Pumpkin Coffee Cake is a must this fall season and this easy recipe hits the spot. Made with a tasty streusel, this homemade cinnamon and pumpkin spice cake is a family favorite.
Why This Recipe is the Best
This Pumpkin Coffee Cake is everything we love about fall baking—warm spices, cozy pumpkin flavor, and an irresistible crumb topping. It’s the perfect treat for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon snack during Halloween or Thanksgiving.
What makes it extra special is how moist and fluffy it turns out every time, thanks to the buttermilk and just the right mixing method. One bite and you’ll want to make it all season long!
Pumpkin spice season is one of our favorites! Be sure to try our Banana Pumpkin Muffins, Pumpkin Bread, and Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting.
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Key Ingredients
We captured all the right tastes and textures with this classic coffee cake. We used a few secret ingredients to help make this the best recipe you've ever tried!
- Buttermilk - after testing this recipe, I finally tried it with buttermilk and fell in love. It added the perfect taste and made the cake so silky and soft. Make sure to use buttermilk for the best results. See the Notes section in the recipe card below to easily make your own.
- Flour- All-purpose flour is used for the base of the coffee cake and also in the streusel mixture.
- Spices- Cinnamon and pumpkin spice just hit the spice when you're trying to capture that fall taste. You will add both spices to the main cake mixture and the streusel topping.
- Pumpkin- Of course, one of the main ingredients is pumpkin! Use canned pumpkin and not canned pumpkin pie mix.
- Sugar- Brown sugar and granulated sugar are used in the cake recipe and also in the streusel topping.
- Oils- In order to get that streusel texture, mix the ingredients with melted butter. The coffee cake itself uses cooking oil, for this recipe, we use avocado oil, but you can use vegetable, canola, or olive oil.
How to make Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Learn how to bake the perfect pumpkin coffee cake with these easy to follow instructions. Use the pictures to get the best results.
- In a large mixing bowl mix the flour, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a separate bowl, mix together the pumpkin, brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, buttermilk and vanilla.
- Gently mix the wet and dry ingredients together. Don't overmix! Spread evenly in a greased 9x9 pan. Make the crumble and sprinkle on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- While the pumpkin coffee cake cooks, whisk together powdered sugar, milk and vanilla.
- Once out of the oven, drizzle over the top of the warm pumpkin coffee cake and serve.
Hint: Don't overmix! If you overmix the wet and dry ingredients, the end results won't be as fluffy.
Larger Portion
This recipe is designed to go in a 9x9 baking pan. If you need a larger batch to serve a bigger crowd, try making it in a 9x13 pan. You will need to 1 and ½ the recipe to fit in the larger pan.
Top tip
We truly believe that making this with buttermilk makes this the best coffee cake recipe! If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own. Measure 2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice into the bottom of a ¼ cup measuring cup. Fill the cup the rest of the way with milk and allow it to sit at least 5 minutes before using.
Recipe
Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
- 1 teapoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup pumpkin
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup cooking oil I used avocado oil
- ¼ cup buttermilk see note 1 to make at home
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Streusel Toppping
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice
- 2 ½ Tablespoons butter cold, cut into cubes
Vanilla Glaze: See note 2 below for a maple glaze recipe if desired
- ⅔ cup powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoon milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a 9x9 pan (see notes for an 8x8).
- Combine flour, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, salt, baking soda and baking powder together in a bowl with a whisk. In a separate bowl, mix together the pumpkin, brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, buttermilk and vanilla. Gently fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture, being very careful not to over mix. Fold only until no flour streaks remain. Spread evenly in the greased 9x9 pan.
- Make the topping by mixing together the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and pumpkin spice. Cut in the cold butter using a fork or your fingers until well combined. Sprinkle evenly across the top of the batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Whisk together powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. Drizzle over the top of the warm pumpkin coffee cake and serve.
Video
Notes
- To make your own buttermilk, measure 2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice into the bottom of a ¼ cup measuring cup. Fill cup the rest of the way with milk and allow to sit at least 5 minutes before using.
- For a maple glaze, combine ⅔ cup powdered sugar with 1 ½ Tablespoons maple syrup and mix until smooth. Use as directed.
- For a swirl coffee cake, gently press the topping into the batter slightly, then use a knife to make figure 8s throughout the cake.
- One of my recipe testers asked me how I got this coffee cake so soft and fluffy. The softness comes from the buttermilk. To make it fluffy- make SURE you do NOT over mix when combining the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients. Let it be fluffy!
- Make sure not to over bake this cake or it will be dry and crumbly instead of soft, moist and fluffy.
Nutrition
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Substitutions and Variations
Try some of our favorite substitutions and variations for different fun flavors!
- Pecan- Add ½ cup crushed pecans to the streusel topping.
- Cream cheese- It's no secret that pumpkin and cream cheese go hand in hand. Try the cream cheese frosting from our Pumpkin Bars instead of streusel.
- Whole wheat- Make this recipe with whole wheat flour by using 1 cup minus 1 Tablespoon of whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour.
- With maple glaze- Combine ⅔ cup powdered sugar with 1 ½ Tablespoons maple syrup and mix until smooth. Use as directed.
- Brown sugar glaze- Make a brown sugar glaze to go on top of the cake.
Storing Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Store baked pumpkin coffee cake in an airtight container at room temperature. When ready to eat again, eat at room temperature or warm a slice up in the microwave.
You can even freeze this bread for another time. Make sure the baked bread is in a freezer-friendly container. Freeze for 1-2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before consuming.
Andrea says
I love how this Pumpkin Coffee Cake turned out! It a great moist cake that perfect for any fall occasion.