I have been working on this recipe for some time to have it come out moist and tender, with just the right balance of citrus to sweet.  Lest you all think that these things come out perfect the first time, some of my attempts didn’t go over well with my main recipe tester, DH.  Last time he blurted out “is it supposed to be this dry?” before he knew what he was saying.  I just replied that he should put butter on it, and went back to the drawing board.  But, now I have it.  This one was good. Perfect to take to a quilting pot luck!

Start with some fresh ingredients.

My mother-in-law gave me these vanilla beans and it was a perfect recipe to use one.

Start by splitting a bean lengthwise.

Then using the knife, scrape out the seeds inside.

Make a streusel topping with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Zest a fresh orange for a tablespoon of orange peel.

Then finely chop the zest.

Mix up the dry ingredients and set aside.

Grease and flour a tube pan, set aside.

Cream butter and sugar, add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each one.

Add the zest and vanilla seeds on low speed.

Add the dry ingredients alternating with sour cream.

Dollop half the batter in the tube pan and spread evenly.

Top with half the streusel topping.

Repeat with remaining batter and topping. You could do this in thirds too if you wish.

Bake 50-55 minutes in a 350 degree oven, don’t overbake.

Allow to cool on rack. I remove the outer pan after a few minutes so it won’t stick.

And there you have it, moist and delicious, great for a morning breakfast, or an afternoon treat.

Orange Vanilla Bean Coffee Cake

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon cinnamon
3 cups all purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups granulated white sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 eggs
Seeds from one vanilla bean
1 tablespoon grated chopped orange peel
2 cups sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, 2 tblsp butter and cinnamon and set aside. Grease and flour a tube (or bundt) pan, set aside. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside. Beat 3/4 cup butter with white sugar until well blended. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Add vanilla seeds and orange zest, stir in. Stir in 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix well on low speed, followed by 1/2 of the sour cream. Repeat. Add last of flour mixture and mix well. Dollop 1/2 of the batter into prepared tube pan, spread evenly. Top with 1/2 of the streusel topping. Repeat. Bake 50-55 minutes at 350 degrees until lightly browned. Cool 10 minutes, remove outer pan and allow to cool another 10 minutes. Remove to a wire rack and cool completely. Serve warm or cooled.

Download a pdf of the recipe – Orange Vanilla Bean Coffee Cake

Enjoy!

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