Easy Yellow Cake Mix Coffee Cake with Nutty Crumble

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Yellow Cake Mix Coffee Cake

This Yellow Cake Mix Coffee Cake is another easy winner for a quick breakfast or dessert! I adore recipes that start with a cake mix because they save me time and trouble. And this morning cake includes a delicate cake layer on top of a sweet, nutty crumble. The best coffee cake!

Total Time & Ingredients

Total Time: 55 minutes

◯ 1 mix for yellow cake
◯ ¼ cup of unsalted butter that has been melted and cooled
◯ 1 cup of light brown sugar
◯ 1 cup of chopped pecans or any other nut you like
◯ 3 large eggs room temperature
◯ 1 ½ cups room temperature sour cream or plain yogurt

Ingredient Notes

Box Yellow Cake Mix: We’ve made this recipe with a lot of various brands of cake mix, and they all turned out great! All of them, including Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, and King Arthur, are great. But sadly, it didn’t work well with a gluten-free cake mix.

Unsalted Butter: Melt the butter and let it cool before using it as a rich topping. You can also use coconut oil or vegan butter instead. The mixture could be a little runny, but it will still bake well.

Brown sugar is the best kind of sugar since it has a deep flavor like molasses.

Chopped pecans—Pecans are my favorite nut to use in sweet recipes. You can use any nut you choose, or you can leave the nuts out completely.

Big Eggs—Make sure the eggs are at room temperature, else the bake time and texture may alter.

Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt can be used instead of yogurt for a healthier choice. It won’t impact the taste very much.

Eggs: To get eggs to room temperature faster, drop them gently into a bowl or cup of hot water (not boiling) and let them sit for five minutes. Finished!

Yogurt or Milk: To fast bring yogurt to room temperature, put it in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave it at half power for 15 seconds at a time, stirring each time.

The best approach to soften butter to room temperature is to fill a tall glass with hot water. Wait 2–3 minutes for the glass to get heated. Take the water out and flip the glass over the butter that is wrapped up. Let it sit for five minutes. This will warm the butter all the way through to the middle.

The Perfect Coffee Cake Description

There are two things that a good coffee cake should have. A soft and moist cake with a brown sugar crumble on top and in the middle. I like how the middle layer of crumble gets mushy and a touch sticky. The topping gets a touch crunchy. The flavors and textures go so well together.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Lighty grease a 9″x13″ inch baking dish with cooking spray; leave aside.
Take ⅔ cup of the cake mix out of the box and combine it with brown sugar, butter, and pecans to get started. This is how you make the crumble. It couldn’t be easier, could it? Remove ⅔ cup of cake mix directly from the box and blend with melted butter, brown sugar and chopped almonds; put aside.
Next, mix the rest of the cake mix with sour cream that is at room temperature. This makes it very soft and fluffy. Put in eggs that are at room temperature too. In a medium basin, combine remaining cake mix with the room temperature eggs and sour cream, beating with a wooden spoon until batter is smooth.

Lastly, put half of the coffee cake mix into the pan you prepared for baking. Then add half of the crumble. Put on the last layer of cake mix and then the rest of the crumble. Use your hands to lightly press the crumble into the top so it sticks well. Pour half into prepared pan. Top with half of the crumb mixture. Repeat layers.
Put it in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. Let it sit for 15 minutes. After that, cut it up and eat it! Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, testing for doneness after 30-45 minutes, until toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

*This recipe has been changed to utilize a 9″x13″ baking dish.
**Every oven bakes at various speeds, so be sure to check for doneness around 30 minutes.

Nutrition

More Ways to Have Fun with Coffee Cake

Bundt Pan

To bake this recipe in a bundt pan, follow the same steps for mixing the cake and topping. But instead of keeping half of the crumb mixture for the “top” (the top of a bundt cake will be the bottom), make two layers of crumb in the middle of the cake. Be sure to check on the cake after 30 minutes because it will bake a little faster. You can add a glaze to the bundt cake after you take it out of the pan. For example, this one on top of our Gluten Free Cinnamon Roll Scones.

Coffee Cake Muffins

To make coffee cake muffins, mix the mixture and topping according to the directions. But grease or line a muffin tray with 12 cups and make layers in each cup. Bake for 25 minutes, then to make sure it’s done, stick a toothpick in the middle.

How to Bake Bigger Muffins

Making these muffins like the ones you get at a bakery is quite straightforward, and they are big enough for a hearty breakfast. Use these 6-cup muffin tins and evenly divide the batter and topping between all 6 cups. Raise the temperature of the oven to 425 degrees F and the time it takes to bake to 8 minutes and 350 degrees F for 15 minutes. Use a toothpick or fork to check the center for doneness.

How to Keep Coffee Cake

If you store it right, coffee cake will stay fresh in the fridge for approximately a week. To keep the cake from drying out, just cover it with foil or plastic wrap.

Let the coffee cake cool fully, then take it out of the baking dish and freeze it. Put two layers of saran wrap around the whole cake securely. Then put it in a ziploc bag so it doesn’t get freezer burn. The cake can stay fresh for up to three months if you freeze it. Let it defrost in the fridge overnight. Cut it up and enjoy!

Changes to the Recipe

This coffee cake recipe is a great place to start and a blank canvas for you to change your recipe anyway you want.

Put fruit like blueberries or raspberries into the batter. Just one cup of your preferred fresh or frozen berries. Gently fold them into the wet ingredients. Add around 5 minutes to the baking time to make up for the moisture in the berries.
Put one teaspoon of vanilla bean paste in the wet batter. This makes the taste stronger and provides a deeper flavor.
Add one teaspoon of almond extract to give the topping a different taste that will balance out the sweetness.
Impart espresso powder or granulated espresso to the wet batter to impart a great coffee flavor straight into the cake. This makes it the perfect partner to that morning cup of coffee.

Can I Make This Coffee Cake Without a Box Cake Mix?

Yes! To substitute the box mix, simply toss up the following:

◯ 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
◯ 1½ cups granulated sugar
◯ 3½ teaspoons baking powder
◯ 1 teaspoon salt

Continue to create the cake as per the directions below, using the aforementioned mixture as a straight replacement for the box cake mix. That was easy!

If you enjoy cake for morning like I do, try our Banana Coffee Cake Recipe or my absolute favorite Apple Upside Down Cake. Both may be made gluten free and both make an excellent addition to my morning cup(s) of coffee.

Or if you adore recipes that are created with a box cake mix, we have many more you may find here.