This recipe for New Jersey Crumb Coffee Cake makes an incredibly moist cake with a thick, buttery cinnamon crumb topping – just like you find in New Jersey bakeries.
One Incredible Coffee Crumb Cake
You’ll love the generous topping of buttery, tender, cinnamon crumbs that crowns this moist delicious cake. Flavored with vanilla, and a subtle tang of buttermilk, this is one of my favorite cakes of all time!
Crumb Cake – A Childhood Favorite
Growing up in New Jersey, I loved cakes like Entenmann’s Crumb Coffee Cake and Crumb Buns from the local bakery. I have a weakness for anything with a crumb topping!
On Sunday mornings, my parents always had fresh rolls and crumb cake from the bakery. The best was when it would still be warm!
Food can really remind you of home, but when I lived in England, crumb cake wasn’t sold there, which forced me to try to recreate this beloved favorite.
The good news – this Jersey Girl can bake! This is my version of the Entenmann’s cake of my childhood. I warn you – it’s addictive!
Why This Recipe Works
- The brown sugar in the topping adds depth of flavor and keeps the topping from becoming too crispy.
- The addition of baking powder in the cake ensures the topping won’t sink into the cake.
- The buttermilk lends flavor as well as moisture to the cake.
How To Make Cake Crumbs
To make the cake crumbs, start with adding flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a mixing bowl. Mix well and pour in warm, melted butter. Stir to combine.
At this point, I press the mixture into balls. This not only helps to crumble it over the cake, but it also lets me know if more butter is needed.
How to Make Coffee Crumb Cake
In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Next, beat the softened butter in a large bowl with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and mix to combine.
Add buttermilk and vanilla, beat just until blended.
If you don’t have buttermilk on hand don’t panic, you can make your own. 1 cup of milk plus 1 tbsp of white vinegar or lemon juice is a great rule of thumb.
For this recipe: 1 1/4 cup of milk plus 1 1/4 tablespoons of white vinegar or lemon juice.
Add flour mixture, beating just until blended after each addition.
Transfer batter to prepared baking pan (The batter will be thick); spreading it evenly over the pan.
Crumble the hand-squeezed topping evenly over cake batter, covering with a thick layer of topping. Bake until the tester comes out clean and topping is a deep golden brown. Cool cake completely and dust with powdered sugar.
Serve and enjoy every last bite.
Baker’s Tips:
- Make the topping first. Leaving the batter to sit before baking may cause problems with rising, causing the topping to sink into the cake.
- Use good quality unbleached flour (with4-5g of protein) for the best result. Lower quality flour may not have the stability to hold the topping.
- Don’t overmix the batter once the flour is added. Overmixing can cause a tough, dense cake.
- Be sure to cool the cake completely before dusting it with the sugar. A warm cake will melt the sugar.
FAQs
Can you freeze Crumb Cake?
Crumb Cake Freezes really well. Just wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature overnight.
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Blueberry Muffins
- Crumb Cake
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- Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins
- Cornbread Muffins
- Apple Brown Betty
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Let’s Make New Jersey Crumb Coffee Cake
Ingredients
For the topping:
- 2 cups brown sugar packed
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks), melted – plus more if needed
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
For the cake:
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cups butter (1½ sticks) softened
- 1½ cups sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1¼ cups buttermilk
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla
- ½ cup powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
For the topping:
- Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Stir in the melted butter, then gently mix in the flour, being careful not to overmix (you just want to moisten the flour and mix until there is no visible dryness). Keep the mixture in large clumps. Set aside.
- Squeeze a handful of the topping into your hand, if it doesn’t clump together, add a little more melted butter until it does. Set aside.
For the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350f/175c. Grease 9×13 inch baking pan
- In a medium mixing bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Beat the softened butter in a large bowl until light.
- Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs 1 at a time, beating until well blended after each addition.
- Add buttermilk and vanilla, beat just until blended.
- Add flour mixture in 3 additions, beating just until blended after each addition.
- Transfer cake batter to prepared baking pan (the batter will be thick); spreading it evenly over the pan.
- Hand-squeeze small handfuls of topping together and crumble clumps evenly over cake batter, covering with a thick layer of topping.
- Bake 45 minutes to an hour or until the tester comes out clean and topping is deep golden brown and a little crisp.
