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Why I Love This Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Everything is made with pumpkin in the fall. While it may seem overused, I think pumpkin creates an ideal texture in a cake. Pumpkin creates a moist texture in the finished cake. The coffee cake base uses both pumpkin and oil, and combining the two helps keep the finished cake moist for days at room temperature or months in the freezer. Pumpkin can be one note on its own, which is why this coffee cake has a cheesecake mixture swirled in. The sweet, tangy cheesecake with the soft spiced pumpkin is a perfect match. A streusel topping makes this a true coffee cake; it wasn’t needed, but at the same time, it was needed.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake Ingredients
- Brown sugar is white sugar mixed with molasses. The result is moist sugar with caramel-like toffee flavors. These work well with the spices and pumpkin.
- Neutral oil is used instead of butter. Neutral oil has no flavor but moistens the cake and allows the pumpkin to shine.
- Pumpkin purée can be store-purchased or homemade. If using homemade, make sure you drain the purée so it doesn’t have too much moisture.
- Cream cheese will mix best at room temperature. Do not use low-fat cream cheese; the full-fat will have more flavor and give the correct finished texture.
- Cinnamon, ground ginger, cloves, and nutmeg combined together are a homemade version of a pumpkin pie spice. I like to notice each spice and give certain amounts rather than use a premixed version.
The full amount of each ingredient can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Step 1: Prepare the wet ingredients – To a bowl, add the brown sugar, white sugar, pumpkin purée, eggs, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix all of the ingredients together until the mixture is fully combined.
Step 2: Prepare the dry ingredients – To the bowl with the combined wet ingredients, add the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Mix the dry ingredients directly into the wet ingredients, making a homogenous mixture. Once mixed, pour the batter into a greased 8 x 8-inch baking dish and smooth it out into an even layer.
Step 3: Prepare the cheesecake swirl – To a small bowl, add the room-temperature cream cheese. Using a spatula, smash the cream cheese to soften it even more. Once the cream cheese is loosened, add in the sugar, vanilla extract, and egg yolk. Stir this mixture to combine all of the ingredients. Dollop a spoonful at a time of the cheesecake mixture on top of the pumpkin batter in the baking dish. Once all of the cheesecake mixture is on top, use a table knife to swirl the pumpkin batter with the cheesecake.
Step 4: Prepare the streusel topping – In a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Using a spatula or hands, mix together these three ingredients until well combined. Add the cubed butter pieces and work them into the flour and sugar mixture. Once fully mixed together, the mixture should look sandy. Pour the streusel topping on the batter.
Step 5: Bake the coffee cake – Place the coffee cake in the 350°F preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes. Once baked, puffed, and golden on top, remove the cake and let it cool fully before slicing.
Recipe Tips
- For the best flavor, freshly grate your nutmeg. Since nutmeg is a spice that does not get much use, it can tend to go stale when left in the spice cabinet. Thus, if you have a nutmeg seed readily available, you ensure that the spice has the most potency, and the resulting coffee cake will be full of flavor.
- Do not over-mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Mixing too thoroughly will cause the coffee cake to be tough once baked, without the desired light texture. Simply mix until there are no longer dry streaks throughout the mixture. In fact, there may be some remaining lumps, which is completely fine.
- When mixing the cheesecake mixture into the pumpkin batter, do not be scared if the mixture looks messy. Once it is topped with the streusel topping and baked, the cheesecake layer will settle and look perfect on the cake.
- To test if the cake is finished, insert a wooden skewer into the middle of the cake. The cake can be considered fully baked and ready to remove if it comes out mostly clean.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can easily bake this in a 9 x 9-inch baking dish. The baking time will need to be adjusted since the 9 x 9-inch will bake slightly quicker.
Yes, the streusel topping can be left off. If not including the streusel, there are no other adjustments needed to the recipe or the baking time.
This cake is very moist, and since it has the cheesecake swirled in, it should be kept in the refrigerator. It will last for one week in the refrigerator, or it can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.
More Coffee Cake Recipes
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Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Cheesecake Swirl
Ingredients
For the pumpkin coffee cake
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup neutral oil
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
For the cheesecake swirl
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg yolk
For the streusel topping
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter cold, cubed into ½-inch pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Prepare the batter: In a large bowl, combine the light brown sugar, white granulated sugar, pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth. Add the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Fold to combine the wet and dry ingredients until smooth. Pour the batter into a greased 8 x 8-inch baking dish and set aside.½ cup light brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar, 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree, 2 large eggs, ½ cup neutral oil, 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract, 2 cups all-purpose flour, ½ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp ground cloves, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- Prepare the cheesecake: In a medium bowl, press and fold the cream cheese until soft and smooth. Add the sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Roughly divide the cheesecake batter into nine dollops, evenly spaced on top of the prepared coffee cake batter. Using a table knife inserted into the coffee cake, make figure-eight patterns all over the cake until the cheesecake is swirled into the coffee cake.8 oz cream cheese, ¼ cup granulated sugar, 1 large egg yolk, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Prepare the streusel: In a small bowl, combine the flour, light brown sugar, and cinnamon. Mix to combine and add the cubed butter. Press the pieces of butter into the dry mixture until it resembles wet sand. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared coffee cake.½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup light brown sugar, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- Bake the cake in the preheated oven until fully baked. The cake will be puffed, with the streusel toasted brown, and a skewer inserted in the middle will come out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs, 50-60 minutes. Once baked, remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for 30 minutes before slicing.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
Just made the pumpkin coffee cake,with streusel topping. Love this! It’s definitely a keeper. Thank you!😋
Turned out great! I used a spring pan which made it easy to remove.
Recipe was easier than I originally thought, although I may have been overzealous in my cheesecake swirling.
Tastes like fall!
This is the BEST pumpkin recipe I have ever made. I don’t make pumpkin pies because Costco has the best. But the cream cheese swirl and the streusel topping make this the perfect sweetness, not too sweet. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Delicious!
I haven’t made one of your recipes that my husband and I didn’t love. I also love that you have videos attached to your recipes. Super helpful and fun to watch!
It’s in the oven! I’ve been told it smells good in the house! Your recipes have not failed me yet!
This recipe is totally awesome. My family LOVES it!! Thank you so much.