Banana Sour Cream Coffee Cake

After a particularly hectic week, it’s nice to wake up on Saturday morning to a humongous cup of coffee and a slice of coffee cake to ease into the weekend. This cake used up the brown bananas on my kitchen table, was easy to put together, and remained moist three days later. 

The cake:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mashed ripe bananas (I used 2 small bananas)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Crumb topping:

• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

The glaze:

• 3/4 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon warm water

1. Preheat oven to 350º, and grease a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan.

2. In a medium sized bowl whisk the flour, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt – set aside.

3. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar, then add the eggs. Beat in the sour cream, bananas, and vanilla.

4. Add the flour mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon until well incorporated – don’t over mix.

5. In a small bowl, combine the light brown sugar, cinnamon, and walnuts.

6. Spread 1/3 of the batter in the loaf pan and top with 1/3 of the crumb topping – repeat twice more, ending with a layer of the crumb topping. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, testing with a toothpick. Let pan cool on a wire rack.

7. When cake is cool, whisk the confectioners sugar, vanilla, and warm water until smooth. Take the cake out of the pan and drizzle glaze on top.