Apple Coffee Cake

This cake is kind of confusing….

It's a coffee cake, made with a sweet buttery brioche dough, full of apple slices, and topped with an oat streusal topping.

It's kind of like an apple crisp.

It's kind of like a coffee cake.

It's kind of like a sweet bread.

It's kind of awesome!

If you've been following me for a while you know about my love affair with bread (this is awkward because I believe I'm also having an affair with chocolate, cake and frosting…but let's carry on). I started making bread several years ago and it's something I still love to do. There's nothing quite as gratifying. Honestly, don't let yeast scare you.

I've made this several times and I've never made the same cake twice. It's made with Brioche Dough from The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes. These folks aren't lying, they've really created some masterpiece yeasted doughs that literally take only five minutes prep. This is one of my books that is completely dog-eared and never leaves the kitchen. The dough can be made up to five days ahead and refrigerated. At a moments notice you have a rich, buttery Brioche Dough ready for this Apple Coffee Cake, sticky buns or doughnuts. The options are endless!

I added pepitas, dried cranberries and walnuts along with the apple to the cake this time. My last one had blueberries and pecans. Both were sensational. The cake is fully assembled and then left on the counter to rest for a little over an hour. Then it's into the oven and done in an hour. Nothing to do after but wait for it to cool so you can cut it and enjoy it.

That's my kinda cake. Uh bread. Umm Apple Crisp?! You get the idea.

I'm sharing the link here to the BreadIn5 website, for their Brioche Dough. You will not find a simpler recipe for Brioche Dough anywhere. Just mix it and leave it, literally. The following is the recipe for the cake.

Apple Streusal Coffee Cake

*adapted from BreadIn5

FOR THE TOPPING :

• 1 cup large flake oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup pepitas
• 1 cup melted unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. To make the streusel, place all of the ingredients in a small bowl and mix until combined. Set aside.

FOR THE CAKE:

• 1 pound of the chilled Brioche Dough
• 2 1/2 small apples thinly sliced - I used honey crisp apples
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• streusel topping (above)

To make the cake:

Preheat oven to 350° and grease and flour an 8 x 3 inch cake pan or springform pan.

1. Mix the apple slices, cranberries and brown sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

2. Split your pound of brioche dough into two equal pieces. Roll out each piece to be a circle slightly larger than the cake pan. Place one dough circle in the bottom of the pan. Top with half of the apples and 3/4 cup of streusel. Place the remaining dough circle on top and layer again with apples and the remaining streusel.

3. Let the cake rest, uncovered, for an hour and 20 minutes. Bake for approx. 45 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

4. If you used a cake pan, invert the cake onto a plate and then quickly invert back to a cake plate.

Enjoy!

Renee