Rhubarb Coffee Cake Recipe with Streusel Topping: Delicious and Easy

Okay okay I know I said in my Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Recipe that there was only one rhubarb recipe you’d ever need but that was until I tried this Rhubarb Coffee Cake Recipe. Now, you definitely need both of them. My husband says it is his new favorite dessert and has requested it a few times since I perfected the recipe. This is a big deal because he doesn’t have too much of a sweet tooth so you know it’s good if he is requesting it! Read on for the recipe and tell me what you think when you try it! Spoiler alert…the secret ingredient to this cake is sour cream! If you’re looking for more irresistible dessert recipes, don’t miss the From Scratch Desserts.

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What You Need:

Jump to the recipe for all of the ingredients you need but here I wanted to give a quick overview of some of the tools and major ingredients.

• Rhubarb- this is such an underrated veggie! You plant it once and it comes back year after year. You can sometimes find it in the frozen section of your grocery store but I’ve found that not all regions have it available. My poor bestie Lisa in Texas can’t find it to save her life so can you believe she’s never tried rhubarb before!?
• Springboard Pans– These are great for cheesecakes, coffee cakes, and more! The sides come up for a beautiful presentation when the cake is done. I have them in a few different sizes which we have enjoyed for stacking cakes.
• Pastry Blender- This is a simple tool that makes making streusels, crumbles, and crisps so much easier! It took me a while to buy one and when I did I was kicking myself for not getting it sooner, especially because it was so inexpensive. Before this, I was just using forks to make my crumbles.

Rhubarb Season

Rhubarb season is in full swing right now and while I am still establishing my own plant in my garden, I have a lot of friends who rely on me to make them their rhubarb sweets so I get my hands on plenty of it! Nothing is better than fresh rhubarb but when the season ends the next best thing is frozen rhubarb and of course canned pie filling like this Strawberry Rhubarb Canned Pie Filling.

I made this recipe a few times the first week that I was testing it out and the second time I did it in a springform pan. My favorite size was the 9-inch pan because it was the perfect thickness to enjoy all of the layers of this coffee cake in one bite. If you don’t have a springform pan, use another 8-10-inch pan that you have. Make sure to alter the baking time if you use a different sized pan. Preheat the oven to 350º and grease your pan. You can line it with parchment paper as well.

Streusel (or crumble) Top

Struesel and crumble tops are very similar! The ratio of the flour and sugar will vary but either way, this is a topping you absolutely cannot go wrong with. I LOVE adding it to my pies and other desserts to change things up a bit and add a little extra sweetness. Try this Berry Bars recipe where the berries are sandwiched between two delicious crumble layers.

To make the streusel top for the rhubarb coffee cake combine flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the melted butter and mix until it is crumbly. As you can see from my photo my little one wasn’t shy about grabbing some. She approved of the taste! This streusel is a little more wet than the crumbles I have made before. It is nice and thick on top of the cake so be sure to use it all even if you think it seems like too much.

Put the streusel in the refrigerator while you make the cake. If you leave it in the fridge too long it may become too cold and difficult to work with. I know this because I made my streusel way ahead of time once and then I had to chisel it out of the bowl! 😂 It all worked out in the end though.

My older daughter LOVES when I make streusel and crumble toppings. She always sneaks in a few nibbles before I can put it all on the dessert. No doubt my 1-year-old learned to sneak some of the streusel by watching my 10-year-old daughter…who likely learned it from me so I guess I can’t complain too much.

Let’s Get Making the Rhubarb Coffee Cake

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another medium bowl, toss the rhubarb with lemon juice and cornstarch. Set both bowls aside until the wet ingredients are ready.

In a stand mixer or a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy. I love my Kitchenaid mixer with the paddle attachment with bowl scraper. Make sure you get the attachments that fit your specific Kitchenaid because different ones will fit different sizes and models. Add the egg, vanilla, almond extract, and sour cream. The sour cream and almond extract are the secret weapons of this recipe. They add the most amazing flavor and moisture to the cake.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on low until just combined. The batter will be pretty thick. Fold in half of the rhubarb and then pour the batter into the springboard pan. Layer the second half of the rhubarb on top of the batter. Top with the chilled streusel topping.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The edges of the cake should pull away from the pan. The internal temperature of the cake should be between 200º-205º. Enjoy this delicious treat warm with ice cream or cooled. My favorite way to eat it is a little bit warm. All the flavors go together so well. The soft cake compliments the slight crunch of the streusel. I hope you enjoy this coffee cake as much as we have.

I’ve made this rhubarb coffee cake several times this spring and it was so nice to change up our usual rhubarb pie desserts. I can’t wait until black raspberry season; I’ll try this coffee cake with black raspberries next! What fruit do you think would be good in it?

Rhubarb Coffee Cake with Streusel Top

This is a moist cake with just enough rhubarb and the best crunchy streusel on top. Eat it by itself or top with some vanilla ice cream. Either way this is going to be one of your favorite rhubarb recipes to make in the spring and summertime. Did I mention it is a super easy cake to make too?

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Equipment

• 9" springboard pan
• pastry blender

Ingredients

  

Streusel Top

• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch salt

Rhubarb Coffee Cake

• 3 cups rhubarb fresh or frozen, chopped into small pieces
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp butter room temperature
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• 3/4 cup sour cream

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350º and grease a 9" springform pan.

Streusel Top

• In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add melted butter and mix until the mixture is crumbly. Set in the refrigerator while you make the cake.

Rhubarb Coffee Cake

• In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In another medium bowl, toss rhubarb with lemon juice and cornstarch. Set aside.
• In a stand mixer (or a large bowl if you don't have a mixer), use the paddle attachment to cream together butter and sugar. Add the egg, vanilla, almond extract, and sour cream. Mix until combined.
• Add dry ingredients to the mixer and mix on low until just combined. The batter will be thick. Add half of the rhubarb mix to the batter and fold in by hand.
• Add the batter to the springboard pan. Layer the second half of rhubarb on top of the batter. Top with the chilled streusel topping.
• Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the edges have pulled away from the pan.Internal temp should be between 200º-205º.
• Enjoy warm with ice cream or cooled