Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (2024)

HomeRecipe ListBreakfast and BrunchLemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe

Posted by Aimee 105 comments
Published: May 31, 2022 Last Updated: Feb 29, 2024

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Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake brings magic to the breakfast table with every bite. This sweet lemon cake has it all: lemon cheesecake filling, crumbly streusel topping and a lemon glaze. It doesn’t get more lemony than this!

A little zesty lemon is just what you need to start your day. Skip the line and give me a Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf at home–or give these classic Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins a try.

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (1)

Why this Recipe is Best

Whether you eat it for breakfast, dessert or your afternoon coffee break, this Lemon Crumb Cake hits it out of the ballpark!

  • The lemon breakfast cake layer is thick without being heavy.
  • Lemon cheesecake is baked right on top of the coffee cake layer.
  • You’ll love the combination of tangy lemon with buttery brown sugar streusel.
  • Lemon glaze makes this Lemon Crumb Cake sweet enough to serve for dessert.

With simple ingredients, and easy assembly, this impressive breakfast cake is perfect for guests too!

Love lemon? Be sure to give our lemon brownies recipe a try asap!

Ingredient Notes

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (2)
  • Lemon zest and juice. Remove the zest from the lemon before juicing to get the most out of your citrus. Use our guide on how to zest a lemon for best practices.
  • Cream cheese. Use plain full fat cream cheese for richest, creamiest taste. Don’t forget to let it soften on the counter for a few minutes first.
  • Light brown sugar. With less molasses than its dark brown counter parts, light brown sugar complements the bright lemon flavor instead of dominating it.
  • Milk. You can use any milk you have on hand in both the cake and the glaze–skim, whole and fat free all work well.

Easy Instructions

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (3)

First, make the cake.

Mix together the ingredients in a stand mixer. Beat until fluffy. Pour into a greased spring form cake pan.

Now, make the cheesecake filling.

Beat together sugar, cream cheese, egg and lemon zest. Pour over the cake layer.

Add the streusel topping.

Combine the streusel ingredients in a separate bowl. Sprinkle over the cheesecake layer of the cake.

Bake and chill.

Bake the Lemon Crumb Cake for 40 minutes. Let it cool, then release it from the spring form pan.

Transfer the cake to the refrigerator to chill for about 3 hours.

Pour on lemon glaze.

Whisk together the ingredients for the icing. Drizzle over the chilled lemon crumb cake before serving.

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (4)

Tips and Tricks

  • The cheesecake layer should still look slightly soft when this comes out of the oven. It will firm up as it chills in the fridge.
  • Grease and flour your pan well before adding the cake batter. Or use my Homemade Cake Release for amazing results!
  • Be careful not to let the cheesecake layer touch the sides of the spring form pan when pouring it over the cake. Pour slowly and use an off set spatula to direct the flow of the cream cheese mixture to prevent it from touching.
  • Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator. Enjoy Lemon Crumb Cake within 3 days for best taste!
  • Use a classic vanilla icing instead of lemon flavored if you prefer.
Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (5)

Recipe FAQs

Help! I have too much streusel! What did I do wrong?

You didn’t do anything wrong. This recipe makes a LOT of streusel topping because, well, I can’t get enough!
Feel free to cut the streusel ingredients in half for a more reserved approach to the crumb topping.

Can I use lime instead of lemon?

I love the idea of making a lime crumb cake with this recipe! You should be able to sub lime for the lemon ingredients 1:1.

What can I use if I don’t have a spring form pan?

You can make this in a square 8 or 9 inch baking dish. I recommend only adding half the streusel if making it in a square dish.

Can I freeze Lemon Crumb Cake?

Yes, this crumb cake holds up beautifully in the freezer. Even after thawing, the streusel crumb has a perfect texture.
You can freeze the cake in individual slices or wrap the whole cake in freezer bags to store. Thaw in the fridge before eating.

MoreBreakfast Recipes

  • Apple Cinnamon Bread
  • Chocolate Donuts
  • Cinnamon Roll Cake
  • Crumb Cake
  • Jam Doughnuts
  • Apple Crumble

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake

4.65 from 71 votes

By: Aimee

Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake brings magic to the breakfast table with every bite. This sweet lemon cake has it all: lemon cheesecake filling, crumbly streusel topping and a lemon glaze. It doesn't get more lemony than this!

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Ingredients

For the cake:

  • 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 6 Tablespoon unsalted butter softened
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ¼ cup milk

For the filling:

  • 1 package cream cheese, softened 8 ounce
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 lemon zested

For the streusel:

  • ½ cup light brown sugar packed
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter melted
  • 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour

For the glaze:

  • 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon milk

Instructions

  • For the cake, grease and flour a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.

  • In a large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt on low until combined. Beat in softened butter until crumbly. Add in eggs, vanilla extract, lemon juice and milk. Beat for about 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. Pour into prepared pan.

  • For the filling, beat cream cheese with sugar, egg and lemon zest for about 4-5 minutes. Pour over cake layer, being careful to not let it touch the sides of the pan.

  • In a small bowl, combine streusel ingredients with a fork. Sprinkle over top of cake. Bake in a 325 degree oven for about 40-45 minutes. Cool completely in pan. When cooled, release from springformpan.

  • Refrigerate cake for 3 hours to allow cheesecake filling to set up.

  • Whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cake. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • The cheesecake layer should still look slightly soft when this comes out of the oven. It will firm up as it chills in the fridge.
  • Grease and flour your pan well before adding the cake batter. Or use my Homemade Cake Release for amazing results!
  • Be careful not to let the cheesecake layer touch the sides of the spring form pan when pouring it over the cake. Pour slowly and use an off set spatula to direct the flow of the cream cheese mixture to prevent it from touching.
  • Can also be made in a 9-inch square baking dish.
  • Prefer less streusel? Just cut it in half!
  • Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator. Enjoy Lemon Crumb Cake within 3 days for best taste!
  • Nutrition

    Serving: 1slice, Calories: 577kcal, Carbohydrates: 84g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 14g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Cholesterol: 127mg, Sodium: 195mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 50g

    Course: Breakfast and Brunch

    Cuisine: American

    Did you make this recipe?Mention @shugarysweets or tag #shugarysweets!

    A tangy cheesecake filling takes Lemon Crumb Cake to incredible heights! Put on a pot of coffee and cut yourself a slice. Morning just got better.

    Lemon Crumb Coffee Cake Recipe (2024)

    FAQs

    What's the difference between a coffee cake and a crumb cake? ›

    The main difference between the two cakes is the amount of streusel topping. Crumb cake has a thicker layer of streusel topping than coffee cake. Coffee cake can also be made without the streusel topping. You might also see that there's a New York-style crumb cake as well, which has much bigger crumbs.

    What makes coffee cake taste like coffee cake? ›

    No, coffee cake does not taste like coffee. There is no coffee or caffeine in this cake despite its name. This streusel cake tastes like a lightly sweetened cake and oftentimes has spices like cinnamon and nutmeg.

    Can you add coffee to box cake mix? ›

    Dissolve 1 tablespoon coffee in 1 1/4 cups water. Make cake batter as directed on box, using coffee mixture in place of the water. Bake and cool as directed.

    What is the fancy name for coffee cake? ›

    American Coffee cake—also referred to as gugelhupf or Austrian German: kaffekuchen—evolved from other sweet dishes from Vienna. In the 17th century, Northern/Central Europeans are thought to have come up with the idea of eating sweet cakes while drinking coffee.

    Why is a coffee cake called a buckle? ›

    A buckle is a funny name for an old fashioned fruit studded coffee cake. Like many other desserts in the extended cobbler family buckles take their name from their appearance—grunts grunt as they cook, slumps slump when served, buckles—you guessed it—buckle.

    What does adding coffee to cake mix do? ›

    Its rich, bittersweet flavour adds depth to cakes, cheesecakes, pies, cookies, muffins, loaves, and soufflés. It boosts the chocolatey appeal of Fudge Layer Cake with Chocolate Avocado Icing, Coffee Brownies and soft, fudgy Coffee Chocolate Crinkle Cookies.

    Why is my coffee cake so dry? ›

    A dry cake is usually the result of one of the following pitfalls: using the wrong ingredients, making mistakes while measuring or mixing the batter, or baking the cake too long or at too high a temperature. Once you understand which common cake-baking blunders to avoid, you'll know how to bake a moist cake every time.

    How do you keep coffee cake moist? ›

    Melted butter is key for moist coffee cake, but this dessert tends to get drier over time. If you want to prevent coffee cake from getting stale for as long as possible, storing it in an airtight Tupperware is your best bet.

    What is Elvis Presley cake? ›

    An Elvis Presley cake is a single-layer classic yellow cake that's topped with a pineapple glaze. Much like a poke cake, the syrup and juices of the pineapple will seep into the cake through fork holes, resulting in a decadent, ultra-moist cake.

    What is a Kardashian cake? ›

    For over 30 years, Hansen's Cakes in Los Angeles has been making cakes for the Kardashian-Jenner family — specifically their flower-topped basket weave cake. Recently, the cake gained viral fame when it was featured by TikToker @quinnhouses, whose birthday cake video quickly gained over 2.7 million views.

    What is a godfather cake? ›

    A two-tier Godfather themed cake featuring all hand-modeled and edible elements from the classic movie. The cake is lemon chiffon with a delicious raspberry butter-cream filling, covered in dark chocolate ganache and LMM fondant.

    What happens if you add an extra egg to cake mix? ›

    The additional fat in the egg yolk helps create a more tender and moist cake that is full of flavor. The extra egg also helps the cake have a more stable texture, which is great if you want to bake it up as a layer cake instead of a sheet cake or cupcakes.

    How do you make a box cake taste like it came from a bakery? ›

    Add one to two teaspoons of a pure extract to make it taste like a from-scratch cake. Pure vanilla extract and pure almond extract are great options, but you could also try lemon extract or orange extract paired with fresh citrus zest.

    Can you use coffee creamer in box cake mix? ›

    I like to: sub milk, cream, or in this case, flavored coffee creamer for water for moisture. use half melted butter for half of the amount of oil. add a little extra vanilla extract for deeper flavor.

    What is another name for crumb cake? ›

    Streuselkuchen (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtʁɔʏzl̩ˌkuːxn̩]; "crumb cake"), also known in English-speaking countries as crumb cake, is a cake made of yeast dough covered with a sweet crumb topping referred to as streusel.

    What is coffee cake crumble made of? ›

    To make the topping, in a large bowl whisk together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt until well combined. Cut in softened butter using a pastry cutter until mixture resembles large crumbs. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it.

    What is crumb on a cake? ›

    What is a crumb coat? A crumb coat is the first layer of buttercream icing — it is an extremely important step in decorating a cake.

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