Pumpkin Coffee Cake

This pumpkin coffee cake with a cinnamon streusel topping is the ultimate fall breakfast or dessert! It’s moist, soft and made with healthier ingredients like Greek yogurt, whole wheat flour and coconut sugar.

Even though it’s still quite hot in Richmond, I can’t stop thinking about fall and all the delicious pumpkin recipes! I love all things pumpkin, especially when it comes to baked goods… bread, cookies, muffins… if it has the word pumpkin in it I’m all about it!

Today, I’m super excited to be sharing this new pumpkin coffee cake recipe with you! It’s soft, moist and made with healthier ingredients like whole wheat flour, Greek yogurt, coconut sugar and pumpkin puree. And don’t even get me started on the cinnamon streusel topping… it’s definitely what takes this coffee cake to the next level! Paired with a warm cup of coffee and you’ve got a match made in heaven.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s the perfect festive recipe to make for fall!
• It’s healthy enough to enjoy for breakfast, but also makes for a great dessert option!
• The cinnamon streusel topping is chef’s kiss!
• The pumpkin and Greek yogurt not only add extra nutrition to this cake but also extra moisture, so less oil is needed.

Ingredients Needed

• whole wheat pastry flour – a whole grain, nutrient-dense flour that results in a light and fluffy cake. My go-to brand is Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat pastry flour. Cake flour and all-purpose flour will also work.
• baking powder & baking soda – to help the cake rise.
• pumpkin pie spice – a must for this pumpkin coffee cake! Make your own pumpkin pie spice at home or use a store-bought blend.
• salt – to bring all the flavors together.
• pumpkin puree – you can use canned pumpkin or homemade pumpkin puree. If using store-bought, just make sure the ingredient list is only “pumpkin” – you don’t want to accidentally buy pumpkin pie filling, which has added sugars.
• eggs – binds the ingredients together and provides structure for the cake.
• coconut sugar – to keep things refined sugar-free we’re using coconut sugar instead of white sugar. White sugar or brown sugar also works in a pinch!
• Greek yogurt – Greek yogurt keeps this cake moist without a lot of added oil. I recommend using plain whole milk (full fat) yogurt for the best results. If you need this recipe to be dairy-free, a vegan yogurt should work just fine!
• coconut oil – you want the oil to be in a liquid state so warm it a bit if necessary before measuring. Melted butter, ghee or another oil like avocado oil will work as well. 
• vanilla extract – a much needed flavor enhancer. A little goes a long way!
• crumb topping – you can’t have coffee cake without a crumb topping! We’re combining whole wheat pastry flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon and coconut oil to make this topping.
• icing – optional, but highly recommended! Just whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla extract and almond milk and you’ll have a sweet icing to drizzle over your warm coffee cake.

Whole Wheat Pastry Flour vs Whole Wheat Flour

You’ll often see whole wheat pastry flour used here on EBF when I’m making lightened-up baked goods! The reason I like using whole wheat pastry flour is that it is a whole grain flour, which means more fiber + nutrients than regular all-purpose flour. And it’s more finely ground than regular whole wheat flour so it produces lighter, softer baked items. It also has less gluten than regular whole wheat flour.

If you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour, all-purpose flour or a blend of all-purpose and regular whole wheat flour will work as a substitute.

How to Make

Prep: Begin by preheating the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×9-inch baking pan or line with parchment paper.

Make topping: Add all the topping ingredients to a small bowl and mix with a fork until crumbly.

Mix dry ingredients: Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice to a medium bowl and mix together until all ingredients are incorporated.

Whisk wet ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin puree, coconut sugar, greek yogurt, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. 

Combine: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.

Bake: Pour the cake batter into the baking dish and sprinkle on the crumb topping. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick placed in the center comes out clean.

Make icing: While the cake is cooling, prepare the vanilla glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and almond milk in a small bowl.

Serve: Cut the cake into squares, drizzle on the icing, serve, and enjoy!

Substitutions & Notes

• Flour: You can substitute whole wheat pastry flour for all-purpose flour or a mix of all-purpose and regular whole wheat flour. I haven’t tried this cake with a gluten-free alternative, but I bet a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour would work.
• Eggs: I haven’t tested this cake with an egg substitute, but I bet flax eggs or chia seed eggs would work. Let me know if you try it in the comments below!
• Greek yogurt: You could swap out Greek yogurt with regular yogurt or sour cream by using a 1:1 ratio. For vegan options you could use a dairy-free yogurt. I would just recommend using plain yogurt to not add any extra flavors or sweeteners to the cake.
• Coconut sugar: If you don’t have coconut sugar on hand white granulated sugar or cane sugar will work just fine.
• Coconut oil: Melted butter or another oil like olive oil or avocado oil will work as a substitute. If you’re looking to cut back on the oil, you could use more yogurt or even applesauce as a substitute.
• Pumpkin: Pumpkin is the star ingredient in this cake and I love the flavor of this cake, but you could also use sweet potato puree or butternut squash puree instead of the pumpkin puree if you’d like.
• Icing: The icing is delicious, but feel free to skip it if you want. Coconut butter drizzled on top would also be yummy!

What to Serve with Coffee Cake

I am already dreaming up a fall brunch spread to pair with this pumpkin coffee cake. Here’s what I’m thinking:

• Coffee – Definitely have to serve coffee cake with some sort of coffee to sip on and this warm pumpkin spice latte or pumpkin cream cold brew would be delicious!
• Fruit – Have to have fruit on the table for brunch and this simple fruit salad would be perfect.
• Salad – I always love having a green salad at brunch and this roasted butternut squash salad would be festive and delicious.
• Egg dish – I love having a savory and sweet option at brunch. This sweet potato kale frittata, baked egg muffins or spinach quiche would all be great options for an egg dish.
• Mimosas – If I were serving cocktails at my brunch my first choice would be these apple cider mimosas. I also have a regular mimosa recipe if that’s more your thing!

How to Store Leftovers

Leftover pumpkin coffee cake will stay fresh for 2-3 days stored at room temperature. For longer storage, store in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-7 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

If storing in the freezer, I recommend cutting the cake into individual servings before freezing. Then you can pull out one piece at a time as needed. Let the cake thaw overnight in the fridge or for a few hours at room temperature.

FAQ’s

More Pumpkin Recipes to Try

• Healthy Pumpkin Muffins
• Healthy Low Sugar Pumpkin Bread
• Pumpkin Brownies
• Flourless Pumpkin Muffins
• Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies
• Soft Pumpkin Cookies
• Vegan Pumpkin Protein Bars
• Healthy Pumpkin Bars
• Pumpkin Spice Donuts

More Tasty Baked Goods to Try

• Vegan Coffee Cake
• Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
• Healthy Banana Bread
• Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
• Healthy Carrot Cake Bars
• Healthy Zucchini Bread
• Yogurt Muffins (4 Ways)
• Almond Flour Cupcakes
• Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Cake
• Apple Cake

Be sure to check out all of the pumpkin recipes as well as the full collection of breakfast recipes on EBF!