I just made a Streusel Coffee Cake that hits like a crunchy buttery crown with full-on pumpkin flavor, and you will want a slice before anyone else does.
I’m obsessed with this Streusel Coffee Cake because it hits that perfect pumpkin-to-streusel ratio I want every fall morning. I adore the deep pumpkin flavor from 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree and the buttery crunch thanks to 1 cup packed light brown sugar in the topping.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake 9×13 makes enough to share but I never do. It’s tender, slightly spicy, sugar-crunch on top, and coffee tastes better when it’s beside a slice.
Messy crumbs everywhere. No pity for crumbs.
Eat it warm or not. I will fight you for the last piece.
Worth every guilty bite, trust me.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: the cake’s structure, so it holds everything together nicely.
- Baking powder: gives lift, so the cake isn’t dense.
- Baking soda: reacts with pumpkin for a light crumb.
- Fine salt: balances sweetness and makes spices pop.
- Ground cinnamon: warm spice that screams fall.
- Ground ginger: adds a little bite and warmth.
- Ground nutmeg: subtle sweet spice, kind of cozy.
- Ground cloves: intense warmth, use sparingly.
- Light brown sugar: moist, caramel notes and deeper flavor.
- Granulated sugar: sweetness and a bit of structure.
- Vegetable oil: keeps cake moist and tender.
- Unsalted butter, melted: richer flavor and silkier texture.
- Large eggs: bind everything and give lift.
- Vanilla extract: rounds flavors and adds warmth.
- Pumpkin puree: moist, hearty base and classic fall taste.
- Sour cream: tangy richness, makes crumb tender.
- Streusel brown sugar: caramel punch for that crunchy top.
- Streusel flour: gives the streusel body and crisp bits.
- Streusel cinnamon: extra spice layer on top.
- Streusel salt: contrasts sweetness, keeps it interesting.
- Cold cubed butter: creates that crumbly, crunchy streusel texture.
- Chopped pecans or walnuts: adds crunch and nutty flavor, optional but great.
Ingredient Quantities
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (about 1 3/4 cups)
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- For the cinnamon streusel topping: 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (for streusel)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (for streusel)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (for streusel)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed (for streusel)
- 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional (for streusel)
How to Make this
1. Preheat oven to 350 F and grease a 9×13 inch pan or line it with parchment, set aside.
2. Whisk together 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp fine salt, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp nutmeg and 1/4 tsp cloves in a bowl.
3. In a large bowl beat 1 cup packed light brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup vegetable oil and 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter until smooth; add 2 large eggs one at a time, then 1 tsp vanilla.
4. Stir in 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree and 1/2 cup sour cream into the wet mixture until combined, then gently fold in the dry ingredients just until no big streaks of flour remain, don’t overmix.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
6. Make the streusel: combine 1 cup packed light brown sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl; cut in 1/2 cup cold cubed unsalted butter with a fork or pastry cutter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
7. Stir in 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts if using, then sprinkle streusel evenly over the batter, press lightly so it sticks.
8. Bake at 350 F for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but not raw batter.
9. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing so it sets up, the streusel will crisp as it cools.
10. Serve warm or at room temp, store leftovers covered at room temp for 2 days or refrigerate up to 5 days, you can warm slices briefly before serving.
Equipment Needed
1. 9×13 inch baking pan (greased or lined with parchment)
2. Mixing bowls (one large for wet, one medium for dry, one small for streusel)
3. Whisk for dry ingredients
4. Hand mixer or wooden spoon for beating the sugars, fats and eggs
5. Rubber spatula for folding and for smoothing batter in the pan
6. Measuring cups and spoons
7. Pastry cutter or fork to cut butter into the streusel
8. Baking sheet or cutting board to chop nuts and catch spills
9. Wire cooling rack to let the cake set before slicing
FAQ
Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe Substitutions and Variations
- All-purpose flour:
- Whole wheat pastry flour, use 1:1 for a nuttier, denser cake (might be slightly drier).
- Gluten-free 1-to-1 flour blend, use 1:1, same texture if blend contains xanthan gum.
- Oat flour, use about 1 1/4 cups per cup of AP flour and cut a bit of liquid, gives a more tender crumb.
- Light brown sugar (in batter or streusel):
- Coconut sugar, 1:1, less molasses flavor and a bit more caramel notes.
- Maple sugar, 1:1, gives a maple-y twist.
- Granulated sugar plus 1 tablespoon molasses per cup, mimics brown sugar if you dont have it.
