Apple crumb coffee cake made with Greek yogurt, cinnamon and lots of apples! Top it with the caramel sauce. Perfect for breakfast and dessert!
This is a very basic everyday cake I've been making a lot lately. Just a good simple apple crumb coffee cake. I drizzle it with the caramel sauce (or dulce de leche), but it doesn't have to be - it's good on its own.
Does coffee cake have coffee in it?
And, I want to clarify right away: there is no coffee in this cake (or any other coffee cake). You'll be surprised how many people think there is coffee in a "coffee cake" & some even avoid coffee cake recipes because of that! This cake is just meant to be served with a cup of coffee or tea.
And, I am not even a coffee drinker (I quit drinking coffee 6 years ago), so I should call this apple crumb coffee cake a "tea cake" or, even more accurate, a "water cake", since I usually drink just water with my desserts.
How to properly measure flour using measuring cups
- The proper way to measure flour using measuring cups is to aerate it first.
- This is done either by sifting flour, or aerating it by fluffing it up and whisking it well, then spooning it into the measuring cup, then carefully removing any excess flour with a knife.
- If you just stick that measuring cup in the bag of flour and scoop some out, you will get a lot more flour than what the recipe calls for.
- Do aerate the flour, or you will end up with dry cake batter!
This cake has a lot of "crumb" on top, which makes it very special and delicious. It also has lots of apples, which makes the cake very moist longer, and keeps this apple crumb coffee cake as fresh and moist a week later as on the first day!
If you're looking for a simple and easy-to-make dessert - this cake is for you! And, it's so yummy and light, it will start disappearing really fast from your counter!

Apple crumb coffee cake with caramel sauce
Ingredients
Apple coffee cake:
- 6 tablespoons butter unsalted, very soft, room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- a pinch of salt
- 4 apples medium, cored and chopped
Crumb topping:
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅔ cup brown sugar packed
- ⅔ cup flour , sifted
- 5 tablespoons butter melted unsalted
Optional:
- caramel sauce or homemade dulce de leche
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Use 9x13 inch baking pan or 9 inch springform pan.
- In a medium bowl, beat 6 tablespoons of very soft, room temperature butter, 1 cup brown sugar and 2 eggs on high speed for about a minute until fluffy and light in color. Add Greek yogurt and beat some more to combine.
- In a separate bowl, combine 2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and just a pinch of salt.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in chopped apples.
- To make crumb topping: In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ⅔ cup brown sugar, ⅔ cup flour and mix to combine. Add 5 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter and mix until the mixture is very crumbly and has coarse texture. Add more flour if necessary.
- Grease 9x13 inch baking pan or 9 inch springform pan. Pour cake batter into the pan and top with the crumb topping. Bake for about 50 minutes until the toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Optional: Drizzle with caramel sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Yumm I love the sound of this coffee cake, especially with apples baked into it and the beautiful crumb topping. And I'm glad you clarified that coffee cake doesn't actually have coffee in it because when I first heard of the term I definitely thought it involved coffee haha. Bookmarked this recipe! (:
Wow! Your pictures always make me drool! Love the combo of apples and caramel.
Christin, thank you! I love apple cakes and caramel sauce (I prefer dulce de leche caramel sauce). 🙂