Old Fashioned Rhubarb Coffee Cake – A Recipe for Rhubarb Streusel Coffee Cake

Old Fashioned Rhubarb Coffee Cake recipe features a homemade cake filled with delicious rhubarb and a crunchy cinnamon sugar topping.  This recipe for rhubarb streusel coffee cake will quickly become one of your favorite coffee cake recipes.

Old Fashioned Rhubarb Coffee Cake

Yum, this recipe for rhubarb cake with cinnamon sugar topping is the best!  It would pair delightfully with coffee for breakfast or is perfect enough to eat as a dessert.

Every year, I am looking for new recipes to try to use the bounty from our rhubarb plant.  On top of the list is Grandma’s Rhubarb Pie, but I also have discovered Rhubarb Bread, Rhubarb Muffins and Grandma’s Rhubarb Streusel.

Rhubarb Streusel Coffee Cake Recipe

Recently, I was scouring an old cookbook called Carefree County Cooks from Imogene, Iowa where I found this homemade Rhubarb Cake recipe.  After whipping it up and delivering a warm slice to Dad, I immediately got a text message saying that this recipe was blog-worthy (straight from Dad’s mouth, and he’s a rhubarb expert).

The cake recipe is simple to make, and consists of pantry staples – butter, brown sugar, egg, buttermilk, flour, soda, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and nuts. I had all the ingredients on hand, and you probably do too.  I would definitely classify this as an old-fashioned recipe; no fancy ingredients involved.

Ingredient List for Rhubarb Coffee Cake

Butter, softened

Brown Sugar

Large Egg

All Purpose Flour

Baking Soda

Salt

Buttermilk (or milk mixed with vinegar or lemon juice)

Vanilla Extract

Rhubarb, diced

Streusel Topping Ingredients

Ground Cinnamon

White Sugar

Chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans of sliced almonds)

How To Make Easy Rhubarb Cake

Step by Step Instructions

1. Prepare the cake batter by creaming brown sugar, butter and egg with a stand mixer or hand mixer.
2. Mix together buttermilk and vanilla, set aside.
3. Sift flour, baking soda and salt.
4. Alternately add buttermilk, and flour mixture to creamy butter mixture.
5. Pour into a prepared 9 x 13 inch pan.
6. Mix ground cinnamon, white sugar and chopped nuts.
7. Sprinkle over cake batter.
8. Bake in preheated 350 degree F until toothpick comes out clean.
9. Let cool on a wire rack.

Storage Instructions

Let leftovers cool completely. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 48 hours. For longer shelf-life, store in the refrigerator.

Find the full recipe steps and ingredient amounts for rhubarb cake with cinnamon sugar topping can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Recipe FAQs

• This rhubarb cake is simple! I broke the recipe down into creaming the butter mixture and then adding the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients. However, if you are short on time or are feeling lazy, just toss all the cake ingredients in together and mix well.  Easy as pie, or cake that is.
• I diced the rhubarb in 1/2 inch chunks.
• The topping calls for nuts, and you can pick your favorite or whatever you have on hand. I used sliced almonds, but the recipe calls for chopped pecans.  There is no right or wrong.
• If you aren’t familiar with what parts of the rhubarb are safe to eat, check out this post to learn more.
• Buttermilk may be the one ingredient that you don’t have on hand. Here’s a substitute – fill up the measuring cup almost to the 1 cup line with regular milk and then add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar.  In a few minutes, you’ll have buttermilk.  I use this trick all the time.

More Coffee Cake Recipes

Honey Bun Coffee Cake

Grandma’s Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Pistachio Coffee Cake

Glazed Fresh Berry Coffee Cake from Farmwife Feeds

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