Vegan MoFo Day 13: Pumpkin Crumb Cake

Yesterday was a friend's birthday so I, along with another friend, brought over some cake. I wanted to make something pumpkinny, for obvious reasons. And although the pumpkin cupcakes in Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World are truly fabulous, they were too obvious. And I wasn't really in the mood for frosting. Veganomicon to the rescue! The answer was sitting there in the dessert section: Pumpkin Crumb Cake with Pecan Streusel! It was so good! The texture was amazing--fluffy and not too dense. And it wasn't too sweet. Perfect to serve with coffee after dinner or first thing in the morning for breakfast. I love how I've had this cookbook for years now and I still find recipes I didn't know/forgot existed. And each and every single one blows my mind! The only change I made here was the pan size. I didn't have a 9x13, so I used two. One was maybe 7x10 (total guess) and another much smaller one (maybe 4x4).

Pumpkin Crumb Cake with Pecan Streusel
From Veganomicon by Isa and Terry

Pecan Streusel:
1/4 cup all purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Cake:
1 (15-ounce) can pure pureed pumpkin
3/4 cups non-dairy milk
3/4 cups canola oil
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 2/3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

Prepare the streusel: In a small bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, and spices. Drizzle in the canola oil with your fingertips until crumbs form. Add the chopped pecans and mix.

Prepare the cake: In a large mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, soy milk, oil, granulated sugar, molasses, and vanilla. Mix well. Add roughly half the flour, the baking powder, salt, and spices, and use a fork to fold everything together. Add the remaining flour and mix gently until combined. (Don't use a hand blender.) Blending with a fork helps maintain the texture.

Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it out with a spatula. Scatter the streusel on top as evenly as possible. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted through the center comes clean.

Makes about 16 kitten head sized squares