Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Muffins (with Jam Swirl & Streusel)

These Creamy Jammy Coffee Cakes are absolutely delightful little individual treats, featuring layers of tender cake, tangy cream cheese, sweet jam, and a buttery streusel topping in every perfect bite. I first fell in love with these little cakes because they remind me of my favorite bakery swirls. Whipping them up is surprisingly straightforward, making them perfect for a weekend breakfast or a special brunch.

Discovering My Favorite Morning Bites

I’m thrilled to share this recipe with you; it’s genuinely one of my top picks from my collection of morning treats. Crafting recipes for the morning hours is something I deeply enjoy. This particular cake captures the essence of baked goods I developed over years working in coffee shops and finding joy baking at home. It’s a combination of nearly three decades of experimenting with flavors and textures. My deepest hope is that this recipe brings a little bit of that warmth and joy into your kitchen.

Honestly, when faced with a bakery selection, anything with a cream cheese swirl always catches my eye first. These cakes deliver just that decadent experience. Each bite is a perfect balance of tender cake, the rich tang of cream cheese, bright, slightly tart jam (or smooth lemon curd), and that wonderfully crumbly streusel on top. I find they’re best when enjoyed just a little warm, but they are absolutely still delicious the day after baking. One clever trick I love about this recipe is using some of the initial dry cake mixture to create the streusel topping. This genius shortcut means fewer bowls to wash and saves you some time in the kitchen.

Getting Your Pans Ready

To bake these lovely individual cakes, you’ll need the right size pans. The recipe is designed for eight 4 inch springform cake pans or standard 4 inch cake pans. If you don’t have those, don’t worry at all. You can easily use jumbo muffin pans instead. Just make sure to grease them well and line the bottoms with parchment paper if using cake or springform pans.

A Quick Note on Measuring Flour

Getting your flour measurement just right is quite important for the texture of your cakes. Throughout my recipes shared here, I use a specific measurement for flour. For this recipe, 1 cup of all-purpose flour is equivalent to 142 grams. You might notice that the weight for a cup of flour can vary slightly depending on the baker or website you are looking at. It can range anywhere from 120 grams up to this 142 grams. I’ve found that after carefully weighing many cups over time and averaging the results, my measurements consistently come out around 142 grams. For the most reliable outcome that matches how I developed the recipe, weighing your flour using a kitchen scale is definitely the best method compared to using cup measures alone.

Gathering Your Goodies

Here is everything you will need to bake these delightful Creamy Jammy Coffee Cakes. Make sure your cold ingredients like sour cream, buttermilk, cream cheese, and eggs are brought to room temperature before you start. This really helps everything combine smoothly.

For the Cake

• ¾ cup (180 g) sour cream, at room temperature
• ¼ cup (60 g) buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
• 2 ¼ cups (320 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks or 171 g) unsalted butter, cut into 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces, at room temperature
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) baking soda
• ½ teaspoon (3 g) fine salt
• 1 cup (230 g) jam or lemon curd

For the Cream Cheese Filling

• 8 ounces (228 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
• ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature

Bringing These Cakes to Life Step-by-Step

Ready to create these layered beauties? Here is a simple way to put everything together.

For the Cake Base

1. Position an oven rack right in the middle of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Prepare your pans by greasing eight 4 inch (10 cm) cake pans or springform pans. Cut out circles of parchment paper to fit the bottoms and place them inside. If you are using a jumbo muffin pan or ramekins, just make sure they are well-greased.
2. In a medium-sized bowl or a liquid measuring cup, gently whisk together the room temperature sour cream, buttermilk, the egg, and the vanilla extract until they are smoothly combined. Set this wet mixture aside for a moment.
3. Get out your stand mixer and fit it with the paddle attachment. In the mixer bowl, combine the flour and granulated sugar. Turn the mixer on low speed. Begin adding the room temperature butter pieces, one piece at a time. Let the mixer continue to beat until the mixture transforms and looks like coarse sand or fine crumbs.
4. Carefully scoop out exactly 1 cup (which is about 130 grams) of this sandy flour and butter mixture. Put this reserved mixture into a small bowl; this is going to be your delicious streusel topping later.
5. With the mixer still running on low speed, add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the remaining mixture in the stand mixer bowl. Then, pour in the wet ingredients you prepared earlier. Mix until everything is just combined. This should only take about 30 seconds.
6. Remove the mixing bowl from the stand mixer. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl, making sure everything is incorporated. Give the batter a few extra stirs by hand with the spatula to ensure there are no dry spots at the bottom.
7. Divide the cake batter evenly among the prepared pans. You want to make the tops nice and smooth using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Then, dollop about 2 tablespoons of your chosen jam evenly over the top of the cake batter in each individual pan.

For the Filling and Assembly

1. Now, use the same stand mixer bowl you used for the cake batter; no need to wash it out first. Add the softened cream cheese and the granulated sugar for the filling. Beat these together on low speed until the mixture is smooth and wonderfully creamy. Add the remaining egg and mix just until it is fully incorporated. Remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to get everything mixed in.
2. Carefully divide the cream cheese mixture among the pans, spooning it over the layer of jam. Smooth the tops of the cream cheese layer with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon.
3. Remember that reserved flour and butter mixture? That’s your streusel. Divide it evenly among the pans, sprinkling it generously over the tops of the cream cheese layer.
4. To help settle everything and remove any trapped air bubbles, gently tap each pan against your kitchen counter a couple of times.
5. Place all the individual cake pans onto a large sheet pan. This makes it easier to transfer them into and out of the oven and catches any potential spills.
6. Bake them until the tops turn a beautiful golden brown color. You can test for doneness by inserting a wooden skewer or toothpick into the center of the cake (try to avoid hitting the jam layer). It should come out with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it, not wet batter. Rotate the sheet pan halfway through the baking time to ensure even cooking. The baking time will likely take between 26 to 32 minutes.
7. Once baked, transfer the pans from the oven to a wire rack. Let the cakes cool right in their pans until they are only slightly warm or have reached room temperature completely.
8. When cooled, carefully remove the cakes from their pans. They are now ready to be served and enjoyed! If you need to store them, cover the cooled cakes in plastic wrap and they can be kept in the refrigerator overnight.

Frequently Asked Questions About Creamy Jammy Coffee Cakes

Print