↑

Hugs and Cookies XOXO

You are here: Home / Brunch / Shortcut Crumb Cake

Shortcut Crumb Cake

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission. View my Disclosure Policy for details.

by 169 Comments

Share5K
Pin9K
Tweet
14K Shares
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Shortcut Crumb Cake

Sometimes the shortcut recipes taste the best. That is true in this case!! This recipe comes from my friend and when I asked her for the recipe I begged her to tell me it was from scratch and not a box. I pleaded and I begged because I just knew. I knew it had to start with a box mix and I was right. BUT…..This cake is outrageous. DO NOT let the box mix scare you away!!! This shortcut crumb cake is a true winner and gets rave reviews each and every time I make it. It also freezes beautifully so you can make it ahead of time and have it on hand when needed! If you purely want homemade, try this killer recipe for The Best Crumb Cake.

Shortcut Crumb Cake

Shortcut Crumb Cake

Shortcut Crumb Cake

Shortcut Crumb Cake Shortcut Crumb Cake

crumb cake pan crumb cake piece Shortcut Crumb Cake crumb cake sheet pan crumb cake slice

You’ll Need:

9×13 pan

Nonstick foil

Shortcut Crumb Cake

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Betty Crocker Yellow Cake box mix prepared according to box directions and also add 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 pound salted butter
  • 4 ½ cups flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons cinnamon

Instructions
 

  • Prepare the cake as package directs and add vanilla.
  • Bake it in a 9x13 pan lined with nonstick foil for 20 minutes at 350.
  • Electric mix butter, flour, sugar and cinnamon to make crumbs.
  • Carefully sprinkle all over the cake and return to the oven for an additional 20 minutes.
  • Let cool completely before cutting.

shortcut crumb cakeshortcut crumbcrumb cake crumb cake shortcut

crumbcake shortcut short cut cake crumbs

You May Love These, Too! XOXO

Share5K
Pin9K
Tweet
14K Shares

Filed Under: Brunch, Sweet Tagged With:

This post may contain affiliate links, view my Disclosure Policy. Sharing of this post is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting of full recipes to ANY social media or blogs is strictly prohibited without written consent. Recipes- including exact wording and photographs- are Copyright of hugsandcokiesxoxo.com. Any unauthorized use of content or photos from hugsandcookiesxoxo.com is a violation of my Copyright.

Comments

    • Carol McGotty says

      Haha, I mixed the crumb recipe with an electro hand mixer on the lowest setting which was too high!!
      However, halfway through I decided to crumble them by hand.: Easier and chunkier!

      Reply

      • Carol McGotty says

        I agree and I found it best to make the crumbs before mixing the cake.
        Everyone loves this cake!!!

        Reply

    • Janet says

      I made this cake twice last week! First we had to make sure it was going to be good so I made it for just us….the next cake we brought to my nephews house… everyone raved about it, I mean RAVED! Can’t wait to make it again this weekend for family company !

      Reply

  3. Susan J says

    A full pound of butter in he crumb topping? I wonder if I could cut the crumb recipe in half? I love butter but a half a pound should be just as yummy, right? lol

    Reply

  7. Kim says

    I made this today! I was so good! I did cut the topping in half which was just perfect for us! Thanks for the terrific and easy recipe!

    Reply

  9. Lisa DeLeo says

    You said to prepare the cake mix according to directions and add vanilla…but there is no vanilla listed in ingredients…how much should be added?

    Reply

  11. Butterflykoi says

    I would think that it would be brown sugar in the topping, if not where does the nice brown color come from?

    Reply

  16. Lailabakes says

    If you take the cake out of the oven in 15 to 20 minutes, wouldn’t that deflate the cake? ..the oven should not be opened on a cake before 30 minutes for a 13X9 pan…

    Reply

    • Rachele says

      That is actually a myth, cakes don’t deflate because oven is opened. Cakes rise or or fall based on acting agents ability to work

      Reply

    • Robin F says

      I make this cake all of the time and melt the butter and add vanilla extract to the melted butter. When you combine the butter with the flour it looks like you’ve made a horrible mistake, but don’t worry it will come out just fine. I just use my fingers to crumble the crumb mixture all over. I also make this in a much larger pan (about the size of a roaster) and only bake it the first time 10-12 minutes, the second time 15-20 minutes. It is the most requested dessert I make.

      Reply

  19. Steph C. says

    Made this today. We are renovating our kitchen and I only have a large toaster oven to work with. The oven is not big enough for a 9×13 pan so I used an 8×8 instead. I also realized after putting the cake in the oven that I only had about 3/4 cup of white sugar left in the house. I substituted some brown sugar and confectioners sugar. Although it didn’t look as nice as your pics and I was a little nervous it was going to be a disaster, it turned out amazing! Next time though I would divide the batter in half if using a smaller pan and cook one half at a time. And the brown sugar in the topping was awesome. It tasted like a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and apple pie topping.

    Reply

  20. Michele Geiger says

    Well I hope this tastes better than it looks. When I put the crumbs ( which was more like a paste) on the top, because it was so heavy, it sunk down in to the cake batter and that in turn pushed up in to the crumbs. So now the cake is done and there are dollops of cake sticking through the crumb topping. I know looks aren’t everything, but I was hoping to share half of this cake with family, now I’m not sure I want it to leave the house as ugly as it looks 😉

    Reply

      • Michele Geiger says

        Cake tastes great, however, I had to dispose of most of center of cake because the bottom layer did not finish baking. Plus entire center of cake is mostly *just* crumbs….the cake batter became displaced when the crumbs were added. I’ll make this again, but next time probably wait a bit longer before adding the crumbs. (Which by the way was more like a batter, too….it wasn’t very crumbly…which seemed odd to me….). AND I forgot to add the powdered sugar!

        Reply

  22. Diane says

    I made this cake for the first time, please tell me I used the correct pan 13x 9 which is my brownie pan. The picture looks like it’s more of a cookie sheet . I felt like there was more crumb then cake – did I make it correctly.

    Reply

  23. Noreen says

    I am making this cake right now…the “crumb topping” is not crumbly at all! I followed the directions…..the topping is a thick paste. I had to spread it carefully over the top with a spatula. Now it is not becoming crumbly at all. What’s uP?

    Reply

  24. Judith Trasso says

    Made this crumb cake came out delicious perfect in fact. But I used a springform pan instead of 9 by 13 worked really well

    Reply

  25. Noreen says

    4 sticks of butter seems like much too much for that much flour. It definitely made a thick paste. It is therefore too heavy for the cake to support it. I wish the admin of this site would give more explanatory answers.

    Reply

  26. Susan says

    Thank you for posting this recipe. I made a very similar recipe almost 20 years ago, from a nurse I worked with in a hospital. It was a big hit then, and my daughter, (now 30) begged for this cake for her birthday….but I lost the recipe!!!. My nurse friend suggested using a vanilla cake mix (Duncan Hines), and I know i’ve substituted marble cake mix just to change it up. Thanks again!!

    Reply

      • Jaci says

        Thanks for the encouragement. I made rhubarb sauce yesterday. May give it a try.

        Rhubarb is a delicacy. Would hate to waste it. We only have it a very short period of time in Cuenca, Ecuador. Have to ration it out. 🙂

        Reply

  29. Mia says

    I have made this cake 4 times already and it is always a hit. When you are making the crumbs the consistency seems off and appears you have done something wrong but I assure you it will be perfect! There is supposed to be more crumb topping then cake. I would imagine if you wanted you could just cut the topping or do a double batter and put in two different pans.

    Reply

  32. Stephanie says

    Can this recipe be converted into cupcakes? I’d rather do that, than a whole cake. Plus I wouldn’t have to make that giant batch of streusel.

    Reply

      • Stephanie says

        Well, the cupcakes turned out well…..every single one of them were eaten during our pool party. I cut the topping recipe in half (it was a LOT for cupcakes even halving it lol) I used PAM to coat cupcake pan, baked them using the temperature on the cake box. I tried 2 different baking approaches. First I baked the cupcakes for half the time, then added the topping and baked until finished. The second batch I added the topping and baked them for the entire baking time. Both turned out pretty much the same. Once cooled I dusted them lightly with powdered sugar. They were the perfect size for the kids and one friend ate 3 of them because they were so good.

        Reply

  35. Brianna says

    Making this now. Already had to add 15 mins to the bake time. When I checked on it it was still gooey so I took a fork and like raked it which made nice crumbs.. added 10 more mins.. raked it again and added 10 more mins. Looking good.

    Reply

  36. Angie says

    I made this today and it is delicious, however, the crumbs came out dry not moist as in the photos. What did I do wrong?

    Reply

  37. Brooke says

    Sounded good and I seems easy enough. I had trouble with the topping. I could not get the butter to incorporate with the flour and sugar mixture. We shall see how it turns out. 🙁

    Reply

  39. Laurna Calabrese says

    Thank you for this wonderful receipe, yes easy & not complicated wish I like.right now I’m cooking this cake it will be finished in 16 miniutes, just finished the top part the crumbs. Laurna from Florida. I know I will be knocking on my neighbors doors given them some to try.

    Reply

  40. Fran says

    Years ago, Ann page jelly had a recipe for which was delicious. Does anyone have it? Used to be sold in Bohack supermarket.

    Reply

  41. Melissa says

    Has anyone tried this using gluten free flour? My hubbs loved crumb cake until he couldn’t have it! Betty Crocker makes gluten free boxed mix , I was just wondering about the crumb using gluten free flour…

    Reply

    • Lisa says

      I was wondering the same thing? King Arthur makes an amazing gluten free cake that would be a great base for this.

      Reply

  43. Patricia Sciarillo says

    Just made this..it is delicious…I think I put too much cinnamon in. But everyone liked it…

    Reply

  44. jennifer says

    I baked this today, and it came out perfectly. It was exactly what I was looking for, which was something FAST and tasty for my boys. The topping was perfect, yes there is a lot of it and I like it that way. The weight of the topping on the partially baked cake made the cake dense and delicious. I put foil over it about five minutes before it was finished to keep it from browning so the topping would stay soft and not get crunchy. Thank you for a great recipe.

    Reply

  45. Jennifer says

    I made this cake for the 2nd time today, It seemed the topping got mushy and butter melted. How much time do you need to cool and does soft butter work best? Can you use extra cinnamon and more sugar for a sweeter topping?

    Reply

  46. Sandy says

    I just made this crumb cake. It was my daughter in law’s receipt same as yours. I also ha a problem with the crumbs being pasty. I really think the butter should be softened but still a bit solid. I added more flour and it came ok but not perfect.

    Reply

  48. Jennifer says

    I’ve commented on this recipe before, made it a dozen times at least, and love it. A recipe variation you might be interested in: Use a chocolate cake base and substitute one cup of cocoa for one cup of flour in the topping. Sometimes I add mini chocolate chips to the topping also, and dust with powdered sugar. Really good. And sweet. And rich. LOL.

    Reply

  49. K says

    I made this exactly as the recipe stated and it came out perfectly! A couple of tips…do NOT melt the butter and do NOT overmix. This is key to having a crumbly topping versus a “pasty” one as some of you are describing.

    Reply

  52. Pam says

    I plan to make this for an office gathering. I’m a butter freak so I will use the Butter recipe cake mix instead of the yellow. I will drizzle a glaze on top of the cake as well, cuz why not?? I’ll try and comment with my results

    Reply

  53. Jennifer says

    I am vegan so I used the recipe, but just added 12 oz club soda tovthe cake mix. It came out pretty well. I am hoping to add a fruit filling next time. Do you think it might work to add a filling half way through cooking the cake or do you think it’s better just to add it before baking the cake initially?

