by 
Tupperware
Once upon a time, I had a terrible Tupperware addiction. Tupperware simply appealed to the Martha Stewart in me, the part of me which dreamt of cupboards filled with colour-coordinated containers, neatly stacked and labelled so that everything had its own special home.
I spent hundreds of dollars on plastic Tupperware containers, ranging from the practical modular mates to the cute carry-all picnic sets, and the even cuter apple and grape containers. Once I was done organising the pantry and cupboards, I even invested in special containers to organise and optimise the fridge. It was mad.
A dear friend of mine in Australia also shared my fondness for Tupperware, her best investment probably being a red silicone flan mould which – still to this day – she uses exclusively for the recipe below.
This recipe for Pecan Spice Cake actually comes from an Australian Tupperware catalogue which promoted the said silicone flan mould, along with a handy little nut chopper which my friend also acquired to chop the pecans in this recipe. It sounds a bit gimmicky, but given the number of times my friend has made this recipe, and how well-received this cake has always been, I would say that these Tupperware items have been a sound investment to date.
Chocolate Pecan Coffee Cake
In the US, this cake is called a “coffee cake“. It doesn’t actually contain any coffee, but it is intended to be eaten with a cup of coffee, hence the name.
This Chocolate Pecan Coffee Cake is what my friend used to make on those nights when we would gather mid-week to catch the latest episode of the Amazing Race or The O.C. (those were the days!), or to simply forget about the day’s stresses.
And to this day, she still makes this cake whenever we visit her in Australia ❤️ I really treasure those moments when I can catch up with her over a few slices of this cake and a good chat. Which means that, whenever she happens to be in Zurich, I also make this cake during her visits!
Due to the almond meal and sour cream in the recipe, the cake is lovely and moist, with a layers of pecans and chocolate chips to add crunch and texture. It’s the perfect cake to linger over with a cup of coffee, and even better when you can share it with a good friend.
Chocolate Pecan Coffee Cake Recipe
As this recipe for Chocolate Pecan Coffee Cake comes from Tupperware, it is intended to be made in one of their silicone flan moulds, which measures 26 cm (10 inches) wide (see photo below). As I have used a smaller-sized cake tin, the cake is taller and requires a longer cooking time.
Anyone else here also a Tupperware fan?
P.S. As for my Tupperware collection? I still have most of what I bought 20+ years ago, and I still love them 🙂 If you can afford Tupperware, it’s worth every penny.
Chocolate Pecan Coffee Cake
Ingredients
For the Pecan Spice Mixture
- 200 g (7 oz) pecans, roughly chopped
- 135 g (¾ cup) dark chocolate chips
- 40 g (¼ cup) light muscovado sugar, or light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice
For the Cake
- 160 g (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 165 g (¾ cup) caster sugar, (superfine sugar)
- 40 g (¼ cup) light muscovado sugar, or light brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 150 g (1 cup) plain flour, (all-purpose flour)
- 10 g (2 teaspoons) baking powder
- 125 g (1 cup) ground almonds, (almond meal)
- 250 g or ml (1 cup) sour cream, or crème fraîche
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (without fan).
- Line a 24 cm/9 inch cake tin with baking paper and grease the sides.
- Mix together the ingredients for the Pecan Spice Mixture in a bowl and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, cream together the butter, caster sugar and light brown sugar until the mixture is pale and fluffy. This step should take 3 to 5 minutes with an electric mixer.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
- Then add the flour, baking powder and almond meal.
- Finally, mix through the sour cream.
- Mix everything together until well-combined.
- Pour half of the batter into the cake tin.
- Sprinkle half of the Pecan Spice Mixture evenly over the batter.
- Spread over the remaining batter.
- Sprinkle the remaining Pecan Spice Mixture on top.
- Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Leave the cake in the tin for about 10 minutes, before removing it carefully to a cooling rack.
- This cake is delicious served warm.
Kitchen Notes
- VARIATIONS
This recipe is a bit forgiving. I once discovered that I had no almond meal, so I instead used ground hazelnuts with great success. Another time, I didn’t have enough sour cream so I made up the difference with natural yoghurt. - RECIPE CREDIT
This recipe is adapted from Tupperware. - OVEN TEMPERATURES
All recipes on this website state temperatures for a regular oven (i.e. a conventional oven without fan). If you have a convection oven with a fan, please consult the manufacturer’s handbook on how to adjust the temperature and baking time accordingly. - CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
You’re a great organizer! I’m sure Tupperware won’t mind giving you freebies (wink). Smart use of alternatives. Your pie looks gorgeous!
