Pumpkin Crumb Cake

This crumb cake is full of pumpkin spice flavor.

It is tender, soft and has the perfect crumbly topping!

What is Crumb Cake?

Crumb cake is a tender cake that gets covered in a sugar, flour and butter mixture before baking. That sugar mixture is known as the “crumb”. It is very similar to a streusel topping. Sometimes the topping will contain oats and spices for flavor.

Are Crumb Cake and Coffee Cake The Same?

Sometimes they are the same thing. Somethings to consider however is that while a coffee cake can be made with yeast, crumb cakes are rarely made with yeast. Crumb cakes often have a more generous crumbly coating than coffee cake but both can have a drizzle of icing. Coffee cakes also can be served without any “crumb” at all whereas a crumb cake wouldn’t be a crumb cake without that signature topping!

How To Make Pumpkin Crumb Cake?

This cake is made with your usual cake ingredients but with added spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. I used vegetable oil to make it tender and moist. I used a whole can of pumpkin and I also threw in a bag of cinnamon flavored chips to make it sweet and seasonally appropriate too. The cinnamon chips can be omitted if preferred.

How To Make Crumb Topping?

For this crumb cake, I combined flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon with cold butter. I used a pastry cutter to work the butter into the mixture, but two forks or your fingers work just as well. It is important to use cold butter so that the crumb doesn’t spread and flatten, the solid state will retain moisture which is also why, if you combine the mixture with your fingers that you keep from overworking the butter to prevent it from getting too warm.

I did add icing to this crumb cake, although the cake would be lovely with just a dusting of powdered sugar or a dollop of whipped topping.

If you like coffee cakes with a little crumb then you will love this Easy Walnut Pear Coffee Cake, or this Maple Ginger Coffee Cake. If it’s pumpkin you are after, try this Butterscotch Pumpkin Dump Cake, Pumpkin Better Than Sex Cake, Pumpkin Roll Poke Cake, or these Nutella Swirled Pumpkin Bars.

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Yield: 20

Pumpkin Crumb Cake

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This crumb cake is full of fall flavor with its cinnamon and nutmeg. The sweet crumb coating makes this cake especially good!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Additional Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients

• Topping:
• 1 cup flour
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons cold butter
• Cake:
• 2 cups of flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 15 oz can pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 10 oz bag cinnamon chips
• Icing:
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2-3 tablespoons milk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with non stick spray and set aside.
2. In a bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or your fingers until crumbly. Place the bowl in the refrigerator until ready to use.
3. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
4. In a mixing bowl, stir together the oil, pumpkin, vanilla and sugars until combined. Beat in eggs one at a time until combined.
5. Slowly beat the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until blended. Stir in the cinnamon chips.
6. Pour batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the reserved crumb coating over the cake. Bake the cake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove the cake and allow it to cool on a rack for 20 minutes.
7. In a bowl whisk together the powdered sugar and the milk until smooth. Drizzle icing over cooled cake.

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