Raspberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake made in a skillet and sitting on a cooling rack

I just couldn’t wait.

Spring has been so poky to actually come around and stay around, that I’ve been feeling deprived of my usual few stalks of early rhubarb from our yard. So I bought some at the store. And I’m not ashamed to admit it. Especially when the recipe that’s been running around in my head the past couple weeks came out of the oven. Filling my kitchen with the soft sweet scent of baked raspberries and rhubarb, creamy butter and sugar, I knew instantly that this puffed up beauty was going to be a winner.

Trust me. You need this Raspberry Rhubarb Skillet Coffee Cake recipe!

Coffee Cake with raspberries and rhubarb baked in a skillet

I’ve been using our cast iron skillets more and more and more over the past year. But until this coffee cake came along, only savory dishes had graced the cast iron. I seriously contemplated baking this recipe in a springform pan or a large deep dish pie plate, but I’m so glad I stuck with the skillet concept. It worked perfectly, and convinced me to keep baking up sweet batters in it.

a slice of Raspberry Rhubarb Cake on a white plate

This coffee cake is super tender, and perfectly moist with the loveliest crumb. Not overly sweet, the cake sits nice and tall, studded with tart pockets of rhubarb throughout. And sprinkled over the top are ruby red raspberries, naturally sweet and oh-so-pretty.

fresh raspberries and rhubarb with skillet coffee cake

And the crumb topping…ohhhhhhh, the crumb topping. I’ve always been a fan. Thin and crinkly and sugary…it’s “my thing”. I hope you’ll agree that it’s yours, too.

Print Recipe

Raspberry Rhubarb Skillet Coffee Cake

Yield: 12 servings

Cook Time:50 minutes

Calories per serving: 336

Ingredients:

for the coffee cake:

  • 3 c. all-purpose flour
  • 3 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 3/4 c. plus 1 tsp. unsalted butter, softened (not melted), divided
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3/4 c. milk
  • 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp. almond extract
  • 2 c. chopped fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2″ pieces
  • 6 oz. fresh raspberries (about 3/4 to 1 cup)

for the crumb topping:

  • 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 c. sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 6 T. cold butter, cut into 1/2″ pieces

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°. Grease a 10″ cast iron skillet with tall sides (a smaller pan will not work!) with the 1 teaspoon of butter. Set pan aside.

for the coffee cake:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate large bowl, or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer, cream together the remaining 3/4 cup of butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and milk and beat until smooth, and then mix in the vanilla and almond extracts. Don’t worry if it’s a bit curdled looking. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Gently fold in the rhubarb and spread into prepared skillet. Sprinkle the top of the batter with raspberries, pressing them into the batter just a bit.

for the crumb topping:

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a rigid pastry cutter or a fork until you have pea-sized pieces. Sprinkle over the top of the coffee cake batter, taking care to let most of the raspberries peek through.

Place skillet in oven and bake for about 50 minutes, or until coffee cake is puffed up and set in the center, and nicely golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool. Let cool for at least 1 hour before serving. When served still warm, it will be very tender (and also highly irresistible!).

Heavily adapted from Mom’s Blueberry Tea Cake recipe.

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Be sure to check out more of our favorite rhubarb recipes!