Moist, buttery and full of cinnamon, it’s hard to beat an old-fashioned coffee cake.

It’s a good day when cake arrives in the mail unexpectedly.

I have friend and loyal Food Gal reader Abby to thank for the sugary surprise that arrived on my doorstep last week.

Having spent a summer in Boston interning at The Globe many years ago, I was quite familiar with Boston cream pie, which of course, is not pie at all, but custard-filled cake smothered in chocolate glaze.

But Boston Coffee Cake was new to me. And it is indeed cake.

Abby, who travels to Massachusetts regularly, and obviously knows my penchant for sweets, sent me one to try.

Founded in 1992, the Massachusetts uses a coffee cake recipe that’s been passed down through generations. In the early years, the company baked about 50 cakes per day. Today? It’s 12,000. These days, it also bakes other goodies such as cookies and whoopie pies.

But the original cinnamon walnut coffee cake ($34.95) is where it all started. It’s a sour cream coffee cake, so it’s plenty moist. Walnuts, cinnamon and sugar are swirled through the batter and strewn on top. This is an old-fashioned, wholesome type of cake. It’s the taste of childhood, family, and nostalgia.

And it’s so good, I must excuse myself to enjoy another piece right now. Thanks, Abby!