Pumpkin Pie Crumble Cake

I started this venture with cakes in mind and initially concentrated on cakes and coffee cakes. But the book does say cakes, bars, cookies, and desserts. I would place this one in the dessert category.

A little more labor intensive than previous recipes I've tried, the result is a very nice pumpkin dessert welcome at any gathering.

The crust is something between a cake and a soft cookie and I like the way it is a distinct and substantial layer- about 1/4 to 1/2 in thick. Spreading it in the pain was a challenge- the dough is very soft and sticky. I tried my wooden spoon, rubber spatula, and long frosting spreading blade. No good. You have to use your hands, as the recipes instructs, imagine that! But you'll also want to dust them (and re-dust them) with floor to aid in the spreading of the crust dough.

The filling had that wonderful creamy, smooth texture of pumpkin pie filling, but not as intense a flavor. If you want the filling to taste more like pumpkin pie, I recommend adding a little nutmeg and ginger along with the cinnamon.

The crumble top- perfect! It crumbled!! I liked that it was plentiful making it easy to cover the cake completely. I was concerned it would bake into a more solid top, almost like a top crust. But it didn't. I love crumbles on top of cakes and donuts so this was perfect.