The leaves are turning. The air is crisping. The ghouls are howling. (ok maybe that was just my toddler screaming for a snack.) But in any case, you know what time it is: Time to agonize over shipping delays for the Halloween costumes you ordered! Oh yes, everyone’s favorite time of year. Time for a trip to Home Depot to attempt homemade versions of the costumes that aren’t coming. 4 kids. 5 projects to shop for. 2 adults. 8pm. This should be easy right? When we enter the store, everyone scatters, faster than I can even blink. I find most of them at the enormous Halloween display, which is basically Disneyland level entertainment, I don’t know why anyone wastes money on the real thing. Eric goes off with one kid to costume shop, and I’m left with a rabid toddler and a kindergartener who suddenly needs to go to the bathroom (even though I told her to go before we left). I’m trying to find the items we need but instead have to keep a hold on the 2-year-old, who’s just found the maintenance guy’s broom and is now wielding it like a sword. We move to the next aisle, but it’s no use. I’m turning around every 30 seconds, where’s Edison? Oh, he’s found the large stack of PVC pipes. 30 seconds later, Where’s Edison?? Oh, he’s trying to open a candy bar that he took off the shelf. Of course. The kids keep running back to the Halloween display, and I’m really no better, because I keep getting distracted by all the houseplants I want to buy from the garden center. Even though I know I will eventually kill them all (this totally fits with the macabre season though, right?) Eric returns exactly when the kindergartener-bathroom situation becomes desperate, so I leave him with the kids and some large houseplants that he somehow has to fit in our cart that is already full. byeee Val and I return to the group to find open warfare in the aisles. It dawns on me that all of my children have chosen costumes that involve large sticks to carry around. (Wizard staff, my foot. It’s a beating stick, what have I done.) We herd them over to check out as fast as possible because we gotta get outta here before the kids light something on fire. We run into a new friend from church (whose name we can’t remember 😬) and I’m chatting with him while Eric jogs to the back of the store because one of our items doesn’t have a bar code, of course. We finally get our receipt, and race toward the exit…but where’s Edison? Where’s Edison? Mild panic ensues, all the cashiers start fanning out, copying me, “EDISON, EDISON!!” Well, one calm rescue later, an assurance to all wide-eyed onlooking Home Depot employees that no one is getting sued today, and that’s that! Just a typical family outing guys! You should definitely have more kids! As the cherry on top to all this adrenaline, we open the back of the van once we get to the parking lot to find food and produce, including 5 dozen eggs, from a shopping trip several days previously that I failed to unload. BECAUSE I JUST CAN’T EVEN YOU GUYS. Well, I may not have all my shopping ducks in a row, I may not even have all my children in a row, but I have definitely got Pumpkin Streusel Coffee Cake. And that is something we can all rely on in these trying times. More on that below, but first!
Pumpkin Coffee Cake
On to the recipe! I am SO excited to share this cake with you! I had the idea to pumpkin-ify my favorite Sour Cream Coffee Cake, and thought it would be pretty good. But I was FLOORED. This stuff is legit. It’s like your favorite Pumpkin Cake but with 100 pounds of streusel added in, plus a glaze. How can we go wrong here?? Fall baking forever! Every year I bake a cake for my anniversary. Here are all my anniversary posts if you want to take a walk down memory lane!
