A Match Made in Heaven - Coffee Heath-Bar Crunch Cake

I like Coffee and I like Heath Bar baking bits.  Put them together and you have a match made in HEAVEN!  That's just what The Cake Slice Bakers did this month...we baked a cake sent from Heaven - and I do believe there is a place with just that title, "Cake Heaven".  I know when I am in "Cake Heaven" - it is when I sit down with a piece of an amazing cake and a lovely hot mug of tea or coffee and after the first bite of cake and sip of my tea my eyes will roll back in my head as my shoulders relax and my body swarms with happiness all over.  This is "Cake Heaven".  Have you every experienced this?  PLEASE say that you have! If you haven't....well, we just need to make it happen! You can start off by going ahead and making this cake recipe and following my orders to sit down in a comfy chair with your piece of cake and choosen hot beverage to go along with it.  You will not regret it.

This cake is similar to a coffee cake in that it has a nice dense texture with a lovely topping of a crumb layer featuring the Heath Bar baking bits. Delightful!

Coffee Heath-Bar Crunch Cake

(recipe from Lauren Chattman's book, Cake Keeper Cakes)

Streusel Ingredients:

1/2 bag Heath Bar baking bits

2 Tbsp light brown sugar, packed

2 Tbsp flour

1 Tbsp butter, softened

Cake Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 Tbsp instant espresso powder (I used instant coffee powder and it worked out just fine)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup milk

Directions:

1. Make the streusel by combining with a fork the brown sugar, flour and butter in a medium bowl.  Toss in Heath Bar baking bits once mixture resembles large crumbs.  Set mixture aside in refrigerate until ready to use.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9" round springform pan and set aside.

3. Make cake by combining flour, espresso (or coffee) powder, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.  Set aside.

4. In a large bowl cream together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy - about 3 minutes on medium-high speed.   Scraping down bowl at least once to make sure all ingredients are getting beaten together.  With mixer on low speed add in egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract.

5. Add in flour mixture and milk alternately with beater on low speed - beginning and ending with flour mixture.

6.  Pour batter into prepared springform pan.  Smooth out batter with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle streusel mixture evenly on top of cake batter. 

7. Bake cake for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center of cake comes out clean.  Cool cake 5 minutes on wire rack and then remove side of pan.  Cool, serve and enjoy!

If you want to have something wonderful to do while eating a slice of this cake go check out the rest of The Cake Slice Bakers - what a fabulously talented group of bakers we have here!

Happy Coffee Heath-Bar Crunch Cake Baking!