This MOIST sour cream zucchini coffee cake is the perfect summer recipe with a hint of cozy fall baking vibes! With a soft and spongy cake base, an extra crispy streusel topping, and a simple and sweet icing on top, it's FULL of texture! Annnnd you can't even tell there's zucchini in there aside from the cute little green speckles scattered throughout.
Quite literally the only reason I'm excited for summer to come is because we'll be that much closer to summer ending lol. Oh, and obviously the summer treats! Zucchini is without a doubt going to make a lot of appearances in my life this summer and one of my favorite ways to use it is by making coffee cake.
Sour cream zucchini coffee cake is everything you love in a good spiced coffee cake, but with a little hint of freshness and health in the form of zucchini. It's not healthy per say (despite what I try to tell myself) but the zucchini still brings some added healthiness to an otherwise very indulgent treat. So that's a win for me!
You can't taste the zucchini at all but it adds so much moisture and softness - it's unreal! This treat is delicious any time, but it's a serious vibe to make and eat during a rainy summer day (i.e. my favorite summer days!)
what makes this sour cream zucchini bread so MOIST?
I finished making a batch of this cake just the other night (it was the second one I made that day, so that alone should tell you how freaking good it is!) It was late, and I got lazy, so I forgot to cover it. I honestly expected to wake up to a cake turned rock, but it was STILL plenty moist even after sitting out for 12 hours! That's not to say you should skip covering your cake (because it really does help it keep for longer!) but it's seriously moist enough to handle being left out for several hours.
There are a sew special features in this cake that help us achieve that ridiculously moist texture:
• zucchini: The zucchini alone brings in a whole lot of moisture. And while baked goods made with zucchini typically require the added step of blotting or wringing out any moisture from the zucchini, I found that skipping that step made this cake more moist (plus it's easier!)
• sour cream: This magic ingredient does a lot for this cake! The acidity helps give the cake additional lift, the fat gives it richness and a deliciously velvety crumb, and it's low moisture content helps keep the batter consistency perfect.
• oil: I tested this recipe with butter, but found it was more prone to drying out. The oil cake was the clear winner and stayed moist for longer! Plus it eliminates the need for room temperature ingredients (because oil won't clump up like butter when cold ingredients are added to it), which means this cake is ready that much faster.
how to make sour cream zucchini coffee cake
1. Mix together streusel ingredients until combined. Set aside.
2. Grate zucchini and set aside.
3. Whisk together wet ingredients until combined.
4. Fold in shredded zucchini.
5. Mix in remaining dry ingredients until combined.
6. Layer the coffee cake! Spread the cake batter into your baking pan then top with streusel.
7. Bake and cool slightly.
8. Top with icing. Mix together icing ingredients and drizzle it over your slightly warm cake. Slice and enjoy!
tips for making sour cream zucchini coffee cake
- Grating the zucchini: Make sure to use the large side of a box grater to shred the zucchini. The smaller side is perfect for something like carrot cake because carrots are much drier, but zucchini has more moisture and softens more quickly. Using the fine side of the grater for zucchini would lead to an overly watery cake batter.
- Measuring flour: The best way to measure flour is by weight (if you have a scale) because it is much more accurate. If you do want to measure with cups, it's important to use the "spoon and level" method. Lightly fluff the flour in the bag then spoon it into a cup. Use a flat edged utensil to level it off.
- Mixing: Take care not to over mix your cake batter, otherwise it will overwork the gluten and pop the air bubbles that begin to form from the leaveners. This will cause the cake to come out dense and dry.
- Baking & cooling: Another key to an extra moist cake is in the bake. An overbaked cake will (obviously) be a dry cake, but the cooling process can also contribute to a dry cake! It's best to pull the cake out of the pan after cooling for about 45 minutes - the residual heat from the pan will continue to dry out the cake, so I wouldn't recommend cooling it completely in the pan. 45 minutes is the perfect amount of time to allow the cake to set (so it's moveable) without drying it out!
- Storing: To capture in moisture, keep your coffee cake covered tightly with plastic wrap until ready to serve. This cake will keep for around 3 days at room temperature or 5 days in the fridge (but it's usually gobbled up way before then!)
check out these other summer recipes!
• Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes
• Giant Strawberry Pop Tart
• Lemon Raspberry Cake
• No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Bars
Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.
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Sour Cream Zucchini Coffee Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 9 slices
Description
This MOIST sour cream zucchini coffee cake is the perfect summer recipe with a hint of cozy fall baking vibes! With a soft and spongy cake base, an extra crispy streusel topping, and a simple and sweet icing on top, it's FULL of texture! Annnnd you can't even tell there's zucchini in there aside from the cute little green speckles scattered throughout.
Ingredients
For the streusel:
- ¾ cup (90g) all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled
- ½ cup (100g) packed brown sugar, light or dark
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup (60g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
For the zucchini cake:
- ¼ cup (60mL) vegetable oil (or any neutral flavored oil)
- ⅓ cup (80g) full-fat sour cream
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100g) packed brown sugar, light or dark
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 & ½ cups (195g) loosely packed shredded zucchini
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 & ½ cups (180g) all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled
For the icing:
- 1 cup (130g) powdered sugar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk or water
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F. Butter an 8x8 inch pan and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper. Leave a bit of extra parchment paper hanging over the sides of the pan to make it easier to pull the cake out once it's baked.
- Make the streusel: Combine streusel ingredients in a bowl. Mash together with a fork until moistened and crumbly. Set aside.
- Make the zucchini cake batter: In a large bowl, combine vegetable oil, sour cream, granulated and brown sugars, egg, and vanilla. Whisk until combined.
- Fold the shredded zucchini into the wet ingredients.
- Add the cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and flour and mix together until just combined. Take care not to over mix!
- Pour the zucchini cake batter into your prepared 8 inch pan and spread into an even layer. Sprinkle the streusel on top.
- Bake the cake in the center of your preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes or until the top is puffed and a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean of any wet batter (a few moist crumbs are fine!)
- Cool the cake for 45 minutes in the pan before icing.
- Make the icing: Whisk together powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of milk or water until smooth. If it's too thick, whisk in a bit more liquid until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Pull the slightly cooled cake out of the baking pan using the parchment paper overhang. Transfer onto your serving plate and drizzle icing on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Bake Time: 40 minutes
Enjoy!
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