Here’s a classic crumb cake—soft, buttery cake with a thick, cinnamon-spiced crumb topping just like your favorite bakery. This one is tender, not too sweet, and loaded with crumbs!
⭐ Classic Crumb Cake (New York–Style)
Ingredients
For the crumb topping:
- 1 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
For the cake:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup sour cream (makes it super moist)
- ¼ cup milk
- ¼ cup melted butter OR oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
⭐ Instructions
1. Make the crumb topping
- In a bowl, mix brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt.
- Pour in melted butter and stir until large crumbs form.
- Set aside (the longer it sits, the better the crumbs clump).
2. Make the cake batter
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Grease an 8×8-inch baking pan or line with parchment.
- In a bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In another bowl, whisk egg, sour cream, milk, melted butter/oil, and vanilla.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients gently—don’t overmix.
3. Assemble
- Spread cake batter evenly in the pan.
- Sprinkle all the crumb topping over the batter—nice and thick!
4. Bake
Bake 28–35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool 15–20 minutes before cutting.
⭐ Optional Finishing Touch
Dust generously with powdered sugar once cooled.
⭐ Tips
- For thicker crumbs, pinch them together with your fingers.
- Sour cream + melted butter makes the cake super soft.
- Don’t overbake—crumb cake should be tender.
If you want, I can also give you:
🍫 Chocolate crumb cake
🍎 Apple cinnamon crumb cake
🍓 Strawberry crumb cake
🥥 Coconut crumb cake
Just tell me!