    Reply

  56. D says

    This is my SECOND TIME making this cake! I converted it twice to GLUTEN, DAIRY, SOY FREE & its DELICIOUS! For my fellow allergenic friends, I LOVE Cherrybrook Kitchen Gluten Dairy Free Yellow Cake. I used Dairy, Soy Free Earth Balance butter, pure vanilla & replaced the ‘sugar’ with Organic Coconut Sugar and used a quality Olive Oil. It can be done folks, it’s quite a hit and my spouses favorite!! Enjoy and thank YOU, Hugs and Cookies xoxo for the inspiration!!

    Reply

  62. Connie says

    This is by far the BEST crumb coffee cake you can make! Nobody believes you use a cake mix. Easy easy easy! Love it!

    Reply

  63. Sharon says

    You do make wonderful tasty things, but the crumb cake….I make from scratch from New York City recipe, it is not tough to make and it is a blue ribbon winner many times over here in North Carolina. Let me know if you want recipe I will share.Sharon Sivori

    Reply

  64. Jet says

    I’ve made this maybe 10 times now, each time I changed or added something and my husband can’t decide on his favorite version, but he literally begs for another when it’s gone. I use Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Yellow cake mix. Just did one this time doing the topping first, cut up the butter into small pieces before mixing into the topping, then chilled in the fridge before adding it. One tip for new bakers, the dry ingrediants should be well mixed in the blender before adding the butter for the topping. I then made this a much longer time preparing as I added 1 can of apple pie filling or topping in a layer on top of the cake after the first twenty minutes baking, drizzled it lightly with homemade caramel sauce, crumbled the chilled crumble topping by hand on top, and sprinkled toasted walnuts on top of that. I baked for 20 minutes more, then an extra 15 minutes or so till just the edges started to darken. Oh my gosh is it good. Took a lot longer, but worth it. Now if I could get the husband to stop eating it… lol

    Reply

  65. Jet says

    Sorry, corrections to my original post:

    The crumble topping dry ingrediants should be mixed well in the mixer, NOT blender, before adding the butter.

    The crumble topping after chilling while the cake baked the first time was again crushed up by hand before adding to the top as chilling it hardened up the topping into a solid block.

    The toasted walnuts added were walnut chips, not whole.

    And just to add, it is much better at room temp, or even better wrapped in a napkin or paper towel and reheated slightly in the microwave. The fridge keeps it well, but this version is best served warm.

    Reply

  66. Mimi1803 says

    Absolutely delicious! I love baking from scratch but this is the EXCEPTION! Not that it could be any better but I will try a thin white icing drizzle another time!

    Reply

  67. Teresa says

    Help! What am I doing wrong? While baking with crumb topping it always overflows out of the pan into bottom of the oven also covers the crumb. I’ve tried cooking the cake longer before putting the crumb on sometimes that works but not always

    Reply

  68. Ondrea says

    I had the same issue & I double checked that I was using a 13″ x 9″ pan before I started. There was so much topping that it mounded well over the top of the pan. It’s baking now & I ‘m hoping it doesn’t turn my oven into a giant mess!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  2. […] bars a whirl! I used my favorite rainbow cookie recipe and topped it with the crumbs I use on my shortcut crumb cake.  It was a score! I baked the crumbs  in an 8×8 pan so they would solidify and then […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




CommentLuv badge

Favorite Bars

Layered S’mores Bars

Millionaire Bars

Perfect S’mores Bars

Caramel Stuffed Krispy Treats

17 Replies

Birthday Cookie Brookies

Caramelitas

Peanut Butter Marshmallow Brownies

1 Reply

Nutella S’mores Bars

Chocolate Peanut Butter Marshmallow Crunch Brownies

Nutter Butter Candy Bars

disclosure

Privacy Policy