- Hi guys, welcome back to my channel.
Today I am gonna show you how to make
a delicious crumb cake for Christmas morning.
Now, this cake has really been inspired this year
by thinking about my own childhood Christmas mornings,
that I would spend with my parents and my siblings.
And store-bought coffee cake was always on the menu.
It was the same coffee cake that my parents would buy
year after year.
And I don't know why,
but this year I started to get really sentimental
for this coffee cake.
Probably because of COVID and everything that's going on,
I'm actually not able to spend Christmas with my family.
But I felt that I could patch them in,
and my dad and I could actually make a coffee cake together.
Hi, Dad!
- Hello, and Merry Christmas to everyone.
So it's really tough for us this year
that we can't have the fun that we've had in the past,
but next year.
- I know, it's so true.
But you know what we do have, is a bank full of memories.
And every time I'm doing something fun with my family,
I always think that I'm making a deposit to my memory bank
so that when I have to make a withdrawal, it's there for me.
And I feel like I have been making
all kinds of withdrawals this season. (laughs)
- That's for sure.
- Okay, so Dad, you ready?
You got all your ingredients.
- Yes, I do.
They're right here.
- So we're first gonna begin with the crumb topping.
I like to get this part done first.
That way when your cake batter is ready,
you can just pop it on top.
So we're first gonna begin
with a 1/2 cup of all purpose flour.
- I've mixed that already.
- Okay, so you mixed all your dry ingredients ahead of time?
- Yes, I did, and I put the almonds.
The only thing I didn't do was put the butter.
- Oh, okay. That's alright.
Alright, so sit tight
while we walk everybody through.
Then you're also gonna add
a 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder.
And that's just gonna puff up your crumble a little bit,
so that it has a nice texture.
And then you're also gonna add
two different types of sugar.
So I like to do two tablespoons of white sugar
and two tablespoons of brown sugar.
And then for a little bit of spice,
we're going to add a 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
And then we're just gonna whisk this all up
until it's combined.
So Dad, this is the stage you're at, right?
You've got everything all whisked up and ready to go?
- Including the almonds.
- Including the almonds. (laughs) Okay.
Wait to add the almonds just yet.
You'll see why in a minute.
- Alright.
- Now we're gonna add our five tablespoons
of melted butter.
- Right, here we go.
- And then do you have a fork or something,
or a little whisk you can whisk it up with?
- No, I have a fork.
- That works.
And then as you're whisking,
do you see it's sort of turning into like beach sand?
It looks kind of crumbly?
- Yeah, it looks delicious.
- Yeah, it does, right.
So just keep going
until all the dry ingredients are combined.
- [Dad] Okay.
- Now, for those of you at home,
this would be the time to add the almonds.
And so you're gonna do a 1/4 cup of sliced raw almonds.
It's all there is to it!
So to achieve the really light and fluffy texture
of this cake, it's really important
that you get three ingredients at room temperature.
The butter, the eggs and the sour cream.
This is just gonna help all of those ingredients combine
and create a really nice, soft and delicious texture.
So Dad, did you get everything out at room temperature?
- [Dad] All set.
- (laughs) Very good.
So we're gonna add 3/4 cup of butter in a mixer.
So Dad, I have to ask you a question about this coffee cake
that you and Mom served all those years.
First of all, how did you get away with just serving one?
I remember it being like this tiny little thing,
and the three of, well the five of us
would all devour it.
And once it was gone, it was gone.
- Well, you have to understand
you guys loved big breakfasts.
Well, so did I.
So there was scrambled eggs with cheese
and what have you inside.
And then there was sausage and bacon and hash browns.
So when you really think of it,
and I think Mom even toasted some English muffins.
So the coffee cake was sort of the icing on the cake.
Pardon the expression. (laughs)
- And then you're also gonna add your sugar.
Then you just wanna beat this up
until it's nice and fluffy.
How's your butter looking?
- Um, do I put the vanilla in now?
- No, is it really fluffy?
You didn't beat that too long.
I'm not convinced it's fluffy.
(Dad laughs)
I don't want you calling me later
telling me you got a dense cake.
- [Mom] But he doesn't have the eggs in there yet!
- No, don't put the eggs in.
It's gotta be really light and fluffy.
It has to almost look like whipped cream.
- [Dad] Yeah, I'm fluffy.
- (laughs) Now we're gonna add one egg, one at a time,
and beat in between each addition.
Now we're gonna add two teaspoons of vanilla extract.
Now for the dry ingredients.
So I have 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour.
To that, you're going to add two teaspoons of baking powder,
1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda and a teaspoon of salt.
Then you can just whisk that up until combined,
and that's all you have to do.
Okay, so here's the important part.
You first wanna add a little bit of the dry ingredients
into your bowl,
about 1/3 of the mixture.
Then give it a little bit of a beat.
And then you wanna add 1/3 of the sour cream.
You got the sour cream in, Dad?
- [Dad] Yes, ma'am.
- Alright, give it a beat.
(mixer whirring)
Okay, so now we are gonna use a nine by five loaf pan.
And I like to spray it with baking spray.
But one tip with the baking spray.
I think it's important
that that baking spray is just well-distributed.
Otherwise your baked goods
will start to burn around the edges.
So we wanna fill our tin
half way with half of the batter.
