Pumpkin Streusel Coffee Cake Three Ways

Happy first day of fall!  With the coming season I’ve been experimenting with pumpkin coffeecake recipes.  Unsure whether I preferred a crumb topping to a streusel topping, I took a survey of family and friends to see which was the most popular.  After months of research (okay, two days, if you must know), it was a tie.  It seemed both toppings were equally loved.  Huh, I thought to myself.  Maybe I can come up with a recipe that uses both.  And I did.  This scrumptiously delicious coffee cake employs the use of both crumb and streusel toppings…or not.  Have it your way as they used to say in the commercials of a popular burger chain.  I made it with the streusel topping as a filling and topped it with crumbs.  But you can just use the crumbs, or just use the streusel, or break up the streusel and use half as a filling and the other half on top.  Can you say versatile?  It’s simply delicious, any way you slice it.

Pumpkin Streusel Coffee Cake Three Ways

STREUSEL TOPPING/FILLING

¼ cup flour

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter

¼ cup chopped pecans

CRUMB TOPPING

2 cups flour

2 sticks butter, softened

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon vanilla

COFFEECAKE

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor*

Preheat oven to 350°F Spray a 9” x 9” square cake pan with Pam.  Line pan with parchment paper, leaving 2 extra inches overhanging the sides.  Spray parchment paper with Pam.

FOR STREUSEL TOPPING/FILLING:

Place all ingredients into the work bowl of a food processor; pulse until crumbly.

CRUMB TOPPING:

Mix all ingredients together until crumbly:

FOR COFFEECAKE:

Combine flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter and sugar in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin, vanilla extract, and Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor (if using). Gradually beat in flour mixture.

OPTION #1 – STREUSEL TOPPED COFFEECAKE

Spoon batter into prepared cake pan. Sprinkle Streusel Topping over batter. BAKE for 45 to 50 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.

OPTION #2 – CRUMB TOPPED COFFEECAKE

Spoon batter into prepared cake pan. Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove pan from oven and cover top completely with crumb mixture.  Return to oven and bake an addition 35-35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.

OPTION #3 – CRUMB TOPPED COFFEECAKE with FILLING (Pictured)

Spoon half of the batter into prepared cake pan.  Top batter with filling (streusel).  Cover filling with remaining batter.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and sprinkle the crumb mixture over cake.  Return to oven and bake an additional 35-35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.  Sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.

 *If you don’t have this (and what a shame if you didn’t), just use 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring.

This post is linked to:

On the Menu Monday

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday

What's Cooking Wednesday

Wow Us Wednesday

Foodie Friday

Sweets for a Saturday