Greek Yogurt Coffee Cake

Coffeecake with a spongelike texture … Definitely a different take on coffeecake. This is a sweet eggy moist cake that’s perfect with coffee or tea. It’s pretty much a pantry ingredient recipe … freeing you up to make this just about anytime. Give yourself or family a morning treat with this delicious cake. You say you don’t have yogurt! You know the substitutions, right? Sour cream, buttermilk, blended cottage cheese to name a few.

Recipe

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees F.
Prepare a tube baking pan by buttering or using cooking spray. A nonstick tube pan with a false bottom makes removal easier.

*Might be best to start with topping.

3 Cups sugar
1 Cup butter-room temperature
6 Eggs-room temperature

3 Cups all purpose flour
1/2 Teaspoon salt OR 3/4 to 1 teaspoon if using unsalted butter
1/4 Teaspoon baking soda

1 Cup plain Greek yogurt-0 fat works
2 Teaspoons vanilla

Beat the butter and sugar until creamy and light

Add one egg at a time and beat-in before adding another.

Whisk together flour, salt and soda.

Add flour to butter mixture alternating with yogurt, blending as you go but not beating. Add vanilla. Blend until just incorporated.

*If you need to roast the pecans it’s best to start with topping and set aside.

TOPPING:

2 Cups broken lightly roasted pecans. (Roast in a skillet over low-moderate heat until oil is noticed and/or aroma of pecan is evident. Stir as needed to avoid burning. Cool.)
1/2 Cup brown sugar
3 Teaspoons ground cinnamon

Mix topping ingredients and divide in half. Sprinkle first half over the bottom of the tube pan. Pour about half the batter over this. Now add the remaining topping, sprinkling evenly over batter. Finally, add the remainder of the batter. The final pour of the batter may require a gentle spreading.

Place tube pan into preheated oven and bake for 1 1/2 hours. Avoid opening the oven until the last minutes of baking. If you need to test for doneness use a long wooden skewer half way between center and outside edge. It should come out clean when done. Remove from oven when done.

Let cake rest for 10 minutes in pan. After 10 minutes invert onto a serving dish and lift off the pan.  Voila!

Can be served warm or room temperature.