I haven’t shared a true, solo recipe post in so long and that’s mostly because Chris is our resident chef in this household and he’s been a busy busy guy as of late. BUT this spring and Easter-perfect brunch orange streusel coffee cake recipe was something I’d been dying to try and perfect, and once I got it right with a little helpful tweaking and taste-testing from Chris and his super talented chef friend at work, I couldn’t not share it. My mouth is still watering over this just looking at these pictures!
Oddly, I’ve really craved all things citrus throughout pregnancy and as such have been experimenting with a lot of fun citrus recipes and mocktails with Chris in the kitchen over the last few months, but of all my creations these last few months with citrus of all kinds, this citrus stunner has to take the cake… literally. It’s Orange Streusel Coffee Cake, which I’ve now made with both super juicy and bold Minneola tangelos and the delightfully sweet Cara Cara oranges, and it’s absolutely, positively delicious with both! Think soft, fluffy orange tangelo cake topped with a yummy cinnamon streusel and a sweet citrus glaze that’s positively heavenly. It’s such a fun, fresh take on coffee cake, which I already love in pretty much any form. Any other lifelong coffee cake addicts out there? In my opinion, coffee cake, is pretty much the perfect brunch food and I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of it. Using sweet citrus flavors in this recipe makes it not only absolutely unforgettable, but the perfect addition to your brunch table this Easter weekend and spring season!
If you’re deciding whether you want to use Minneola tangelos in this recipe or Cara Cara oranges, first let me say you really can’t go wrong. Either way you’ll end up with a wonderfully sweet citrus/orange flavor in both your cake and your glaze, but the real difference is in the flavor profiles. Tangelos are a little bit more bold and tangy (while still sweet) than Cara Cara oranges, and Cara Cara oranges have that traditional, sweet orange flavor. Like I said, you really can’t go wrong here so go with your gut! I hope you guys love this recipe as much as I do – I’ll definitely be whipping one up for the fam to snack on this weekend. And if you’re diving in and have any questions, feel free to shoot me a note on Instagram, or email me and I’ll respond ASAP. Enjoy!
Orange Streusel Coffee Cake Recipe
COFFEE CAKE
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. orange zest
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 3/4 cup Minneola tangelo or Cara Cara orange juice (about 1.5 tangelos)
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Preheat an oven to 375°F. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange/tangelo zest until combined. Add milk, orange/tangelo juice, oil, egg and vanilla extract and stir until combined in a smooth batter. Pour into a greased and floured pie pan. Bake for 40 minutes and serve warm.
STREUSEL
- 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
Whisk together the sugar, cinnamon, salt and melted butter until combined. Using a spoon to stir in the flour and mix until your streusel is a wet, crumb-like consistency (just look at the pics if you need a guide for what those “crumbs” should look like). If you find your mixture too dry (the sugars should be wet and clumpy), simply add more melted, unsalted butter 1 teaspoon at a time. Once mixed to desired crumb consistency, spread streusel to cover the entire top of cake batter in pie pan.
ORANGE GLAZE
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3.5 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange/tangelo juice
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated orange/tangelo zest
Whisk ingredients together until a smooth glaze forms. If it’s too thick, add more orange/tangelo juice one teaspoon at a time. If it’s too thin, whisk in more powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Drizzle glaze on top of coffee cake after baking. If you want more sweet glaze to top your coffee cake, I wholeheartedly support this. Just make more and drizzle to your heart’s desire!
Have you ever made orange streusel cake before? Let me know in a comment below!
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