Homemade Double Crumb Cake
This Homemade Double Crumb Cake has double the crumb topping for double the flavor! A New Jersey homemade bakery favorite for generations!
A CLASSIC BAKERY FAVORITE
The particular cake recipe I’m sharing today has roots in New York and New Jersey. Crumb cake or crumb buns can be easily found in most New York and New Jersey bakeries. It is a staple and it is something those bakers have perfected. If the crumb is your favorite part of the crumb cake – then this is your recipe!
TIPS FOR MAKING CRUMB CAKE:
- If you want a thinner cake with a slightly thinner crumb topping then this easily transfers to a 9″x 13″ baking dish. It also will feed more people if you do it that way. I made notes in the recipe for the different pan sizes.
- Use real buttermilk. It is thick and makes a huge difference in how moist this is (don’t substitute with lemon juice or vinegar in the milk, it’s not the same consistency.)
- Make sure to use real butter, not margarine.
- Ensure your baking powder is fresh. Most times when cakes don’t turn out right, it’s because the baking powder or baking soda has expired.
- Do not store this cake in the refrigerator. Like most homemade cakes, they can dry out and lose moisture when kept in the refrigerator. Store covered on the counter for up to 3 days. You can freeze this cake but it is likely it won’t be as tender when defrosted.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)
- all-purpose flour
- sugar
- baking powder
- salt
- large egg
- buttermilk
- canola oil
- vanilla extract
- light-brown sugar
- cinnamon
- salted butter
- powdered sugar
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE DOUBLE CRUMB CAKE
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray an 8″x 8″ baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. For a thinner cake, use a 9″x 13″ baking dish. In a medium bowl combine 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. If you want to go through the trouble of sifting all that together, you can. I just like to take a long-tined fork or whisk and stir it all together well. That tends to do the job well enough.
In another bowl, combine egg, milk, oil and vanilla extract. Stir until it’s all combined.
Combine milk mixture with flour mixture and mix well.
Spread the batter into your prepared baking dish.
Now to make the crumble topping. In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Mix it together.
Then pour in melted butter and stir until combined and clumps begin to form.
Sprinkle those clumps (crumbs) all over the cake batter. If you are using an 8×8 dish, the crumb layer will be very thick.
Bake for about 40-50 minutes for an 8×8 dish. Bake for about 30-40 minutes for a 9×13 baking dish. Use a toothpick to check for doneness. Crumb topping should be golden brown and a toothpick inserted to the middle of the cake should come out clean.
Allow cake to cool. Then dust with a bit of powdered sugar. I think this cake slices up easiest using a serrated knife, like a bread knife.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Homemade Double Crumb Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the crumble topping:
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup light-brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, melted and cooled
- powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
- Spray an 8"x 8" baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. (For a thinner cake, use a 9"x 13" baking dish)
- In a medium bowl combine 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir until combined.
- In another bowl, combine egg, buttermilk, oil and vanilla extract. Stir until it's all combined.
- Combine flour mixture with buttermilk mixture and mix well. Spread the batter into the prepared baking dish.
For the crumble topping:
- In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Mix it together well.
- Then pour in melted butter and stir until combined and clumps begin to form.
- Sprinkle those clumps (crumbs) all over the cake batter. If you are using an 8"x 8" baking dish – it will be thick.
- Bake for about 40-50 minutes for an 8"x 8" dish. Bake for about 30-40 minutes for a 9"x 13" baking dish.
- Use a toothpick to check for doneness (as oven times vary.) Check around the 30 minute mark.
- Crumb topping should be golden brown and a toothpick inserted to the middle of the cake should come out clean.
- Allow cake to cool then dust with powdered sugar and serve.
Video
Notes
- Do not store this cake in the refrigerator. Like most homemade cakes, they can dry out and lose moisture when kept in the refrigerator. Store covered on the counter for up to 3 days. You can freeze this cake but it is likely it won’t be as tender when defrosted.
- I would not recommend milk as a substitute. Buttermilk adds moistness. With homemade cakes, you need moistness or they can easily end up dry.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Original recipe source: Martha Stewart
Delicious and easy to make. I let the mixed crumbs sit for 10 minutes, as America’s Test Kitchen said it makes the perfect textured crumb. Your recipe is easier than fooling with yeast in the ATK’s recipe and the cake is sturdy enough to hold all the crumb. EVERYBODY loves your recipe even if they don’t love cinnamon. I was told not to make any other “coffee cake” in the future. I prefer to call them New Jersey Crum Buns as they are a memory of my growing up. Thank you for the great recipe.