The first blog post on The Food Charlatan (2011): Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies 1st Anniversary (2012): Cake Mix Coffee Cake 2nd Anniversary (2013): Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies (I did a reshoot of my first recipe, which I totally regret!) 3rd Anniversary (2014): The Food Charlatan’s New Blog Design 4th Anniversary (2015): The Best Chocolate Cake I’ve Ever Had 5th Anniversary (2016): Death by Chocolate Bundt Cake 6th Anniversary (2017): Upside Down Almond Crunch Cupcakes 7th Anniversary (2018): Ginger Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake 8th Anniversary (2019): Sour Cream Coffee Cake, with a Ridiculous Amount of Streusel 9th Anniversary (2020): Homemade Spice Cake 10th Anniversary (2021): Classic Cheesecake (and an IRL party for 10 years! 🥳)
How to make Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Streusel
We’re going to start out with a ton of streusel, as promised! Flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and lots of pumpkin pie spice. Now for the streusel. Most coffee cakes have one layer, then crumble on top. But I couldn’t leave it. So my cake has 4 layers total. See?? I told you. Over the top, and no apologies. I basically eat coffee cake as a medium for streusel. It’s buttery and rich, and the topping crisps up perfectly in the oven. Once it’s all baked we add a simple glaze, just because we can. It’s cake, people. I’ve done lots of experimenting with streusel, and I prefer making it with melted butter. You can try adding cold butter and cutting it in, but it never works as well for me. You just have to make sure you stop stirring before it comes together all the way! You don’t want to moisten all the flour. Leave it chunky. Like this: Set the streusel aside (in the fridge, preferably), and get out all your ingredients for the cake part. (My new kitchen has black countertops, which is so dark for photos! I have this white board here to lighten things up, but apparently I’m really bad at centering. You can see the edges in every photo. This is why I’ll never be a real food blogger 🤪) Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Then I’m going to tell you to do something really weird and I need you to trust me. Add some chopped up butter to the dry ingredients, along with a big ol scoop of pumpkin straight from the can. No need to measure. I know, I know, not the normal way to make a cake. But coating the fat (butter) in flour before adding all the liquid gives the cake great texture. The pumpkin helps moisten it just enough. You should end up with a thick dough like in the photo above. Then in a separate bowl (I used the same bowl I melted butter in for the streusel) mix together your wet ingredients. Whatever is left over from the can of pumpkin, plus 4 eggs, oil, vanilla. Whisk that together and add in increments to the butter mixture. You will get a gorgeous orange batter. Then start layering. Add a bit of cake batter to the bottom, then some streusel, break up any big chunks with your hands. Repeat. Repeat! All the streusel! Here it is right before I put it in the oven: And here it is halfway through baking. If you add all the streusel at once, it weighs the cake down too much and it won’t rise properly. (Trust me, I tried it) But I’m not willing to give up all the streusel I want on top. So we’re doing this half-baked hack. Works like a charm! Add a lil glaze on top and dig in! The glaze is easy. Just some soft butter, powdered sugar, and a bit of salt and vanilla. If your butter is soft enough, you can just mix it with a whisk. Takes 1 minute. DON’T skip the glaze! I’m telling you! You might think you don’t need it after all that streusel, but you do, oh you do. Treat yoself. And that’s it! Easy peasy! This would be such a fun cake to bring to a Halloween party, fall festival, or brunch with your family. It would also be unique for Thanksgiving day, if pie is not your jam!
Can this Pumpkin Coffee Cake be made ahead?
The great thing about coffee cake is that it’s delicious right out of the oven but also saves well. To make this ahead, bake as directed. Make the glaze but don’t drizzle it yet. Once the cake has cooled, cover and store the cake and frosting separately. Both can be stored at room temperature. And don’t forget to heat before you serve! (Fine, maybe you like cold coffee cake, but maybe you like eating dirt, too. I’m not responsible for that.) Put the whole cake in the oven on the warm setting (170 F) until the cake feels warm throughout, should take 15-20 minutes. Drizzle the room-temperature frosting over it. To reheat, just zap individual portions in the microwave for 15-25 seconds.
Does Pumpkin Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake freeze well?
Yes please! A tasty treat for later! To freeze coffee cake, seal it very well. A lot of cake pans have a lid that isn’t a true seal. Consider wrapping the whole pan in plastic wrap or putting the cake by large slices into a ziplock freezer bag. Thaw completely, the countertop is fine. To reheat, microwave works fine for individual portions, or you can heat in the oven at a low temperature.
More pumpkin recipes to love!
Pumpkin season only lasts so long, so make these recipes stat! Or stock up on pumpkin to make these all year, that’s what I do.
Sour Cream Coffee Cake « not actually pumpkin, but the OG sour cream coffee cake that inspired this pumpkin version! Easy Pumpkin Pie Cake « tastes just like pumpkin pie but is about 1000x easier Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins « one of my all time pumpkin favorites Creme Brulee Pumpkin Pie « there’s pumpkin pie, and then there’s SUGAR CRACKLE. Fudgy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars (Pumpkin Blondies) « these really are so fudgy. Pumpkin Roll Recipe with Lots of Cream Cheese Frosting « such a classic, and with all the important info (ahem, lots of frosting) in the name Pumpkin Dump Cake « one of the easiest pumpkin cakes in existence Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Pecan Frosting « browned butter makes everything taste better, just trust me Butterscotch Pumpkin Cake « almost more like brownies: moist, chewy, and oh so good Pumpkin Pie Bars (Pumpkin Shortbread Bars) « super easy, super delicious Soft Pumpkin Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting « is it even fall if you don’t have pumpkin cookies? Easy Pumpkin Bread from Tastes of Lizzy T Pumpkin Mousse from No Spoon Necessary Coconut Pumpkin Halwa Pudding from Piping Pot Curry
Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram
