Sour Cream Coffee Cakes

What kind of cake isn't great? I personally love all cakes; big cakes, little cakes, puffy cakes, dense cakes. Any cake is welcome on my plate, but they all have something uniquely special about them. Some cakes have a bit of a crunchy crust coating them all over which is accomplished by adding baking soda to the mix. Other cakes are soft as a cloud with no baking soda, but lots of whipped egg whites (or meringue) folded into the batter ever so delicately. The different kinds of cakes are endless, and if i go on i'll never get to the kind of cake i'm sharing with you today: Sour Cream Coffee Cakes. Moist little hand cakes that make you bargain with your self control to get just one more cake in your hands.

These little cakes have a wonderful swirl of cinammony goodness baked into each one. Read the instructions carefully, lest you miss the most important part.

For the flour I prefer whole wheat, but you can also use white, neverbleached or all purpose for a very fluffy cake.


For the Sour Cream I prefer using a reduced fat sour cream to help control the total fat of the end result, but if you are a stickler for the 'real' stuff, by all means. Either way, the sour cream adds a moist texture to the cake and a tangy flavour as well.


Sour Cream Coffee Cakes Recipe:

preheat the oven to 350°

Dry:

2 cups of choice flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

Wet:

4 large eggs

1/4 cup Olive oil

2 cups sugar

1 cup choice sour cream

Swirl:

2 tbsp unsalted butter or margarine

2 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp sugar (brown or white)

1/2 cup raisins (or any kind of small dried fruit)

To Mix The Batter:

• Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
• In an electric stand mixer, beat eggs on medium speed add sugar and mix on medium unil blended. Add oil  and sour cream and mix on low until blended.  Scrape down sides if you need to while mixer is turned off and mix again if necessary.
• Add dry ingredients in two additions. While mixer is off add half the flour mixture and mix on low until just combined and turn off mixer. Add second half of flour mixture and mix on low until just combined. Turn off mixer, mixing a cake batter for too long once flour is added will strengthen the gluten and make a stiff batter.
• Allow your batter to sit for a minute or so while you get to greasing your cake pans. You may use butter or margarine for this. For added reinforcement you may also dust the greased pan(s) with a little flour just to lightly coat the buttered areas. I like to use two standard size cupcake pans which each yield 12 cakes. If you have a mini loaf pan or mini bundt pans, feel free to use them, just be aware that using a different type of pan changes the necessary bake time and you will need to keep an eye on them. No matter what, once a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean, your cakes are done. Just be careful not to over bake and dry out your cakes.

To Make the Swirl:

• Combine 2 tbsp unsalted butter or margarine, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar and raisins (if you like raisins, you can leave them out if you don't, or use nuts instead.) in a microwave safe bowl. Heat in the microwave for about 20 seconds or until butter or margarine is soft.
• Stir ingredients together and set aside. Keep the spoon.

Making the Cakes:

• Add enough batter to fill each of the cupcake wells half way and set the remainder of the batter aside. 
• Evenly distribute the swirl ingredients between every cupcake well, allowing it to sit on top of the batter.
• Add the remainder of the batter to the cupcake wells distributing evenly so everybody is the same size.
• Using a toothpick or a cake tester, make a swirl in each cupcake while the batter is still raw by inserting the utensil in the centre and swirling outward. One rotation should be enough. 
• Place the cupcake trays in the oven on the centre rack and bake at 350 for 18-25 minutes or until the cakes are golden brown and a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the centre. (always test the largest cake.)
• Once baking is complete, allow cakes to cool in their pan for 5-10 minutes before removing them from the pan. Use a dull knife or rubber spatula to run around the edges of each cake to make removal easier.

However you make them, these little cakes are a sure delight with any crowd. For extra excitement, add a teaspoon of your favourite icing to each cake just before serving.

Recipe Created, Written and Published by: Rachel Gonsalves