Well I consider that high praise indeed! Thank you so very much for taking the time to come back and leave a review!
Hi Brandie, have you ever used sour cream instead of milk? Thinking the sour cream would give off taste like buttermilk and and more moisture to cake.
I haven’t tried it but if you do please let me know!
This turned out fantastic. I used a 9X13 pan and it was perfect (I cooked it for about 20 minutes). I am tempted to make it again today and I just made it last night. Delicious!
Yay!! Thanks so much!!
I had crumb cake ages ago and was recently looking for a recipe when I came upon yours! I made it yesterday in a small square baking dish and cut the crumble topping ingredients by half. Very good! I think Crumble Cake is the best type of “coffee cake”. Because of other comments I read here, I did a bit of research on crumb cakes and their origins. Very interesting! This is NOT a negative, just an observation from someone that did not grow up with crumb cake – I do not see how this batter is enough for a 9×13. I would double the batter for a 9×13. Thank you!
This coffeecake is amazing. I make it once a week and everyone loves it. I didn’t change the recipe at all.
Is this at all like beloved Entennmans?
Does it need to be covered serving Tommorow night for New Years Eve Party. Should I c over with Sarah wrap or foil??
My god this looks delicious…but you don’t tell anyone the measurements of your ingredients!!! That’s horrible
You literally scrolled past the full recipe to get to the comments. There’s a full printable recipe just above here.
I never comment on recipes, but I had to for this because I successfully made it gluten free and I am so excited! My mom’s favorite food is NJ-style crumb cake, and she hasn’t been able to have it since she went gluten free several years ago. I have been searching for the perfect GF crumb cake recipe and have even ordered one from a GF bakery in NJ but none of them were true crumb cake. I finally decided to try the best regular recipe I could find and make it gluten free, and this recipe turned out AMAZING!
All I had to do was substitute King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour for the regular flour in the recipe, everything else was the same. I expected it to be dry but it came out very moist! I did use full fat buttermilk so I’m sure that helped, if you use regular milk you might need extra. But the cake and crumbs came out perfect texture–a slightly different taste because of the flour but overall still delicious! Thank you for this recipe!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I am a life-long New Jersey resident and I call this “Bakery Crumb Cake”. My Mom never made this, but she WOULD buy it – in the local bakery. As you said, they called them “Crumb Buns”.
Mom is gone now, and I am a senior citizen myself. I have been looking all over for this recipe! Planning to make it for Christmas – 2020. Thanks again!!
Can you use whole milk & veggie oil?
Crumb cake is in my top 5 and living in CA it’s hard to find – not even Entenmann’s – the gold standard. I made this and was worried about the cake not being moist enough but it was and I used regular milk as I hate wasting buttermilk for 1 recipe. Why don’t they sell pints??? The crumbs were dry. Not sure why, there was plenty of butter. Will try it again as it was tasty. Read another recipe that says order of mixing in crumb ingredients is important and needs a little salt to bring out flavors.
I’ve been making this cake for years, It’s easy to make and it’s absolutely delicious. It’s my go to cake because it’s a crowd pleaser!
I never have whole milk or buttermilk, but almost always have heavy cream. Think I could substitute that?
I have to say this recipe is super easy. I have an old oven, but the 30-minute time was way off. I used an 8×8 and expected extra time, but the cake part was still nearly liquid at 30 minutes. My bake time took 65 minutes. I tweeked the recipe by adding an equal amount of lemon extract to the cake batter and extra cinnamon to the crumbs. The house smells divine!
Thanks so much for the input AR. I will have to go back and have a look at that baking time. So glad you enjoyed it though!
I just made this delicious crumb cake today!! Thank you for this recipe. I’m originally from New Jersey and live in in California. I will definitely be making this again.
Can you use Veg oil instead of canola oil?
Hi! I was wondering if there is anything I could use to substitute the butter for the topping?
Absolutely delicious. Reminds me of the Waldwick bakery crumb cake my Grandfather used to get on his visits to NJ.
Made this crumb cake and absolutely loved it! Wouldn’t mind the cake being a little moister. I did use buttermilk per your advice. Should I just add a little more buttermilk next time?
Awesome crumb cake! Thank you!!
My 12 year old daughter and I made this on Good Friday as we normally have crumb cake for dessert from our favorite bakery here in NJ. We followed the recipe perfectly and it came out just like if not better than our favorite bakery version. This was also super easy and will be a staple in our baking collection.
