Zucchini Crumb Cake

This spiced zucchini crumb cake is the perfect way to use up zucchini! It’s topped with a thick, buttery crumb and chopped walnuts.

If you love zucchini or have a bumper crop you’d like to cook with this year, you’re really going to love this moist zucchini crumb cake, along with Lemon Zucchini BreadSpicy Zucchini FrittataCheesy Zucchini Tots, and Summer Corn and Zucchini Chowder.

Zucchini Crumb Cake cut into squares

Perfectly delicious breakfast cake!

The past two weeks have been full of flops in my kitchen. I’m not sure what’s been going on but it’s been really disappointing. This zucchini cake however, was NOT one of them. It was tender, fluffy and full of fall spices. I kind of loved everything about this recipe, and I think you will too.

The batter is really easy to make, you can probably whip it up in just a few minutes. After that goes into the pan, you’ll want to make the crumb topping. I kind of want to top everything with it now!!

After it cools, cut it and serve it with a big glass of milk and enjoy. Doesn’t that sound like a tasty breakfast?! Happy baking!!

Shredded zucchini to use in zucchini crumb cake recipe

Mix, bake + Enjoy!

PREP. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×9-inch baking pan with non-stick spray or line with parchment paper; set aside.

DRY INGREDIENTS. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice; set aside.

WET INGREDIENTS. In a large mixing bowl (with a hand mixer) or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sour cream, sugar, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla until combined. Add the zucchini and gently mix in. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined.

BAKE. Spread batter into prepared pan. Combine all of the ingredients for the topping in a small mixing bowl. When large crumbs form, sprinkle the mixture over the batter. Place in the oven and bake for 35-45 minutes or until the center is set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before cutting or removing.

Variations:

  • Switch out the chopped walnuts for almonds, pecans, or even some granola or oats
  • Leave the nuts out all together
  • Add some dried cranberries or raisins to your cake batter
  • For extra sweetness, drizzle some melted vanilla or cream cheese frosting over the top of the cake while it’s still warm  
  • This would be wonderful in muffin form. Simply divide the batter into a muffin tin, following the rest of the recipe as is, but baking for a shorter time. Check on the muffins periodically for doneness.
Mixing the crumb topping in a glass bowl

Zucchini and Storage Tips

Making this cake is a great way to use some zucchini from your garden or even from your local grocery store.  Here are a few tips for choosing the perfect zucchini for this recipe:

  • When shopping for or picking zucchini look for ones that are pretty thin and about 6-8 inches in length.  Make sure the skin is a nice dark green and that the skin feels smooth as well.
  • A medium sized zucchini, which is about 8 inches long, should be all that you need to make this cake.  When shredded it should yield about 1 ½ cups, just a little more than called for in this recipe.

STORE leftover cake on the counter top, or in the fridge for a few days as well.

FREEZE unwrapped for an hour or so until it is frozen and then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then again in aluminum foil. It should stay good in the freezer for up to 4 months.  When you are ready to eat it you can easily thaw it on your counter top at room temperature. 

Zucchini Crumb Cake recipe cut into squares

Here are some of our other delicious cake recipes you might like to try:

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Zucchini Crumb Cake | lifemadesimplebakes.com

Zucchini Crumb Cake Recipe

This spiced zucchini crumb cake is the perfect way to use up zucchini! It's topped with a thick, buttery crumb and chopped walnuts..
4.63 from 16 votes
Pin Rate
Course: Cakes & Cheesecakes
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 263kcal
Author: Andrea
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp kosher sea salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/3 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter - melted
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cup zucchini - shredded

For the Crumb Topping

  • 2 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 2 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup cake flour - OR all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter - melted
  • 1/3 cup walnuts - chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×9-inch baking pan with non-stick spray or line with parchment paper; set aside.
  • In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice; set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl (with a hand mixer) or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sour cream, sugar, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla until combined. Add the zucchini and gently mix in. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined.
  • Spread batter into prepared pan. Combine all of the ingredients for the topping in a small mixing bowl. When large crumbs form, sprinkle the mixture over the batter. Place in the oven and bake for 35-45 minutes or until the center is set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before cutting or removing.

NOTES

-You can omit the walnuts completely or swap them out for pecans!

Nutrition

Serving: 12serving | Calories: 263kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 169mg | Potassium: 140mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 342IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg

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About the Author

Andrea

Hi I'm Andrea!

Hotelier turned Food Blogger to help make your life simple, one recipe at a time.

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Comments:

  1. 👍👍 excellent !! Doubled recipe exactly as posted. Used 2 – 9x9s. Gave one to my sweet elderly neighbors. Thank you so much for a great recipe.

  2. Just found this. Hubby said “you haven’t made it yet?” 😄 we are buried in zucchini this year. So it’s on my list for tomorrow. I will come back and review.
    I have one question. Can I double and use a 9×13? Thank you for posting.

    1. Hi Bet,

      The original recipe calls for a 9×9-inch baking pan, which has an area of 81 square inches. When you double the recipe, you’ll ideally want a pan that’s close to double that area.

      A 13×9-inch baking dish has an area of 117 square inches, which is a bit more than 1.5 times the size of the 9×9-inch pan. While it’s not exactly double the size, it’s the most common next step up and will work quite well for a doubled recipe. The batter might be a tad thicker than in the original, so you might need to adjust the baking time slightly (by adding a few extra minutes) to ensure that the center is fully cooked.

      If you have access to a 15×10-inch jelly roll pan, that’s even closer to double the size of the original (with an area of 150 square inches), and that would be another good option.

    1. Hi Linda, yes, you can use all purpose flour instead of the 1/2 cup cake flour for the crumb topping.