Cinnamon Crumb Cake with Cinnamom Filling - Casting a magic spell inside the cake

Crumbly Streusel Topping interspersed with a sticky cinnamon filling...

Hibernating?? ..No....that would be for a much longer period of time....but yes its been quite some time now since I last visited my virtual world. Been vacationing much more than my usual share and yes, also been busier than usual with family and friends to take care of and with the usual routine stuff.....but, for me, what makes it interesting is that each of these mundane sounding everyday jobs revolves around lifestyles, people that we meet from different strata, friends, my family, my two children who are helping me evolve everyday and my dear husband who has made my life come alive. I am not trying to make it sound like an acknowledgements coloumn nor am I trying to sound too repetitive, but I guess all of this together makes every second worth living.

And then there is Food...put in simple words, it sustains life and a lot of times also sustains the soul....could be a lavish festive spread or a calorie sensitive health platter or a quick grab-a-bite fast food or just your simple home food ...you will surely agree with me that there is nothing more heartening than your favorite food at the table. So here is one of my very favorite Crumb Cake which everyone likes...haven't come across any exceptions.

This a beautiful Golden Crumb Cake with a  lovely Streusel Topping and hiding in between the cake is the cinnamon filling. The cake itself is so soft and moist , it is just waiting to melt into your mouth...believe me, I am not exaggerating...that's the way it really is...those who have tasted it can vouch for it.

Very cinnamony, but you'll be surprised to know that it is just the topping and the filling that have the cinnamon..the cake itself is a lovely golden vanilla cake. I came across this recipe long ago, accidentally, on www.nigella.com, when I was searching for Apple Strudel. Not that I was keen on baking the strudel, but just curious enough to know why it is one of the favorite things. The original recipe called for a lot of sugar in the topping, the cake and the filling. I can do with very less sugar all the time....So I have cut down the amount of sugar in my version.

Make room for some leisure time for yourself in the kitchen before you start off on this one. It calls for some extra preparation time than any other normal cake because you need to keep the  topping and the filling ready before you start mixing the cake batter. So get set going for a pleasurable baking experience, the results of which are so rewarding that you will find excuses to bake this one again...

Ingredients

The Streusel Topping


3/4 cup Sugar (6 fl oz)
3/4 cup Quick rolled Oats (like Quaker) (6 fl oz) (Can use ordinary flour instead)
1.5 tbsp Cinnamon Powder
1/3 cup melted butter (3 fl oz) (Either Salted or Unsalted)
1/2 cup Coarsely ground Almonds , optional

You can use this Streusel topping for any other cake or any fruit crumble.

The Filling

3/4 cup Brown Sugar (6 fl oz.)
1.5 tbsp Cinnamon Powder
1 tsp Cocoa Powder, for a deeper colour, optional

The Cake

3/4 cup soft butter (6 fl oz) (Either Salted or Unsalted)
1 and 1/2 cup of sugar, powdered (12 fl oz)
2 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
3 large eggs
3/4 cup curd/yoghurt (6 fl oz) (the original recipe used sour cream, I have substituted it with home made curd)
1 and 1/4 cup milk (10 fl oz)
2 cups Atta (Whole Wheat flour) (16 fl oz)


Method


For the topping
        

Mix together all the dry ingredients with a fork. Add the melted butter and mix well till well combined. Set aside.
For the Filling

Mix together all the ingredients together and set aside.


To make the Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 180 Degree Celsius.
2. You will need at least a10" x 12" x 3" pan for this cake. This cake is definitely for a large gathering or as in most cases a "store in the fridge cake" which gets better with every passing day.
3. Sieve Atta and baking powder and set aside.
4. Mix the curd and milk and whisk with a fork till it mixes well. You don't need to whisk out all the lumps. It takes care of itself while baking.
5. Cream the sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
6. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition ( beat till the egg is completely mixed into the batter).
7. Add a tsp of Atta in between each addition of egg to prevent curdling.
8. Add half the Atta and mix into the flour. This ensures that most of the flour is covered in fat before the liquid is added and yields a lighter cake with maximum volume.
9. Add the remaining Atta and milk-curd mixture alternatively and beat well to ensure a smooth batter.
10. Beat only till all the ingredients are mixed well. Do not overbeat otherwise you will end up with a dense cake.
11. Now comes the assembling part.
12. Pour half the batter into the prepared pan spreading all the way up to the edges. You might want to use a wooden spoon for this.
13. Sprinkle the filling evenly on top of the batter. Make sure you cover the whole surface.
14. Pour the remaining batter on top of the filling and spread it evenly.
15. If required, you can take a knife and gently swirl the filling into the batter like in a marbled cake.. Again, don't combine it thoroughly otherwise the filling will mix with the batter.
16. Sprinkle the topping on top of the cake and cover the whole surface evenly.
17. Bake the cake in the preheated oven for about 55 to 60 minutes. The topping would have turned into a golden brown sheet and a toothpick should come out clean from the center of the pan.
18. Cool the cake for about 15-20 minutes and serve warm right put of the pan. Cover with a cling film and refrigerate.

Instead of a one large cake pan you can use two smaller pans and make two of these cakes for giveaways.

The golden brown Streusel right out of the oven

A closer look

Happy Baking !!