Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel and Maple Glaze

A soft pumpkin coffee cake made with freshly roasted pumpkin, warm spices and a ribbon of cinnamon brown sugar through the middle. Finished with a buttery streusel and a light maple glaze, it's made for morning tea or an afternoon coffee.

Pumpkin roasted until its edges just begin to caramelise gives this cake its soft, tender crumb, closer to a good carrot cake than anything dense or heavy. Through the middle runs a layer of cinnamon and brown sugar, and across the top a buttery streusel bakes into golden, uneven crumbs. A thin drizzle of maple glaze finishes it, enough to catch the light without hiding the gentle spice underneath.

What I love most is the contrast. Soft cake, a crumbly top, and that ribbon of cinnamon making every slice a little different from the last.

We had our first pieces at home with coffee, and it wasn't long before everyone had helped themselves, our youngest included. Those small, shared moments around something freshly baked are the ones I hold onto.

A generous square suits a morning coffee just as well as an afternoon when the kettle is on and there's time for something homemade.

Prep: 25 min · Cook: 100 min · Serves: 12 · Cuisine: Australian · Category: Cakes

Ingredients

Fresh Roasted Pumpkin Purée

• 600 to 700 g Kent or Jap pumpkin, peeled and deseeded

Cinnamon Streusel

• 95 g plain flour
• 75 g light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon fine salt
• 65 g unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Ribbon

• 65 g light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon plain flour

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

• 250 g plain flour
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• 150 g light brown sugar
• 75 g caster sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 120 ml neutral-flavoured oil
• 300 g roasted pumpkin purée, cooled
• 80 g sour cream, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Maple Glaze

• 60 g icing sugar
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon milk

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C conventional or 180°C fan-forced. Line a large baking tray with baking paper.
2. Cut the pumpkin into pieces of about 3 to 4 cm and arrange in a single layer on the prepared tray, without oil or seasoning.
3. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes, or until completely tender and beginning to caramelise slightly around the edges.
4. Allow the pumpkin to cool, then blend or process until completely smooth.
5. Weigh out 300 g of the roasted pumpkin purée for the cake. The purée should be thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon. If it is noticeably watery, cook gently in a shallow saucepan for a few minutes to remove excess moisture, then cool before using.
6. Combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl.
7. Pour over the melted butter and stir gently with a fork until irregular crumbs and clumps form.
8. Refrigerate while preparing the cake batter.
9. Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and flour in a small bowl.
10. Mix until evenly combined and set aside.
11. Preheat the oven to 180°C conventional or 160°C fan-forced. Grease and line a 20 × 20 cm square cake tin, leaving enough baking paper overhanging the sides to lift the cake out once baked.
12. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.
13. In a separate large bowl, whisk the brown sugar, caster sugar and eggs until well combined.
14. Add the oil, cooled roasted pumpkin purée, sour cream and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth and evenly combined.
15. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and fold gently until just combined, stopping as soon as no dry flour remains.
16. Spread about half the pumpkin batter evenly into the prepared cake tin.
17. Sprinkle the cinnamon brown sugar ribbon mixture evenly over the batter, taking it almost to the edges.
18. Carefully spoon the remaining pumpkin batter over the cinnamon layer in small dollops. Gently spread the batter into an even layer without disturbing the cinnamon ribbon underneath.
19. Remove the chilled streusel from the refrigerator and break it into a mixture of small crumbs and larger, irregular pieces. Scatter evenly over the surface of the cake.
20. Bake for about 60 minutes, checking towards the end of cooking. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean or with a few moist cake crumbs, but no wet batter.
21. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for about 20 minutes before carefully lifting it onto a wire rack to cool completely.
22. Sift the icing sugar into a small bowl.
23. Add the maple syrup and milk, whisking until smooth and pourable.
24. Once the cake has cooled completely, drizzle the glaze lightly over the streusel topping.
25. Allow the glaze to settle before slicing the cake into 9 generous or 12 smaller squares.

Notes

About the name: A coffee cake is named for what it's served with rather than what's in it. There's no coffee in the batter, only a tender spiced cake made for enjoying alongside a cup.

Choosing pumpkin: Kent or Jap pumpkin has a naturally sweet flavour and roasts into a thick, smooth purée. Butternut pumpkin can also be used, although its moisture content may vary.

Oil: Choose a neutral-flavoured oil such as sunflower, canola or vegetable oil. Strongly flavoured oils may compete with the gentle pumpkin spices.

Slicing: A serrated knife cuts cleanly through the crumbly streusel without pressing too heavily into the soft cake underneath.

Serving: Room temperature is best, when the crumb is at its most tender and the cinnamon and maple come through clearly.

Serving Suggestion

Serve with a pot of coffee or tea for morning tea, or set it out in the afternoon when there's time to sit for a while. Save the seeds from your pumpkin and turn them into Crispy Spiced Pumpkin Seeds, adding them to the oven for the last 15 minutes while the pumpkin roasts. For a fuller morning tea spread, it sits well beside the Classic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, the Brown Sugar Apple Cinnamon Muffins and the Lemon Coconut Crush Loaf Cake, with the Whole Orange Olive Oil Cake for something bright and citrusy.

The Grace Table Tip

For a slightly warm slice, heat a single piece in the microwave for a few seconds before serving. The cinnamon and pumpkin spices come forward, and the soft cake is especially good alongside a freshly brewed coffee.

Store the cake in an airtight container in a cool place for up to 2 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Bring refrigerated slices to room temperature before serving for the best texture.