Grain-Free Coconut Flour Coffee Cake with Cinnamon-Nut Swirl
A tender, golden coconut flour coffee cake, made with pasture-raised eggs, grass-fed yogurt, and warm Ceylon cinnamon, with a crunchy cinnamon-maple nut topping swirled right into the batter. Grain-free, refined-sugar-free, and perfect with your morning coffee.
Yield: One 8x8 pan, 9–12 squares · Active: 15 min · Total: 1 hour, plus cooling · Year-round · Best eaten: morning or early afternoon
Looking for an almond flour version with a classic crumb topping? See my Grain-Free Crumb Coffee Cake.
Ingredients
Coffee cake
1 cup coconut flour
½ tsp Baja Gold sea salt
1 tbsp ground Ceylon cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
8 pasture-raised eggs, at room temperature
½ cup raw grass-fed yogurt
5 tbsp unsalted grass-fed butter, melted (or coconut oil)
½ cup pure maple syrup or raw honey
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
Cinnamon-nut topping
1½ cups soaked and dried ("crispy") nuts, or sprouted, blanched almonds: almonds, pecans, or walnuts (or sunflower and pumpkin seeds, for nut-free)
1 tbsp ground Ceylon cinnamon
¼ cup pure maple syrup or raw honey
¼ cup cold unsalted grass-fed butter (or coconut oil), cut into tablespoons
To serve (optional): a dollop of raw grass-fed Greek yogurt or raw cream, or a drizzle of warm coconut butter
Method
Make the batter. Heat the oven to 325°F, and butter an 8x8 baking dish or line it with unbleached parchment. Blend all the coffee cake ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth, then let the batter rest 5 minutes, since coconut flour thickens as it absorbs the liquid. Pour it into the pan and smooth the top.
Make the topping. Pulse the nuts, cinnamon, maple syrup, and cold butter in a food processor until the nuts are coarsely chopped and the mixture clumps together.
Swirl. Scatter the topping over the batter, then use a butter knife to gently swirl it into the top layer.
Bake 40–45 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool before slicing, so the squares hold together.
Serve with a dollop of raw yogurt or cream, or a drizzle of warm coconut butter.
About crispy nuts: Soaking nuts overnight is a traditional practice that many people find makes them easier to digest. But freshly soaked nuts are full of water, so they need to be dried low and slow until completely crisp before going into the topping, or it'll turn soggy. See the "Crispy Nuts" method in my Food Marshall Granola post. Or start with nuts that are already sprouted and dried, like sprouted, blanched almonds.
Storage: Airtight at room temperature up to 2 days, or refrigerated up to 1 week. It also freezes well, wrapped in squares, for up to 2 months.
A note on honey: Baked honey is no longer raw, so any good local honey works. Honey shouldn't be given to babies under 12 months.
Nourishment Notes
Pasture-raised eggs — complete protein, choline, lutein, and vitamins A, D, E, and K2. With 8 eggs, this coffee cake is a satisfying breakfast.
Coconut flour — fiber, which helps slow the absorption of the natural sugars.
Grass-fed yogurt — protein, calcium, and a gentle tang that keeps the crumb tender.
Ceylon cinnamon — polyphenols that help moderate blood sugar.
Almonds, pecans, and walnuts — vitamin E, magnesium, and manganese, plus ALA omega-3s from the walnuts.
Sunflower and pumpkin seeds — vitamin E, selenium, zinc, and magnesium.
Grass-fed butter — vitamins A and K2, CLA, and butyrate.
Maple syrup and honey — unrefined sweeteners with trace minerals.
As a circadian food, this coffee cake belongs to the morning, ideally eaten in natural daylight, and paired with a dollop of yogurt or a glass of raw milk for extra protein.
Sourcing
Eggs — organic and pasture-raised, with deep orange yolks, ideally from a local farm
Coconut flour — organic and finely ground
Yogurt — organic, plain, and full-fat, with live cultures and no gums: raw yogurt from an Amish or local farm you know and trust, or A2/A2 cow's milk yogurt from Straus or Bellwether Farms
Nuts and seeds — organic: unpasteurized Spanish almonds, like Terrasoul's (or sprouted, blanched almonds), pecans, walnuts, or sunflower and pumpkin seeds, kept in the fridge
Ceylon cinnamon — organic and non-irradiated, from Sri Lanka
Grass-fed butter — organic, cultured butter from 100% grass-fed cows
Maple syrup and honey — organic Grade A dark maple syrup; organic, local, unfiltered honey
Vanilla — organic pure vanilla extract
Baking soda — aluminum-free
Parchment — unbleached
Baja Gold sea salt
— Anna aka Food Marshall