Almond Flour Pumpkin Crumb Cake

5 from 1 vote
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Once you smell this Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake while it bakes, you won’t want to wait to get your hands (or fork) on a slice. Warm pumpkin spice, a nutty pecan crumb topping, and maple drizzle bring the perfect flavor of fall to your breakfast table. It is truly one of the best gluten free pumpkin recipes to enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or tea.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake Made with Almond Flour

Autumn! My favorite season! I love the crisp weather, the sound of the wind rustling through the drying out leaves, and the smell of those leaves as they gather on the ground. Those days where it is cool enough to need jeans, but not so cold that you need to wear a heavy jacket are heaven.

And I love the flavors of things like Gluten Free Apple Cider Donut Cake and Gluten Free Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Cake. It’s these fall treats that are the only thing that can pull me away from my usual dessert cravings that involve chocolate and peanut butter

But pumpkin spice goodness isn’t just for dessert. ‘Tis the season to make gluten free pumpkin coffee cake for breakfast. It also makes a great afternoon snack or a nighttime sweet tooth satisfier!

I “borrowed” the gluten free coffee cake recipe from Erin of Texanerin Baking. Then I put a pumpkin twist on it. The slightly nutty flavor lends itself perfectly to the fall flavors and spices, and, of course, that pumpkin cream cheese swirl. Finally, top it with a maple cream cheese drizzle, and you have the perfect blend of everything you love about autumn in one moist, tender slice.

Now just pour a cup of coffee or tea and cut yourself a piece and enjoy the perfect bite of fall!

Piece of Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake on a plate

What You Need to Make Pumpkin Crumb Cake

Don’t be fooled by this seemingly long list of ingredients. I assure you, it’s really as simple as stirring together the pumpkin swirl ingredient in a bowl and mixing up the batter and streusel in a food processor. All of the full amounts and details are in the recipe card. But here is an overview, plus some tips and tricks.

Ingredients

For the pumpkin swirl:

  • Pumpkin puree: Be sure it’s not pie filling.
  • Cream cheese: You can use regular or light cream cheese, and make sure it is softened to room temperature.
  • Egg yolk
  • Light brown sugar
  • Pure vanilla extract: Make sure it is gluten free.
  • Pumpkin pie spice: Buy a jar or make your own.

For the crumb cake:

  • Gluten free flours: This recipe uses a combination of almond flour for structure and a nutty flavor, coconut flour to absorb moisture, and oat flour for texture and whole grains. For the oat flour, you can buy it or place instant or old-fashioned certified gluten free oats in a food processor and pulse until it forms a flour.
  • Salt
  • Pumpkin pie spice
  • Light brown sugar: Firmly packed.
  • Canola oil: You can also use vegetable, avocado, or another neutral oil.
  • Plain Greek yogurt: nonfat, low fat, or whole milk yogurt all work.
  • Chopped pecans
  • Baking soda
  • Baking powder
  • Large eggs
  • Pure vanilla extract
  • Milk: Dairy or nondairy milk can be used.

For the maple cream cheese drizzle (optional):

  • Cream cheese: Again, make sure it is soft.
  • Maple syrup: The real stuff gives it a better flavor than artificial pancake syrup.

Equipment

  • 8 INCH SQUARE CAKE PAN – I love that this cake is baked in an 8 inch square baking pan, so it doesn’t make a ton. I’m not always feeding a crowd and don’t want to always have too many baked goods in the house, which makes this the perfect size for our family of four. Even though these pans are nonstick, I do like to line the pan with parchment paper so I can easily pull out the entire cake.
  • FOOD PROCESSOR – The cake batter and streusel topping are actually made in a food processor. It doesn’t get any easier!
  • MINI SPATULAS – I have these mini spatulas that I use all the time. There are three different shapes and each works better for different things. They are so convenient for scraping things out of the crevices of your food processor and smoothing the batter into the pan. Since this is baked in an 8 inch baking pan, you don’t really need a giant spatula.

How to Make Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Make the pumpkin swirl. Combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Set aside.

