Brown butter makes everything better. It doesn’t matter if the recipe is sweet or savory; if brown butter is an ingredient, I’m totally in.

So, what is brown butter, and why is it so magical? Otherwise known as beurre noisette in French (literally translating to "hazelnut butter"). Brown butter refers to the golden-brown color and the nutty aromas from the butter, once heated. As a single ingredient, it can completely elevate any recipe.

Browning butter is like conducting a small-scale science experiment in your kitchen. But the best part is you only need a small saucepan and unsalted butter!

When heating the butter, you will watch it transform right before your eyes! First, it will melt, bubble, and foam. Leave it on a little longer, and as the foam subsides, the milk solids will start to fall to the bottom of the pan as tiny little white bits. Then you’ll start to notice a nutty aroma replace the smell of warm butter. Finally, you’ll see the white bits at the bottom of the pan start to darken.

Tada! You’ve just make brown butter!

In all honesty, I’ve been perfecting this recipe for a little over a year. It’s taken me a while to really feel confident browning butter. (There were more than a few batches of burnt butter when I was first starting—AKA lots of wasted butter.) But after some practice, I’m finally there. Butter late than never, right? 😉

I definitely consider this coffee cake a “for-special-occasions-type” recipe. This is for two reasons. First, I don’t always have all the ingredients on hand. I’ve found I have to plan ahead if I want to whip up a batch. And secondly, I will absolutely eat the entire pan by myself if left unchecked. You’ve been warned.

Brown Butter Coffee Cake

Ingredients:

¾ cup light brown sugar
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup whole milk
2 large eggs, room temperature
8 ounces sour cream, room temperature

Directions:

Preheat to 350°.
Line an 8-inch square metal pan with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine the light brown sugar, flour, ground cinnamon, and the melted butter. Mix with a fork to form streusel topping. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, begin melting the butter over medium heat. Swirl, or stir the pan occasionally. You’re looking for the butter to darken in color. It will also start to develop a nutty aroma. Once brown bits start to form at the bottom, remove from heat and let cool slightly.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, granulated sugar, and brown sugar.
In a medium bowl, add milk, eggs, sour cream, and slightly cooled brown butter.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients then pour in the wet ingredients. Stir until combined.
Spoon half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of the streusel. Spread the remaining batter over the streusel. Sprinkle with the remaining streusel.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool before serving.

Happy baking!