Crumb Cake Muffin Tops Recipe

By
Yvonne Ruperti
A photo of Yvonne Ruperti, a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Yvonne Ruperti
Yvonne Ruperti is a food writer, recipe developer, former bakery owner, and cookbook author. She is also an adjust professor of baking at the Culinary Institute of America in Singapore.
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Updated May. 07, 2020
. Yvonne Ruperti

Now this is a reason to get out of bed in the morning. These individual cakes are moist and buttery and topped with pebbly brown sugar-cinnamon crumbs.

Notes:Muffin top pans differ depending on the brand. I used a muffin top pan that has six cups, each cup with a volume of 5 tablespoons. The batter in this recipe made exactly two batches, or 12 muffin tops total. Though I haven't tested it, you should be able to bake this batter in a standard size 12 cup muffin pan.

Recipe Details

Crumb Cake Muffin Tops Recipe

Active 15 mins
Total 60 mins
Serves 12 muffin tops

Ingredients

For the Cake:

  • 1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 tablespoons melted butter

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil

  • 1 large egg

  • 1/2 cup milk

  • 1/4 cup sour cream

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

  • 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

For the Crumb Topping:

  • 1 3/4 cups (8 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour

  • 2/3 cup (4 2/3 ounces) packed light brown sugar

  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 10 tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

  1. For the cake: Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Grease muffin top pan.

  2. Whisk sugar, salt, melted butter, and oil in a large bowl. Whisk in egg, milk, sour cream, and vanilla. Stir flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a small bowl. Whisk into wet mixture until just combined.

  3. For the crumb topping: Whisk flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl until combined. Add melted butter and vanilla, and toss with fingers until the mixture forms moist crumbs.

  4. Spoon 2 tablespoons batter into each cup and spread evenly (see note). Sprinkle with 1/2 of crumb mixture. Bake until light golden and cakes are just firm, about 15 minutes. Let cakes cool in pan 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining batter and crumbs.

Special equipment

6 cup muffin top pan (see note)

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
329 Calories
14g Fat
45g Carbs
4g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 329
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 14g 19%
Saturated Fat 8g 40%
Cholesterol 50mg 17%
Sodium 238mg 10%
Total Carbohydrate 45g 16%
Dietary Fiber 1g 4%
Total Sugars 20g
Protein 4g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 73mg 6%
Iron 2mg 10%
Potassium 82mg 2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)