Maple Pecan Coffee Cake
This Maple Pecan Coffee Cake features the cozy flavors of maple, cinnamon and brown sugar. A warm slice of this cake next to a cup of coffee is the perfect way to start a fall day!
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Sweater weather has arrived! Bring on the firepit nights with friends. Bring on football. Bring on leaves changing colors. Bring on fall baking season! This Maple Pecan Coffee Cake is truly perfect for the fall. It’s packed with brown sugar and maple, and there is a slight nutty flavor thanks to the pecans that go into the streusel on top. A slice of this coffee cake alongside a big mug of coffee is the perfect way to start a chilly autumn morning!
This Maple Pecan Coffee Cake is super easy to make, too. It calls for melted butter, so you don’t need to pull out the stand mixer. Just mix everything in a large bowl, pour it into a baking pan and send it off to the oven. Easy peasy! Now it does take a bit of time to bake (~50 minutes), so plan accordingly. But I can assure you that your house will smell amazing while this coffee cake bakes!
Maple Pecan Coffee Cake
Maple is such a quintessential fall flavor. I personally always associate the deeper flavors of maple syrup with fall baking recipes. But here’s the thing: maple is harvested in the spring. So why is maple a fall flavor?
The caramel-like sweetness of maple really complements so many classic fall foods like apples, pumpkins and root vegetables. And maple syrup is a classic comfort food flavor, so it makes sense that it aligns with fall when we are cooking (and baking) so many cozy foods. We visited a maple sugar shack in Massachusetts years ago. Sugar shacks are rustic houses where maple sap is boiled down into syrup. They’re fascinating places, and I highly recommend visiting a sugar shack at some point!
The flavor of this Maple Pecan Coffee Cake is outstanding. The maple taste is present, but not overpowering. Add in the hints of cinnamon and ad brown sugar along with the nuttiness of the pecans, and you’ve got a delicious coffee cake recipe! This cake reminds me of cinnamon rolls – another all-time favorite cozy food.
The texture of this cake is amazing, too. The cake itself is light and fluffy while the streusel on top brings a slight crunch factor. The streusel layer is quite generous, so some of the streusel will fall off when you slice this cake. Just scrape that streusel to the side and make it disappear – it’ll be our little secret!
Ingredients
- Coffee Cake
- All-purpose Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda and Salt. Classic dry ingredients for many cake recipes.
- Maple Syrup. Use the real stuff. Don’t use “pancake syrup” – that stuff might have a time and place, but it’s not this recipe.
- Brown Sugar. I used light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar would be totally acceptable for a deeper flavor.
- Unsalted Butter. I always recommend baking with unsalted butter as there is no standard to the amount of salt in salted butter. Using unsalted butter and adding salt gives you more control over the recipe – no one wants an overly salty coffee cake!
- Eggs. Use large eggs. And pull the eggs out early so they are room temperature before you mix the batter.
- Vanilla Extract. Adds a wonderful extra layer of flavor.
- Sour Cream. Adds moisture to the cake to keep it from drying out. Sour cream coffee cakes are the best!
- Brown Sugar Streusel
- Granulated Sugar and Brown Sugar. Using a combination of two different types of sugar brings the brown sugar flavor without it getting too overwhelming.
- Cinnamon and Cardamom. Cinnamon is a classic fall baking flavor, and I’ve gotten to where I love sneaking a bit of cardamom in along with the cinnamon. Give it a try!
- Melted Butter. Provides just enough liquid for the streusel to come together.
- Pecans. I love the nutty flavor and crunch of the pecans in this streusel recipe. Feel free to omit them or substitute another nut instead. Walnuts would work well, too.
- All-Purpose Flour. The flour gets mixed in at the end to turn the streusel into a thick, crumbly mixture. That’s what leads to the big chunks of streusel on top of this cake once its baked.
How to Store Leftovers
This cake is particularly delicious when served warm. However, for storing leftovers, let the cake cool completely and then store it an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. It also freezes well! Just wrap the cake in plastic wrap and then store it in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Let thaw at room temperature before reheating to serve.
If you’re looking for a classic, cozy fall baking recipe, then this Maple Pecan Coffee Cake is it! This cake is fantastic for breakfast or brunch, but it would be equally delicious when served for dessert. Basically you can eat this coffee cake at any time of the day. So pull out that sweater, grab a cup of coffee and warm up a slice of this cake. That’s fall heaven right there. Cheers!
Did you bake this Maple Pecan Coffee Cake recipe at home? Leave a comment, or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog) – I’d love to see your version!
Maple Pecan Coffee Cake
Ingredients
For the Streusel
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
For the Coffee Cake
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1¼ cups sour cream
For the Icing
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp milk
Instructions
For the Streusel
- Using a medium bowl, add sugars, cinnamon, cardamom and salt; stir until well combined.
- Add the melted butter and chopped pecans; stir until well combined.
- Add the flour; stir until well combined. Set streusel topping aside.
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour (or spray with nonstick spray) an 8” square baking pan; set pan aside.
- In medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well combined; set mixture aside.
- Using a separate large bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, brown sugar and melted butter.
- Add eggs; stir until well combined.
- Add vanilla extract and sour cream; stir until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients to bowl with wet ingredients; stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Transfer batter into prepared pan.
- Crumble streusel on top of cake batter. (Tip: Leave some bigger chunks of streusel on top!)
- Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out mostly clean.
- Place cake on cooling rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
For the Icing
- Using a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, maple syrup and milk until well combined.
- Drizzle icing over cooled cake before serving.
Looking for more maple recipes? Check out these other favorites, too:
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