I have not had the oven on for days – it has been so hot here in Sydney!  Unfortunately, we don’t have air-conditioning like some other lucky people, so having the oven on just makes it worse (especially in the kitchen, of course).  I’m going to have to brave the heat though because I have some fun ideas planned for the next couple of weeks.  I think you’ll really like them too!

Right now though, I’m going to share with you a delicious little coffee cake recipe I found a couple of weeks ago and was able to bake for myself before the heat set in.  What makes this coffee cake extra special is that it is layered with cocoa powder and cinnamon, giving the cake just a little bit more depth.

I don’t know why I put a green ribbon over the cake; I felt it needed some color, I guess!  This photo is a perfect example of how my oven treats its occupants – one side is much darker than the other!  I should have rotated the cake a bit earlier than what I did.  Anyway.  This cake has a lovely crunchy, crumbly topping, and inside is a sour cream-based cake that is moist and delicious.

Everyone loved this cake, even my kids kept begging for a piece!  Don’t be misled; the cake doesn’t taste like chocolate.  The cocoa powder just adds a bit of depth to make it taste more interesting with your coffee!

As I do with a lot of cake pieces, I divided the original quantity of all the ingredients in half.  The recipe originally uses a 9×13″ cake pan, but with half of the batter, I was able to use an 8″ round cake pan.

Brew a pot of your favorite coffee (or tea) with this cake for a lovely breakfast or afternoon experience!

Recipe source: Chocolate Shavings; adapted from the Baked cookbook