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If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a sourdough starter living in your kitchen that sometimes begs to be used more creatively than just for loaves of bread. That’s where this absolute gem of a recipe comes into play — the easiest sourdough discard coffee cake. It’s my go-to recipe whenever I crave something sweet with my afternoon coffee or when I want to impress my guests without spending hours in the kitchen.
What I adore about this recipe, besides its delicious outcome, is the simplicity and minimal equipment required. You won’t be left with a mountain of dishes to wash, making the clean-up almost as sweet as the cake itself. Plus, it’s a fantastic way to put that sourdough discard to good use, reducing waste and adding a unique tang to your coffee cake.
Here’s how I make Sourdough Discard Coffee Cake:
What You’ll Need For the Cake:
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- 1⁄3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg (slightly beaten)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3⁄4 cup sugar
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
What You’ll Need For the Topping:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
For the cake, you’ll need 1 cup of sourdough starter, which gives this cake its delightful tang and tender crumb. Mix that with 1/3 cup of vegetable oil for moisture and an egg to bind everything together.
The dry ingredients are straightforward pantry staples: 1 cup all-purpose flour, 3/4 cup sugar for sweetness, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda for rise, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon for that warm, spiced flavor that pairs so beautifully with coffee.
The topping is where the magic happens, creating a beautifully caramelized, crunchy layer that perfectly complements the soft cake beneath. To achieve this irresistible texture, you’ll need 1 ¼ cups of all-purpose flour for structure, ¾ cup of packed light brown sugar for a rich molasses depth, ¼ cup of granulated sugar to enhance sweetness, and 1 ¼ teaspoons of ground cinnamon for warm, spiced notes. The key to binding it all together is ½ cup of melted unsalted butter, ensuring the crumbles hold their shape while baking into golden perfection.
The process couldn’t be easier: combine your sourdough starter, oil, and egg. In another bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients and then incorporate them into the sourdough mixture.
Spread the batter into a greased baking pan. I used an 11 x 7 inch baking dish, but a 9-inch square pan will work as well.
For the topping, you can use a pastry blender to get the perfect crumbly texture, but your fingers will work just fine too. Sprinkle this mixture over the batter, and then it’s ready to bake.
Bake it in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes, and what comes out is nothing short of divine. The cinnamon-spiced aroma filling the kitchen is irresistible, and the cake itself strikes the perfect balance between tender and crumbly, with a slightly tangy flavor that makes it stand out from other coffee cakes.
This sourdough discard coffee cake has become a staple in my home. It’s perfect for those lazy weekend mornings, an afternoon treat, or even as a casual dessert when friends come over. The ease of preparation, combined with the delightful flavors and textures, makes this recipe a keeper. Give it a try, and I promise, it’ll become your go-to coffee cake recipe as well.
Sourdough Discard Coffee Cake:
Ingredients
What You'll Need For the Cake:
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg slightly beaten
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
What You'll Need For the Topping:
- 1 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Gently mix together sourdough starter, oil and egg.
- Stir together the dry ingredients and gently fold them into the sourdough mixture until just combined—be careful not to overmix
- Put dough into a greased 9 inch square pan or 11 x 7-inch baking pan.
- Crumble topping ingredients together and sprinkle topping on top of batter.
- Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.
Get Started with Sourdough
New to sourdough? Try these easy recipes to get started on your sourdough journey. Just be careful, sourdough baking is addictive!
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Thank you- this is just what I was looking for; delicious! I did add a bit of cream of tartar for a lil snickerdoodle flavor.
Awesome, I’ll have to try that!
Just made this. It’s good but my crumb topping baked into the cake making the edges crunchy. Drizzled a basic glaze over to cut the cinnamon.
I’m sorry the crumb topping baked into the cake, but I’m so glad you still enjoyed it! The glaze sounds like a perfect touch. Thanks for giving it a try!
Unfortunately this turned out terribly for me, dry and with an aftertaste like overcooked eggs 😔 I used a 9″ square pan and like another commenter, had the crumb bake into the top — the cover photo looks like it’ll have a lot of crumb but it didn’t even cover the whole top, I think you’d need to 3x the topping quantity here to get that in 9″ pan or to use a much smaller pan. The variables that I had were: used active starter because that’s what I had, added 1/4c pecans because the topping was so sparse, and I feed my starter bread flour. It doesn’t seem like those should make it taste bad but maybe!
On further thought, my guess is that there is too much baking soda, so it didn’t react enough with the sourdough to neutralize its flavor. Maybe my sourdough starter isn’t very acidic 🤷♀️
I’m so sorry to hear this didn’t turn out the way you hoped.