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Easy Coffee Cake – A delicious all-in-one coffee sponge topped with smooth coffee buttercream. Simple to make and packed full of flavour.
PLUS – How to make this cake in any size of round, square or rectangular tin.
Last week I shared with you my recipe for Easy Chocolate Cake, and today I’m back with another simple, classic cake recipe – Coffee Cake topped with Coffee Buttercream.
Two big cake recipes in a row?
Yes. I realised that I have so many more cupcakes on here than full-sized layer cakes. The reason for this is that I almost always test new cake recipes as cupcakes, as it’s easy to make small batches making lots of little tweaks until the recipe is just perfect. As soon as the recipe is just right, I’ll share it on here and move onto the next one.
I decided it was about time that some of those cupcakes were transformed into big cakes, so I’m on a mission to supersize them all for you.
One of the reasons I love this coffee cake recipe is that both the sponge and the buttercream are absolutely jam-packed with coffee flavour.
Coffee is one of my absolute favourite cake flavours, and I struggle to resist buying a slice if I spot one in a coffee shop. However, sadly I’ve noticed that quite a few lack coffee flavour in the actual sponge, there’s the subtlest hint, but all the coffee flavour is in the icing. Not so with this cake, both the sponge and buttercream are packed full of flavour.
Can I use freshly brewed coffee rather than powder or granules?
No, the reason I use instant coffee powder or granules in this recipe is that it’s the easiest way to get an intense coffee flavour into both the sponge and buttercream. The amount of freshly brewed coffee needed would mean adding too much liquid to the mixture.
You also cannot substitute the coffee powder/granules for ground coffee beans. Making this substitution wouldn’t give the same flavour (as they need brewing to bring out the flavour) as the coffee beans wouldn’t dissolve into the mixture, so you’d end up with bitty cake and buttercream.
I only have coffee granules, how do I grind them into a powder?
I always use granules rather than powder and I simply give mine a quick blitz in my spice grinder. You can also grind them in a pestle and mortar.
Can I use decaf coffee?
Absolutely. We mostly drink decaf coffee at home and so that’s what I usually use for my cakes. The results of using regular instant coffee and decaf are the same.
Can I use self-raising flour instead of plain?
Absolutely. Instead of the 200g of plain flour and 2½ tsp of baking powder listed in the recipe, use 210g of self-raising flour.
Other recipe inspiration for coffee lovers
If you’re like me and love coffee flavoured treats then take a look at some of my other coffee-filled recipes:
- Caramel Macchiato Cupcakes – coffee cupcakes topped with whipped cream and a hidden caramel centre
- Coffee & Walnut Cake
- Cappuccino Truffles
- Coffee Cupcakes
What’s the best way to store my coffee cake?
This coffee cake can be stored in an airtight container for 4-5 days. Preferably it should be stored in the fridge (but allow it to come up to room temperature before eating as it’ll have a better flavour and the buttercream will soften), but it’ll be fine at room temperature providing the room isn’t too warm.
This cake is suitable for freezing, either just the coffee sponge or the buttercreamed cake. To freeze the coffee sponge cake, wait for it to cool and then wrap the cake in clingfilm or store it in an airtight container before freezing. Defrost it thoroughly before decorating.
The buttercreamed cake can also be frozen in the same way. If you’ve piped the cake beautifully and you’re worried about squashing it when you wrap it in buttercream simply freeze the cake uncovered on a dish for an hour to firm up the buttercream. Then wrap it in clingfilm. As the buttercream is already solid, it won’t get squashed. When you want to defrost the cake, remove it from the freezer and remove the clingfilm (so it doesn’t stick to the buttercream as it thaws).
I would not recommend freezing just the buttercream to use later as the consistency becomes a little too fudgy. This means it’s delicious on the cake but tricky to spread or pipe.
What are the coffee cake ingredients for a different size of tin?
As for my easy chocolate cake, I wanted to make it simple for you to make this cake in a different size or shape (either round, square or rectangular) so you can get it to fit in a tin you already have at home or feed as many or few people as you need.
The main recipe below is for a two-layer 20cm round cake (this serves 12 people). However, this recipe is easily adapted to use other sizes of tins.
To find the ingredients needed to make this cake in a different size, simply add the dimensions of your tin and the number of layers into the boxes below and hit “Calculate”.
