If you’re like me, then you like a little coffee cake with your streusel, which is why these Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins—starring alternating layers of extra-moist cake and cinnamon-sugar crumbles—are a breakfast dream.
Table of Contents
While I’m all for a classic slice of coffee cake (be it studded with raspberries or layered with strawberries), there’s just something about the appeal of a handheld breakfast. So you can skip the forks and either spoon the batter directly into a greased muffin pan or use your muffin wrappers of choice.
I first published this recipe in 2012, and I’ve made it many times since then. The recipe below is the original, tried-and-tested favorite, but I’ve given the images a glow-up. It’s the “plain” version of my Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins with Streusel.
“Coffee cake” is just the name of the dish, there isn’t actually coffee in the ingredients, since this type of muffin/cake is commonly served with a cup of coffee.
Why You’ll Love These Muffins
- Jumbo, bakery-style muffins.
- Extra-moist with a light and fluffy texture.
- Quick and easy to whip up.
- Simple ingredient list.
- Delicious served warm and slathered with butter.
Although traditionally served for breakfast or brunch, the truth is, they’re just as good as an anytime snack as they are as dessert!
This recipe is made using basic ingredients you likely already have on hand. I’ve also provided substitutions when possible.
- Flour: All-purpose flour provides the perfect crumb.
- Baking powder & baking soda: Both are needed to help the muffins rise.
- Softened butter: Unsalted butter is my go-to because it allows you to easily control the salt level of any given recipe. You’ll need slightly softened butter for the streusel and room-temperature butter for the batter.
- Oil: Vegetable oil keeps the muffins moist, tender and fluffy. Neutral-flavored olive oil or melted coconut oil can be substituted.
- Sugar: I prefer to use brown sugar in the streusel and granulated sugar in the batter, but all brown- or all-white sugar would work. Bottom line: Use what you have on hand!
- Cinnamon: The perfect warming spice.
- Eggs: Two eggs bind everything together, add structure and create lift.
- Sour cream: As we’ve learned time and time again, sour cream really is the secret to extra-moist and bakery-worthy baked goods. It lends a touch of tang while ensuring these muffins have the ultimate light and fluffy texture. You could use Greek yogurt as a substitute.
- Vanilla extract: For flavor. Have you ever made homemade vanilla extract? It requires just two simple ingredients!
Cinnamon Streusel Topping
My favorite part of these muffins is the cinnamon-sugar crumbles. So, not only are we adding it to the top, but we’re layering it within each muffin, too.
You’ll need flour, sugar, cinnamon, and slightly softened cubed butter. It’s important that your butter is only slightly softened so that the streusel maintains its structure during baking. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients by using a fork.
Pro Tip: Don’t overmix the streusel or you’ll end up with a paste. It should be the consistency of wet sand.
- Prepare the streusel topping.
- Combine dry ingredients. Use a whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set it aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients. Beat together the butter, oil and sugar until well mixed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Reduce the mixer speed to low, and then gradually beat in the flour mixture, sour cream and vanilla just until combined.
- Spoon into a jumbo muffin pan. Layer the batter and streusel in the prepared muffin pan by spooning a portion of the batter, then a sprinkle of streusel, topped by another portion of batter and a final sprinkle of streusel on top.
- Bake. Bake the muffins until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, 18 to 22 minutes.
- Cool and devour! Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool slightly in the muffin pan before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
I love to serve these hot from the oven slathered with unsalted butter. Whip up a bowl of my fave Fruit Salad with Honey-Lime Dressing and your breakfast or brunch spread is complete!
Kelly’s Tips for Recipe Success
- Don’t over mix the batter. Doing so will toughen up the gluten in the flour and lead to dense muffins.
- Don’t open the oven while the muffins are baking or you’ll risk causing the muffins to deflate.
- Feel free to fold in blueberries or diced strawberries to add a pop of fresh fruit flavor in every bite.
Recipe FAQs
Why is this called coffee cake?
Because it is meant to be served with coffee.
What if I don’t have a stand mixer?
No problem! A handheld beater works or just grab a wooden spoon and mix.
How long will muffins stay fresh after baking?
Keep any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature and store for up to four days.
With four tiny taste-testers, muffins are a food group in our house. Here are my go-to recipes:
- Mini Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Banana Granola Muffins
- Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins with Streusel
- Mini Sour Cream Doughnut Muffins
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Ingredients
- Cooking spray
For the streusel:
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup white or packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened and cubed
For the batter:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, at room temp
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the streusel:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a muffin pan with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Add the butter, and using a fork, mash the mixture together until well combined. (The streusel should be the consistency of wet sand.) Set it aside.
Make the batter:
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set it aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, oil and sugar on medium speed until well mixed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low, and then gradually beat in the flour mixture, sour cream and vanilla just until combined.
- Layer the batter and streusel in the prepared muffin pan by spooning a portion of the batter, then a sprinkle of streusel, topped by another portion of batter and a final sprinkle of streusel on top.
- Bake the muffins until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, 18 to 22 minutes.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool slightly in the muffin pan before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
Kelly's Notes:
- Don’t over-mix the batter. Doing so will toughen up the gluten in the flour and lead to dense muffins.
