Cinnamon Crunch Coffeecake

This is one of my favourite coffeecake recipes.  Usually containing no coffee, "coffeecake" instead describes a cake best consumed right after baking with a cup of freshly brewed strong coffee.

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted if necessary; or melted butter
• 3/4 cup honey, maple syrup, or raw caster sugar [slightly less if using honey or sugar]
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 pint natural plain yoghurt
• 1 cup whole spelt or wholemeal flour
• 1 cup brown rice flour (or 1/2 cup brown rice flour, 1/2 cup ground almonds)
• 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp baking powder

Beat oils and honey.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Stir in half the yoghurt, then half the dry ingredients, then the remaining yoghurt, and finally the rest of the dry stuff.  Grease and flour a bundt pan well, and put half the batter in the bottom of the pan.


Crunch mixture:

• 1/4 cup demerara sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped almonds, walnuts, pecans, or a mix of all three
• 3 TBS cinnamon
• 1/4 cup freshly finely ground linseed [flaxseed] or ground almonds

Sprinkle this mixture over the batter in the pan , and spoon the remaining batter over that.  

Bake gas mark 4/350/180 for around 45 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean.  Immediately after removing, carefully run a rubber spatula between the cake and the pan, set a plate over the top, and holding both the plate and the pan, quickly tip over. Allow to cool for ten minutes or so before sifting a bit of icing sugar over the top. Alternatively, pour over a glaze of icing containing: 1 cup icing [powdered] sugar, 2 TBS rice milk, 1 tsp extract of vanilla or almond.  Serve right away, with coffee.  Mmmm.