- Vegetable oil / melted butter:
- Applesauce, replace half the oil amount (1/4 cup applesauce for 1/2 cup oil) to cut fat and keep moistness.
- Melted coconut oil, use 1:1, adds a subtle coconut note.
- All butter instead of oil, use equal total fat (if recipe calls for 1/2 cup oil + 1/2 cup butter, you can use 1 cup butter though texture will be richer).
- Sour cream:
- Full-fat Greek yogurt, 1:1, same tang and structure but slightly thicker.
- Buttermilk, use about 3/4 the volume and reduce other liquids slightly, keeps cake tender.
- Crème fraîche, 1:1, richer and very similar in texture and tang.
Pro Tips
1. Don’t overmix the batter. Stir until you just don’t see big streaks of flour, then stop. Overmixing makes it dense and gummy, not light and tender.
2. Use room temp eggs and sour cream so the batter mixes smooth and traps air better. Cold ingredients slow things down and can make the texture weird.
3. Chill the butter for the streusel and cut it in with a fork or pastry cutter until it’s coarse crumbs. If the butter melts, the streusel will clump and get cakey instead of crisp.
4. Bake near the middle rack and check at 40 minutes with a toothpick in the center. If it’s wet but not batter, give it a few more minutes. Let it cool at least 20 minutes in the pan so it sets; slicing too soon makes it fall apart.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe
I just made a Streusel Coffee Cake that hits like a crunchy buttery crown with full-on pumpkin flavor, and you will want a slice before anyone else does.
12
servings
687
kcal
Equipment: 1. 9×13 inch baking pan (greased or lined with parchment)
2. Mixing bowls (one large for wet, one medium for dry, one small for streusel)
3. Whisk for dry ingredients
4. Hand mixer or wooden spoon for beating the sugars, fats and eggs
5. Rubber spatula for folding and for smoothing batter in the pan
6. Measuring cups and spoons
7. Pastry cutter or fork to cut butter into the streusel
8. Baking sheet or cutting board to chop nuts and catch spills
9. Wire cooling rack to let the cake set before slicing
Ingredients
-
2 cups all-purpose flour
-
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
-
1 teaspoon baking soda
-
1 teaspoon fine salt
-
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
-
1 teaspoon ground ginger
-
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
-
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
-
1 cup packed light brown sugar
-
1/2 cup granulated sugar
-
1/2 cup vegetable oil
-
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
-
2 large eggs
-
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (about 1 3/4 cups)
-
1/2 cup sour cream
-
For the cinnamon streusel topping: 1 cup packed light brown sugar
-
1 cup all-purpose flour (for streusel)
-
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (for streusel)
-
1/2 teaspoon salt (for streusel)
-
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed (for streusel)
-
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional (for streusel)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 F and grease a 9×13 inch pan or line it with parchment, set aside.
- Whisk together 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp fine salt, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp nutmeg and 1/4 tsp cloves in a bowl.
- In a large bowl beat 1 cup packed light brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup vegetable oil and 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter until smooth; add 2 large eggs one at a time, then 1 tsp vanilla.
- Stir in 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree and 1/2 cup sour cream into the wet mixture until combined, then gently fold in the dry ingredients just until no big streaks of flour remain, don’t overmix.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Make the streusel: combine 1 cup packed light brown sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl; cut in 1/2 cup cold cubed unsalted butter with a fork or pastry cutter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
- Stir in 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts if using, then sprinkle streusel evenly over the batter, press lightly so it sticks.
- Bake at 350 F for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but not raw batter.
- Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing so it sets up, the streusel will crisp as it cools.
- Serve warm or at room temp, store leftovers covered at room temp for 2 days or refrigerate up to 5 days, you can warm slices briefly before serving.
Notes
- Below you’ll find my best estimate of this recipe’s nutrition facts. Treat the numbers as a guide rather than a rule—great food should nourish both body and spirit. Figures are approximate, and the website owner assumes no liability for any inaccuracies in this recipe.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving Size: 165g
- Total number of serves: 12
- Calories: 687kcal
- Fat: 33.2g
- Saturated Fat: 12g
- Trans Fat: 0.17g
- Polyunsaturated: 5.8g
- Monounsaturated: 13.3g
- Cholesterol: 74mg
- Sodium: 467mg
- Potassium: 100mg
- Carbohydrates: 69.7g
- Fiber: 2.3g
- Sugar: 45g
- Protein: 5.3g
- Vitamin A: 1200IU
- Vitamin C: 0.1mg
- Calcium: 20mg
- Iron: 0.77mg
