Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy this healthy coffee cake made with Greek yogurt and whole wheat flour. With a delicious cinnamon streusel swirl and crumb topping, this lightened up coffee cake is a great brunch treat or snack!
Torn between a simple, sweet breakfast treat and a more nutritious option for feeding a brunch crowd? There's no need to choose when you can make a few healthier swaps in this delicious cinnamon crumb coffee cake made with Greek yogurt! It's the perfect solution to hosting brunches, a snack for your morning coffee, or a make-ahead friendly breakfast for your family.
Why You'll Love This Coffee Cake
This deliciously moist coffee cake is perfectly spiced with warm cinnamon, has just the right amount of sweetness to be a breakfast (versus a dessert disguised as breakfast) and has a delightful crumb topping and streusel swirled throughout. Let's be honest, who can resist a good crumb topping? It can be whipped up fairly quickly with just a few ingredients, makes your house smell heavenly while it bakes, and is the perfect accompaniment to eggs, bacon, fruit, and of course, a nice cup of coffee! Since it's a little more nutrient-dense than your average coffee cake, it's better for filling you up longer and not leaving you with a sugar hangover.
What Makes It Healthy?
Greek yogurt takes the place of butter and/or sour cream in this coffee cake. It adds moisture (and a protein boost!) with less fat. I also used whole wheat pastry flour for extra fiber, but with a texture that's still nice and tender. I cut the sugar so that there's still sweetness, just not too much.
The Ingredients
For the cake batter:
- Plain Greek yogurt - use any level of fat that you like or have on hand.
- Eggs
- Oil - I like avocado oil, but other neutral oils like canola or grapeseed work well too.
- Sugar
- Vanilla
- Whole wheat pastry flour - You can also use white whole wheat four, which is a lighter than typical red wheat flour
- Baking soda & baking powder
- Cinnamon
- Salt
For the crumb topping:
- Brown sugar
- Flour - I use the same whole wheat flour as in the cake
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Butter - I like salted butter.
How To Make Greek Yogurt Coffee Cake
Make the Cinnamon Crumb Topping
- In a bowl, mix the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Use a fork or you fingers to 'cut' or mash the butter into the flour mixture. Mix just until you have some large crumbs and a few smaller ones.
- Refrigerate until you're ready to use it in the cake.
Tip: Use a bigger bowl than you think you'll need to avoid making a big mess!
Make the Coffee Cake
- In a large bowl, use a whisk or hand beaters to mix the yogurt, oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla until well mixed. You can also use a stand mixer if you'd like.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Whisk or beat just until everything is evenly moistened. You don't want to over-mix.
- Spread half of the batter into a square metal pan that's been greased and floured.
- Top with half of the crumb mixture.
- Spread the remaining batter over the crumb mixture.
- Top with the remaining crumb mixture.
- Bake at 350 until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges with just a few barely moistened crumbs, about 20-25 minutes.
- Cool the cake before cutting into squares.
Tips for Perfect Coffee Cake
- Careful not to over-mix the batter once you add the flour to avoid a tough crumb.
- Use a metal pan for more even baking. Ceramic dishes tend to bake the outside more quickly than the center, resulting in dry edges.
- Careful not to over-bake, as the cake will dry out if it's in the oven too long.
Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
This cake is great for making ahead! You can make it up to 2 days in advance and store covered at room temperature. Any leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator after a couple of days.
More Crowd-Friendly Brunch Recipes
- Healthy Pumpkin Streusel Coffee Cake
- Healthy Green Chile Mexican Breakfast Casserole
- Overnight Mushroom Artichoke Strata
- Everything But The Bagel Lox Frittata
- Easy Eggs Benedict Quiche
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!
PrintHealthy Coffee Cake with Greek Yogurt
Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy this healthy coffee cake made with Greek yogurt and whole wheat flour. With a delicious cinnamon streusel swirl and crumb topping, this lightened up coffee cake is a great brunch treat or snack!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12-16 servings 1x
- Category: breakfast
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Streusel:
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 tbsp cold butter, cubed
For the Cake:
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ⅓ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly grease and flour an 8 x 8" baking dish.
- To make the streusel, whisk the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small medium bowl. Using a pastry cutter or fork (or your fingers) cut in cold butter cubes until mixture forms small crumbs. Refrigerate until you're ready to top the cake.
- To make the cake batter, beat together the oil, Greek yogurt, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl with a hand mixer or whisk. You can also use a stand mixer.
- Add the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined and moistened, scraping down the sides when needed.
- Spread half of the batter into the baking dish. Sprinkle half of the streusel topping over the batter.
- Spread remaining cake batter over the streusel, then sprinkle with remaining streusel.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few dampened crumbs on it.
- Cool for 10-15 minutes before cutting.
Notes
- Careful not to over-mix the batter once you add the flour to avoid a tough crumb.
- Use a metal pan for more even baking. Ceramic dishes tend to bake the outside more quickly than the center, resulting in dry edges.
- Careful not to over-bake, as the cake will dry out if it's in the oven too long.
- Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction.
Keywords: healthy coffee cake, Greek yogurt coffee cake, cinnamon crumb coffee cake with greek yogurt
Deb says
Except for the yogurt, this is a regular coffee cake recipe. Not low-fat or healthier. I modified it by using one egg white and 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce in place of the vegetable oil.
Also the recipe has too much sugar. I reduced it to 3 Tblsp brown sugar and used 1/3 cup Allulose to make up for the rest. Without all the fat and sugar, my recipe was adequately sweet and moist. I also used a little more cinnamon.
