Great Grandma’s Famous Jimmy Cake
Coffee and chocolate “jimmies” (sprinkles by another name) are the star attractions of this tube cake recipe that goes back to my great-grandmother. A sweet coffee glaze tops it off with a sprinkling of more chocolate jimmies.
One of my favorite desserts of all time is a family recipe my mom has been making since.. well.. forever. If you are wondering, jimmies are chocolate sprinkles which are mixed into this moist cake, giving it a nice chocolate flavor which pairs well with the coffee in the cake.
If you are interested, I also have a Orange Chocolate Jimmy Cake Recipe posted at the blog as well.
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Great-Grandma’s Famous Jimmy Cake Recipe
Coffee and chocolate "jimmies" (sprinkles by another name) are the star attractions of this tube cake recipe that goes back to my great-grandmother. A sweet coffee glaze tops it off with a sprinkling of more chocolate jimmies.
Ingredients
Cake:
- ½ cup vegetable shortening or coconut oil, which I prefer and use
- ½ cup butter softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 egg whites beaten stiff
- 1 cups cold coffee
- 1 cup chocolate sprinkles (jimmies)
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Coffee Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. instant coffee
- ¼ cup milk add more milk as necessary
Garnish:
- Extra chocolate sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325-f degrees.
For the cake:
- Cream shortening and butter until fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add powdered sugar and mix until combined. Add egg yolks, one at a time, stirring between each egg yolk. Add cooled coffee and mix for 1 minute. Add in flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix until combined. Fold in jimmies. Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Bake in a well greased large Bundt pan, checking with a toothpick at one hour.
For the frosting:
- Combine the instant coffee and milk until coffee is dissolved. Add to powdered sugar. Add more milk as needed if you would like a thinner frosting.
Nutrition
Calories: 462kcalCarbohydrates: 69gProtein: 5gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 86mgSodium: 258mgPotassium: 80mgFiber: 1gSugar: 52gVitamin A: 331IUCalcium: 69mgIron: 1mg
Loved this recipe?Please consider leaving a 5 star rating and share your feedback in a comment below. Thank you!
Recipe from my Great-Grandma.



my grandma called sprinkles "jimmies" too!
my grandma called sprinkles "jimmies" too!
I never heard of this type of cake but I love the coffee and hint of chocolate in this cake- will be making this soon!
Love this!
Just printed it up, looks delicious!
I've never heard of a Jimmy Cake. I love treasured family recipes. I can't wait to try it.
Found this through your recap post today. Looks yummy! Pinned to try soon. 🙂
this looks great – am pinning it so i can give it a try, thank you for posting .
Sounds wonderful! Note to fellow Canadians: jimmies are just sprinkles 😀
Thanks for the recipe! Sounds yummy!
If you do not have a 9 inch tube pan, can you make it in a different pan? Adjustments for baking time?
The only difference in baking times for another size pan would be the time of baking. I use a Bundt pan. You can even do cupcakes. All is good!!!!
Is there something that can be substituted for coffe as I don't like coffee.
You could use water. I haven't tried this and I'm not sure how overall it would change the flavor of the cake.
I would done the same thing with the coffee and might try using hot chocolate instead
I might try Chai tea then if you like that and sort of want to keep it in the same vein.
I would done the same thing with the coffee
Hi Ali,
I loved the cake. I made it on Sunday and you can check on the link below!
http://www.5starcookies.com/2016/07/22/comes-miss-america-boys-watch/
For those of you that reviewed this cake as “sounds yummy” or “can’t wait to try it” please do yourself a favor and make this delicious cake. It really is good and makes a great breakfast treat too. Thanks for sharing this precious family heirloom recipe.
Thank you so much! I’m so happy you enjoyed it.
In the 60s when I was a kid, this was my request for my birthday cake. My parents’ recipes were more notes than recipes because they knew how to make the stuff. After they passed, I found their notes for this, but it always turned out dense, dry and floury. I’ve tinkered with it but to no avail. I was about to try again but decided to Google it. Nothing came up for chocolate sprinkle cake because these days, that’s what the jimmies are called. So, I tried chocolate jimmy cake, and it brought me to this recipe. I just made it and this is it! This is my nostalgic childhood cake! Thank you so much for sharing this!
I’m so happy to hear that you found the recipe you were looking for Jeff.