Vanilla-Pecan Coffee Cake - Issuu (2024)

STREUSEL

• 75 g/¾ cup pecan halves • 3 Tbsp honey • 1 tsp ground cinnamon • ½ tsp ground ginger • ¼ tsp ground cloves • ½ tsp kosher salt • 45 g/6 Tbsp cake flour • 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 300 g/2½ cups cake flour • 2 tsp baking powder • ½ tsp baking soda • 1 tsp kosher salt • 140 g/²⁄³ cup sugar • 225 g/1 cup unsalted butter, cut into 5 or 6 pieces, at room temperature • 2 large eggs plus 3 egg yolks • 1 Tbsp finely grated orange zest • 2 Tbsp vanilla extract • 240 g/1 cup crème fraîche (see page 24)

MAKES ONE

Sour cream coffee cake has been on our menu since Day One. The method we use to mix this cake is so common within our baking kitchen that many of our cake recipes simply say “mix like SCCC” in the directions. When I opened Flour, the first pastry to get publicly praised by a food writer was this coffee cake. Sheryl Julian, the food editor of the Boston Globe, wrote me requesting the recipe and included it in a breakfast pastry roundup she did for the newspaper. (When you are a new business and someone like that praises you, it’s like Tiger Woods walking by as you tee off and saying, “Nice shot.” You kind of want to tell the world. Which I guess is what I’m doing right now!)

To say I was a bit tentative in trying to make a low-sugar version of this cake is an understatement. Why mess with something that was already pretty much perfect according to hundreds of Flour customers? But on a whim one day, I decided to try it out. I reduced the sugar in the main batter and tweaked the nutty streusel layer and brought the results that evening to the prep crew at my Asian restaurant Myers+Chang. They are used to getting treats from me; I often end my day at the restaurant and will grab a bag of cookies when leaving Flour—and to be honest, they get a touch inured to them. So imagine my surprise when a few minutes after my arrival, the cooks were all abuzz: “Mama, this is so good!” (Yes they call me Mama! Maybe it’s all the treats I bring them.) I was floored. Day in and day out bringing them cookies and pastries had elicited no more than a polite “gracias,” and with this coffee cake I was suddenly a superstar.

As with most items that contain less sugar, the keeping qualities of this cake are not as good as the regular version—it’s best enjoyed within a day of baking. However it’s really so good that I doubt you’ll have the problem of leftover cake. We never do! Note that you’ll need a tube pan with a removable insert for this recipe to easily release this tender-crumbed cake from its pan.

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F [175°C]. Butter and flour a 10-in [25-cm] tube pan with a removable insert. 2. To make the streusel: Put the pecans on a baking sheet and toast for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Set aside to cool. 3. In a food processor, combine the pecans, honey, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, cake flour, and butter and pulse for about 20 seconds, or until the mixture comes together roughly and looks like quicksand. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside; you should have about 1 cup [240 ml]. Alternatively, put all the ingredients in a medium bowl and use a pastry cutter to combine them until well mixed. (The streusel can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month.) 4. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with an electric hand mixer), mix the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar on low speed just until well mixed. Add the butter, one piece at a time, and continue to beat on low speed for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the butter is well incorporated into the dry ingredients. The mixture will look like coarse meal. If the butter is a little softer than room temperature, the mixture may come together as a soft dough, which is fine.

5. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, orange zest, vanilla, and crème fraîche until thoroughly mixed. With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour about half of the egg mixture into the flour mixture and mix until combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 11/2 minutes. The mixture will go from looking thick, clumpy, and yellowish to light, fluffy, and whitish. Stop the mixer once or twice during the mixing and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure all the ingredients are mixed in. Decrease the speed to low, add the remaining egg mixture, and beat for about 30 seconds, or until combined. Again, stop once or twice during the mixing to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

6. Spoon about 1 cup [240 ml] of the batter into the streusel and fold the streusel and batter together until well mixed. (This step helps keep the streusel from sinking directly to the bottom of the pan during baking.) Scrape all of the non-streusel batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Then top with the streusel batter, spreading it in an even layer and smoothing it out. 7. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the center of the cake springs back when you press it and the top is pale golden brown. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 3 hours, or until completely cool, then run a paring knife around the edge of the pan and carefully pop out the cake and the removable insert. Run the knife around the bottom of the pan and invert onto a wire rack or plate, gently shaking until the cake pops out; then top with a second wire rack or plate and flip so it is right-side up. 8. The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Or store in the freezer, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 2 weeks; thaw overnight at room temperature.