-back days between Christmas and New Year’s. I was feeling a little sad that Christmas was over, but the snow was still falling, and I was left with the baking bug.
Something so comforting to me in the winter is the smell of cinnamon baking away in the oven. I just love it so much. So, I decided to start jotting down different ideas with cinnamon. When I read my list over, this cinnamon-heavy cake was just what I wanted to bake.
I decided to make a lighter variation with the thought of the new year and reducing the sugar. I made this cake a little more wholesome, using honey, plain Greek yogurt, and whole wheat flour.
This cake is just a little more special, thanks to the thick cinnamon and espresso crunch swirl. Yes, there’s a pinch of espresso powder in there, too…it actually is a coffee, coffee cake!
Here are the details
Ingredients – for the yogurt coffee cake
- salted butter
- honey – or you can use granulated sugar, but I like honey
- plain Greek yogurt
- vanilla extract
- eggs
- whole wheat flour – you could also use all-purpose flour
- almond flour – again, you can use all-purpose flour
- baking powder
Ingredients – for the cinnamon CRUNCH
- dark brown sugar
- cinnamon
- espresso powder
- salted butter
Special Tools
You need a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Or you can use a 9-inch bundt pan too. You’ll also need a mixing bowl.
Steps
Step 1: make the cake batter
Cream one stick of room-temperature salted butter with the honey. Then add eggs, vanilla, and plain Greek yogurt. Having your ingredients at room temperature allows for the best and most even mixing of ingredients.
The Greek yogurt is the secret here. The yogurt adds delicious flavor and gives the cake moisture. It’s such a wonderful addition to this sweet cinnamon cake. It provides a nice tangy balance!
Once all the wet ingredients have been mixed, simply beat in the whole wheat flour, almond flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. You can use all-purpose flour instead of whole wheat and almond flour, but I love the flavor that both these flours provide. I find that the almond flour keeps the cake from becoming too heavy.
Step 2: make the cinnamon crunch
The cinnamon crunch topping consists of brown sugar, cinnamon, flour, and butter mixed together until clumps form.
Step 3: create the layers.
Layer half of the batter into a loaf pan. Sprinkle a handful of the cinnamon crunch mixture over the batter. Spoon over the remaining batter, then cover the top of the cake with the remaining cinnamon crunch mixture.
1st layer – coffee cake batter.
2nd layer – cinnamon CRUNCH.
3rd layer – another layer of coffee cake batter.
4th layer – a very thick layer of cinnamon CRUNCH on top.
And then you bake – this coffee cake will take about an hour in the oven.
As the cake bakes, the cinnamon melts into the sugar and butter, becoming nice and gooey. At the same time, the cinnamon topping begins to caramelize, becoming crunchy.
So yummy!
I opted out of a glaze for this coffee cake to keep the sweetness down, but an espresso glaze would be over-the-top delicious if you wanted to try that! Yum!
Looking for other winter baking sweets? Here are a few to try:
5 Minute Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread Mug Cake
Dirty Horchata Tres Leches Cake
Earl Grey Blueberry Lemon Cake
Bursting Blueberry Cardamom Buckle
Coconut Banana Cake with Fudgy Chocolate Frosting
Lastly, if you make this Cinnamon Crunch Yogurt Coffee Cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Cinnamon Crunch Swirled Coffee Cake
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 403 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 stick salted butter, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup honey or granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup whole wheat flour (or all-purpose flour)
- 3/4 cup almond flour (or 1/2 cup all-purpose flour)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Cinnamon Crunch
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 375° F. Butter a 9×5 inch loaf pan.2. In a bowl, beat together the butter and honey until combined. Add the yogurt and vanilla, beating until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add the flour, almond flour, baking powder, and salt. 3. To make the crunch. Mix the butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and espresso. 4. Spoon half the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with a 1/3 cup of the crunch mix, reserve the remaining crunch mix for topping. Evenly spoon the remaining batter over. Sprinkle over the remaining crunch mixture.5. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until the center is just set. Remove and let cool for 30 minutes before cutting…or eat it warm with a smear of cinnamon butter. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on January 17, 2025
I did not have success with this one.
Hey Carol,
Very sorry to hear this! If there is anything specific that you need help with, please let me know! Thanks for trying the recipe.
I don’t want mine sunken like yours, how do I remedy that?
Hi Ashley,
It’s just the nature of the cake:) Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it!
