Recipe: Buttermilk Coffeecake (aka Cowboy Coffee Cake)

BUTTERMILK COFFEECAKE

"Back by popular demand, this breakfast treat was known as Cowboy Coffee Cake in previous editions of the Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book."

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter, margarine or shortening
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 beaten eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk or sour milk*
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Grease bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 13x9x2-inch baking pan; set aside.

Combine flour, brown sugar and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; set aside 1/2 cup.

Stir baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg into remaining crumb mixture. Combine eggs and buttermilk. Add egg mixture all at once to dry mixture; mix well. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

Stir together reserved crumb mixture and nuts. Sprinkle atop batter.

Bake in a 350-degree F oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm, if possible.

*If you don't have buttermilk, you can make sour milk by stirring 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar into each cup of milk in a glass bowl or measuring cup. Let the mixture stand for 5 minutes before using it in a recipe.

Makes 18 servings
Source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book