Butternut Squash Coffee Cake

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Crunchy cinnamon streusel, tender spiced butternut squash cake, and a vanilla drizzle makes this cozy butternut squash coffee cake all about Fall.

There’s nothing like a coffee cake, especially when it has a fun twist like my Cinnamon Crunch Streusel Cake or this one with the addition of squash. This cake is so easy to throw together last minute If you have company coming for brunch or afternoon tea. It’s also a fantastic make-ahead dessert, like my no bake Mascarpone Tart, for the holidays when you want less to do the day of Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Bonus, coffee cakes are a triple threat since they act as breakfast, snack, and dessert! And don’t get me started on the pecan topping that will have you picking off bites each time you walk by. Additionally, this butternut cake has pure squash throughout. So that makes this cake have a dash of flavorful nutrition just like Chocolate Zucchini Cake!

Countdown To Thanksgiving

It’s officially November, which means it’s totally acceptable to turn on Christmas music and start planning the holiday spreads. I swapped out our Halloween decorations for Turkey blow ups and harvest flair. This is my favorite time of the year and I’m ready.

Speaking of Halloween, the day was a hilarious and jam packed holiday. I started the day showing St. Louis how not to make cheesecake! Let me explain. It was packed on the KSDK plaza for the Golden Girls themed Show Me St. Louis show. We were gathered outside on the coldest day of the year so far for their Halloween extravaganza that included ponies, wind blow hay, a pie eating contest and myself.

My recipe of the day, my Halloween cheesecake in honor of the holiday and the Golden Girls’ beloved dessert. The problem? We had no electricity and it was freezing! So the ingredients went cold, hay was flying into the food, and the mixer wouldn’t work. It was a funny fiasco, to say the least. We had a blast and lots of laughs, as usual. But we definitely did not teach anyone how to make cheesecake! That’s the beauty of live TV for you!

Now we are switching gears and you can find me daydreaming about Thanksgiving morning cinnamon rolls and Christmas cocktails. We are kicking of November and Thanksgiving food month with this mouthwatering Butternut Squash Coffee Cake.

Butternut Squash

I don’t play favorites when it come to squash. I love butternut squash as much as I love pumpkin. And this winter squash deserves to come out from pumpkin’s shadow and be the shining star of a holiday dessert. This cozy and comforting cake gets its toasty squash flavor from freshly roasted squash. Note that you can use canned squash for this recipe as well.

Butternut squash is slightly nutty, smooth, and buttery. It has a mellower flavor and color than pumpkin and it also purees to perfection with ease. The roasting process brings out natural sweetness and moisture that lends well to this Thanksgiving coffee cake.

The first step in making this Butternut Squash dessert is to roast the butternut.

Simply preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick foil. Next, cut the butternut squash in half using a sharp chefs knife and a heavy duty cutting board. Then place each squash half cut side down onto the baking sheet. Roast for 30 minutes, until the outer skin is starting to brown and wrinkle and it is fork tender.

Then remove from the oven and allow to cool until you can handle it. Once you can touch it, turn it over and scoop out the flesh. Butternut squash isn’t stringy like pumpkin, so it’s much easier to mash up.

Mash it with a fork until it is smooth like a purée. Alternatively, use a blender to get it smooth if needed. You should only need 1 half for this butternut squash coffee Cake. Reserve the rest to use in place of pumpkin in pumpkin vodka penne or vegan pumpkin bread. Then allow the puree to finish cooling while you work on the cake and streusel topping.

Pecan Topping

Turn the oven down to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 inch round or square cake pan and set aside. *For easy lifting out of the pan, line it with parchment paper and leave a bit of overhang. This is a helpful tip if you want to easily remove and present cakes or brownies that shouldn’t be flipped over, like this one or Buttermilk apple cake, The use of parchment with overhang for lifting out eliminates the need of a springform pan.

For the topping, you don’t need to toast your pecans (or walnuts) prior to making it a topping. Since the topping is baked on top of the cake, it will get golden brown, toasty, and nutty.

Make your pecan topping first. The irresistible topping for this butternut squash cake is sweet, gets slightly caramelized, and adds a divine sticky layer between the cake and the ultimate crunch. The warm flavors marry the squash infused, spiced cake and takes it to the next level for flavor and texture.

Squash, butter, brown sugar, and pecans just scream Thanksgiving flavors. And the welcoming smell of this coffee cake baking will get you deep into the holiday spirit.

For this streusel like topping, mix together the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a small bowl. Then pour over the melted butter and mix it up. Use cold, diced up butter. Add it into the mix and use two knives or your fingers to gently blend it into the mix. Little flavor balls will form and turn crunchy when baked. Lastly, mix in the chopped up nuts and set he mixture aside.

Butternut Squash Cake

Make your cake batter. For this butternut squash cake, use melted then slightly cooled butter or any oil of your choice (coconut, safflower, or canola works well). In a large bowl, whisk the room temperature eggs and vanilla extract with the sugars for a minute. Then add the butternut squash and greek yogurt (or sour cream). Next, add oil or butter and whisk until completely smooth.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients that include flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and holiday baking spices. Switch to a spatula to gently mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Pour the squash cake batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for about 30-35 minutes, checking with a toothpick for only moist crumbs. Then allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes before drizzling on the gooey sugar glaze.

Glaze

The vanilla glaze for this butternut squash cake is simple, adds a stickiness, and touch of extra vanilla and goodness. To make it, simply whisk the powdered sugar until it is free of lumps. Then whisk in the vanilla and sugar and mix until smooth. Then use a spoon to drizzle it all over the cake.

Serve the cake slightly warm or at room temperature.

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