Now, one of the ways I like to do that
is with an ice cream scoop.
I just find it's a little bit easier,
because it is a sticky batter.
Do you notice that, Dad, it's pretty sticky?
- [Dad] Yes, but I prefer just using the spatular,
but you know, to each his own.
- You can absolutely do that.
And then all you do is take a spatula,
and just smooth out the little balls there.
Okay, now we are going to do a cup
of frozen, pitted cherries.
I love to use the frozen cherries,
because they come already pitted,
and they are good to go.
- [Dad] These were tough to find.
I had to go to three stores.
- (laughs) Oh my gosh.
Oh no!
- [Dad] But I finally found them.
And I had everybody working for me.
They couldn't have been nicer.
- I am so sorry.
I usually get mine at Trader Joe's.
But if you can't get them there,
you can also get them at a major grocery store.
Just look in the frozen fruit aisle.
So now one tip, Dad, with the cherries.
Don't let them touch the side of the pan.
- [Dad] Okay.
I'll smooth them out.
- Because they will stick and bake on there.
So just keep them to the batter.
So, Dad, how are you doing? (laughs)
- [Dad] Good.
Except I think I have too much batter.
(Beth laughs)
- Why do you think you have too much batter?
- [Dad] I don't know. (laughs)
- Well wait, no, 'cause we gotta put the top on!
We didn't do the second layer.
- [Dad] Alright, let's go!
- Now you're gonna add the rest of the batter
on top of the cherries.
At this point, you now wanna add your crumble.
Now because it's been sitting for a bit, Dad,
that brown sugar may have a tendency of hardening.
- [Dad] No, it's good.
I have my,
I have my fork.
- Okay, so go ahead and just
cover the whole thing with it.
- [Dad] And I should use all crumble.
- Yes, you need to use all crumble.
It might look like a lot, but as it bakes,
it sort of becomes more packed and dense.
And when you take your first bite of this cake,
you will be happy you put the whole thing on.
So don't chintz.
- [Dad] Okay, I never chintz.
You know that.
More is better, as far as I'm concerned.
- It's the holidays.
We'll work it off in January.
- [Dad] (laughs) Exactly.
- [Mom] You haven't got it all over the cake.
- [Dad] No, wait, the cameraman is speaking to me.
She says I don't have it applied even.
- (laughs) My mom is the camera man.
She's giving direction from behind.
- [Dad] It's going in.
- We are gonna bake this at 350 degrees Fahrenheit
for about an hour, 10 minutes.
It does take some time to bake,
because the pan is so deep.
So what I typically do is bake it for an hour, check on it,
and if it feels like the crumble is getting too browned,
just put some aluminum foil on top
for the last 5 to 10 minutes.
I also think it helps to make sure that your cake
is on the lower third of your oven.
Don't put it on the middle rack.
And then when it's done, it'll look like this.
Look how delicious.
Oh my gosh, it smells divine!
Now I know you're gonna be really tempted
to just dive into this right away,
but it's better if you can allow it to cool
for at least 30 minutes.
That will allow the cake to set up,
and it'll be a lot easier to slice that way.
Then once your cake is cool,
release the edges with a knife,
just to make sure that any of that crumble
has not stuck onto the sides.
Because then when you go to try to release it,
it could stick and fall apart on you. (laughs)
And then here we go.
We're just going to give it a flip.
Don't worry if the crumble gets too crumbly.
There, see, that's why you wanna put a lot of crumble on,
in case you lose any when you flip it out. (laughs)
Then for a really nice Christmas-y snowy effect,
I like to add a little bit of powdered sugar.
Okay, Dad, are you... How's your cake?
Doesn't your kitchen smell amazing?
- It does.
And you know, it really looks delicious.
I really wanna cut into it.
Can I get your permission?
- Yes, let's slice ourselves a piece.
I couldn't resist.
I'm serving this on the Spode Christmas plates
to be truly authentic.
These are the plates that I had as a kid growing up.
Our Christmas breakfast was always served on these plates.
And then my parents passed them down to me,
and now I serve breakfast to my kids on these plates.
And they always laugh,
'cause they think that I bought the plates for them.
And I always have to remind them that no,
your grandparents bought these plates.
I used them as a kid,
and now they are being passed down to them.
So hopefully one day they'll pass them down to their kids.
- (laughs) Well, that's what we had hoped that,
that's why we passed them down to you.
Alright, here it goes.
- (Beth) Here we go.
Let's see, I'm curious to see what you think.
- Mm, Beth.
This is delicious.
- Isn't it good?
- It's so light.
Can I give some to the camera woman?
- (laughs) Yes, see what she thinks.
- [Dad] Here she is, the camera woman,
making a rare appearance.
- Here I am!
Mm, it's perfect.
- [Dad] Great. - Just fabulous.
- [Dad] Your daughter is a good cook.
- Yeah, she knows everything I taught her. (laughs)
- Well, we miss you terribly.
And yet we think we see the light
at the end of the tunnel.
So stay safe, Merry Christmas
and a very Happy New Year.
- Well, thanks, Dad.
And if I don't see all of you before then,
have a very Merry Christmas,
and I will be back here in the new year.
We'll kick the year off with some healthy recipes
to make up for all of this decadence we've been through.
Alright you guys, stay safe,
and I'll see you soon.
Merry Christmas. Bye.