There’s nothing better than walking into a bakery in New York and spotting a sheet of Crumb Cake on the counter and with this recipe, it’s 100% possible to recreate that experience at home! This iconic cake is the best companion to a cup of coffee in the morning but is also a sweet way to close out a long day.

New York crumb cake with slice cut out of it on baking sheet.

For as long as I can remember, New York Crumb Cake has been an institution!

Bakeries would often have a whole sheet of this on their counter and delis would usually wrap individual slices in plastic wrap for easy grabbing.

The cake is irresistible with its nearly equal ratio of cake to crumb topping and is so easy to make you may just find yourself making it all the time.

And if you’re a fan of crumbs, check out my pumpkin crumb cake muffins!

Crumb Ingredients

All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.

Crumb topping Ingredients shown: butter, dark brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and granulated sugar.

Butter. I’m using unsalted butter for my crumb cake topping.
Sugar. I’m using a mixture of dark brown sugar and granulated sugar.
Flour. There is a lot of flour in the topping, 585g or approximately 4 1/2 cups worth. I recommend using all-purpose flour.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Cake Ingredients

All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.

Flour. For the cake portion of this recipe, I’m using cake flour which has less protein than other flours and yields a lighter, more cakey texture. You can however use all-purpose flour if needed.
Buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk you can use regular milk with a little white vinegar, about 1 tablespoon per cup of milk is the rule of thumb.
Eggs. I’m using 3 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk. The eggs not only provide structure to the crumb cake, but the yolks give the cake its beautiful yellow color.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

First, make the crumb topping

Melt 1 1/2 cups (339g) of unsalted butter and allow to cool slightly. In a large bowl place 4 1/2 cups (585g) of all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt, 1 packed cup (200g) of dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup (100g) of granulated sugar, and 1 1/2 tablespoons (12g) of cinnamon and mix to combine. Pour the melted butter into the bowl.

Crumb topping process collage showing pouring butter over flour and brown sugar in large bowl and mixing with hands until large crumbs form.

Use your hands to toss the mixture until large crumbs form. Do not overmix! The whole idea of this cake is to have large crumbs so if some of the crumbs are too small, you can use your hands to make larger crumbs by squeezing some of the small ones together. If the crumb mixture is too wet, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time and gently mix with your hands to form the larger crumbs. Set the crumb mixture aside.

Next, make the cake

Preheat the oven to 350f and set the rack to the middle level. Line a 9×13 inch cake pan with parchment, or grease and set aside. In a large bowl whisk together 2 1/2 cups (325g) of cake flour, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, and1/2 teaspoon of fine sea salt. In a separate bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together 1 cup (200g) of granulated sugar and 11 tablespoons (156g) of unsalted butter until smooth, then add 3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk (all at room temperature), one at a time, and beat together until combined.
Add 3/4 cup (168g) of room temperature buttermilk and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Don’t worry if the mixture appears curdled at this point. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and mix on low 30 seconds or until just combined, scraping down the sides with a spatula as needed. Avoid overmixing.

Recipe process collage showing creaming sugar and butter, mixing cake batter, adding batter to cake pan, and parcooked cake on cutting board.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared sheet pan and use a spatula to smooth the top.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until the corners are set. The cake will not be fully cooked at this point.
Allow the cake to cool for 10-15 minutes before topping the cake with the crumb mixture.
Return to the oven to bake for an additional 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Recipe collage two showing adding crumb topping to cake, testing cake for doneness with tookthpick, flipping cake with baking sheets, and dusting crumb cake with powdered sugar.

Place the crumb cake on a wire rack to cool. Once cool, invert the cake onto a baking sheet to remove it from the pan, then flip right-side-up.
Dust with powdered sugar, serve, and enjoy!

Top tips

Use a kitchen scale. For nearly every baking recipe, I recommend using a kitchen scale. It’s the only way to ensure consistent results and accurate measurements every single time.
Double the recipe! I wrote this recipe for a 9×13 cake pan but if you want a true New York bakery-style cake, use a half-sheet cake pan (13×18) and double the recipe.
Shortcuts are ok. While I do recommend using my cake recipe, you can definitely use a boxed yellow cake and achieve similar results. It’s a nice compromise between 100% homemade and a box of Entenmann’s crumb cake.

Slice of New York bakery style crumb cake on black plate with fork.

More cake recipes

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