Made with fresh cherries and a sugary butter streusel topping, this easy and beautiful Cherry Coffee Cake Recipe is a delicious summertime treat that can be enjoyed for breakfast, brunch, or dessert.
Cakes of all shapes, sizes, colors, and flavors are a personal favorite of mine and include this Blood Orange Upside Down Cake, Persimmon Pumpkin Pudding Cake, and Big Crumb Rhubarb Coffee Cake.
Cherry Coffee Cake
First things first, this coffee cake? You should probably make it. Just trust me here- it is literally that good. Even if you’re not into fruity cakes or desserts, I have a sneaking suspicion you’re going to love this cherry (breakfast) cake.
Perfect as both a breakfast treat or after dinner dessert, this cherry coffee cake is moist and buttery and dotted with delicious tart bing cherries and topped with a sweet crumbly streusel topping.
Inspired by the oh so talented Tutti-Dolci, this coffee cake recipe is what breakfast dreams are made of. I did make a couple of small changes and the results were perfect. This beauty lasted all but 24 hours in my house.
INGREDIENTS IN THIS CHERRY COFFEE CAKE RECIPE
- flour
- sugar
- cinnamon
- butter
- vanilla extract
- baking powder
- baking soda
- buttermilk
- eggs
- fresh cherries
Oh yes, BUTTERMILK! Is it just me or are all baked goodies better when they’re made with buttermilk? Buttermilk adds a delicious and almost addictive tang to cakes and quickbreads that you won’t get from regular milk. Buttermilk, a well-known meat tenderizer, acts similarly in baking to help keep cakes moist and fluffy.
HOW TO MAKE BUTTERMILK
Yayy! You have all the ingredients to make this awesome cherry coffee cake…except for the buttermilk.
That’s ok. Making your own buttermilk is easy. All you need is,
- Milk
- Vinegar, fresh lemon juice, or cream of tartar
Hopefully, you have milk (yes, dairy milk) and one of the other things, otherwise, I hope you live super close to the grocery store or you have super friendly neighbors…
- Buttermilk + vinegar OR lemon juice– add 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice or vinegar to a measuring cup and fill with milk until it measures 1 cup. Mix well to combine.
- Buttermilk + cream of tartar– mix one cup milk with 1 3/4 teaspoons cream of tartar.
TOOLS NEEDED TO MAKE THIS CHERRY COFFEE CAKE RECIPE
- Cherry pitter (optional)- I used a knife. It dyes your hands and takes a ton of time, but it’s effective.
- 10-inch springform pan
- Pastry Brush
- Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
How to make Cherry Coffee Cake
- Start by preparing your cherries. Remove the stems and pits by carefully slicing around each cherry (to cut in half). Use your thumb to dig out the pit. Slice each cherry into halves or quarters. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a large springform pan. Simply melt a little butter in a bowl, brush it all over the inside of the pan with a pastry brush and sprinkle with a light coat of flour, tapping the sides of the pan to remove any excess.
- Prepare your crumb topping by mixing together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, butter, and vanilla in a small bowl. Transfer to the freezer to prevent it from melting until ready to use.
- To make the cake, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate, smaller mixing bowl, mix together the buttermilk with the vanilla and set aside.
- In a new large, clean, mixing bowl, OR the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time, mixing between each addition.
- Begin adding the flour mixture in three separate additions, each separated by the addition of half the buttermilk mixture. Mix only until everything is just incorporated.
- Grab your prepared pan. Transfer the butter to the pan and smooth the surface with a spatula or wooden spoon. Top the cake in an even layer with your prepared cherries and gently press the cherries down into the batter, just slightly. Top the cake with the crumb topping and place in your preheated oven.
- Bake for 70-85 minutes. Allow cake to rest in the pan for 15 minutes before removing.
TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST CHERRY COFFEE CAKE
Fortunately, this recipe is pretty straight-forward. In other words- everyone should be able to make this delicious cherry cake to share with their friends. That said, I have just a few simple tips to help keep you on track.