I had good results, but I listened to those who came before me. I baked at 360 for 50 minutes, 40 of those minutes under foil and pulled that off at the end. I also didn’t melt the butter for the cinnamon topping and just softened it to mix in with the other ingredients. Tastes wonderful and made the house smell good on a fall day
Thanks so much, Erin! I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing what worked well for you. So glad it was enjoyed!
Very unimpressed
Doesn’t look whatsoever to the picture (it seems I would had to double the crunchy quantity to look like it)
It also burned on the outside and I took it out earlier as it was already fully baked (honey often goldens much faster than sugar) and it tastes average. I was tempted to add more cinnamon and I should have.
I didn’t read the comments before and should have
So disappointing
So sorry to hear this, Isabelle. If there is anything that I can help with, please let me know.
Wondering if I should have buttered AND floured the baking pan. The recipe said butter so that’s all I did. Could this be the reason the outside burned? It was still very good through. we just ate the inside part. Yum!
Hey Kim,
Thanks so much for making this coffee cake! So sorry to hear the outside burned. I typically just do butter, but you could definitely do flour next time as well. Have a wonderful weekend! xx
I just made this recipe and used honey vs white sugar. I baked at 350F for about 50 minutes and covered the top with foil after about 35 minutes. It turned out beautifully moist and delicious.
Hey Jane,
Fantastic! So glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! Happy Wednesday! xx
I have to agree with others, the bread was too dry and even only baking it 50 min. in a dark pan was too long. The topping was tasty though, I like the use of coffee, though I only used a teaspoon to keep the cinnamon flavor stronger.
Hi Diana,
So sorry to hear this bread was dry for you, thanks so much for making it and your feedback. Have a great weekend!
I’m giving this 3 stars because as written (not at altitude, I live in Chicago) this came out burnt to a crisp on the exterior… however! The interior was delicious— so I do think the building blocks are there and I will probably try again next weekend with these modifications: lower temp to 350 and cover with tinfoil, uncovering for last 10 minutes; reduce cook time to 40 minutes and add more time if needed; increase the butter in the filling / topping to 4 tablespoons— it sort of became caramel, and needed more fat I think (the struessel topping on the King Arthur baking coffee cake is sort of my North Star, so may mash up with that recipe). The espresso powder was an incredible addition. We devoured the interior but unfortunately it was surrounded by a very badly burned exterior 🙁
Hi Jane,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! I’m so sorry the out of the cake was burnt for you. Please let me know if you make again, I hope your adjustments help! xx
Hi, I want to make this today but noticed a lot of comments saying theirs burned on top even though they followed the recipe exactly? Has this recipe been updated to change the cooking time or temperature since so many had issues? Just trying to figure out if I should follow it as written or modify it to avoid burning. Thanks!
Hey Marsha,
I’ve been this recipe quite a bit and never had this issue. If you are worried, I would place your cake on the lowest rack and then you could also cover with foil until towards the end of baking. I hope this helps! xx
This cake was lovely! My family especially liked it warmed up with vanilla ice cream.
I think for the cinnamon crunch mix it should just say softened butter not melted though… I tried with melted at first and it was far too liquid – I remade the mix with non-melted butter like a crumble and it came out perfectly!
Hey Rebecca,
Amazing! Thank you so much for trying this recipe, I am so glad it turned out well for you! xxT
It turned out dry no oozy gooey and the crunch on top was to hard to crunch on
Hi Lorraine,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it was not enjoyed! xx
Great recipe! Delicious right out of the oven. However, I only baked the loaf for 30 minutes after reading the previous comment.
Hey Gabrielle,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad it turned out nicely for you! Happy Sunday! XxT
Hi Tieghan, love your recipes. Can I make this without eggs? What’s the best substitute without compromising the texture and flavor?
Thanks so much, Ridhdhi! So sorry, I have not tested this recipe without the egg, but I would try a chia or flax egg and see how that works for you. I hope this helps! xT
Is there anything you can use in place of Greek yogurt?
Hi Kate,
Sure, you could use another yogurt that you enjoy or sour cream. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
How is the “CRUNCH” layer crunchy but gooey at the same time?
Hi Janet,
The layer that is in the center is gooey, the layer that is on top is crunchy:) I hope you love this recipe! xT
Why do you not adjust for elevation? Especially after telling others that baking at elevation doesn’t need adjustments. I’m puzzled alongside Geoffrey!
Just circling back, T! I’d like to learn more about why you don’t adjust for it!