Los Angeles Students Have Been Eating This Legendary Cafeteria Treat For More Than 70 Years

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

The modern-day school cafeteria came to be in an effort to help students be more successful in their studies. Depending on where you are in the world, school lunches can look quite different. One U.S. city, Los Angeles, has become famous for a school cafeteria offering that is envied by many with a sweet tooth. Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has been serving up a cafeteria coffee cake since the 1950s that is still sought-after by those near and far.

Though it might seem an odd choice for legendary food, with an almost cult-like following, this LA-based coffee cake is among the vintage desserts everyone loved in the 1950s. The original cake recipe comes from 1954 and contained flour, water, powdered milk, eggs, granulated sugar, packed brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, vinegar, oil, and spices, including cinnamon and nutmeg. Its crave-worthy streusel topping was made using a number of the base cake ingredients.

More than just the taste, part of the appeal of this time-honored coffee cake is the smell. Imagine the cinnamon and sugar scent permeating a Los Angeles school cafeteria or even your own home kitchen. With the recipe widely available, you can easily recreate this Los Angeles offering wherever you are. It would certainly be all the more satisfying not having to rush to class after enjoying the cake either.

Although, in its current iteration, the coffee cake served at Los Angeles area schools comes from a mix, you can still use the old-school recipe to make your own version. It's fairly simple and has been provided by the LAUSD's website. During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, the school district even put out a message on social media, encouraging those sheltering at home to use the recipe to prepare their own coffee cakes for nostalgia, warmth, and comfort in the face of fear and uncertainty.

While the typical cafeteria-style coffee cakes were served in squares, you can also try the genius way to make coffee cake more shareable by baking the batter and streusel topping into individual muffin tins. If you're truly committed to maintaining cafeteria-like vibes, grab your own Carlisle FoodService Products Cafeteria Tray on which to serve your cake. It would make an excellent dessert centerpiece for a throwback school days-inspired gathering.

The rich flavors of cinnamon, brown sugar, and nutmeg are vital to maintaining the classic scent and taste of this beloved cake. It may seem sacrilege to deviate from the classic recipe, but you can also introduce other warming spices or even a robust fruit topping to your cake for a riff on the recipe. Any way you choose to enjoy this cake, you can be confident you're taking a luscious bite out of Los Angeles history.