Williams Sonoma Cinnamon-Walnut Coffee Cake

Cinnamon-Walnut Coffee Cake

This weekend, I got to see my friend Helen three days in a row! Friday night for the movie Five Year Engagement - it was funny and cute! Saturday night for the awesome Dodger's Game versus the Washington Nationals. The Dodgers came from behind in the 9th and then Matt Kemp's homer in the 10th inning won the game. Hella screams and shouts! Our seats were awesomeness - check these out! And on Sunday Helen hosted a brunch at her house!

I borrowed the book, Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Breakfast and Brunch from the library and made this lovely coffee cake. The cake has a layer of cinnamon-walnut-sugar (hence the name of the cake!)

You know I'm totally into the Bundt cake, but sometimes you need a Tube pan (which is NOT a Bundt) to make cakes with a topping.

This cake is made with cake flour, sour cream and oil. The crumb is pretty soft. Don't you just love Helen's oil cloth tablecloth? She's ready for summer entertaining.

Helen made some delicious potatoes. I had, um, perhaps three servings. Small servings...over and over.

Marie made a great fruit and yogurt parfait. Lots of fresh fruit! Yummmmmmy! Kathryn made fluffy dill eggs and Christine brought mimosas!

Williams Sonoma Cinnamon-Walnut Coffee Cake
For the filling and topping:
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

For the cake:
2 3/4 cups cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup canola or corn oil (I used Wesson's vegetable oil)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Oil a 9 1/2- or 10-inch tube pan with sides at least 3 3/4 inches high. Prep the pan by spraying it with Pam with Flour or oil the bottom of the pan.

Filling and topping: In a bowl, stir together the walnuts, granulated sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

Cake: In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In an electric mixer with paddle, combine the eggs and granulated sugar. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is light in color and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Slowly (very slowly) add the oil and vanilla and beat on low speed. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just incorporated. Mix in the sour cream just until no white streaks remain.

Pour about two-thirds of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth top. Set aside 1/4 cup of the walnut-cinnamon mixture to use as a topping. Sprinkle the remaining mixture evenly over the batter. Insert a small knife about halfway into the batter and gently move it through the walnut-cinnamon filling to create a swirled effect. Pour the remaining batter evenly over the filling and smooth the top with the spatula. The batter will not cover the filling completely. Sprinkle evenly with the reserved topping.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 55 minutes. (My cake took about 63 minutes to bake). Transfer to a wire rack and let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around the sides and center tube of the pan to loosen the cake sides. Invert to remove and reinvert so it cools on a wire rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar (optional).

I didn't make the caramel sauce, nor top it with powdered sugar. Here is the caramel glaze recipe on the Williams Sonoma site.

Recipe:
Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Breakfast and Brunch, by Georgeanne Brennan, Elinor Klivans, Jordan Mackay and Charles Pierce
Find it on Amazon here or in your library via WorldCat