Brown Butter Blueberry Crumble Coffee Cake

Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat and add grass-fed butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned. Remove skillet from heat and transfer browned butter to a small bowl when it is bubbly on top and golden brown. Use a spatula to lightly scrape some of the bits off the bottom of your skillet to check the color. It goes from browned to burnt quickly, so keep an eye on it. Let it cool before adding it to the wet ingredients.

Repeat browning butter process with butter to be used in the crumble. Set this aside to cool while you prepare the cake.

Preheat oven to 350ºF and lightly grease a 9×5 loaf pan with grass-fed butter. Set aside.

Prepare the cake. In a large mixing bowl, “cream” the browned butter, coconut sugar, and maple syrup until fluffy. I say “cream” because this process won’t be identical to creaming room temperature butter and granulated sugar—rather, the two will form an almost homogenous mixture. You’ll see granules of coconut sugar, but the majority of the mixture will be smooth. Add egg and vanilla extract and beat again until smooth.

In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, spices, and sea salt. Add 1/3 of this mixture to the butter mixture, followed by 1/4 cup of the kefir. Repeat this alternating process just until the batter comes together. Don’t over-mix—keep the cake tender and crumbly! Set this aside.

Prepare the crumble. Combine cooled browned butter, sugars, and flour just until some lumps remain—keep it crumbly.

In a small bowl, toss the blueberries with a sprinkle or two of whole wheat flour until they are coated. This prevents them from sinking through the batter to the bottom of the pan while baking.

Pour half of the cake batter into the greased pan and top with floured frozen blueberries. Sprinkle about half the crumble over the blueberries. Pour the remaining batter on top, followed by the rest of the crumble.

Bake for 40–45 minutes. At the 40-minute mark, poke a toothpick through the center of the cake, pull it out and check for any wet batter—if the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is finished baking. If it comes out with some batter on it, continue baking for 2–3 minutes, then check again with a new toothpick.

Cool completely before cutting into the cake. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to one week, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Enjoy!