Pumpkin Pecan Streusel Coffee Cake

I have to say that I'm always surprised (and maybe a bit disappointed) when someone tells me they don't like pumpkin. This does not compute, in my mind. Then again, I don't like watermelon. For most people, that doesn't compute.  To each his/her own, they say. For me, pumpkin will remain at the top of my list of "food loves.

With Fall officially being here, I know that I'll be making recipes with pumpkin, and fortunately, my family loves it as much as I do. 

I love a good coffee cake, and when sour cream is part of the equation-- I just can't resist.  But, adding a layer of pumpkin in between, with a pecan topping... I was on a mission to make this cake.  I saw the recipe on Bunny's Warm Oven (who got it from food.com), but decided to make a couple of minor tweaks.  Oh, and if you have a sweet tooth, and love baking-- Bunny is your gal.  She can bake some crazy delicious looking treats!


The cake batter was pretty easy to make, and I knew that adding one cup of sour cream was going to make the batter really moist.

I decided to double the streusel recipe, and to use brown sugar instead of white sugar. I'll take a good shortcut whenever I can, so I prefer to add melted butter to the sugar, flour and nuts.  I set the the streusel aside, and made the pumpkin custard.

Instead of using a blend of spices, I used the Pumpkin Pie Spice I already had.  This filling is very much like making a pumpkin pie filling-- just whisk and you're all set.

I spent  about 20 minutes making the cake batter, pumpkin custard and streusel, which wasn't too bad.

Putting the cake together proved to be a challenge, I will admit.  I greased a 9x13 baking pan, and this is where my challenges began. Adding half of the batter, I found that it slid around!  I added a layer of half the prepared streusel and then poured the pumpkin filling on top.  Problem #2: Adding the remaining batter proved to be almost impossible.  It just sunk underneath the pumpkin filling, and my heart sank.
I forged on, and added the remaining batter in big dollops and then added the remaining streusel on top.

I put the cake in the oven, and set the timer for 50 minutes.  An inserted toothpick came out clean, and my cake looked more like a cobbler. It smelled like Fall with notes of cinnamon and pumpkin.

TASTING NOTES:  There are a a few different textures going on with this cake. First, the coffee cake has a very tender crumb, and the pumpkin adds a velvety mouth-feel.  The crunch of the pecans is a nice addition, and I was surprised that the cake is gently sweet-- just right, and not too much. 

Once the cake had completely cooled, the pumpkin took on a firmer "pie" consistency.  A hot cup of coffee or tea is the perfect partner for this cake.

NOTES:  The next time I'm craving pumpkin and coffee cake, I will make this recipe again. Only, I think it would be easier to make this as muffins. I would scoop batter on the bottom of each muffin well, pour in the pumpkin custard, add more batter and then add the streusel.  I'm guessing I'd bake them 15-20 minutes, using the "toothpick test".

This coffee certainly scratched my itch for pumpkin.  Now, I feel the sweet potato itch coming on, and I know just the recipe I'll make for those-- Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls!

Printable recipe cards are at the bottom of this post.

Welcome Fall!