Pumpkin Crumb Cake

I woke up on a cold and rainy morning and read a post about this delicious coffee cake…had to have it. 🙂 My daughter and I started making it almost immediately.

The recipe was adapted from Nancy-C.com. She makes all sorts of crowd-pleasers. I modified the technique used to make the streusel topping, making it with melted butter to replicate my favorite New York-style crumb cake. The original recipe makes one 8 x 8-inch coffee cake.  I doubled the recipe and baked it in a 9 x 13-inch pan. Next time, I may make two 8 or 9-inch rounds so that I could freeze one to enjoy later.

Yield: One 9 x 13-inch cake or Two 8 or 9-inch cakes, about 16 to 20 servings (see note)

For the Coffee Cake:

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2/3 cup canola oil
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
• 15 oz can pumpkin purée

For the Crumb Topping:

• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 8 T (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• powdered sugar, for serving

To Make the Crumb Topping:

1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, flour, salt, and cinnamon.
2. Melt the butter in the microwave or small saucepan.
3. Pour the butter mixture and mix until all the butter is absorbed and you have a uniformly moistened crumb mixture.  Set aside while you make the cake batter.

To Make the Cake Batter:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease or spray preferred baking pan, line with parchment paper, lightly spray parchment; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the oil, eggs, sugar, and pumpkin puree, blending everything well.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry flour mixture, stirring until just combined.
5. Spread batter into the prepared pan.
6. Crumble the crumb mixture over the top, until the batter is completely covered.
7. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes for 8 or 9-inch rounds, 30 to 35 minutes for a 9 x 13-inch pan, or until lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or almost clean. (I rotated the pan halfway through the baking time.) 
8. Remove the cake from the oven and cool on a rack; dust the top with confectioners’ sugar, if desired. (I let the cake cool completely before dusting with confectioners’ sugar.)

Note: Half the recipe will fill an 8×8-inch pan. Use 1 cup of pumpkin purée. (Refer to the link above to the original recipe for proportions.)

About Josette@thebrookcook

I live in Stony Brook, New York on Long Island. I love garlic and baking. My hobby (and love) is to try new recipes. My favorite recipe resources include The New York Times, Food and Wine, Bon Appetit, and Martha Stewart Living. Enjoy!

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