Macadamia Nut Coffee Cake

Shortly after Christmas I bought a lot of macadamia nuts for baking from Costco when they were clearing them out. I was excited to try this recipe to find a use for some of my macadamia nuts. We all really enjoyed this special breakfast treat!

Topping:
2/3 cup (4 oz) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (3 oz) granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
6 tbsp (3 oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Cake:
1 cup (5 oz) all-purpose flour
½ cup (2 oz) cake flour
½ cup (4 oz) granulated sugar
½ cup (4 oz) firmly packed light brown sugar
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
2 large eggs
½ cup (4 fl oz) macadamia nut oil OR canola oil
1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup (5 oz) unsalted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch round springform pan. Line the bottom with a round of parchment paper and grease the paper.

To make the topping, in a small bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and ginger. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, cut or rub in the butter until coarse crumbs form. Set aside. (I used the food processor for this step.)

To make the cake, in a bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour and cake flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. (Once again, I used a food processor to “sift” the ingredients together.)

In another bowl, whisk together the sour cream, eggs, oil, and vanilla until well blended. Stir the sour cream mixture into the flour mixture. Using an electric mixer on medium speed or a wire whisk, beat until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.

Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly. Sprinkle evenly with half of the topping. Cover evenly with the remaining batter. Sprinkle evenly with the nuts, gently pressing them into the batter, then cover with the remaining topping.

Bake until the topping is golden brown, 40 – 45 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 20 minutes. Remove the sides of the springform pan Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into wedges.

Recipe Source: The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book