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
I’ve removed the photo in case readers might think I’m being sponsored by Tupperware … I wouldn’t mind some freebies but we’ve honestly run out of room!
Tupperware addiction?? That sounds fun. Or disturbing, I’m not sure!! 😛
Wow, you have one for everything, and I have always to search among my tuppers to find the appropriate :
Well, I have to say that, using tuppers to organize the fridge sounds good. A perfectly organized fridge is my dream. Today is not possible with my boyf, nor say the day he lives with me!!
I love recipes that bring good memories, they’re so great and special!! Well, and it doesn’t bring me any memory, but I’m looking forward to try. The best is on top, I think, but I need to see the cut.
Have a nice week, Thanh!!
PD: I made your tahina cookies, I have to show you, don’t know how can I wait sooooo long.
Disturbing is how my husband would also describe it 😉 I loved using the Tupperware containers for my fridge but, unfortunately, fridges in Switzerland are much smaller than those in Australia, so I have had to sell them. On the positive side, Tupperware seems to retain their value quite well so I have had no problems selling those items which I can no longer use.
I wanted to take some photos of the cake with a slice cut, but my little boy woke up from his nap and it’s almost impossible to take food photos when he is around, unless you want little hands and feet in the photo as well 😉
Oh and glad to hear that you enjoyed the tahini cookies! I absolutely love them.
P.S. Thanks for letting me know about the error in the recipe!
Silvret är ju fantastiskt snyggt, I like! Min far har en liknande "drinkhörna" med en bricka i mässing, men jag är inte mycket för synlig sprit, ja inte sprit överhuvudtaget faktiskt..Ha en fin start på nya veckan fina du!Kram Catta
That cake looks amazing! thanks for sharing 🙂
Yum, pecans, chocolate & spice + cake made with sour cream – sounds pretty much perfect 🙂
You bet! 😉 Thanks to the sour cream, the cake keeps pretty well too.
hahahaha “Tupperware addiction” I love that so much. This cake is so yummy looking – and sounding! I love it!
It really was an addiction! Or perhaps “obsession” would have been a better choice of word. But the fact that I still have most items today, and I still use them today, shows that they were a good purchase all of those years ago. Phew!
I have some Tupperware from my mum in the 1960’s. They are still serviceable if a bit scratched. My flour(s) and sugar(s) are still in rectangular Tupperware. Wish I still had my cake taker and pie taker.
There are plenty of worse “addictions” than to Tupperware, lol. Though it IS a plastic-type product, it will last for eons.
There are indeed worse addictions than Tupperware … I feel better now 😉 I also have some pieces of vintage Tupperware from my husband’s family which I love. Most, if not all, are in perfect condition. I’m not always a fan of plastic, but Tupperware is a great quality product.
yummy yummy yummy i want a piece! Send it to me please. Thanks for this delicious Cake
This looks phenomenal! Pecans and dark chocolate are my favorite! Pinned!
Looks amazing! Sadly, I don’t have any tupperware, although I usually store everything in glass. I wonder if there is glass tupperware? Hmm.. Anyways, I have to try this cake- Pinned!
I think for a brief while, there were some glass Tupperware containers for use in the fridge. I actually prefer to store food in glass containers, especially in the fridge. We don’t own a microwave so there’s actually no need for us to store food or leftovers in Tupperware containers. I toyed with the idea of using glass jars for my pantry but they don’t stack as well, nor do they come in neat sizes like plastic containers do. So my compromise these days is to use plastic Tupperware containers for the pantry and for packing food for the little one when we are out, but most food for the fridge is stored in glass containers.
Thanh I had a big smile on my face when I read that you don’t own a microwave because I don’t own one either so I’m not alone 😀 Anyhoo getting back to the cake, yum it looks delicious. I love using nuts in cakes because they’re so moreish. I’m thinking of making this for a potluck and then for my mom when she comes over…. Speaking of Tupperware, a friend of mine has this super handy salad dressing holder and I’ve been dying to get my hands on one.