- Cool cake in dish on rack at least 30 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar and cut into squares to serve.
Tips + Notes
- Make the topping first. Leaving the batter to sit before baking may cause problems with rising, causing the topping to sink into the cake.
- Use good quality unbleached flour (with4-5g of protein) for the best result. Lower quality flour may not have the stability to hold the topping.
- Don’t overmix the batter once the flour is added. Overmixing can cause a tough, dense cake.
- Be sure to cool the cake completely before dusting with the sugar. A warm cake will melt the sugar.
- If you don’t have buttermilk on hand don’t panic, you can make your own. 1 cup of milk plus 1 tbsp of white vinegar or lemon juice is a great rule of thumb. For this recipe: 1 1/4 cup of milk plus 1 1/4 tablespoons of white vinegar or lemon juice.
-
FAQs
Can you freeze Crumb Cake?Crumb Cake Freezes really well. Just wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature overnight.
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This post was originally published in July of 2014, but was republished with a video new photos, step-by-step instructions, and tips in November of 2019.
JHunter says
Excellent recipe! I have never made a crumb cake before, and though it takes a little time, it was very easy. My family and kids friends eat the entire thing in one sitting!
Erren Hart says
Thank you for trying out our recipe for crumb cake. We’re glad to hear that you and your family enjoyed it! This is definitely a recipe that is easy to follow and the end result is always a hit. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Joan says
wonderful moist cake, great crunchy crumb topping!
Erren Hart says
Thank you for the kind words! We’re so glad you enjoyed your experience and hope you’ll come back to try more recipes!
Diane sergeant says
Made this crumb cake following direction but the topping sunk. What happened
Erren Hart says
Hi Diane, I’m so sorry to hear about this, and I’m sorry for the late reply. I am recovering from covid, and this is my first time in front of my computer since before Christmas. This happens to some users. I wish I could pinpoint the reason. I suspect it has something to do with the flour proteins, but it’s so hard to say that it varies so much by brand. I wish I had a better answer. I can tell you that I use unbleached American flour with 5% protein. Hope this helps.
Cathy M. says
This is my go-to crumb cake recipe and I’ve tried many. I get requests for it all the time. Question: any suggestions in how I can make the crumb topping a little less crunchy and softer? Loosely covering towards the end of baking? Lowering the temperature? Or adding more more or less flour? Thanks in advance!
Erren Hart says
I’ll be honest, Cathy – I have been working on perfecting this cake for years. Some people have issues with the topping sinking (although I can’t replicate the issue), and it can be a little crunchy. No matter what I do, it’s never as good as my recipe as it is. I just made it a couple of days ago with a mixture of granulated sugar and brown sugar in the topping, and it was a little softer but didn’t have as much flavor. I hear cake flour can help with the crunch too. I haven’t tried it yet. You can definitely tent it with foil for the first half of baking. If you want, I can update you with any changes I feel work. Thanks for leaving a review! I appreciate it!
Cathy M. says
Thank you! It is honestly perfect the way it is, and everyone I make it for says the same. I will try cake flour just to try to replicate some NJ crumb cakes I have had. More for curiosity.
Erren Hart says
Great to hear, Cathy! Thanks for the reassurance!
Kate Nelson says
Girl from NJ and this is spot on! Husband is all about the crumbs but the cake here is rich and delicious; crumbs are big and plentiful! So so good.
Erren Hart says
I’m so happy to hear it, Kate! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! 🙂
Sam Stern says
Easy and tasty – my daughters were very happy
Erren's Kitchen says
I love to hear this Sam, so glad it was a hit 🙂
Anita Green says
This is SUCH a good recipe and it makes a beautifully-presented coffee cake. I made two recipes to feed 30, and wish I could attach a picture to show how gorgeous and delectable it looks AND tastes. I used King Arthur All-purpose flour and had no trouble with any aspect of this recipe. I didn’t need 45 minutes to bake, only about 38 minutes in my oven. I also alternated the buttermilk and the flour mixture when adding it in. It’s now a go-to recipe and can’t wait to try some of your other recipes, Erren! Thanks for posting and sharing life in the kitchen with all of us.
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you so much Anita, I love to hear this, and I hope you enjoy many more of my recipes 🙂