Best Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe

Looking for the best pumpkin coffee cake recipe ever? You have found it. Low in calories, moist, and topped with an amazing cinnamon sugar streusel, the perfect way to start or end your day!

Why is this the best pumpkin coffee cake? Well as I said above, each slice is low in calories.  At only 168 calories, 9 grams of protein, and 8 grams of sugar per serving this is the best coffee cake ever!! Have no fear, you would never even know there is protein powder in this recipe, I swear it is not one of those nasty protein desserts, this is the real deal. So let me repeat myself, this pumpkin bread is low calorie, high in protein, low in sugar, sweet, moist and delicious. Now you understand why it is the best right?

There are a lot of coffee cake recipes made with sour cream, that is the hidden ingredient that makes it so moist and delicious. However, in this recipe, I used plain fat free greek yogurt which works just as well, if you feel uneasy about this, let me reassure you that you will not even know it is in the cake other than the fact that it tastes like heaven when you bite into it. If you are still questioning the ingredients, read the frequently asked questions below. 

Ingredients used for the best pumpkin coffee cake:

Cake:

• Krusteaz protein pancake mix: This is used in place of flour, the pancake mix is actually a tad lower in calories and it helps make the cake more fluffy! You can use regular pancake mix but I recommend a higher protein mix because it is the best macros.

• Vanilla protein powder: I used Pescience vanilla, as I always say I do find that this protein powder bakes the best. It is a whey protein but with the amount you have per serving it won’t bother your belly, or at least it does not mine and typically whey protein does! 

• Baking powder: Your typical baking staple … makes the cake rise very nicely!!! 

• Salt: I just use iodized salt for this recipe, this is important to pair with the baking powder and help the cake rise

• Pumpkin pie spice: As I noted in my pumpkin cheesecake truffle recipe, I love baking pumpkin recipes with this spice, if you do not have it you can make your own, I explain how in that blog!

• Coconut sugar: Coconut sugar is darker in color than your typical table sugar, it is so yummy and lower on the glycemic index than regular granulated sugar. If you do not have this you can use granulated cane sugar.

• Pumpkin Puree: I repeat, do not buy the pumpkin pie filling. Get the good old, plain pumpkin puree in a can. You do not utilize the whole can so make sure you save the leftovers to make the pumpkin cheesecake truffles.

• Vanilla extract: Another baking staple I am sure you all have this around!!

• Fat free greek yogurt: As I noted above, do not be afraid of this, this is necessary in this recipe because it makes the cake nice and moist. You would never know it is in the recipe, and if it really freaks you out then you can use fat free sour cream! 

• Unsweetened Dairy free milk – I used flax milk: I have a new found love for flax milk, flax seeds are seriously so good for you. I like the Good Karma Milk, but you can also use almond milk if that is all you have!

Streusel:

• Krusteaz protein pancake mix: More of this is used to add to the streusel, but only two tablespoons. Again, you do not need to use this exact brand but I recommend a high protein pancake mix!  

• Swerve brown sugar: I love Swerve, it really does not have an artificial taste to it, and it is 0 calories. Another benefit is that you can use the same amount you would if you were using regular sugar. I calculated the recipe nutrition to reflect the carbs that are added to this recipe as a result of the Swerve sugar. Because of the fiber each serving is 2 grams of carbs but 0 calories. I made sure to calculate the recipe with the added carbs! Please note if you create your own recipe in My Fitness Pal, it will likely show up as 145 calories, you can track it this way or adjust for the carbohydrates like I did! 

• Cinnamon: I am not going to lie to you. I forgot to add this into the streusel until after I crumbled it on top. I know it would probably be best mixed in, so do not forget like me, but if you do, just sprinkle some on top!

• Coconut oil – melted: I like using coconut oil in my baked goods, but the only negative is that you can almost always taste some coconut. I made sure to limit the amount used in this recipe so it does the job but does not overpower the flavor of the streusel. You can use light butter if you prefer, but you cannot taste the coconut oil in the streusel at all!

Frequently Asked Questions:

When should I make this recipe?

Now! It is the perfect time, it is the beginning of fall, easy to make and the best! I am not kidding when I say this is one of the best recipes I have made to date!

How do you store the pumpkin coffee cake?

You can store the coffee cake in the baking dish or in a container at room temperature for 2-3 days, if they are not finished by then I recommend moving them to the fridge to store for up to a week! You can also freeze this recipe for up to one month.

When is the best time to eat the best pumpkin coffee cake?

Typically, coffee cake is eaten in the morning, but I love it as a dessert, so if you are asking me I say with dessert, but it would also be amazing to start off the day with a cup of pumpkin coffee, especially because the nutrition per serving is so good!

What is the nutrition information per serving of pumpkin coffee cake? 

You can find this recipe in My Fitness Pal by searching HNFit Best Pumpkin Coffee Cake for easy logging. There are 9 servings and each serving is 168 calories, 27.2 grams of carbs, 2.6 grams of fat, and 9 grams of protein.

Do you have to add protein powder?

You do not, but I highly recommend it. As I noted above, there is only one scoop used for the entire recipe so you cannot really taste it and it will not bother your belly even though it is a whey protein. The only other protein addition to this recipe is a result of the fat free greek yogurt so make sure you use that as well.

How many calories per serving of pumpkin coffee cake?

This recipe makes 9 servings, each cake slice is 168 calories. I calculated this using the carbs that come from the Swerve sugar, if you do not want to count this, then each cake slice is only 145 calories.

Is the best pumpkin coffee cake healthy? 

Yes! Each slice has only 8 grams of sugar, and this is coming from coconut sugar which is natural and low on the glycemic index. It is also less than 170 calories per serving and 9 grams of protein!

Do you have to use greek yogurt to make the coffee cake?

You do not have to but this is what binds the cake together and makes it so moist. There are a lot of coffee cake recipes out there made with sour cream, this is very similar but it adds more protein into the cake and for fewer calories. If you want to stick to sour cream, you can use it, but I would use fat free and make sure you adjust the nutrition per serving because it will not be the same!

Best Pumpkin Coffee Cake recipe below: