New York Crumb Cake Bars

Yield: 9x12-inch pan

New York Crumb Cake Bars

New York Crumb Cake Bars

New York Crumb cake has a soft layer of cake for the crumbs to rest on. The addition of cinnamon sugar amps up the already present cinnamon flavour.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp canola or vegetable oil, plus more for pan
  • 4 cups plain (all-purpose) flour, plus more for pan
  • Β½ cup granulated sugar
  • 2Β½ tsp baking powder
  • Β½ tsp salt
  • 1 large egg
  • Β½ cup milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1Β½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • icing (confectioners’) sugar or cinnamon sugar for dusting

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 160°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3. Grease and flour a 9x12-inch baking pan and set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, sift together 1½ cups flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a second bowl, whisk together egg, milk, canola oil, and vanilla. Using a rubber spatula, fold dry ingredients into egg mixture.
  3. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan, and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine remaining 2½ cups flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Pour melted butter over flour mixture, and toss with a rubber spatula until large crumbs form. Sprinkle crumbs over batter.
  4. Bake in the centre of the oven, rotating pan after 10 minutes. Continue baking until a cake tester comes out clean, about 10 minutes more.
  5. Transfer baking pan to a wire rack to cool. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon sugar or vanilla sugar. Using a serrated knife or bench scraper, cut into 3-inch bars.
  6. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Leave a Comment

Please leave a comment and consider leaving a star rating for the recipe. Your comments make my day!

39 Comments on “New York Crumb Cake Bars”

  1. Alex β€” January 7, 2013 @11:33 pm Reply

    No wonder you're in crumb cake land, now. It looks and sounds great!

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @6:31 pm Reply

      Thanks Alex.

  2. Sue β€” January 8, 2013 @12:40 am Reply

    I've only made crumb cake once, but I don't think it looked this PRETTY! YUM!

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @6:34 pm Reply

      You think so? I just dolloped it all in. Maybe my OCD in smoothing the crumbs out make it that way? *shrug*

      Thanks Sue.

  3. sally @ sallys baking addiction β€” January 8, 2013 @1:36 am Reply

    i van never, ever turn down a crumb cake and especially not one as gorgeous and "crumby" as this version. Can I come move to crumb cake land with you? :)

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @6:40 pm Reply

      Pack your bag girlfriend, and welcome to crumb cake land! Thanks Sally.

  4. Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust β€” January 8, 2013 @2:35 am Reply

    Gorgeous Lisa! I want a pillow made of crumb, so I can eat through the night. ;)

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @9:38 pm Reply

      Maybe we should take out the pillows from their covers and stuff with crumb cake instead? I'm sure it'd make a great comfy pillow and satisfy those night hunger pangs too. :) Thanks Dorothy.

  5. Tash @ The Velvet Moon Baker β€” January 8, 2013 @10:11 am Reply

    Yum! Lisa this looks so scrummy. I've never ever tried crumb cake either. Maybe I should make one :D

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:12 pm Reply

      Definitely Tash, I like to see what we've been missing out on when discovering new recipes! :D

      If you'd like, I can send you the gram version of this recipe too since I weighed the ingredients to work out that. :) Thanks Tash.

  6. Liz β€” January 8, 2013 @1:30 pm Reply

    YUM! I need to try this, too...who could resist that amazing layer of streusel??? Not me!

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:16 pm Reply

      I know, a little piece of heaven. Thanks Liz.

  7. Kayle (The Cooking Actress) β€” January 8, 2013 @3:46 pm Reply

    Welcome. Welcome to the land of crumb cake. It is a wonderful place.

    This cake looks SO GOOD! I love how there's like more crumb than cake-buaahahaaaa :D

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:25 pm Reply

      I'm so glad you're in crumb cake land too! It's the best place to be.

      And you're right, it does look as though there's more crumb than cake. That's because I had dessert OCD and smoothed the crumbs therefore pushing them slightly down into the cake batter so the cake rose inbetween the crumbs of chaos. :) Thanks Kayle.

  8. Happy Valley Chow β€” January 8, 2013 @4:16 pm Reply

    I love how you apologize for the photography when it is 10x better than my photography haha. I love a good crumble cake, especially with a big cup of coffee. Looks delicious, I will definitely have to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!

    Sincerely,
    Happy Valley Chow

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:32 pm Reply

      Haha, I don't think so. It's because the colours are off on this photo. I do most, if not all, of my baking at night and lately I've been behind so baked and photographed on the same day. Darn the winter months and sunsets at 4pm! :lol:

      Thanks Eric.

  9. Joy @ Baking-Joy β€” January 8, 2013 @5:17 pm Reply

    Lisa this looks fab! I've never made crumb cake either and will definitely be trying after this! All the cinnamon in there is amazing. Your photos look great and better than my daytime photography :-) I was thinking of trying to make a homemade lightbox so I could do more photography during the week :-)

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:42 pm Reply

      Yes, make a crumb cake - you won't regret it. I have the recipe worked out into grams if you want it in grams? I weighed the cups to work it out so exact grams given that I used myself. :)

      Ad so not true about your photography! *shakes head* I wouldn't say you'd need a lightbox really. They can be pretty n' all but if you have an external flash with a diffusor then you can carry on without.