- Don’t forget to butter and flour your pan. I could tell you a long story about how this who thing used to completely confuse me, how do I get the butter all over the pan?, but I’ll save the story for another day. Instead, melt a little butter in a bowl, brush it all over the inside of the pan with a pastry brush and sprinkle with a light coat of flour, tapping the sides of the pan to remove any excess. Easy, right?
- Try not to over-mix your batter.
- Unless you really like tiny bits of fruit, simply pit your cherries and slice them in half.
- It will seem like you’re adding a ton of cherries to the top of your cake, but you’re not.
- Remember to gently press the cherries into the batter before adding the crumb topping. This will help prevent them from drying out.
- After an hour, regularly check your cherry cake to see if it is done baking. All ovens cook differently and the last thing you want is a dry cake.
- Store leftovers in a sealed, air-tight container in the refrigerator.
Love Cherries? Check out,
- Cherry Bruschetta Recipe
- Cherry Overnight Oats with Cherry Banana Nice Cream
- Cherry and Rocket Panzanella Salad
- Roasted Peach and Cherry Coconut Popsicles
- Cherry BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Pickled Red Onions + Coleslaw
- Cherry Cocoa Smoothie
If you try making this Cherry Coffee Cake Recipe, please leave me a comment and let me know! I always love to hear your thoughts.
For more breakfast recipes check out,
- Vanilla Overnight Oats Breakfast Bowl
- Papaya Breakfast Bowls
- Creamy Baked Eggs with Spinach and Prosciutto
- Egg Frittata Recipe- How to make a Frittata
- Pumpkin French Toast Bake
- Crispy Waffles with Blood Orange Glaze
DON’T FORGET TO PIN AND SHARE THIS EASY CHERRY COFFEE CAKE RECIPE AND ADD IT TO YOUR NEXT WEEKLY MEAL PLAN!
RECIPE CARD
Cherry Coffee Cake
Equipment
- 1 10 inch springform pan
Ingredients
For the Crumb Topping
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 5 tablespoon salted butter - melted
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the Cake
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 10 tablespoon butter - brought to room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups sugar
- 2 large eggs - brought to room temperature
- 1 ½ lbs fresh bing cherries
Instructions
- Prepare the cherries by removing stems and pits and slicing cherries in half or in quarters. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and Butter and flour a springform pan (even if it is nonstick, I still recommend this step).
- Prepare the crumb topping. In a medium bowl combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, butter, and vanilla. Mix well to combine. Transfer bowl to the freezer until ready to use.
- Start preparing the cake. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix to combine. Set aside. In a separate, smaller bowl, mix together the buttermilk with the vanilla extract and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy (approximately 2-3 minutes). Reduce speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time, mixing between each. Begin adding the flour mixture in three separate additions, each separated by the addition of half the buttermilk mixture. Mix only until everything is just incorporated.
- Transfer the batter into the prepared pan. Use an offset spatula to smooth the surface. Top the cake in an even layer with the pitted and halved cherries, gently pressing the cherries down just slightly into the cake batter. Top the cake with the crumb topping and transfer to a preheated oven.
- Bake for 70-85 minutes. The crumble will start to turn golden and brown just slightly. Edges will be golden and a toothpick inserted into the middle will come out clean.
- Remove cake from the oven and allow to cook in the pan for approximately 15 minutes before removing sides from the pan and serving. Enjoy!
Nutritional Information
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.)
Originally published on July 5th, 2018 and updated with additional text on March 18, 1019
What size of spring form pan did you use?
I have a 6 or 7″ and the cook time is way off, it is too deep. I am almost at 2 hours, middle is not done and cherry juice is starting to burn.
Per the instructions in the post above, I used a 10-inch springform pan
I remember making this years ago with a big jar of pickled cherries, it was absolutely delicious and i’ve just been searching around to find the recipe again. I never do that! A testament to a very memorable cake. Many thanks.
