With a cinnamon sugar topping, this dairy-free coffee cake uses real coffee for its bold flavor. Made with Greek yogurt and lightly sweetened, this recipe is perfect to have on hand for bridal and baby showers.
Light and moist, this dairy-free cinnamon coffee cake has all the flavors of your favorite latte! Sweetened with applesauce and a sprinkle of sugar, this coffee cake uses actual coffee to bring out its bold flavor and can be dressed up or down for any occasion.
As a Certified Nutrition Coach, I love that the yogurt coffee cake uses minimal sugar to come together, which makes it tasty to pair with a midafternoon maple latte, just like this pumpkin protein bread. Basically, it's a healthy coffee cake with a crumb topping that you can enjoy anytime.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Easy ingredients: Most of the ingredients for this healthy cinnamon coffee cake you probably already have on hand.
Allergy-friendly and healthy: Naturally dairy-free and gluten-free, this recipe uses minimal processed sugars to come together.
Versatile: As-is, the loaf is very simple. However, it can be dressed up in so many ways that it's easy to adapt for any gathering.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Below are the ingredients you need to make the healthy coffee cake. Most of them you should have, and there are a few easy swaps if you don't.
Baking staples: You'll need 1:1 gluten-free baking flour for the base of the recipe. Then, your usual baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and vanilla extract.
Dairy-free yogurt: I use a vegan Greek yogurt for the recipe, and it works well (use the rest for this 3 ingredient yogurt cake). Regular Greek yogurt should work fine, too if you don't need the loaf to be dairy-free. The one I use is vanilla-based, so it does have some sweetness to add.
Applesauce: Opt for unsweetened applesauce so that you can control how sweet the coffee cake is. You can also replace applesauce with mashed bananas, as both will keep the cake moist.
Sugar: Any sugar you have on hand will work. We use cane or coconut palm sugar the most, but it doesn't matter.
Instant coffee: Use your blend to bring out the best flavor. Using instant coffee helps it mix into the batter better. However, I have totally just used coffee grounds, and it works well and gives the cake a bit of extra crunch. And if you love a coffee flavor, give these bold coffee protein balls a go too.
How to make it moist without dairy: A common issue with gluten-free flours is that baked goods dry out. The combination of dairy and applesauce helps counter this and results in a moist cake.
Expert Tips
The brand of yogurt you choose will affect both the texture and the flavor of the dairy-free cake. If you're using an unsweetened yogurt, you'll want to add a bit more sugar to the coffee cake.
Adding coffee grounds to the batter gives a slight crunch to the cake. If you don't like this, replace the almond milk with brewed coffee.
If making this for kids, I use decaf coffee.
Use a silicone loaf pan in place of greasing one, as it helps the apple cinnamon cake to slide out easier.
Fun Flavor Variations
As I said, this healthy, cinnamon coffee cake can be dressed up and altered in so many ways that it makes it easy to create new tastes. Below are a few of our favorite variations.
Nutty: Add chopped pecans or walnuts to the coffee cake batter for some extra crunch.
Caramel: Nothing goes together better than apple, cinnamon, and caranel in the fall. Drizzle the dairy-free cake with a homemade caramel sauce to amp up the indulgence.
Chocolate chip: This is especially delicious if you use banana in place of applesauce, swirl in some chocolate chips, and get a tasty bite of gooey chocolate each time.
How To Make Dairy-Free Coffee Cake
How To Serve It
Honestly, the coffee cake can be served any which way you like it. Personally, I like to curl up with a pumpkin spice latte and these morning coffee quotes while I dive into the cake.
My kids enjoy theirs smeared with homemade peanut butter and chocolate chips.
How To Store It
Once cooled, store the dairy and gluten-free coffee cake in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days. You can store it in the fridge as well for up to 7 days, but you'll want to heat it up slightly before you serve it.
FAQs
Adding yogurt to a cake (or pancakes) helps keep the cake moist and the texture a bit fluffier.
freeze well. Because it is so moist, when it thaws, it becomes a bit mushy. It's best enjoyed within 5 days of making it.
Other Healthy Dessert Recipes
- Dairy-free caramel sauce
- Dairy-free protein truffles
- The BEST dairy-free brownies
- White chocolate fudge
- Peppermint patty bars
- Fudgy protein brownies
- Chocolate chip protein powder muffins
- Chocolate frosted cashew cookies
- Sugar-free pudding
- Healthy chocolate pudding
- Peanut butter thumbprint cookies
- Healthy dessert recipes
Dairy-Free Coffee Cake
Video
Equipment
- 1 8x4 Silicone loaf pan
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups 1:1 Gluten-free baking flour
- ½ teaspoon Baking soda
- 0.5 teaspoon Baking powder
- 2 tablespoon Ground coffee
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ⅓ cup Cane sugar
- ¾ cup Dairy-free Greek Yogurt
- ½ cup Applesauce or mashed banana
- 2 Eggs
- ⅛ cup Almond milk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon Cane sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a large bowl combine the yogurt, applesauce, and eggs. Mix until mostly smooth.
- Add in the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
- Pour the batter into a silicone loaf pan and smooth out the top.
- In a small bowl, combine the topping ingredients. Sprinkle the mixture over top of the coffee cake.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- Remove from the oven and let cool in pan. Cut the cake into slices or squares and enjoy!
Notes
Disclaimer:
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data"
Shelby S says
The cake comes out so soft and I love the subtle coffee flavor.