Hope all’s well on your end.
xx
Hi Rushi,
A lot of people are surprised when they notice that there is no microwave in our kitchen. In fact, when we had our child, many commented that we would have to finally cave in and buy one because, apparently, you need a microwave to heat food for your child. I’m not sure what’s wrong with heating food on the stove or in the oven, except it might take 5 minutes compared to 5 seconds. Maybe we would have a microwave if space was not an issue, but I’m glad we’ve been able to manage just fine without one to date 🙂 Hope you will enjoy this cake. I’m eating a slice right now …
Hi Thanh,
My cake is in the oven as we speak. I caved in and decided it’s better to do a test run 😉 I don’t mind heating food on the stove or even in the oven, my mom did and so did my grandma and I’m happy to say that I’ve managed fine without a microwave. I doubt I’d buy one even if space wasn’t an issue, probably get myself a nice ice cream maker and a kitchen aid instead, he he he.
Ooh I hope you enjoyed the cake! And yes, I’d choose a KitchenAid over a microwave any day!!
Lovely story!! I remember my childhood marked by Tupperware! There were shows almost every month in my house or in the neighborhood!! 🙂
If this cake can get bad thoughts away (of course the worst thoughts are connected with heart pains!) I should make tons of it! Thanks for the suggestion!!
Sadly, I only ever attended 1 or 2 Tupperware parties. Although, if I had attended more, it would have been quite dangerous for my bank account! But I bought most of my Tupperware directly through a rep who always gave me little gifts 🙂 Hope you are not nursing a broken heart but, if you are, this cake will make you feel better 🙂
I made this cake last weekend as a treat for parent’s day, but I used walnuts instead of pecans because we grow them here. Pecans are terribly expensive… Nice cake, we ate it warm with ice cream on Sunday and it kept moist for three days until the kids finished it. I reminded me of a cake I used to make often – pecan raisin coffee cake. Tomorrow we are having friends over for a barbecue and I am making sticky date cake with butterscotch sauce. It also keeps really well.
I must say I have never been that enamoured with Tupperware, Nana had some useful pieces but I don’t remember my mum having any. As for the microwave, we do have one and my husband uses it to reheat his tea that he often forgets to drink and I use it to heat the kid’s doudous which have rice or some type of material that retains heat. Other than that we don’t really use it very much. Thanks for the post, I love trying new recipes.
I’m so glad you tried this recipe and that it worked well with walnuts! I’m loving the sound of the pecan raisin coffee cake …
It sounds like the microwave has some limited functions, but at least you are finding ways to use it, especially with the doudous. We have a friend who’s baby had colic and they also found respite in such doudous.
Enjoy the sticky date cake – your friends are so lucky!
The sticky date cake is lovely- quite addictive and huge so lots of leftovers. I might even freeze some it for a time when I don’t have time to make anything.
I forgot – I make the caramel in the microwave foe the chocolate caramel slice. It take a little longer but it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan and I don’t have to stand over the stove stirring. Very important if one is making a load of cakes for the school cake stall!
My nine year old still has her doudou heated in the microwave….
I didn’t know you could make caramel in the microwave! It almost sounds foolproof.
That sounds very sweet that you still heat your nine year old’s doudou. Must be so comforting for her 🙂 Our son loves to suck his doudou’s hands so, as you can imagine, it smells absolutely terrible after a few days! So we have two on rotation. Hopefully, one day, he will just be happy to cuddle his doudou like his other toys 🙂
I definitely have a container issue but I think of it as a good thing. I have a ton of rubbermaid and ziplock glass containers. I have a cabinet devoted to them but it’s a horror show every time I open the door because crap comes spilling out. There is just no way to properly organize them! Anyways, enough about tupperware, let’s discuss this gorgeous cake! It looks ah-may-zing. I love baking with sour cream and the pecans and chocolate sound divine. I really need to try this asap!
I agree – organising all of the plastic can be an issue, but I now try to keep empty containers to a minimum. Most of my Tupperware is used for storing pantry items, but the cellar seems to home to more of the large Tupperware, such as cake carriers and the like. I guess I’m not transporting cakes as much as I thought I would!
What are the ingredients in mixed spice? Is it a mixture of cinnamon and nutmeg?
“Mixed spice” is frequently used in Australian and British baking, and is typically a mix of cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg. The brand I use is by MasterFoods which I often I ask my friends to send to me or bring when they are visiting from Australia.
Wow! This cake is truly delicious. It was lovely served warm but also great the next day. Definitely making this again!
Please give me a piece! This is a great recipe! Deliciously! Thank you!