This really made my day to read!! I am so glad you gave this recipe a try! Hope you had a peaceful and joyous Easter!
Can I put in blueberries??
I am having trouble controlling myself from eating this whole cake. It is incredibly delicious. I grew up in NJ where crumb cake is so popular, but we usually don’t see it in Massachusetts. I’ve made it from many recipes and this one is terrific. One change I’ll make next time is to add a little salt to the crumbs, I think.
This crumb cake was delicious. Never have I had something as good as the bakery. Made this as the recipe called for. I didn’t have buttermilk so I used 1/4 cup 1/2&1/2 and 1/4 2% milk. I also used a 9-9 pan for 25 min. Awesome recipe
E
Thank you so very much Sue!!
Super recipe! I made it almost exactly as written, but didn’t have buttermilk so substituted 1/4 cup Greek yogurt and 1/4 cup milk. (Put the yogurt in a measuring cup then fill to 1/2 cup line with milk. Stir to mix before adding to the recipe.) Baked in an 8×8 glass pan for 25 minutes. Came out great! We started eating it while it was still warm. Forgot the powdered sugar on top until it was almost gone. BTW, we’re from NJ and have had plenty of different versions of crumb cake through the years. This is at least as good as, if not better than, bakery crumb cake.
I followed the recipe but this comes out like dough. I used evaporated milk. Could that be why?
Hi Natasha – yes, that was it. Evaporated milk needs to be diluted first before use…sorry! 🙁
Delicious and easy to make. My granddaugther and I made this together. It was a big hit.
Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Love that you made this with your granddaughter! This makes me so happy!!
The crumbs came out more like a smooth dough So I added a little bit more flour and placed the crumbs by hand on the cake. I just Pick the little pieces and place them on top. It came out really delicious. I know I followed the recipe to a T so I don’t know why it came out like that. The brown sugar was to be packed correct? And I didn’t over mix it either so maybe next time more flour or less butter.
This looks delicious, I have it in the oven right now! Can’t wait . Question about the batter consistency though…mine was quite dense, more like dough than batter. Followed you recipe exactly. Should that be right or should it have been more fluid?
I have made this twice. Once in a 9 x 12 pan and ones in an 8 x 8 pan. Both were perfect. The only thing I changed was instead of canola oil I used melted butter instead and I liked it so much better. I have gotten friend request for me to keep baking this and so I shall. This is a true New York crumb cake bringing me back to my childhood in the old fashion bakeries we used to have. Thank you for this fabulous recipe.
Can almond milk be used instead of the milk/buttermilk? Do you think it would be the same amount ?
I don’t think so Donna. Buttermilk is what makes this cake so moist. You could try but I don’t think you’ll get the same texture.
Can this be frozen? Or will that impact the flavor and textire? If it can be frozen, what is the best way to defrost?
I have no idea What happened. I followed this recipe to the T and I really wanted to love it because I’m from Jersey, moved to Florida and haven’t found good crumb cake since. It was completely raw underneath after 30 mins at 350°, even checked it with a toothpick in 3 places… seemed fine. I will be making it again just to see if it turns out on the second time. The outer areas were done and man it was Delicious!!
I am sure it wasn’t you Bethany. Sometimes oven have hot and cool spots. You may have to just increase the cooking time. Or perhaps cover the cake during the first half of cooking so the cake hasn’t plenty of time to cook without the edges burning. Also, sometimes it has to do with the type of pans used. Enamelware, silicone, glass and metal can all have different effects on the cake. I hope you try it again and it works out better for you. Please let me know!
Brandie,
Thank you so much for sharing and posting this recipe. I am originally a Jersey girl and this was the best thing that my Dad and I did when I was young was searching for the perfect Crumb Cake. This is so much like what I remember, it was quick and easy to put together!
Wow! Coming from a Jersey girl, that means the world! I am so happy it brought back happy memories for you too. Thank you, thank you for taking the time to leave a comment!!
I made a Crumb Cake using a recipe from another site. It came out OK, but it did not merit entry into the Recipe Box Hall of Fame. This recipe is a Home Run and worthy of every sports metaphor out there. I’ve lived most of my life in the Metro NY area so I’ve had ample opportunity to sample NY Style Crumb Cake. This recipe claimed to honor those NY traditions and boy did it deliver. Everyone who has sampled it has been impressed with the rich crumb topping and the moist cake below. This recipe will go into my regular rotation and become a staple especially around Holiday time.
