Fluffy Pumpkin Coffee Cake, with a pumpkin pie spice sugar crumble topping, is the perfect weekend Fall breakfast! It’s easy to make and this recipe is made a little healthier than others. If you’re looking for a new recipe to bake with pumpkin, give this a try!
Is coffee cake breakfast or dessert?
I think it’s intended for breakfast or brunch. But, most recipes are loaded with butter and sugar. Which, isn’t how I like to have my breakfast. For me, coffee cake can quickly turn into dessert.
But I love coffee cake for breakfast. It’s a great weekend treat or brunch staple. A fluffy cake, topped with a crunchy crumb topping?! Yes please!
So I set to work to make a few coffee cake recipes this year that are a little healthier! My Banana Coffee Cake, Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake, and now this Pumpkin Coffee Cake.
All of my coffee cake recipes are easily made gluten-free and dairy-free. They also only have 1/2 cup of butter and 1 cup of sugar each, in the entire recipe. So, yes, you can have your cake and eat it too. 😉 Sorry, couldn’t resist that one!
This Pumpkin Coffee Cake is fluffy, filled with pumpkin and pumpkin pie spices, and topped with a pumpkin pie spice sugar crumble. Even though it has two layers, it’s still a simple breakfast to make.
Keep reading for more tips on what ingredients to use and how to make this Pumpkin Coffee Cake for breakfast.
Let’s talk about making this cake first.
You’ll make the base of the cake just like any other cake really. By mixing your dry ingredients together first (flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt). Then, in another bowl, you’ll cream together your butter, brown sugar and applesauce. Next you’ll add the rest of your wet ingredients to them (pumpkin puree, vanilla, eggs and milk).
Then, mix them all together till well combined. Spread the cake batter into the bottom of a 9×9 pan in an even layer, covering the bottom.
For the topping, the easiest thing to do is melt your butter first. Then, add your sugar, flour, and pumpkin pie spices to the butter. Stir it all together till you have a crumbly, sort of sandy, mixture. By hand, sprinkle the mixture evenly across the top of your cake batter.
Pretty simple, right? 🙂
Now, a few questions you may have…
This coffee cake can also be made with regular white flour, if you don’t need it to be gluten-free.
To make this Pumpkin Coffee Cake gluten-free, be sure to use a gluten-free all purpose flour. I do not recommend using any other gluten-free flours (i.e. almond, coconut, buckwheat, etc.) as they all behave differently with wet/dry ingredient ratios.
To make this dairy-free, be sure to use either coconut oil or a dairy-free butter alternative, and almond milk (or another similar dairy-free milk).
To make this coffee cake vegan, follow the dairy-free substitutions and use an egg substitution (such as two flax or chia eggs). I haven’t made this cake vegan, but typically this works well. The cake will just be a bit more dense.
Don’t have pumpkin pie spices? I recommend mixing together 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, allspice, ginger and cloves EACH. This will give you 1 tbsp of homemade pumpkin pie spices.
Don’t want to use brown or white sugar? I only recommend substituting with coconut sugar in this recipe. However, the sugar in this recipe has already been reduced. This Pumpkin Coffee Cake tastes best with the brown and white sugars, so I recommend it first.
Don’t have applesauce? You could use either mashed, ripe banana in it’s place, or more brown sugar.
As you can see, this recipe is pretty flexible! And while you can switch up a few of the ingredients, I recommend that you use what is written first, for the best results.
If you need a Fall brunch or breakfast recipe, here it is. And you know, it doesn’t get better than cake for breakfast! 🙂
If you make this Pumpkin Coffee Cake, I’d love to hear from you! Whether it’s a comment below, on Pinterest, or on Instagram. I always welcome feedback!
And if you want more healthy Fall breakfast recipes, take a look at my gluten-free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pancakes, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Waffles, Apple Cinnamon Oat Muffins, and Double Chocolate Pumpkin Oat Muffins.
- 2 cups gluten-free all purpose flour (or regular flour)
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup butter, softened (or coconut oil, for dairy-free)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
- 1/4 cup applesauce (or mashed, ripe banana)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk of choice (skim, 2%, whole or almond)
- 1/4 cup butter, melted (or coconut oil, for dairy-free)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup gluten-free all purpose flour (or regular flour)
- 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
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To begin, preheat your oven to 350 and line a 9×9 pan with parchment paper (or spray with non-stick spray).
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To a small bowl, add your flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt and stir them together.
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To a large mixing bowl, add your butter, brown sugar and applesauce and beat together with a mixer till creamy. Add your pumpkin and vanilla and mix in. Add your eggs and milk and mix in briefly, till just combined.
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Add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and stir them together till you have a smooth, thick batter. Pour into your pan and spread into an even layer along the bottom.
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To a small mixing bowl, add your butter, sugar, flour and pumpkin pie spice. Stir together till you have a thick, crumbly mixture. Sprinkle the mixture across the top of your pumpkin coffee cake batter, in one crumbly layer across the top.
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Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes, or till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
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Let cool, then slice and devour!
I have made the pumpkin pie coffee cake two times now and my whole family loves it. It is an easy recipe to put together. The last time I made this recipe, I sprinkled in some Good Life chocolate chips and pumpkin seeds to add a little variety. It was yummy.
Love this is also dairy free, too. Can’t wait to try this seasonal version out.