Round Cake
Cake Diameter (cm)
Number of Layers
Cake Ingredients
0 g plain flour
0 tsp baking powder
0 tsp coffee powder/granules
0 medium egg(s)
0 g soft margarine or butter
0 g soft light brown sugar
0 tsp milk
0 tsp salt
Buttercream Ingredients
0 g butter
0 g icing sugar
0 tsp vanilla extract
0 tsp instant coffee powder/granules
0 tsp boiling water
Square or rectangular cake
Cake Size (cm)
x
Number of layers
Cake Ingredients
0 g plain flour
0 tsp baking powder
0 tsp coffee powder/granules
0 medium egg(s)
0 g soft margarine or butter
0 g soft light brown sugar
0 tsp milk
0 tsp salt
Buttercream Ingredients
0 g butter
0 g icing sugar
0 tsp vanilla extract
0 tsp instant coffee powder/granules
0 tsp boiling water
FREE GRAMS TO CUPS CONVERSION CHARTS
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Easy Coffee Cake
INGREDIENTS
For the coffee sponge
- 3 tbsp instant coffee powder - or coffee granules ground to a powder
- 200 g plain flour
- 2½ tsp baking powder
- 220 g soft light brown sugar
- 220 g margarine or butter - butter must be soft at room temperature
- 4 medium eggs
- 2 tsp milk
- ⅛ tsp salt
For the coffee buttercream
- 200 g butter - soft at room temperature
- 400 g icing sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- 8 tsp instant coffee powder or granules
- 4 tsp boiling water
- A little milk
This recipe is for 2x 20cm round sandwich tins. To find the ingredients for a different size of tin please use the calculator above the recipe.
INSTRUCTIONS
Make the coffee sponge
- Pre-heat your oven to 160ºC/140ºC fan.
Line two 20cm round sandwich tins with greaseproof paper or re-usable baking tin liners (I use these tins and these liners). - Put all of the cake ingredients into a large bowl (3 tbsp coffee powder, 200g plain flour, 2½ tsp baking powder, 220g soft light brown sugar, 220g margarine or butter, 4 medium eggs, 2 tsp milk, ⅛ tsp salt). Beat with an electric mixer or by hand on a low speed until all of the ingredients are combined.
- Split the mixture between the two prepared tins. Then bake for 30-35 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Once the cakes are cooked, remove them from the oven. Leave them to cool in their tins for about 10 minutes before removing them from the tins and moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the coffee buttercream
- While the cakes are cooling make the coffee buttercream. Start by mixing together the instant coffee powder/granules (8 tsp) with the boiling water (4 tsp). Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl beat the butter (200g) and vanilla extract (¼ tsp) on a low speed until soft. Add the icing sugar (400g) and beat on a low speed until combined with the butter and smooth. Gradually add the coffee mixture, 1 tsp at a time. After each addition beat the buttercream until the coffee has been fully combined before adding more.
- Check the consistency of your buttercream. It should be soft enough that you could spread it onto a slice of bread. If it is too firm, then add a little milk (no more than 1 tsp at a time) until it is your desired consistency.
Build the cake
- Place the bottom layer of your coffee sponge onto your serving dish. Spread about ⅓ of the coffee buttercream evenly across the sponge (I like to use a palette knife, but you could use a regular knife or the back of a spoon).
- Add the top layer of sponge. Again spread ⅓ of the coffee buttercream on top. Put the remaining buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle (I use a JEM1B nozzle). Pipe 12 blobs of buttercream evenly spaced around the edge of the cake. I give the piping bag a little wiggle as I squeeze so that the buttercream looks slightly ruffled.Of course, if you don't fancy piping, simply split the buttercream even between the middle and top of the cake.
- Serve
NOTES
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Free From/Suitable For
The ingredients I used to make this recipe are all free from the following allergens. However, please check any labels carefully for allergens you need to avoid as brands can vary, and product recipes can change over time.
- Suitable for Vegetarians
- Tree Nut-Free
- Peanut-Free
- Sesame-Free
- Soya-Free
- Sulphur Dioxide & Sulphite-Free
- Lupin-Free
Snowgoose says
Wow this was such a simple cake to make. Very light and moist and lots of buttercream..just perfect.I didn’t think there was much mixture going into the cake tins but it spread and rose beautifully. I loved the calculator which was great to convert into my 18cm tins.. how clever. I’ll definitely try another of Charlottes recipes.. Had to be one of the best fail safe, delicious and easy recipes I’ve done. Thank you Charlotte !
