The history of coffee cake is usually traced back to the 17th century Europe. Prior to that, coffee had not reached Europe so no coffee cake can be thought of before the 1760s. The first coffee cakes are thought to have started in Germany. These were more like sweet breads than cakes. Soon, the modern style of cakes emerged in which the coffee cake was filled with nuts and fruit, topped with icing or streusel. Today, the great variety of coffee cakes even makes it difficult to choose the best one for breakfast or brunch.

Making a Simple Coffee Cake

While so many fancy cakes can be prepared in the name of coffee cakes, a simple one can be prepared in five steps listed below.

First, take one and a half cups of flour and sift with it one teaspoon of salt, one of cinnamon, and one of cloves. Next, stir one cup of cleaned raisins in a half-cup of flour. Cream one cup of sugar and a half-cup of butter, adding a half-cup of molasses, and beat well. In the fourth step, add alternately flour and one cup of cold coffee having one teaspoon of dissolved soda. Finally, add the floured raisins and thoroughly beat to make cake pans of the mixture.

Fruit for Coffee Cake

In summer season, fruit is the most cherished component of coffee cakes. For a homemade coffee cake, many fruits are great candidates including apples, peaches, apricots, pineapples, pears, blueberries, cherries, and the list is virtually endless. Nuts of all kinds qualify as topping and decorative items.

Vegetables for Coffee Cake

Three categories of vegetables are recommended for use in coffee and other cakes. The first category includes carrots and summer squash (green and yellow zucchini, crookneck, and the scalloped patty pan). They are wet enough to cook through during the baking process and make a deliciously moist cake. The second category has the names of hard-skinned and dense-fleshed vegetables like acorn, buttercup, banana (in fact a fruit), Hubbard and pumpkin. If added raw to a batter or dough, they don’t have enough moisture to cook through. Hence these should be cooked first, and then pureed before adding them to the mixture. The third category comprises solely of potatoes. They, too, need to be cooked first and mashed before baking. It is important to note that potatoes should be washed but not peeled before boiling.

Coffee Cake and Health

While most will see coffee cakes as high-carb dessert, it is perhaps less known that coffee cakes with whole grains and berries, which are sources of disease-fighting antioxidants, are conducive to health.

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