There are some dishes in life that have parts are worth fighting over; the crunchy edges of a lasagne, the crispy rice on the bottom of a pot of biryani, the middle pieces of a tray of brownies (better than the corner pieces, IMO) and the crumbly, icing sugar-topped streusel crown of this Vegan Masala Coffee Crumb Cake.
It all starts with a freshly-made batch of masala coffee — let’s be honest, every great moment starts (and ends) with a hot drink, right? The warmth of the cup around clasped hands, inhaling steamy aromas and waiting for it to cool just enough so we can take a sip gives us time to chat with a friend or quietly contemplate alone. It soothes the soul and allows us to stop and do nothing for a moment during our busy days. Having a hot drink is like having a spa treatment for the soul.
Whenever I feel burned out, I rely on a cup of masala coffee with my mum to lift my mood. She makes it milky and sweet, with just the right amount of spice to compliment the aroma of good coffee. It’s made in a pan on the stove, like all good masala coffee and chai should be made. We boil it low and slow for at least 15 minutes for a truly authentic Indian taste. We’ll sit, chat, snack and laugh, melting away my stresses and brightening up my day.
This cake is inspired by those moments.
Be still my beating heart
My version of New Jersey crumb cake has extra-thick cinnamon sugar crumb topping, so the ratio of crumb to cake is almost 1:1. It gives you the best of both worlds when you can’t decide whether to have cake or biscuits with your cup of coffee. The sponge cake is rises perfectly and is full of rich coffee and spices. You won’t miss the dairy or eggs in this recipe, I promise you.
The spice blend: Vegan Masala Coffee Crumb Cake
My spice blend is very typical of what is traditionally added to boiling milk to make masala chai or coffee. Cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, black peppercorns, cloves and nutmeg all combine with espresso powder. This makes each slice truly taste like a cup of masala coffee. It’s not too sweet and the flurry of icing sugar on top is absolutely necessary. This balances out the flavours and create the perfect look of a milky cup of coffee. As a result the cake is as delicious as it is messy to eat.
Make this if you’re in need of a grown-up tasting cake to share with friends. Or enjoy in the comfort of your own company, you know, whatever. It freezes beautifully so you can also stow away portions to eat later.
Customise this Vegan Masala Coffee Crumb Cake
- Transform this cake into a chocolate dream! Simply replace 50g of the flour in the sponge recipe with 50g good-quality cocoa powder.
- Add 50g mini vegan chocolate chips to the crumb topping for a cookie dough-inspired finish. Or turn this into a masala chai cake. Swap the espresso powder for 25g black tea leaves — be sure to strain the soy milk before using.
- If you have pre-made chai masala, swap the individual spices in the sponge recipe for 1 tablespoon of pre-made masala.
- Alternatively, you could also use 1 tablespoon of your favourite gingerbread or pumpkin spice mix.
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Ingredients
For the crumb topping:
- 225 g plain flour
- 125 g soft light brown sugar
- 85 g caster sugar
- 100 g vegan butter melted and warm
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp fine salt
For the sponge:
- 225 g sponge flour/cake flour
- 160 g caster sugar
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 3 tbsp instant espresso powder (if using granules, crush to a powder before using)
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp fine salt
- 100 g vegan butter melted and warm
- 300 ml soy milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
You will also need:
- 60 g icing sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F. Grease and line a 20-cm/8-inch round, 7-cm/3-inch deep springform or loose-bottomed tin with baking parchment.
For the crumb topping:
- Place both sugars and the melted vegan butter in a bowl. Stir well until smooth, about a minute. Add the flour and ground cinnamon. Use your fingers to rub the vegan butter and flour together until you have a coarse and pebbly mixture like if you were making a fruit crumble topping. Set aside at room temperature.
For the sponge:
- To make the cake, whisk together the flour, sugar, cornflour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, espresso powder and ground spices in a large bowl. Add the melted vegan butter and again, rub the dry ingredients with the butter to form a coarse, breadcrumb-like texture.
- Add in the soy milk and whisk well until smooth. Finally, add the apple cider vinegar and whisk well one last time.
- Pour the cake mix into the tin and top with the prepared crumb topping, starting at the edges and working your way to the centre to prevent it sinking in too much.
- Bake in the middle shelf of a preheated oven for 75 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in the tin. Run a knife around the outside of the tin before releasing. Sift lots of icing sugar over the top and serve with your favourite hot drink.
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Psst… if you like this Vegan Masala Coffee Crumb Cake, you’ll LOVE these Baked Vegan Vanilla Doughnuts.
Zarna
Friday 21st of May 2021
Thank you Sanjana for one more yummyliciious recipe. I added chai masala and Carmel coffee as I had those on hand. Made cupcakes and a small cake and all turned out well. Will be making this again
Ronak Mehta
Friday 11th of September 2020
Wow. It looks delicious. I love coffee cake. So, I will try to make it. Your recipe will help me. Thanks for sharing.