★★
Marilyn Lazarus says
My husband and I thought the cake was too dry (may be our oven) as we had to bake it ten minutes longer because it was not done in the middle. I could not get the topping to be crumbly at all. I used coconut sugar instead of brown sugar. I used white whole wheat flour for the topping. I followed the instructions but it just didn't come out like yours. I used avocado oil instead of vegetable oil. I used monk fruit & erythritol sugar alternative instead of the granulated sugar. It was sweet enough. I used white whole wheat flour instead of pastry flour because that's all I had. Is there a video so I could watch what you did? I'd like to try it again but not if I get the same result. Any suggestions? Thank you.
★★★
Irene says
I make beautiful cake for myself but my sweet husband is have he like very I want Know many colories one pieces thank you
Yasmeen says
If I’m using a 9 x 13 size glass pan, how long should I bake the cake for?
Kaleigh says
Hi Yasmeen, I would double the recipe for a 9x13 pan and bake for the same amount of time!
Breanna says
I doubled recipe and it was only half done at 25 minutes in this size pan. Ended up taking somewhere around 35
Kevin says
I'm not a seasoned baker but once in a while I'll bake something to satisfy my rare craving for something a little sweet. I made this coffee cake this morning for President's Day. It was way better than I expected; it was moist, flavorful, and not overly sweet. I used extra-virgin olive oil and I couldn't even taste it in the cake which was my initial concern. I also used unbleached, whole-grain wheat flour and it was perfectly fine. For the streusel I added finely chopped walnuts. One downside is my convection oven which doesn't bake evenly. If I follow the toothpick method for doneness, then the center will be cooked while rest of the cake will be overcooked and dry. Not wanting a dried out cake, I baked this one for 28 minutes and didn't check it with a toothpick. The center was definitely moister than rest of the cake but at least rest of the cake wasn't overcooked.
★★★★★
Kevin says
BTW, I used an 8" round cake pan and not a square pan.
Kaleigh says
Hi Kevin, I'm so glad you liked the recipe! Thanks for sharing your tips. Walnuts in the topping sound wonderful.
Mikala says
This recipe turned out great! Easy to follow and simple ingredients. Will never not use Greek yogurt again! Thanks for the recipe! My whole family loved it as well, and I will be making again!
★★★★★
Sue says
Can I substitute dark brown sugar for the streusel topping?
Kaleigh says
Yes!
Desiree says
Hi, I definitely plan on baking this cake - it looks and sounds delicious. I couldn’t find nutrition info for the recipe. Would you be able to tel me?
Thanks so much!
Desiree
Kaleigh says
Hi Desiree,
I don't provide nutrition info for my recipes, but you can use one of the many free online calculators to get a rough estimate. Enjoy!
Desiree says
Okay, I’m back. Made this coffee cake today and it is delicious! Crunchy crumb topping and moist and tender Inside. This will definitely be a staple at my house.
★★★★★
Kaleigh says
I'm so glad you liked it, thanks for leaving a review!
Jim Halpert says
Can't wait to make this for my friends and family. Thanks for the free recipe
Gwen says
This recipe is great. Used it as a base to healthify even further by using oat flour and coconut sugar. Also halved the amount of sugar in the cake part. It was the perfect amount of sweetness for us this way, had a great tender/crumbly texture, and seemed healthy enough that we could actually eat it for breakfast!
Kaleigh says
I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
JP says
This is an excellent recipe. Made it today. Usually these healthier recipes do not come out very well, but this coffee cake has a good flavor and you can not tell it's yogurt. These recipes are how I strive to eat the majority of the time and anything I have tried previously, NEVER taste this good. I like how there is a little butter in the recipes and low little sugar. Thank you very much for posting these recipes. I will be trying more!
Note:
*I substituted about 1/2 of the sugar within the cake only with coconut sugar.
*I baked the cake for about 38 min. total, in a glass 8x8 pan. However, my oven usually takes a bit longer to cook anything.
JP says
Does anyone actually try this or just say, "sounds yummy"?
JP says
This is an excellent recipe. Made it today. Usually these healthier recipes do not come out very well, but this coffee cake has a good flavor and you can not tell it's yogurt. These recipes are how I strive to eat the majority of the time and anything I have tried previously, NEVER taste this good. I like how there is a little butter in some of the recipes and low little sugar. Thank you very much for posting these recipes. I will be trying many more!
Note:
*I substituted about 1/2 of the sugar within the cake only with coconut sugar.
*I baked the cake for about 38 min. total, in a glass 8x8 pan. However, my oven usually takes a bit longer to cook anything.
Kaleigh says
Hi JP,
I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe! I also find that many healthier baked good taste pretty bad. Thanks for stopping by and for your notes on the recipe!
JP says
PS. My husband literally did not believe me when I told him that this was not sour cream coffee cake! lol It's THAT good!
Kaleigh says
So glad y'all enjoyed it!
Sasha @ Eat Love Eat says
This coffee cake looks lovely! I could eat a slice right now 🙂
michelleferrand says
This looks so good and crumbly!
Elaine @ Dishes Delish says
Yummy! I love coffee cake and this looks so moist and delicious!
Kelli (The Healthy Toast) says
This looks delicious! As a kid I would just eat the top and the center of the coffee cake as they were always the sweetest, most moist parts but this cake looks perfectly moist throughout. I'll definitely be giving this a try next weekend 🙂