I am incredibly honored! Wow – thank you so much!! 🙂
AWESOME I made it today and YUMMY
Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review Maryanne!
Made this for a group of New Jersey tailgaters – we know from crumb cake and this was the absolute best. I will never make another recipe. Hardly a crumb left (pun intended). Made the 8×8 version – I would not do it in a 9×13, the cake to crumb ratio would be way off. BRAVO!!!
I am from NYC, and I love extra crumbs on my crumb cake. I made this crumb cake, and it came out wonderful. I wanted a little something extra in my cake, so I added blueberries after I poured the batter, and then topped it with the crumbs. Outstanding!!!
Thank you for a Great recipe.
I consider that high praise indeed from a native New Yorker. Thanks so very much Michelle!!
Delicious! Reminds me of grammas!! Added blueberry so needed a little longer cooking but well worth the wait
Thank you so very much Heather! I really appreciate you coming back and taking the time to review!
Hi there! I was wondering how far in advance you could make (and bake) this crumb cake? If I make it on a Wednesday would it last till Saturday? Or even the weekend before?
Thank you!!
I wouldn’t do it that far in advance. Like most homemade baked goods, it’s going to dry out pretty quickly so I would try to make it as close to serving as possible. 🙂
I have made this several times and brought this into my workplace and everyone loves it. The last time I added a cup of blueberries to the cake and it turned out great. For the crumb top I did use a little less butter but it worked out great. This is my go to recipe for Crumb Cake YUM!
Oh my gracious – I LOVE the idea of adding blueberries! I am going to do that next time!! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and comment Charlene!
I make a very similar coffee cake and use a 9×13 pan and don’t put the powdered sugar on top. I have made it for years a tradition for holiday breakfasts, I even make them as gifts putting in the 8×8 disposable pans using one crumb mixture for 2 cakes.I put them in baggies and put bows on them. I haven’t come across a better recipe.
I love that you give them as gifts – what a great idea!!
This is the best crumb cake ever! The only change that I made was I cut the vanilla back to 1 tsp. I spent summers in Ocean City, NJ and we had a similar crumb cake from the bakery every Sunday. I think this recipe is even better than the bakery!
That is high praise indeed! Thanks so m much Mary Kate! Those NJ bakeries are hard to beat when it comes to crumb cake – ha! Thank you!!
Easy to make, easy to eat. YUM!
I LOVE the crumbs this recipe makes! I already had a recipe I liked for the cake, and was in search of a perfect crumb coating recipe- A bit sweeter than the cake batter itself, with nice big chunks. This recipe was it! The crumbs are big, chunky, sweet, delicious, and have been a huge hit with everyone that I’ve had try my mini crumb cakes!
Thank you SO much for this recipe!
Yay!! Love hearing that Sarah! Thanks so much for coming back to comment!
Hi,
I doubled the recipe and it needed waaaaaaayy more buttermilk than 1 cup. I wonder if doubling it was the issue? A lot of other recipes I read had about 1/4 cup of oil, which would be more inline with regular cake. It’s in the oven now and I’m hoping the extra buttermilk worked.
Hey Mandy! The one thing I have learned since posting this recipe years ago is that not all buttermilk is created equal. Some is super thin and some are super thick. I can buy full fat buttermilk from my local farm and from the store and the farm one may be WAY thicker. In this case, it will sometimes mean that the amount of buttermilk will need adjusting. That’s why I added the pictures of the process so everyone could get an idea of how it *should* look. Hope it helped!????
I add fruit EVERY time. Usually blueberry or bluberrys and a stone fruit. Peach nectarines plum. Its killer.
Question: I am looking to make a crumb cake for a large group of people. I’ll need a bigger pan but want the raio of crum:cake to be same. How can I do tgat?
Hi Karen, honestly, the best thing to do is just to make two separate pans. It keeps the ratios the same but also the baking times. With crumb cakes, unless you have a convection oven, the center will stay raw while the outside gets overdone when you use too big a pan. Especially since the crumb on this is so thick. Hope that helps!
I agree with other reviewers; the crumb is the best part! You hit a home run with this recipe! This is the only crumb cake I will ever make. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for a wonderful recipe! I too relish the crumb more than the cake. With that being said, your recipe is exceptional. It sliced perfectly to freeze portions individually. Thank you!
5+ stars
Wow! This was perfect! I made it exactly to your directions!