Preparations. Grease an 8″x8″ baking pan or line it with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325°F.

Make the dry mixture. In a food processor, pulse together the almond flour, oat flour, coconut flour, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and brown sugar until combined, then blend in the oil and Greek yogurt. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.

Make the streusel. Return some of this dry mixture to the food processor and pulse with the pecans and additional pumpkin pie spice to form crumbs.

Finish the batter. To the reserved dry mixture, stir in the baking soda and baking powder, then add eggs, vanilla and milk. Stir until smooth and pour into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the pecan crumb mixture evenly over the top.

Bake. Now, bake it in the oven at 325°F for 40-45 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean (perhaps only a little of the pumpkin mixture on it, but not cake batter) and it will not jiggle in the middle.

Cool and glaze. Place the cake pan on a cooling rack and cool completely. While it cools, blend together the maple syrup and cream cheese to form a glaze. Leave the pumpkin coffee cake in the pan or lift it out with the parchment paper and drizzle with the glaze.

Squares of gluten free pumpkin coffee cake on a rectangular platter.

Tips for Success

Don’t let your cake get stuck. You can just spray the pan well with nonstick cooking spray. But I prefer to line it with parchment paper to ensure it comes out nicely. This also allows you to lift out the entire cake to cut even squares.

Be careful not to overbake. While you want a toothpick to come out clean, don’t be fooled by seeing a little of the pumpkin swirl mixture on the toothpick. Once it is done, it should be mostly clean and the cake won’t jiggle in the center anymore.

Tips for the glaze. I like to refrigerate the glaze for a short time to thicken it up a bit before using it. Also, if your cream cheese isn’t softened enough and you don’t end up with a smooth glaze, you can press the mixture through a fine mesh sieve several times.

Change it up. You can also use this same base recipe and technique to make Eggnog Coffee Cake and Cranberry Orange Coffee Cake.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake served on a plate set on top of a brown cloth napkin.

How Long Will Leftover Coffee Cake Last?

You can keep this Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake wrapped tightly on the counter for a day or two. That means it is certainly something you can make the day before a holiday or fall brunch. But I recommend refrigerating it so that it will last about 4 days. Then you can make it over the weekend to enjoy all week.

It also freezes nicely. Just wrap slices or the entire cake tightly in plastic wrap. You can place the wrapped cake in a plastic freezer storage bag for extra protection from freezer burn. It is best enjoyed within two months. Just take it out of the freezer and thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, or pop is in the microwave.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Swirl Pecan Crumb Cake with a cup of coffee

More gluten free pumpkin breakfast recipes

Piece of Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake on a plate
5 from 1 vote

Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Once you smell this Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake while it is baking, you won't want to wait to get your hands (or fork) on a slice. Warm pumpkin spice, a nutty pecan crumb topping, and maple drizzle bring the perfect flavor of fall to your breakfast table. It is truly one of the best gluten free pumpkin recipes to enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
Total: 55 minutes
Servings: 16 pieces

Ingredients

For the pumpkin swirl:

  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
  • 2 ounces regular or light cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

For the crumb cake:

  • 1 1/4 cup almond flour
  • 1/4 cup oat flour (our can purchase or place instant or old-fashioned oats in a food processor and pulse until it forms a flour)
  • 3 Tablespoons coconut flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 2 Tablespoons canola oil (or vegetable, avocado, or other neutral oil)
  • 2 Tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup milk (can also use almond milk)

For the maple cream cheese drizzle (optional):

  • 1 ounce regular or light cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 2 Tablespoons maple syrup

Instructions

For the pumpkin swirl:

  • Combine the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Set aside.

