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When it comes to coffee, the Pacific Northwest has a lot going for it — you can barely throw a rock without hitting an award-winning micro-roaster or a sublime pourover. Sometimes these coffee shops have stuff like bagels or cookies, but most of the time, the food on offer is really for the grab-and-go morning rush crowd. If you want to meet a friend for an afternoon pick-you-up with a lovely wedge of cake, your regular neighborhood spot will probably have slim pickins, if they’re even open — lots of places are already closed by 3 p.m.!

I’m sorry to say, but this is where the Midwest has us beat. I crave a culture built around kaffeeklatsch (“coffee and chatter”). Even Nordic countries (especially Sweden) are on board. Fika forever! I don’t always want to go out for a rich chocolate torte at a fancy dessert place — give me a nice strong cup of coffee with sticky bun or a piece of streusel-topped coffee cake and I will exchange sassy pleasantries for hours.

If you’re like me, impatience has turned you into something of a DIY person (the “Move, let me do it” of an eldest daughter is too real), so I offer an easy solution to woeful cakelessness. Here, a tender and fragrant sour cream-cardamom coffee cake gets a springtime revamp with rhubarb and sliced almonds (you can leave the nuts out if you need to). Bake this coffee cake, brew a pot of your favorite black, tannic beverage and have a friend or neighbor over for the latest gossip. Serves 12

Ingredients

Coffee cake

1 pound rhubarb (about 4 large stalks)

1 ⅓ cup sugar, divided

½ teaspoon cardamom, divided

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 ¼ cup sour cream or full-fat yogurt

½ cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon almond extract

Streusel topping

¾ cup flour

¼ cup almond meal

½ cup brown sugar, packed

¼ cup sugar

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon cardamom

1 stick cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

½ cup sliced almonds

Instructions

1. Prep the rhubarb: Trim both ends of the rhubarb (removing any leaves), slicing the stalks in half lengthwise and then again crosswise. Toss with ⅓ cup of the sugar and a pinch of the cardamom, then set aside to macerate while you prepare the rest of the cake.
2. Make the streusel: using a food processor or pastry cutter, pulse the flour, almond meal, sugars, salt, and spices a few times until combined, then add the butter and pulse (or cut) a few more times until the mixture is fine, crumbly and well-combined. Stir in the sliced almonds, and pinch small handfuls of the mixture together to form small lumpy, crumbly blobs. Set aside.
3. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease/parchment-line a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and the remaining sugar and cardamom until thoroughly combined.
5. In another bowl or large measuring cup, whisk the sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla and almond extract until smooth. Form a well in the flour mixture and pour in the sour cream mixture. Stir until fully incorporated, but don’t overmix.
6. Scrape the thick batter into the prepared baking dish, smoothing the top as best you can. Lay the macerated rhubarb on top in a single layer, then sprinkle the streusel mixture over the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out without wet batter, about 55 to 65 minutes.
7. Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack for at least 30 minutes, then either continue to cool completely or serve warm.

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News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/05/01/superabundant-recipe-rhubarb-coffee-cake/