These super soft pumpkin crumb cake muffins are topped with pumpkin spice crumbs and finished with sweet maple icing. They’re a reader favorite and after baking one batch, you’ll understand why!
Let’s all just agree that the crumbs are the best part of crumb cake.
…or so I thought until I made these pumpkin crumb cake muffins. Underneath pumpkin spice crumbs (!!) there’s an irresistible pumpkin cake—and I, for one, cannot resist anything pumpkin. (Especially you, pumpkin pie!) Both the muffin itself AND the crumbs are equally awesome. Top the pumpkin muffins with a little maple icing and there’s basically no need for any other breakfast food. (Unless you make a pumpkin coffee cake!!)
Readers’ Favorite Pumpkin Muffins
Like clockwork, September rolls around and we all go crazy for these pumpkin crumb cake muffins. They’re the perfect combination of everything we love about fall. Their ease and taste also help us transition into the chillier months.
Here’s why these are the best pumpkin muffins:
- The batter is based off of my pumpkin bread—it’s SO good
- Easy to make and no mixer required
- Ready in less than one hour
- Soft and moist thanks to power ingredients like pumpkin, oil, eggs, and milk
- Topped with pumpkin spice crumbs + maple icing (you could also leave them plain and you’ll basically have my regular pumpkin muffins)
- Delicious as a breakfast, snack, or dessert
- Packed with warm and cozy fall spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves
How to Make Pumpkin Crumb Cake Muffins
Instead of using my iced pumpkin coffee cake recipe as the base, I turned to my pumpkin bread. I LOVE using that bread recipe to make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. All you do here is take out the chocolate chips, reduce the sugar, and use milk instead of orange juice. Though you could definitely use orange juice if you’d like! (Orange juice provides incredible flavor to the bread, trust me on that one.)
Made with basic ingredients, these pumpkin muffins come together quickly.
- Mix the dry ingredients together. This includes lots of spice flavor and you can use homemade pumpkin pie spice here!
- Whisk the wet ingredients together.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients.
- Fill muffin cups—almost full, but leave room for the topping.
- Make crumb topping. Spoon this onto each muffin, pressing the crumbs into the tops.
- Bake.
- Whisk 3 icing ingredients together.
- Drizzle + serve.
Pumpkin Spice Crumb Topping
If you thought crumb topping couldn’t get any better, think again. We’re topping pumpkin crumb cake muffins with pumpkin spice crumbs. YES!
We use oil in the muffins themselves for extra moistness, but we use melted butter in the crumb topping. Why? F-L-A-V-O-R. The crumb topping also has brown sugar, granulated sugar, flour, and pumpkin pie spice. (Like my traditional crumb cake topping but with pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon.) There are repeat ingredients used in the muffins, so this is not only an easy recipe, it’s a convenient one too. By the way, this crumb topping would be fantastic on zucchini muffins and these chocolate pumpkin muffins, too.
I reduced the sugar in these muffins because they’re getting an extra dose of sweet from the crumb topping and maple icing. With that, I also reduced the salt to make sure the muffins didn’t taste salty with less sugar.
Optional Maple Icing
Maple icing is optional, but I don’t think we should ever label icing as an option! Honestly though, they taste great even without it. Also honestly, the maple icing seeping into the crumb topping is better than you can imagine.
More Crumb Lover Recipes
- Coffee Cake
- Apple Cinnamon Muffins
- Crumb Cake Donuts
- Apple Crumb Cake
- Raspberry Almond Crumb Cake
- Zucchini Crumb Cake
- Crumb Coffee Cake
Pumpkin Crumb Cake Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 15 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft and moist pumpkin crumb cake muffins with pumpkin pie spice and maple icing topping.
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice*
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (120ml) canola or vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) canned pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk, at room temperature*
Crumb Topping
- 3/4 cup (94g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice*
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, melted
Maple Icing (optional)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) pure maple syrup
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk*
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Spray a 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with cupcake liners. This recipe makes 15 muffins, so prepare a second muffin pan in the same manner. Set aside.
- Make the muffins: In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt together until combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, eggs and milk together until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then fold everything together gently just until combined and no flour pockets remain.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling them almost full.
- Make the crumb topping: Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice together until combined. Using a fork, lightly mix in the melted butter until crumbs form. Don’t over-mix. Spoon crumbs evenly on top of the batter and gently press them down into the batter so they’re snug.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C) then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 16-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total time these muffins take in the oven is about 21-22 minutes, give or take. Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes in the muffin pan as you make the icing. *For mini muffins, bake for 11-13 minutes at 350°F (177°C) the entire time.
- Make the icing: Whisk all of the icing ingredients together until combined and smooth. Drizzle over muffins and serve warm. Cover tightly and store at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: For longer storage, freeze muffins (with or without icing) for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature or warm up in the microwave if desired. Top with icing before serving if needed.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Spatula | Whisk
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: You can find pumpkin pie spice in the baking aisle of most grocery stores or make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t have either and want to use individual spices, use 1/4 teaspoon each of ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground allspice in the muffin batter. Do not leave out the 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon that is also in the muffin batter. The crumb topping also uses pumpkin pie spice and, again, if you don’t have store-bought or homemade, use 1/4 teaspoon of each of those spices and add 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon too.
- Milk: Any milk works. I’ve tested with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, whole milk, and skim milk. You can use any, dairy or non.
Keywords: pumpkin crumb cake muffins, pumpkin muffins
Hi Sally,
I agree that all the recipes I have tried are excellent! I would like to make this as a bundt cake or 9” round cake -can you supply the baking times? Thx!
Hi April, Absolutely. We recommend a 9×9 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-35 minutes, but use a toothpick to test for doneness just in case your oven takes longer.
This recipe is genius! I made mini loaves, included the crumb topping, but skipped the icing. Absolutely delicious! EVERYONE I’ve gifted a loaf has raved about them. Thank you Sally for “gifting” me a recipe that brought so much joy to friends and neighbors.
Delicious and perfect in every way!
★★★★★
This recipe was great! I didn’t try it with the maple glaze on top,only cause I didn’t want the extra sugar, lol. Will definitely make again!
Delicious muffins. So flavorful. A hit with the whole family. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
All your recipes are so good. I havd made many. Can I add coconut? And how much?
Hi Pam, you could certainly try adding about 1/2 cup of sweetened coconut to these muffins. Hope you enjoy them!
These were sooo yummy!! I added in 1/2 cup of chocolate chips & omitted the icing. It made 16 in total. *chefs kiss*
★★★★★
I have made this recipe every year since it came out. It’s absolutely perfect. One question though; If I were to make the batter the night before, how long should I leave it out of the refrigerator before baking?
★★★★★
Hi Alyssa, we’re so glad this is a favorite for you! We don’t recommend making the batter the night before. The leaveners are activated when the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together, and it’s best to bake the batter soon thereafter. You can certainly bake the cake the night before and then rewarm slices in the morning. Hope this helps!
Would these work as donuts? If so, what changes would I need to make?
Hi Bethany, we’d recommend using this recipe for baked pumpkin donuts. Hope you enjoy!
What is the calorie count for each muffin? Thank you.
★★★★★
Hi Al! We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Hi! Can these be made into 6 jumbo muffins?!
Hi HT, absolutely — you can follow the bake time from these jumbo blueberry muffins as a guide. Enjoy!
How many calories per muffin? 🙂
Hi El Leanne! We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
I love love love these muffins!!! I make them atleast once a month! The flavor and texture is absolutely perfect!!! It cannot be matched. These are 10/10 wonderful.
★★★★★
Wonderful muffins! I accidentally overfilled the muffin pans, so I only made 12, but they turned out perfectly.
★★★★★
I love this, it doesn’t need the glaze, plants sweet without. Yum!
★★★★★
Great recipe. My daughters volleyball team loved them. Second time making them for their long bus rides. Only made 12 not 15
I’ve made these 3 times already. One time I doubled the recipe. Everyone who had tried them (ages 3 to 97) has loved them. I don’t always make the maple topping and they’re still fine. Once I replaced the pumpkin pie spice with Chai spice and they were fantastic. I bought a bunch of canned pumpkin so I can teach this recipe to my 8th grade cooking class.
★★★★★
We love these muffins! Added a little cream cheese to the icing/ drizzle to cut the sweetness- soooo good!
★★★★★
Delicious Pumpkin Muffins! A new family favorite!
★★★★★
Could you add fresh cranberries or dried cranberries to these? How much if so?
Hi Stephanie, you could start by adding 1/2 cup of dried cranberries to the batter. Let us know how it goes!
This recipe is incredible! Definitely a must try
These muffins turned out perfectly and looked just like the picture. Perfect texture and flavor. We all loved the drizzle of maple icing. Delicious!!
I just bought a 24 cup muffin pan for baking. Could I use that to bake them all at once or would that effect the way they bake? I would also like to 1.5x or 2x the recipe, because I need at least 24 muffins for work. Thank you! I love all your recipes I’ve made and so has all my friends and family =)
Hi Kara! You can use that pan to bake them all at once. Make sure to rotate the pan once while baking to encourage even baking. We always recommend making multiple batches instead of doubling for best results.
Texture is more like a cupcake than a muffin. For all the ingredients in this recipe the only taste was cinnamon. Disappointing.
★★
This is an amazing recipe. I one batch and the second I tasted it minutes from the oven I started a second
★★★★★
Hello, I’m going to make these this weekend, but I’d like to make them in a mini muffin pan. So you recommend that, and if so, what adjustments should I make? Can’t wait to try these!
Hi Laurie, you sure can! See the end of step 5: For mini muffins, bake for 11-13 minutes at 350°F (177°C) the entire time. Enjoy!
Whole family loved them… “The best muffins you’ve ever made!”
★★★★★
Fantastic muffins!
I made them to take to work, but after my husband ate one, he decided they were all his. I’ll be making more this week!
★★★★★
These muffins were the bomb!!
I baked these for my staff at work and they were a HIT! Yummmm
★★★★★