Sarah says
This is the 3rd time I’ve made this coffee cake and it’s absolutely beautiful. I’ve also made the lemon drizzle twice now and that’s superb too. I can’t wait to try the other recipes. Thank you Charlotte. Ps.. I love the ingredients calculator, what a clever idea.
Sez says
I made this based on the good reviews and followed the recipe to every word, but don’t understand what happened. The recipe calls for you to mix everything all together at once, which I thought was a really strange method but going by the reviews I thought perhaps it will work out fine. It really didn’t, my cake batter was really thick and didn’t rise in the oven. Came out flat as a pancake and really dry. Would be good to have a proper method in this recipe as my cake although edible, is not really spongy or moist at all.
Charlotte Oates says
I’m sorry your cake didn’t turn out as expected.
I’m surprised that you haven’t come across the all-in-one method before (where all of the ingredients are added to the bowl together and combined), it’s quite common here in the UK and people like Mary Berry and Delia Smith regularly use the method in their recipes. If the cakes didn’t rise I would expect there was an issue with your raising agent rather than the method used. It might be worth checking that your baking powder is working correctly. You can easily check this by adding a small amount to some boiling water. If it fizzes then it’s good to use. If not, then you’ll need to buy a new tub.
Kat says
Made this for my husband’s birthday yesterday. Didn’t have any brown sugar so used caster and didn’t have any instant coffee granules so used ground coffee (but a lot less of it). Thought it might end up gritty but it was amazing. Had so many compliments! I added a 20g less sugar as prefer not too sweet and a tiny bit less icing sugar in the topping. Will definitely use this recipe again and try with brown sugar!
Jennie says
Best cake I’ve ever made. I’m now going to look for more recipes on Charlotte’s site.
Fay says
Hi I’m using two 10 inch tins, how long should I bake them for?
Charlotte Oates says
As long as they’re sandwich tins then cook them for the same time as given in the original recipe.
Sorry no name says
Hi i want to bake this cake in one tin should I just double the baking time please answer
Charlotte Oates says
I don’t recommend baking this cake in one deep tin as I find you get better results by using sandwich tins. Also, some (although not all) people who have tried it have found it can dip in the middle after baking when you use a deeper tin. If you do decide to try it anyway it’ll need about 50 minutes in the oven.
Jennie says
This was the best cake I’ve made. Very light and absolutely delicious.
Thank you.
Annaleise says
Mine turned out Delish! thanks for the great recipe :))
Nidhi Krishnan says
I tried out this recipe a few days ago
Turned out super amazing
Thanks a lot for sharing it
Trees says
Fantastic cake so easy and flavoursome so many compliments thank you
Sharon Revill says
This delicious coffee cake is exactly what it says it is….easy! Used the exact ingredients and method and it turned out beautifully. Intense coffee flavour and smell. The only thing I found was I had way too much buttercream. I applied a thick layer in the middle and piped it all over the top of the cake and still had about a third of it left. For anyone who is calorie conscious, reducing the amount of buttercream by one third will reduce the calories to approx. 400 per slice. I put this recipe into My Fitness Pal and calorie wise it initially worked out pretty much as the recipe states. Great recipe, thanks for sharing x
Dom says
I was a bit dubious about this as the only cakes I’ve made with a batter were based on oil rather than margarine/butter. When I mixed this all together it did appear to split – the eggs were fresh and at room temperature, so not sure why this happened. Perhaps the order in which you add the mixture is important (mix all dry first?). However, the end result was fabulous and immediately devoured by a very happy wife. The sponge was very light and I had made sure that the baking powder was a new batch! Thank you for sharing the recipe!!
Jon says
Hi sorry I left this same question but it seems to have disappeared?
I’m making the cakes in 9 inch tins with the adjusted ingredient measurements. Would baking time and temperature remain the same? The temperature being at about 320 degrees fahrenheit?
Charlotte Oates says
The baking temperature is the same.
James says
My butter icing has separated from the coffee, can it be saved?
Charlotte Oates says
If you have a hand blender you could try blitzing it with that. If it’s not too badly split that can help bring it back together.
A says
Hi can I use cake flour?
Charlotte Oates says
I haven’t tested this with cake flour as it’s not something that’s readily available in the UK where I live so I’m not sure what the results would be – sorry.