This sourdough discard coffee cake is so easy to make. It is sweet, delicious, and the perfect way to use your discard!
While I love making bread with my sourdough starter, I also love making all kinds of different sourdough discard recipes. This sourdough discard coffee cake recipe is one of my all time favorite sourdough discard recipes. Not only does this cake taste amazing but it is super easy to make too.
If you need some more sourdough inspiration some of my other favorite recipes are this Sourdough Everything Bagel Bread, Sourdough Graham Crackers, and Sourdough Apple Cake.
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❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe
- Easy: You need just a few simple ingredients to make this coffee cake. There’s nothing complicated and it is a great recipe for sourdough bakers who want to use their sourdough starter or discard for other recipes besides just bread.
- Reduce your kitchen waste: This recipe is an easy way to cut down on kitchen waste. Sourdough bakers will appreciate the slight tang the sourdough gives this cake.
- Tastes great: This is one of my all time favorite sourdough discard recipes! The tangy sourdough, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon flavors go so well together.
🍰 Ingredients needed
For this coffee cake, you will need:
- Flour: You’ll need all purpose flour.
- Sugar and brown sugar: To sweeten the cake. You will need brown sugar for the topping too.
- Sourdough discard: The star of this coffee cake recipe.
- Baking soda: To give the cake some rise.
- Salt: You’ll need just ½ a teaspoon.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg: To give the cake some spice. You will also top the cake with cinnamon.
- Butter: I recommend using unsalted butter.
- Egg: You’ll need one large egg.
- Oil: You’ll need vegetable or safflower oil for this recipe.
- Vanilla extract: Pure vanilla extract is best for baking.
If you’d like to learn how to make your own sourdough starter, this post on how to make sourdough starter with blueberries is a great start.
👩🏻🍳 How to make (step by step guide)
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 inch baking dish.
In a large mixing bowl combine your dry ingredients (flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg). Stir well with a large spoon.
Next, add in your wet ingredients and mix well with a hand mixer.
Pour the batter into the baking dish.
Next, in a medium bowl combine the ingredients for the topping (brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and flour). Use a pastry cutter or two forks to combine and press into the ingredients until the topping is pea sized.
Sprinkle the topping over the batter and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the middle of the cake.
🥡 How to store leftovers
Cover leftovers with plastic storage wrap and keep at room temperature. This coffee cake will be good for up to 4 days after making.
👩🍳 Tips
- Feel free to add walnuts or pecans to the topping or in the cake, if desired.
- Use a pastry cutter or two forks to combine the topping together.
- Mix the dry ingredients and then the wet ingredients for the best results.
More great sourdough recipes:
- Sourdough Vanilla Wafers
- Sourdough Apple Bread
- Sourdough Blueberry Coffee Cake
- Cinnamon Sourdough Muffins
- Sourdough Discard Oatmeal Cookies
- Sourdough Apple Cake
- Sourdough Graham Crackers
- Basil Sourdough Bread
If you tried this Sourdough Discard Coffee Cake or any other recipe on my site, please leave a ⭐ rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I would love to hear from you!
Sourdough Discard Coffee Cake
Equipment
- 9 x 9 inch baking dish
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the topping
- ⅓ cup brown sugar packed
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons butter cold
- 1 ½ tablespoons all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup pecans or walnuts optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 inch baking dish.
- In a large mixing bowl combine your dry ingredients (flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg). Stir well with a large spoon.1 cup all purpose flour, ½ cup sugar, ¼ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- Next, add in your wet ingredients and mix well with a hand mixer.1 cup sourdough starter, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pour the batter into the baking dish. Stir in nuts (these are optional).⅓ cup pecans or walnuts
- Next, in a medium bowl combine the ingredients for the topping (brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and flour). Use a pastry cutter or two forks to combine and press into the ingredients until the topping is pea sized.⅓ cup brown sugar, ¾ teaspoon cinnamon, 3 tablespoons butter, 1 ½ tablespoons all purpose flour
- Sprinkle the topping over the batter and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the middle of the cake.
Jane says
I saw this recipe link on That Sourdough Gals website. I opted to use the optional walnuts in the topping. This is a quick, easy, and delicious way to use discard. 10/10
Angie says
I made a couple different coffee cakes this weekend and this one… well, it took the cake! Not too sweet, complimented the coffee perfectly, and was easy to put together. Would only have been better if the recipe also had the measurements written in grams 🙂
Audrey says
Hi Angie, thank you so much for your review. I’ll update the recipe card with grams when I have a chance. 🙂
Anna says
Five stars from our whole staff team at school, made a double batch for Friday snacks and threw in some chopped apples. Everyone raves about it and I had to make another on the weekend because there were no leftovers to enjoy!
Audrey says
I am thrilled to hear everyone enjoyed it! Thank you so much for taking time to leave a review.