Applesauce and Greek Yogurt Coffee Cake
This applesauce coffee cake is tender and fluffy with a beautiful brown sugar cinnamon streusel topping. This sweet treat pairs perfectly with your morning coffee or as a sweet afternoon pick-me-up.
We’re swapping the traditional sour cream and whole milk in coffee cake for Greek yogurt and applesauce to get the perfect amount of moisture, springy texture and sweetness and lowering the calories some. Make this the next time you’re craving coffee cake or you have guests with you for breakfast and enjoy a lightened up version that doesn’t lack in flavor.
If coffee desserts are your thing (ones that have actual coffee) you must try dark chocolate coffee cookies.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Simple ingredients.
- Lightened up in the best way!
Ingredients and Substitutions:
These are the main ingredients and substitutions. See the recipe card below for the full ingredients list and instructions for this delicious applesauce coffee cake.
- All-Purpose Flour
- Light Brown Sugar: or dark brown sugar for a more pronounced caramel flavor.
- Unsalted Butter: used for both the cinnamon streusel crumb topping and the coffee cake batter.
- Unsweetened Applesauce: use unsweetened applesauce with no other ingredients.
- Non-Fat Greek Yogurt: traditional coffee cake calls for sour cream but we’re using yogurt as our secret ingredient to lighten it up.
- Large Egg: you can swap with a flax egg if needed.
- Pure Vanilla Extract
Variations
- Top with a sprinkle of powdered sugar for extra sweetness before serving.
- Add chopped walnut pieces to your streusel topping for a crunchy addition.
- Pour half the batter in, top with a layer of cinnamon sugar and chopped nuts) and add the remaining batter for a delicious layered cake.
Dietary Modifications
- For gluten-free, you can use a gluten-free flour, however this will significantly change the texture of your applesauce cake.
- This recipe has not been tested with dairy-free yogurt but you can try a nice thick DF yogurt and coconut oil in place of butter. This will change the taste and texture.
How to make this applesauce coffee cake (a step-by-step visual guide):
Step 1: preheat and prep baking pan
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray then line it with parchment paper leaving an overhang.
Step 2: make the tender crumb topping
Make the streusel topping first. Add all of the ingredients to a small bowl (image 1). Mix with a rubber spatula, pressing into it to break up the butter and rubbing it into the dry ingredients. It’s ready once it looks moist and sandy (image 2). Set the streusel topping aside.
Step 3: mix ingredients and combine
To make the cake batter, whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar in a medium bowl until combined (image 3). Make sure to break up any lumps of brown sugar. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the applesauce, melted butter, Greek yogurt, egg, and vanilla until smooth (image 4). Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients (image 5) and mix until just combined (image 6).
Step 4: spread the batter and add streusel topping
The batter will be thick and sticky, that is ok! Spoon batter into an even layer in the prepared pan (image 7). Sprinkle the streusel topping over the batter in an even layer (image 8).
Step 6: bake
Bake the cake in the preheated oven on the center rack for 23-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean and the top of the cake springs back when gently touched. Let cake cool in the pan for at least 20 minutes before serving (image 9). Cut into 9 equal squares for serving.
Expert Tip!
Make sure to spread the batter into an even layer in the pan. This ensures an even rise.
Recipe FAQs
Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the fridge for 3-4 days.
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Applesauce Coffee Cake
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Ingredients
For the Streusel Topping
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 30g
- 2 Tbsp. light brown sugar, lightly packed 24g
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter 28g
- 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon
For the Cake
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour 180g
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed 95g
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 128g
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled 48g
- 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt 55g
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8-inch square pan then line it with parchment paper leaving an overhang.
- Make the streusel topping first. Add all of the ingredients to a small bowl. Mix with a rubber spatula, pressing into it to break up the butter and rubbing it into the dry ingredients. It’s ready once it looks moist and sandy. Set the streusel topping aside.
- To make the cake batter, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar in a medium-sized bowl until combined. Make sure to break up any lumps of brown sugar.
- In a separate larger bowl, whisk together the applesauce, melted butter, Greek yogurt, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. The batter will be thick and sticky, that is ok! Pour batter into an even layer in the prepared pan.
- Sprinkle the streusel topping over the batter in an even layer.
- Bake the cake in the preheated oven on the center rack for 23-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean and the top of the cake springs back when gently touched.
- Cool the cake in the pan for at least 20 minutes before serving. Cut into 9 equal squares for serving.
Notes
- Make sure to spread the batter into an even layer in the pan. This ensures an even rise.
- To make it easier to serve, you can use the parchment paper to help lift the cake out of the pan before cutting and serving.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container. It will keep for 1-2 days at room temperature or 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
- Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary with substitutions.
Excited to try this! Could you sub GF flour for the AP flour? My husband has celiac so I’d like to allow him to have some.