Coffee Cake With Buttercream Icing

5 from 2 votes

This Coffee Cake With Buttercream Icing is a version of a popular British tea time classic. Perfect with a cup of afternoon tea.

Prep Time30

Cook Time20

cooling and icing40

Total Time1 30

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, British

Keyword: coffee almond cake, coffee cake, coffee cake with icing, coffee layer cake

Servings: slices

Calories: 508kcal

Author: Nosheen Babar

Equipment

Kitchenaid or Electric Mixer
measuring cups
Icing Spatula
Nut Chopper
parchment paper
2 nonstick 8" round baking tins

Ingredients

The Cake

1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup milk
2 tsp instant coffee
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup + 2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence

The Icing

1 cup unsalted butter
4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
3 cups confectioners sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 tbsp hot water
2 tbsp instant coffee
½ cup almonds

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

The Cake

Preheat the oven to 325°
Lightly grease 2 nonstick 8" round cake tins and add parchment (SEE NOTES)
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside
Warm the milk slightly in the microwave and mix in the coffee until completely dissolved
Cream the butter and sugar (SEE NOTES)
Add the eggs, one at a time
Add the vanilla
Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk/coffee mixture (SEE NOTES) and mix just till incorporated
Add to the prepared baking tins and bake for 18-20 minutes, till your cake tester comes out clean (SEE NOTES)
Cool completely before icing

The Icing

Cream the butter, heavy whipping cream, salt and sugar (SEE NOTES)
Dissolve the coffee in hot water, add to the above mixture and beat till you have a nice creamy consistency. Set aside till needed.
Using a small manual nut chopper, chop the almonds into small pieces and set aside till later (SEE NOTES)

Icing The Cake

Once the cake is completely cool, it's time to ice it
Take your cake stand and place a little bit of icing on the bottom
Place your first cake layer on this icing (this icing will make it stick and stay in place as you work)
Place a ½ inch layer of icing on this layer and set the second layer on top of it
Now place a crumb coat of icing (this is a thin layer of icing which makes all the crumbs stick in place and fills any holes and dents in the surface)
Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes to set this coat
Remove the chilled cake and finish icing the cake on all sides
Using your hands, press the chopped almonds around the sides of the cake
Using the back of a fork, make circles around the top surface of the cake to texturize the icing (OPTIONAL)
Chill for 10 minutes, remove and using the back of a dull knife scrape the sides of your platter to clean it and serve!

Notes

Room Temperature Ingredients - Having your ingredients, especially the butter, at room temperature produces a lighter, fluffier cake.

Baking Tins - Although most recipes give options for different types of baking tins, in this particular cake I would suggest sticking to nonstick. This cake is very light and delicate and even with the use of nonstick spray and parchment paper, taking it out of the baking tin can cause breakage. The nonstick pans make the process much smoother.

Creaming the Butter and Sugar - Creaming the butter and sugar for 1-2 minutes is an important part of the baking process. This is what traps the air in the butter. As the cake bakes, this air expands and makes the cake soft and fluffy.

Alternating Dry and wet Ingredients - Alternating the ingredients ensures a smoother batter in less time. This means that less gluten will be released as the flour will not be over beaten. The result is a less dense cake.

Testing The Cake - I have and use a cake tester to check and see if my cake is done, but a toothpick works just as well. Another method is to lightly touch the center of the cake and see if it springs back. If your finger leaves a slight impression, the cake needs a little more time. The last great method is to use a cooking thermometer to check for doneness. The perfect internal temperature you're looking for is 210 degrees.

The Icing - The icing comes together easily. The heavy whipping cream gives it a light airy texture so it doesn't taste too buttery and the salt prevents it from tasting too sweet. Paired with the coffee it's the perfect taste and texture.

The Almonds - The traditional British version of this coffee cake usually has walnuts, but I decided to go with the more popular Pakistani almonds. They need to be chopped and pressed into the sides of the cake but since you want to taste the bits, a hand held chopper works best. If you don't have one, place the nuts in a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush them to the size required.

Nutrition