Cake Mix Sour Cream Coffee Cake
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Sour cream makes this coffee cake super moist and the best part is that it starts with a cake mix. It’s so easy to make, and loaded with lots of cinnamon crumbly goodness. This breakfast cake is an instant crowd pleaser!
I love eating cake for breakfast. And I know you know I’m serious because yesterday we chatted about my lack of shame for eating all sorts of debatably inappropriate foods first thing in the morning, such as these Best Baked Apples Recipe (don’t knock it ’til you try it.)
But really, cake is on the less-weird list of breakfast foods because while admittedly I have eaten frosted chocolate birthday cake with sprinkles within 17 minutes of waking up, it’s really not that far of a stretch from the towering shortstacks that we all like to down at the local IHOP. Really? Pancakes? We didn’t even try to disguise the name on that one.
At least this coffee cake isn’t smothered in syrup, right?
Instead it’s loaded down with a cinnamon crumble topping. Oh oh oh, and that same crumble topping is rippled right throughout the center of the cake too. Raise your hand if the streusel is your favorite part?? Good. So you all know exactly what I’m talking about when I say there can never be enough streusel.
I developed this recipe as an easy-to-make totally delicious option for feeding a crowd. When family and friends are coming over, the last thing you want to do is fuss over a labor-intensive breakfast. This cake is just the thing because it starts with a cake mix and just four other ingredients. Easy peasy. And the crumble topping is a cinch to make so the prep takes only 10-15 minutes tops then it’s into the oven. Super moist and loaded with cinnamon crumble, this is an instant favorite!
What people are saying about this Cake Mix Sour Cream Coffee Cake
“Absolutely the best coffee cake I have ever made, and maybe my new go to family treat. The trick to the second layer is dropping the batter by dollops and then sprinkling a bit of the crumb topping to help spread. Well worth the trouble! Delicious. It won’t last the day. I will recommend this to all my friends.” – Susanne
“I’m just sitting down to taste a piece of this coffee cake, all i have to say is DELICIOUS!!! The batter is thick but if you take your time and use dollops of the batter it will spread!! May not be the easiest of batters but the result IS worth the extra time! I will use this recipe again and again because it’s that good. Thank You Tiffany!!” – Tammy
“Found this on Pinterest when looking for a quick coffee cake recipe. After reading the comments I decided to spread all of the batter out first (with a spatula sprayed with Pam) and then put one layer of crumb on the top. Yes, the batter is thick but you can work with it. Oh my gosh, this came out so good! Rich, moist, flavorful, and the whole house smelled great! My husband loved it and it’s my new go-to recipe, highly recommend, so yummy!” – Lisa
“I wrangled all the dough into one layer, grinned with decadent delight at the massive layer of crumble that left me for the top, and I’m about to dish it out to my slobbering family with huge glasses of cold milk. It is to die for! I’m glad I “toughed it out” for that whole 5 minutes to make it! :p Thanks Tiffany!” – Ginger
Cake Mix Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 1 package yellow cake mix, (mix only, not prepared)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup sour cream , (may sub plain greek yogurt)
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Crumble Topping
- 1 ¼ cups flour
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup butter (8 tablespoons), chilled and cut into cubes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- First prepare the crumble. Whisk together flour, brown sugar, sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Cut in chilled butter until crumbly. Set aside.
- Next prepare the cake. Combine cake mix, egg, sour cream, melted butter, and vanilla and mix until combined. It’s okay if the batter still has some lumps.
- Spread half the cake batter in the bottom of the greased baking dish (see note.) Sprinkle with half of the crumble mixture. Grease a rubber spatula and gently spread the remaining batter over the crumble (this takes a little finessing but it's worth it if you just work with it.) Top with remaining crumble.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I absolutely love this coffee cake! I get asked for the recipe every time i make it. It is worth the effort of spreading the second layer of batter. I add in an extra teaspoon (or two) cinnamon and it comes ouT Divine.
Nice job, Cheryl! Glad to hear that you always have such a great turnout with this recipe!
For the cake: taste was good, light crumb, but moist and dense. I added a TSP of cinnamon to the crumble, after a taste, and it was not enough cinnamon for me. For the recipe and prep: I had read reviews and was prepared with all the tips, and it still didn’t work to layer the batter. It’s too thick and the batter won’t spread together once it hits the crumb mixture. So I just spooned the rest on and swirled the batter, finished with the crumb layer. It really is good without fussing with the second layer. I did add 2 TBSP of milk, because the batter was SO thick, there’s no way it would have spread at all. I wonder if the type of cake mix makes a difference? Everyone enjoyed it, so I would make it again, but as many reviewers have said, save yourself the frustration of trying to layer the mixture. I usually make homemade coffee cake, but did this in a pinch on Easter morning (because I never made it to the bagel shop that has the most amazing crumb cake the day before), and most of my coffee cakes come out just as moist and dense, but have a much more workable batter. This was a nice simple recipe for the coffee cake fix.
I love this cake! It is a bit of work but so worth it. i also add nuts for my husband. i thought i might use a pastry bag next time to see how that would work for the top layer. Has anyone tried it? i have also used plain greek yogurt and it is just as good.
I bet nuts on this is delicious!
I had to hand write out the recipe. Wish I could have printed it. anxious to try.
There is a print button on each recipe 🙂
it may just be me, but my proportions for this were very off. Wondering if my box mix was the wrong size? I definitely did not have enough batter to cover two layers of a 13×9. Used a loaf pan instead – came out super moist and delish. Greek yogurt is definitely the way to go — the right amount of tang with crumbly sugary goodness 🙂
That is bizarre! I haven’t had that issue before. Sorry for whatever reason, Hannah! I am glad that you liked the added taste of the greek yogurt!
The batter is impossible to sPread! I was willing to Try but its a sloppy mess that i can DEFINITELY not serve to guests. Very disappointed.
Sorry to hear that you didn’t have great success with this recipe, Lianne. Thanks for your feedback
I just put this in the oven … but what a time i had spreading the batter … i got the first layer down after much frustration – sprinkled the topping over that … i added the 2nd layer of batter in dollops as suggested by others – but didn’t have the luck they did spreading it out … i finally gave up and poured all in the baking dish back into the mixing bowl – and mixed together – then spread that out in the baking dish … i sprinkled the other half of the topping on top … i’m now waiting to see how it comes out of the oven …
Sorry to hear that you didn’t have a great experience assembling your cake! Hoping it still turned out great for you! 🙂
I made this for our christmas breakfast and it was very good. after reading comments, I baked it in a 9-inch pan, but i will do the 9-by-13 next time–it was very thick in the smaller pan and took longer to cook. I added pecans to the streusel and we loved that. it was delicious.
Happy to hear that this cake turned out great for your Christmas breakfast, Charlene! Great thinking 😉
How about mixing the cake batter and the crumble together, then put it in the baking dish? Would that work?
Hi Ellen- I haven’t tried that before, so I can’t say for sure!
Just made this cake. I work as a cook and I made this for the 2cnd shift customers, yes its very thick but I just didn’t bother putting topping in the middle, just pilled it on top. it flew out of the kitchen as soon as it came out of the oven. But I added just an tad bit more oil. it all came out awesome. Oh I also made extra topping but it wasn’t really needed. Thank you for the recipe. its a keeper.
Thanks for your feedback, Jennifer! Happy to hear that it was enjoyed by all! 🙂