Strawberries & Cream Crumb Cake

1. First, prepare the crumb topping. In a mixing bowl combine the granola, flour, brown sugar, butter, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Stir it all thoroughly together until it is a uniform, wet sand texture. Set it aside and preheat the oven to 375 F. Liberally grease an 8 x 8 square pan with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda to aerate the dry ingredients. In another bowl, whisk the buttermilk, strawberry cream cheese, eggs and strawberry balsamic together until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and gently whisk it just until it becomes a smooth batter. A few little lumps are OK—it is best not to overwork it. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the chopped strawberries.
3. Pour the batter into the greased baking dish and smooth it out to be nice and even. Sprinkle on the crumb topping to make an even layer on top of the batter. Get the crumb cake into the oven to bake for about 50-55 minutes. When done, a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean and the cake should be gorgeously golden.
4. Take the crumb cake out of the oven and let it cool for 15 to 20 minutes at least. Then just cut into the desired sized pieces and serve! It doesn’t get much better to pair it with a great cup of coffee or tea.