For the crumb cake:

  • Grease an 8″x8″ baking pan or line with parchment paper.
  • Preheat oven to 325°F.
  • In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the almond flour, oat flour, coconut flour, salt, 1 t pumpkin pie spice, and brown sugar until combined.
  • Add the oil and Greek yogurt, and and pulse until well combined.
  • Transfer this mixture to a large bowl and set aside.
  • For the topping, return 1/2 cup of the flour mixture to the food processor.
  • Add the pecans and additional 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, and pulse a couple of times to combine and form loose crumbs.
  • To the reserved dry mixture, stir in the the baking soda and baking powder.
  • Add the eggs, vanilla and milk and stir until smooth.
  • Pour batter into the prepared pan.
  • Drop and drizzle small spoonfuls of the reserved pumpkin mixture across the top of the batter.
  • Sprinkle the pecan crumb mixture evenly over the top of the batter.
  • Bake for 40-45 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean (perhaps only a little of the pumpkin mixture on it, but not cake batter) and it will not jiggle in the middle.
  • Cool the cake completely, and drizzle with the maple cream cheese drizzle, if desired, or another glaze, or just sprinkle with powdered sugar.
  • Store the cake, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

For the maple cream cheese drizzle:

  • Blend together the maple syrup and cream cheese. I like to throw it in the fridge to thicken up a bit before using. Also, if your cream cheese gives you a hard time and won’t make a smooth glaze, you can press the mixture through a fine mesh sieve several times.
Nutrition Facts
Gluten Free Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Amount Per Serving (1 slice)
Calories 167 Calories from Fat 99
% Daily Value*
Fat 11g17%
Saturated Fat 2g10%
Cholesterol 38mg13%
Sodium 94mg4%
Potassium 68mg2%
Carbohydrates 12g4%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 8g9%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 715IU14%
Vitamin C 0.2mg0%
Calcium 59mg6%
Iron 0.8mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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53 Comments
  1. CG

    This sounds yummy! What can I use instead of coconut flour? And also instead of Greek yogurt? I can’t have those two things. So a great substitute would be helpful because I really want to make this! Thanks.

    1. Brianne Cupcakes & Kale Chips

      Thanks for your comment. As far as substitutions go, you can use sour cream instead of Greek yogurt. The coconut flour is pretty important to making the recipe work, because it absorbs a lot of the moisture. If you don’t need it to be gluten free, you can use all-purpose flour instead. Otherwise, you can try just using a little more almond flour, but I can’t promise a good result because I’ve never tried making it that way. Good luck!

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  3. Nancy @ gottagetbaked

    I hope your little guy gets better soon so that he can stop bugging you, Brianne 😉 Gluten free recipes always scare me away with the unique flours (I really don’t want to buy a bag of xanthum gum or whatever it’s called. I’ll never use it all!) so I appreciate that this recipe utilizes flours I can easily obtain and incorporate into different recipes. Crumb cakes are the best and you’re right, you definitely needed the maple cream cheese drizzle (because there’s no reason in the world NOT to!).

  4. No way! I came over here from my pumpkin roundup thread and as soon as I saw this cake, I knew I had to share it on FB (do I have permission to download + tag + link? :))

    Then I skimmed over the ingredients and thought, “Oooh! This sounds great! Totally my kind of cake.”

    Then I actually read it. Hahaha. Thank you for linking to me! I’m so happy that you liked the cake. And your version sounds sooo much better. And hey – you noticed I only use non-funky flours! I’m impressed.

    This totally made me day. Thank you. 🙂

    (By the way, the rating stars aren’t working!)

    1. I actually meant to tell you I adapted your recipe, but have been crazy after my son’s surgery. But as soon as I read your recipe, I wanted to try it, and when you said berries, I thought apples or pumpkin. I may try apples too. Feel free to share. Thanks!

  5. Oh wow, this looks fantastic! Those laundry lists are what so often scare me away from gluten-free baking, to be honest. This sounds entire doable, not at all scary, and absolutely irresistible. Mmmmm…..

  6. I just went crazy trying to come up with something for my cousin, who has a wheat allergy, and I was out of gluten free flour mix. Now I wish I could go back in time and just make these! They look amazing.

  7. You write with such eloquence and love of Mother Nature’s autumn landscapes. I do hope your boy recovers soon and you can enjoy, Brianne! In the meantime, your dessert does sound like its bringing big smiles to everyone in your household. I appreciate the pared down list of ingredients and the savings for the budget =)

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