Pumpkin Coffee Cake
This pumpkin coffee cake has a ridiculously moist, tender pumpkin cake layer that’s more reminiscent of a soft pumpkin bar than a traditional cake. It’s rich, plush, and packed with pumpkin and warm fall spices. But the real star of the show is the crumb topping. There’s twice as much as you’d normally find on a coffee cake, so every bite gets a generous layer of buttery, cinnamon-sugar crumble. The ratio is almost 50/50 cake to crumb, which is exactly how I think coffee cake should be.
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Coffee Cake
It’s incredibly moist. The pumpkin keeps the cake soft and tender, giving it that rich, almost fudgy texture you love in a good pumpkin bar.
There’s DOUBLE the crumb topping. I wanted this to be a true pumpkin crumb cake, not a pumpkin cake with a few crumbs sprinkled over the top. The crumb layer is thick, buttery, and generous enough to make up almost half of the entire cake.
Every bite has the perfect ratio. You get soft, warmly spiced pumpkin cake paired with buttery, cinnamon-sugar crumbs in every forkful.
It’s the perfect fall breakfast. Serve a slice alongside a hot cup of coffee for a cozy fall breakfast, brunch, or afternoon treat.
Pumpkin Crumb Cake Baking Tips
Properly measure the flour. I always recommend measuring your ingredients, but if that’s not an option it’s important to measure the flour the right way. Spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off with a flat edge for a light and fluffy cup. This will prevent you from adding too much flour to the batter.
Don’t overmix the batter. Once the flour is added, mix just until you no longer see streaks of dry flour. Overmixing can develop too much gluten and make the pumpkin cake less tender.
Use the right pan. For best results, use a light aluminum baking pan. This material will leave you with a much more even bake compared to dark metal, glass, or ceramic bake pans.
Level the crumb topping. There’s intentionally a lot of crumb topping in this recipe! Gently scatter the crumb topping into an even layer. This creates those big, bakery-style chunks of crumb that make this pumpkin coffee cake so special.
Make sure the crumb pieces are varied in size. You want a combination of small crumbs and larger chunks. The smaller pieces create a buttery, crisp topping while the larger pieces stay soft and substantial in the center.
Let it cool before slicing. The pumpkin cake is incredibly moist, so it needs time to set up after baking. Let the coffee cake cool before cutting into it so you get clean slices and the crumb topping has time to firm up.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake FAQs:
Absolutely! Just swap the all-purpose flour with a cup for cup gluten-free baking flour. I like Bob’s Red Mill (the blue bag) or King Arthur measure for measure. The cake will need a few extra minutes to bake.
Yes, this cake actually holds its texture really well, making it a great option to make ahead. Store it tightly covered at room temperature for up to a few days.
I wouldn’t recommend this, as butter won’t provide as much richness. If you’d like to avoid vegetable oil, you can swap it with melted refined coconut oil. Just make sure to use room temperature eggs as cold eggs can solidify the coconut oil in the batter.
Yes. Once completely cooled, wrap individual slices or the entire cake tightly in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container or freezer bag. Freeze for up to 2–3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
For more coffee cake recipes, check out my:
- Buttery Coffee Cake
- Banana Coffee Cake
- Carrot Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
- Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake
- Lemon Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Pumpkin Coffee Cake
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 9 slices
Description
This pumpkin coffee cake is for anyone who believes there can never be too much crumb topping. Unlike a traditional coffee cake with a thin layer of streusel, this one is made with nearly equal parts moist pumpkin cake and buttery crumb topping. So every bite is packed with plenty of that cinnamon-sugar goodness.
Ingredients
Crumble
- 1 2/3 cup (215g) all-purpose flour or 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour, spooned and leveled
- 1/4 cup (30g) cornstarch
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, melted
Pumpkin Coffee Cake
- 1/2 cup (108g) vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240g) 100% pure pumpkin
- 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp coarse ground black pepper
- 1 cup (128g) all-purpose flour or 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour, spooned and leveled
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
Crumble
- Preheat the oven to 350F and grease an 8×8 baking dish. Line the bottom and two sides with a sheet of parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, use your hands to mix together all of the crumble ingredients, minus the butter. Once combined, pour in the butter and use a spatula to mix everything together until evenly hydrated. Set aside.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil and sugar until evenly combined, then whisk in the egg, egg yolk, vanilla, and pumpkin until smooth.
- Add the pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pepper and whisk to evenly distribute. Then add in the flour and whisk until fully incorporated, careful not to over mix.
- Spread the batter evenly in the pan and top with a layer of the crumble topping, breaking it up with your hands as you sprinkle it on top.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the cake is evenly puffed and the center does not move when the pan is nudged. Allow to cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then lift it out onto a cooling rack and cool completely either at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
- Once cooled, top with a dusting of powdered sugar and it’s ready to slice and enjoy! Store in a container at room temperature for a couple days, or for about a week in the refrigerator.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cooling Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
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Meet Jenna
I’m the creator, baker, and photographer behind Butternut Bakery. Here I share desserts for every diet because I believe everyone should have a chance to indulge!