      My photography is mainly done at night (since it gets dark at 4pm, darn winter) with an external flash and on-camera diffusor (Stofen) and a reflector. The only problems I have is shutter speed dropping too low which can be resolved by a tripod and white balance which can be resolved by a grey card. :) I do need to dig my studio lights out the loft though, would be so much easier than faffing about editing after. :?

      1. Joy @ Baking-Joy β€” January 11, 2013 @1:05 pm Reply

        Thank you for that advice, I'll definitely be looking for a diffusor now. I'm loving the photography, but man it's an expensive hobby! I need a way of photography during the week, as I'm only really baking at the weekend at the moment and I miss it during the week! :-)

        1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 11, 2013 @2:53 pm Reply

          Tell me about it! I have a thing with the Canon L lenses because they're weather sealed (I do motorsport photography too - it's quite dirty :lol: ) and paid Β£800 many years ago for the 24-70 2.8 L. Not to mention almost 3k for the 5D body alone.

          At night time though, I'm loving my 50mm 1.4 (the 1.8 version breaks easily). I just ensure that I bump my ISO high enough that the shutter doesn't drop below 60. Anything below 60 and you need a tripod. A good rule of thumb though if your using a zoom lens without IS is to use the same shutter as the zoom when handholding to prevent camera shake blur.

  10. Laura Dembowski β€” January 8, 2013 @8:32 pm Reply

    I love crumb cake. So glad you discovered it after all this time. Yours looks incredibly moist and yummy. Cinnamon sugar is such a great idea on it :)

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:50 pm Reply

      You'd think so but children can be so fussy with spices. They just want chocolate cake and cookies and that's that. *I* loved the extra buzz from the cinnamon sugar, so delicious.

      Thanks Laura.

  11. The Partiologist β€” January 8, 2013 @9:49 pm Reply

    Welcome to the wonderful world of crumb cake! So delicious , I love cakes, pies, bars, muffins, anything with crumbs on top! Looks like your first crumb cake was a huge success!

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @10:55 pm Reply

      I'm hooked now too. In fact, I have a wonderful idea on my next crumb cake with a twist. :)

      Thanks Kim.

  12. Choc Chip Uru β€” January 8, 2013 @10:24 pm Reply

    Damn if this cake doesn't have me salivating :)

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @11:00 pm Reply

      Thanks Uru.

  13. Ala β€” January 8, 2013 @11:05 pm Reply

    I will admit that I sometimes make muffins just for the crumb toppings. At other times, they start off as crumb-topped muffins, but by the time I'm done letting them "cool" and bringing them to the party, they are crumbless sad little muffins...me and my picking habits! That being said, I really can't wait to give this a go.

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @11:04 pm Reply

      Haha, I was doing the same with the crumb in this cake even before it went into the oven! So I can certainly see why they end up crumbles! Thanks Ala.

  14. Jess @ OnSugarMountain β€” January 9, 2013 @2:56 am Reply

    As the unofficial Mayor of Crumb Cake Land, I'd like to welcome you :D Stay as long as you like.
    Your cake looks absolutely perfect! And a little extra cinnamon never sounds like a bad idea ;)

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @11:11 pm Reply

      I've got my passport now so I'm a citizen for life. :D But thanks for the welcome masterful Mayor. And a bit o' cinnamon sugar never hurt anyone... unless you're allergic to cinnamon that is, then I wouldn't recommend it.

      Thanks Jess.

  15. Winnie β€” January 9, 2013 @8:48 pm Reply

    I loooooooove New York crumb cake. I've actually made one about 2 months ago. It;s DELICIOUS !!

    Wonderful photos btw - really tempting looking

    1. Lisa {Sweet 2 Eat Baking} β€” January 10, 2013 @11:16 pm Reply

      Thanks Winnie.

  16. Ambreen β€” January 15, 2013 @7:50 am Reply

    Wow, I really want to taste this. Looks delicious!!!

  17. tanya β€” January 15, 2013 @7:06 pm Reply

    The last time I had a crumb cake I was in school and it came from a Little Debbie package! I'm inspired to try a real crumb cake!! Thanks for sharing with One Creative Weekend!

  18. Carrie @ Frugal Foodie Mama β€” January 17, 2013 @12:28 am Reply

    This looks delicious! :)

    Thank you so much for linking up with Marvelous Mondays! :)

  19. Sinea Pies β€” January 17, 2013 @4:32 am Reply

    Is this as good as it looks? Of course it is! If I had some here right now, my family might not find out it about it. I'd eat it all myself with a big glass of milk! :)

  20. S. @ The Captivating Life β€” February 17, 2013 @1:20 am Reply

    Stopping in from Nifty Thrifty Sundays. This cake looks delicious - and good call on the cinnamon sugar. I'm adding this to my list of recipes to try!

Pingbacks

  1. Link Party: Marvelous Mondays #30 with Features | This Gal Cooks
  2. Link Party: Marvelous Mondays #30 with Features