Apple Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping and Brown Sugar Glaze

This recipe is courtesy of Mr. Emeril Lagassi from Food Network. It got rated with 5 stars based on 205 user reviews so it was a no-brainer to try this recipe out for a "Hot Chocolate" party that one of my friends was hosting. There are a lot of ingredients, but if you look through the list, most of them you probably already have in your pantry. That worked out for me - the only extra things I had to buy were apples and sour cream.

Coffee cake is a moist, tender cake usually topped with a streusel and/or glaze as opposed to a frosting. There does not have to be coffee listed in its ingredients. The name was derived because it is a cake meant to be eaten alongside coffee (or tea). There are very few things I like better then getting the chance to eat cake for breakfast and I know I'm not alone here! This recipe even has fruit added to it so give it a try!

Cake:
1 stick plus 2 tsp unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples (I used granny smith)

Crumble Topping:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

Brown Sugar Glaze:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp water (I had to add a little more water to get it at a "glaze" consistency

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13" x 9" glass baking dish with 2 tsp of the butter. In a large bowl, cream together the remaining stick of butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating after the addition of each. In a separate bowl or on a piece of parchment, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to the wet ingredints, alternating with the sour cream and vanilla. Fold in the apples. Pour into the baking dish, spreading out to the edges.

To make the topping, in a bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon and butter, and mix until it resembles course crumbs. (I used a fork to do this) Sprinkle the topping over the cake and bake until golden brown and set, 35-40 minutes. It took my oven about an hour to fully cook. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes.

To make the glaze, in a bowl, combine the sugar, vanilla and water and mix until smooth. I doubled the recipe ingredients for the glaze - on purpose! WHOOPS! Drizzle the cake with glaze and let harden slightly. Serve warm. Tutti Mangia!