- Don’t open the oven while the muffins are baking or you’ll risk causing the muffins to deflate.
- Keep any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature and store for up to four days.
- ★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
Nutrition
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Batter recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour.
Directions don’t show adding sour cream and vanilla. How come?
Hi Gail – They are listed in Step 3 under MAKE THE BATTER. :)
Sorry but so dry! I went back to make sure I had done everything correctly….good topping but muffin was heavy and not tasty.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the recipe, Natalie. I’ve never experienced these muffins being dry.
Really fluffy and good on taste, but the streusel sank to the bottom in all the muffins. Not sure why…?
Hi Cecilie! The streusel may sink if your oven temp is off. Did the muffins bake up well otherwise?
This is a tough call. The photo of these looked fantastic. And, I had a cup of sour cream to use. I followed the recipe to the letter. And my oven temp is well calibrated. I ended up with a “needs to be baked more” center at the same time that the streusel on top was going brown to the point of tasting burned. So If I do this recipe again, I’m gonna hold off adding the top layer of streusel until the baking progresses. I still have hopes for this turning out to be a decent recipe, because of the photo.
I hope you enjoyed the recipe, Jay!
I would suggest you include weight measurements in your recipes. It makes it so much easier.
Thanks for your suggestion, Maria. I’ll keep that in consideration when developing new recipes. :)
Delightful! Thank you for sharing your culinary talents.
You are so welcome, Anna-Marie! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe!
These muffins are GREAT, my husband’s favorite!! Just wondering, can I make the recipe in a bundt pan? If so, what would the baking time be? TIA
Hi Linda – I’ve never made this recipe using a bundt pan so unfortunately, I’m not sure about the bake time. Would love to hear your results if you give it a shot!
Very, very good recipe! I didn’t have a full two cups of sour cream, so I added a good size dollop of mayonnaise.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Liz!
Made these tonight cause I only had light brown sugar on hand and all other recipes for coffee cake muffins had dark brown sugar. They turned out delicious and moist. Personally I like to add a little more cinnamon to the streusel.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Karen!
These muffins are wonderful. Be very generous with streusel. I put a tablespoon in the middle and a heaping tablespoon on top. I doubled the recipe and had 30 very nice size muffins. These are my go to for Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
I’m so thrilled you’ve been enjoying the recipe, Susan!
I 1/2 the amount of streusel and replace with chopped pecans. I also swapped out Greek yogurt for the sour cream for a bit more protein.
This is a weekend favorite at our house.
Love reading this, Lisa! I’m thrilled you’ve been enjoying the recipe!
These are amazing muffins! My family’s #1 choice! I had apples that weren’t as crisp as I like, so I made an apple compote and added a layer of that in the middle, topped with the streusel mix, and then a layer of batter, then top it off with a generous amount of streusel and turned out to be stunningly delicious I doubled the batch, so for the apple stuffed recipe, I used my own oatmeal streusel recipe (2 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups instant oatmeal, 1 cup packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter), and with the 2nd recipe, I made a quick blueberry compote, added a dollop of that in between the layers, used the Just a Taste streusel recipe, and I had to substitute lime for lemon in the glaze, and they were scrumptious . I can’t wait to share this recipe with my friends and family! I’ve already printed off 25 copies of your recipe to hand out to everyone who tastes one… cause they always want the recipe after tasting them. Thanks for laying down the groundwork so we can just play with it, along with the original recipe… these will all be handed down labeled “Family Favourites”
YUM! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Brenda! And thanks so much for sharing it with your friends and family! :)
I make these often.
Sometimes I throw in blueberries in a few. My kids like them as is.
I appreciate that they’re sweet enough for breakfast, but not too sweet.
I’m so thrilled you’ve been enjoying the recipe, Marianne!
These muffins came out perfect! They are very moist and delicious :).
I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe, Sara!
My muffins had only a trace of struesel inside because I did not realize how much I should have sprinkled in between the bottom and top layers. I suggest that the struesel is divided in half, and then make sure you use half in the filling, and half as the topping. In an effort to make a healthier muffin, I substituted 1 cup white whole wheat flour and 1/4 cup wheat germ for some of the white flour. The muffins came out well. Will try again, and maybe even try some whole wheat flour. Thanks for the nice recipe.
Thanks for your notes, Michele! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
The muffins are delicious but seem to take longer to cook.
Should I try a higher temp.
Hi Marianne – Oven temperatures can cause great variances in the bake time. Do you have an oven thermometer to ensure your oven is running at the correct temperature? And was the rack in the center of the oven?
Loved these muffins. Very light and not overly sweet.
The recipe actually made 15 muffins in my tins.
Can’t wait to share with neighbor & friends!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Sandy!
Turned out amazing. I used vegan sour cream too!
I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Farah!
I added 1tsp cinnamon to batter and I needed a bit more flour in the streusel to get a better consistency. I started the muffins at 425 for a few mins before dropping the temp to 350 until toothpick comes clean to get a nice doom shape. Wonderful muffins they were gone by the next morning
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Marea!
Came out great! Husband also loved them!
I’m so thrilled to read this, Ashley!
My young adult son says these are the “bomb!” We all liked them too.
Woohoo! I’m so happy to read this!