This No Added Sugar Crumb Cake is a classic take on a coffee style cake.
Made with a dense, moist, and buttery cake base and topped with a cinnamon crumb topping, this cake is perfect when served with a cup of coffee and scoop of ice cream on the side. !
What you will read about in this recipe.
What makes crumb cake so good?
Crumb cake is good because it has the perfect balance of a moist, soft, and buttery cake topped with a cinnamon crumb topping.
I like that this crumb cake can be served about any time of the day!
Have you tried my recipe for Sugar Free Apple Streusel Coffee Cake?
Made with a filling featuring fresh apples and topped with a crunchy streusel topping, that cake is moist, tender, and sweet, making it perfect for your next dessert or for sharing with others at a fall gathering or celebration. Both this crumb cake and that apple coffee cake are great tasting coffee style cake that can be made with no added sugar.
To make this recipe you will need a brown sugar alternative that can also be baked with. You can find a selection of brown sugar alternatives here.
What you need to make to make a Crumb Cake.
Cake
- Milk. Use a full fat milk for optimal moisture in the cake.
- White Vinegar. This helps with the texture and adds a bit of tang to the cake.
- Flour. Regular all purpose flour.
- Sugar Alternative. Use a granular sugar alternative that measures like sugar and that can also be baked with.
- Baking Powder For leavening. Note that you will need a tull tablespoon of baking powder, this is not an error 🙂 .
- Vegetable Oil Another neutral oil such as canola can be substituted.
- Vanilla Extract. Added for flavor balance.
- Sour Cream Adds moisture, flavor, and texture to this cake.
Crumb Topping.
- Brown Sugar Alternative. Use an alternative that measures like regular brown sugar.
- Flour. Regular all purpose flour.
- Ground Cinnamon. For flavoring.
- Butter. Use cold unsalted butter that has been cut into tablespoons.
How to make Crumb Cake.
- Prep Time 20 minutes .
- Bake Time 40 minutes .
- Servings 12 servings .
- How to serve : This cake can be served any time of the day, from breakfast to dessert! It goes great especially with coffee.
- Notes: You will need a 9X13" baking dish, mixing bowl, whisk, and silicon spatula or similar item.
- Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350℉. Prep your baking dish well for nonstick. Greasing it with butter works well in this recipe.
- Vinegar. Place your milk into a small bowl or large measuring cup. Stir in the vinegar and allow this to sit for five minutes while you go on to the next step.
- Dry Ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar alternative, and baking powder. Then make a well in the center of the ingredients.
- Combine. Pour the vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and sour cream into the well that you just made in the dry ingredients. Then add the milk and vinegar from the second step and mix until combined. Make sure that you scrape the sides of the bowl as you do not want any dry spots (small lumps can bake out).
- Transfer. Evenly spread the mixture out in your prepared baking dish. You can gently tap the bottom of the dish on your kitchen counter a couple times to help it settle.
- Topping. To make the crumb topping, in a clean bowl, whisk together the brown sugar alternative, flour and cinnamon. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the ingredients. Cut the ingredients until most of the dry ingredients are mixed well with it, it should be crumbly, not smooth. Then sprinkle the topping evenly over the cake batter in the baking dish.
- Bake Bake the cake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Cool. Allow the cake to cool before serving.
Tips for making the best crumb cake.
The second step of the instructions includes mixing together the milk and vinegar. This is done to cream a 'buttermilk' effect which is needed for the leavening of this cake.
More helpful tips for you.
- A well is created in the dry ingredients before adding the wet ingredients to the bowl. This is done to help the ingredients combined more smoothly without over mixing.
- The topping is made with cold butter that is cut into the other ingredients. The butter must be cold to prevent it from melting too quickly. This helps to keep the topping texture perfectly crumbly for this cake.
- Before the topping is added to the cake, it is a good idea to gently tap the bottom of the baking dish on your kitchen counter. This helps to settle the batter and can also prevent the crumb topping from pushing through the batter.
How to store crumb cake.
Once your cake has fully cooled it can be stored in an airtight container. When properly stored, crumb cake should keep for up to a few days at room temperature or up to a few months frozen. You should however, avoid refrigerating the cake as doing so can affect the structure of the cake.
You may also be interested in these cake recipes.
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Print the recipe for Crumb Cake.
No Added Sugar Crumb Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 cup Milk.
- 2 tsp White Vinegar.
- 2½ cup Flour.
- ¾ cup Sugar Alternative. --Granular sugar alternative that measures like sugar.
- 1 tbsp Baking Powder
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract.
- ⅔ cup Sour Cream
Crumb Topping.
- 2 cups Flour.
- 1 cup Brown Sugar Alternative.
- 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon.
- 1 cup Butter. -Use cold unsalted butter that has been cut into tablespoons.
Instructions
- Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350℉. Prep your baking dish well for nonstick. Greasing it with butter works well in this recipe.
- Vinegar. Place your milk into a small bowl or large measuring cup. Stir in the vinegar and allow this to sit for five minutes while you go on to the next step.
- Dry Ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar alternative, and baking powder. Then make a well in the center of the ingredients.
- Combine. Pour the vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and sour cream into the well that you just made in the dry ingredients. Then add the milk and vinegar from the second step and mix until combined. Make sure that you scrape the sides of the bowl as you do not want any dry spots (small lumps can bake out).
- Transfer. Evenly spread the mixture out in your prepared baking dish. You can gently tap the bottom of the dish on your kitchen counter a couple times to help it settle.
- Topping. To make the crumb topping, in a clean bowl, whisk together the brown sugar alternative, flour and cinnamon. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the ingredients. Cut the ingredients until most of the dry ingredients are mixed well with it, it should be crumbly, not smooth. Then sprinkle the topping evenly over the cake batter in the baking dish.
- Bake Bake the cake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Cool. Allow the cake to cool before serving.
Recipe Notes
Also, please see the actual recipe post for further details on this recipe. Nutritional Information is only an estimate and can vary especially with ingredients that are used. See thesugarfreediva.com for details on this recipe.
posted:
February 24, 2026*About Sugar Alternatives
Specific sugar alternatives are not given in the recipes presented on this site. Only suggestions are given as to the 'kind' of alternative to use. It is up to you to select the alternative to use that suits your needs best. If the recipe is heated or cooked, it is best to use an alternative that can be heated or cooked with for best results. This site does not endorse any specific ingredients,
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Nutrition
Please note: Nutritional data has been calculated using a tool that comes with this recipe card and not by me. This means that Nutritional Information is only an estimate and can vary especially with ingredients that you use. The accuracy of this tool may differ from other tools as expected. Also note that there is no instructional value to the video that may be attached to this recipe. It is only there for visual pleasure. For more information about the images in this recipe, please refer the the recipe instructions. Thank you!
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No Added Sugar Crumb Cake, a delicious no added sugar dessert recipe featuring a buttery cake topped with a cinnamon crumb topping.
Please see recipe post for further details on this recipe.