This Cake Mix Coffee Cake is layered with a crunchy pecan streusel and drizzled with an ooey-gooey glaze. This breakfast is quick, easy, and makes enough to feed a crowd!

General
Cake vs coffee cake
Ingredients
How to make
Get the recipe
Frequently Asked Questions
Variations
Pairing suggestions
How to store
Nutrition information

On Christmas morning I had grand plans to make cinnamon rolls…but then I remembered that I have a 2 year old and a 6 month old, ha! So what did I make instead? This cake mix coffee cake! It’s cinnamon-y, drizzled in an ooey-gooey glaze, and is SO moist and fluffy. The best part? It’s super quick and easy to make. Cinnamon rolls… maybe next year. 😉

What is the difference between cake and coffee cake?

A “regular” cake is baked, cooled, then topped with frosting. A coffee cake is served warm and has a streusel or crumb topping layered on top of the cake prior to baking and then drizzled in an icing. Today’s cake mix coffee cake also has a layer of streusel in the middle of the cake.

Pro tip

If you’re looking for a “regular” yellow cake, check out my post on How to Make Box Cake Better.

Ingredients

There are 3 parts to this semi-homemade coffee cake: the cake, the streusel, and the vanilla icing!

Cake Mix Coffee Cake

Yellow Cake Mix – the base for our coffee cake! 2 (15.25 oz) boxes are called for in this recipe. JUST the dry mix is used — don’t make the batter according to box directions. Feel free to try another flavor!
Cinnamon, Salt, Nutmeg, Ginger, and Cloves: our homemade spice mixture! You can also use a store-bought blend of spices like pumpkin pie spice to replace the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.
Flour – some of the cake mix is reserved for the streusel topping, so 1 cup of all-purpose flour is needed to replace some of the mix to provide structure to the cake. All-purpose flour is the best for baking and produces light, tender baked goods.
Eggs – provide structure and help bind the ingredients together. Be sure to use room temperature LARGE eggs so the eggs can evenly incorporate with the rest of the ingredients.
Buttermilk – adds a subtle tangy flavor while also helping the cake rise. Buttermilk promotes a soft, fluffy texture, but other milks may be used instead.
Butter – cakes need some sort of fat (typically oil or butter) to provide flavor and moisture. Oil will produce a cake that’s more moist, but butter provides a rich, buttery flavor. This cake is plenty moist; I definitely recommend sticking with butter, because it tastes so delicious!
Vanilla – adds a sweet flavor and depth to any cake! Pure vanilla is made with vanilla bean, water, and alcohol whereas imitation vanilla is made without vanilla beans. Imitation is cheaper and often does not taste any different than pure vanilla extract in baked goods, so the choice is yours!

Streusel Topping

Reserved Cake Mix – the base for our streusel. Typically, all-purpose flour is used, but for this recipe, the cake mix with spices is used instead. This makes for a super flavorful, extra clumpy topping!
Pecans – provides a nutty flavor and crunchy texture. Other nuts, like walnuts, may be used instead. I don’t recommend omitting the nuts, because it’s a great contrast to the super soft, fluffy cake.
Brown Sugar – adds a rich, molasses flavor. It also provides sweetness and moisture to the topping. Dark brown sugar is called for in the recipe, but either can be used.
Butter – provides fat and moisture and is what gives a streusel it’s clumpy texture. Some recipes call for cold or room temperature butter, but this recipe uses melted butter. The key is to not over-mix or you’ll end up with a sandy, greasy texture.
Vanilla – adds a warm, sweet flavor which pairs beautifully with the nutty pecans.

Vanilla Glaze

Powdered Sugar – the base of our glaze. Powdered sugar aka confectioners’ sugar is the best sweetener for glazes, frosting, and icings, because it’s ultra smooth. Granulated or brown sugar would give a gritty texture.
Salt – balances out the sweetness of the powdered sugar to give this icing the perfect sweet, but not too sweet flavor.
Milk – thins the icing until it can be easily drizzled over the warm cake. You’re looking for a thin, but not runny consistency. It’s better to be thicker than thinner.
Corn Syrup – keeps the icing smooth and shiny. Use light corn syrup, not dark.
Vanilla – optional, but highly recommended. It will make the icing slightly brown in color (vs white), but it does provide the icing with additional flavor.

Pro tip

Don’t have spices on hand? Use boxed spice cake mix instead!

How to make

The key to perfect coffee cake? Don’t over-mix your batter or the streusel topping — lumps are ok!

Cake Mix Coffee Cake

Place dry cake mix, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves into a large mixing bowl, whisk until combined.
Remove 2 cups of the mixture and place into another large bowl, then set aside (this is for your streusel topping).
To the first bowl, add in flour, eggs, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla, then mix until combined. Set aside.

Streusel Filling/Topping

To the second bowl with the reserved dry mixture, add in pecans, brown sugar, melted butter, and vanilla, then mix.
Pour half the cake batter into a prepared baking dish, then sprinkle with half the streusel topping. Repeat the layers.
Bake in preheated oven until an inserted toothpick comes out virtually clean.
Remove from oven and immediately drizzle with the vanilla glaze.

Vanilla Glaze

Place powdered sugar, salt, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla into a medium sized bowl then whisk until smooth.
Pour over hot cake, cool slightly, then cut, serve, and enjoy!

Pro tip

Use a 9×13 inch baking dish that’s 2 1/2 inches deep — this is a big cake!

Tips & Tricks

Don’t over-mix. Over-mixing the cake batter will result in a dry, dense cake. Over-mixing the streusel will remove all those yummy clumps, which gives the cake texture!
Use a deep baking dish. A standard glass 9×13 inch baking dish is only 2 inches deep. Look for a baking dish that’s 2 1/2 inches deep to avoid overflowing.
Ice the cake while warm. This allows the icing to melt into the streusel topping which creates an ooey-gooey texture.

Variations

Use another flavor of cake mix. Try spice cake mix instead of yellow, then omit the spices — keep the salt!
Try another nut. Use walnuts instead of pecans.
Omit the glaze. If you find the cake plenty sweet, feel free to omit the glaze. Although, I do love the ooey-gooey texture the glaze gives!

What to serve with coffee cake

A hot cup of coffee is classically served next to coffee cake (hence the name, coffee cake!). If you’re looking to bulk up your breakfast or brunch, these other dishes would also be fantastic:

How to store

Leftover cake will last in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the freezer for 3 months. I don’t recommend storing in the fridge, because it’ll likely dry out.

To reheat, thaw, if frozen, then enjoy at room temperature or heat in the microwave until warm.

– Jennifer

Cake Mix Coffee Cake

What is the difference between cake and coffee cake?

Ingredients

How to make

Variations

What to serve with coffee cake

How to store