I appreciate you coming back to tell me, Georgie 🙂
Very good! Don’t freeze crumb topping! Had to nuke it to be able to use it. Next time will put in fridge. Only made 2 changes: used frozen cherries (about 2.5 c after thawed/drained) and added toasted almonds to the top. Put 1/2 topping down, added layer of toasted almonds and then rest of topping. Will definitely make again especially now that I know it works great with frozen fruit.
This is a good recipe but I think it is too thick without a layer of crumb in between. I will warm up each slice and butter each side when serving
I had only half the cherries required so made a half recipe and I used a tart pan vs cake pan and brought baking time down to 40min. Turned out perfectly! I don’t like a thick cake and using a tart pan was the perfect solution.
Really really yummy! Followed the recipe as is. I was worried a bit about baking it in a 9” springform pan, but it worked out OK, baking time was 80-85 min. The recipe is saved in my favorites
Trying this right now! This recipe looks so delicious!
Exceeded expectations. This coffee cake was amazing.
Thanks, Sara 😀
How much coffee do you put in? It’s not in the recipe
In this case there is no coffee in this coffee cake, as it is meant to be eaten with coffee 🙂
Can you freeze this coffee cake after you make it? I have already froze 25 pounds of cherries and still have another 10 pounds of fresh cherries. I have my own trees. I was wondering what baked goods I can make and freeze with the rest of the fresh cherries. And, will this recipe work for other fruits as well?
Yes, you can freeze this 🙂
I haven’t tried substituting the cherries in this specific recipe.
Can I used frozen dark cherries? Thanks!
Yes, you can use frozen cherries if you thaw and drain any access liquid 🙂
Thanks so much Jessica for your quick answer. I made the coffee cake and it was the best coffee cake I have ever made! First, I did use frozen dark cherries (and left them whole). I also baked in a 9 x 9 pan. It did take longer (due to smaller pan and frozen cherries). I used a good brand of thick buttermilk. My sister is visiting and she loves it, too. My husband likes it toasted, my sister with fresh whipped cream, and me with plain yogurt and ground walnuts sprinkled on top. Four days later it is just as fresh as the first day, too! I will check out your other recipes, too. Thanks so much for your hard work on your site!
Could you tell me what size springform pan?
I have 8,9 and 10 inch pans.
10 inch 🙂
been cooking for decades and rarely stick strictly to a recipe. However, there was nothing to be improved upon! Turned out perfectly.
Will def make again
It’s cherry season here in BC, Canada, so I decided to give this recipe a try with my fresh bounty. It was a pretty standard coffee cake. I think it makes a great “base” recipe to play with. It was good, but didn’t blow me away. It was very moist and I prefer the delicate flavour of buttermilk (as opposed to sour cream). I like my cake on the less sweet side and found that the recipe for the batter fits the bill nicely; however, the topping was too sweet. I think next time I’ll try making it with dark brown sugar instead. Others will love this level of sweetness for the topping. It is just personal preference. I also think it might benefit from a little more flavour – plain, fresh bing cherries didn’t pack enough punch for me. Next time I will use some of my canned bourbon soaked cherries instead. I’m at sea level and 75 minutes was perfect baking time. Finally, I would advise putting the topping in the fridge to chill versus the freezer. Perhaps my freezer is super powerful or I work too slowly, but I spent 10 minutes breaking apart a frozen mass of topping once I took it out.
Made this and it was yum! Thanks for the exact measurements.
Hello thank you for your delicious recipe. Could you tell me if it white or brown sugar in the crumb?As well, it would be easier if measurements of butter were in cups not Tbsp. I put 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. into the cake. I used frozen cherries and not sure what 1 1/2 lbs are but I used a 600g bag. Again cups would be easier for us novice bakers:) Ill let you know how it turns out!! Thanks again.
Lori
Hi Lori,
Good question – I used white sugar in this recipe 🙂
I will look into changing butter into cups + tbsp, but I am not sure the Metric conversation system built into the recipe card will like the double units of cups+tbsp rather than just one unit.
For the used who wants metric, convert to weight. Then you can convert it however. Picked 10 pounds of sour cherries today. This is the first thing I made.