This simple raspberry almond crumb cake is soft, buttery, and layered with juicy raspberries, crunchy sliced almonds, and a sweet cinnamon crumb topping. Finished with a light dusting of confectioners’ sugar, it’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or any time you’re craving a simple yet special homemade cake. This is a popular one!
If you love cake for breakfast, a perfectly moist yet crumbly coffee cake is the answer. And today’s raspberry almond crumb cake absolutely belongs on your radar. Each bite is soft, juicy, crunchy, sweet, and buttery, with hints of cinnamon, almonds, and raspberries. All of these textures and flavors come together beautifully. It’s a delicious Mother’s Day recipe, and perfect for any morning that calls for something a little special.
But don’t limit this cake to the morning; it’s the perfect 1 layer cake for nearly any time of day.
One reader, Francie, commented: “This is one of the best cakes I’ve ever made. The base cake is gorgeous, light and fluffy, and excellent flavor from the extracts and sour cream. But the delicious topping is what really makes this cake special. Its crunchy texture, bursts of raspberry, and flavorful crumbs make the cake unique and special enough to serve to guests. ★★★★★“
Another reader, Laura, commented: “I’m eating a bonus piece right now, but I made it for dessert last night and it was delicious. Just the right amounts of sweetness, crunch, and tartness, and my goodness, what a treat cold the next morning! ★★★★★“
Like my New York-style crumb cake, there’s only 2 parts: cake and toppings. This is a must make recipe so let’s get started!
This Raspberry Almond Crumb Cake Is
- Soft, buttery, and moist
- Relatively easy to make
- Loaded with a cinnamon crumb topping
- Topped with raspberries and almonds
- A true anytime cake—serve for breakfast, with afternoon coffee or tea, or for dessert with whipped cream or ice cream
- Loved by bakers around the world
Here’s Why This Raspberry Almond Crumb Cake Recipe Works
This batter is similar to my go-to coffee cake base and this cranberry breakfast cake—reliable, sturdy, and easy to make with just 1 bowl for dry ingredients and 1 bowl for wet.
Creaming the butter and sugar is key here. This step incorporates air into the batter, giving the cake lift and a soft, tender crumb. Don’t rush this process; you’ll notice the mixture turn lighter and fluffier when it’s ready. If you’re a beginner baker, or if you need a refresher, here’s how to cream butter and sugar.
Once you combine the wet and dry ingredients, the batter will be thick and pale. That’s exactly what you want. A thicker batter acts as a sturdy base, keeping the raspberries, crumb topping, and sliced almonds evenly layered instead of sinking.
Best Pan to Use
This cake rises pretty tall, so I recommend using a 9-inch springform pan. A 9×9-inch square pan works too, or a deep 9-inch round cake pan (2–3 inches deep). The springform pan is my top choice because the removable sides make slicing especially easy.
Crumb Cake Toppings
Before baking, we’ll top our crumb cake with fresh raspberries, sliced almonds, and a buttery crumb topping—each adds something special!
Raspberries: I love raspberries and crumb cake together. The berries require zero prep, which I know you’ll appreciate first thing in the morning. Just dot them right on top of the cake batter. No sugar added, no pre-cooking, no extra steps. They pair wonderfully with the toasted almonds.
- Not into raspberries? A strawberry and rhubarb combination would be fantastic. Or even blueberries! Peeled and chopped apples or peaches would be equally delicious.
Sliced Almonds: These add a welcome crunch to each bite. Try toasting them for even more flavor.
Crumb Topping: The crumb topping comes together with flour, brown sugar, a little cinnamon, and butter. We’ll use melted butter, so there’s no cutting the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter. It’s so easy!
After baking, finish with a light dusting of confectioners’ sugar. It’s optional, but adds a simple, bakery-style touch. And if you’re serving this for dessert, don’t forget some fresh whipped cream!
If cake for breakfast is your thing, you’ll love trying my crumb coffee cake or crumb cake muffins next. Or if you can’t get enough of raspberries, my raspberry sweet rolls are calling your name!
Raspberry Almond Crumb Cake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: serves 8
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This raspberry almond crumb cake is soft, buttery, and layered with juicy raspberries, crunchy sliced almonds, and a sweet cinnamon crumb topping. Finished with a light dusting of confectioners’ sugar, it’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or any time you’re craving a simple yet special homemade cake.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/3 cups (166g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon almond extract
Topping
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (50g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 heaping cup (170g) fresh or frozen raspberries (do not thaw)
- 3/4 cup (65g) sliced almonds
- optional: confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease and lightly flour a 9-inch springform pan.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and granulated sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the eggs, sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat on medium-high speed until combined. The mixture may look curdled; that’s ok. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, mix in the dry ingredients until smooth. Do not overmix. The batter will be thick. Spread into prepared pan. Set aside.
- Make the crumb topping: With a fork, mix the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon together. Stir in the melted butter until crumbs form.
- Dot raspberries all over the top of the cake batter. Sprinkle the crumbs and sliced almonds on top.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you find the top of the cake is browning too quickly in the oven, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
- Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to slightly cool for a few minutes before slicing. I suggest serving with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar!
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Because of the fresh fruit, this cake is best within the first couple days.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Freeze baked and cooled cake for up to 3 months. Bring to room temperature and dust with confectioners’ sugar, if desired, before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9-inch Springform Pan | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Cooling Rack | Fine Mesh Sieve
- Sour Cream: Sour cream is a key ingredient in this cake. I don’t suggest subbing the sour cream with a liquid—plain full-fat yogurt would work though. But don’t remove the fat from this cake by using a lower fat yogurt or sour cream alternative. Fat = flavor! We don’t want to skimp there!
- Why Room Temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Here’s a post I wrote all about the importance of room temperature ingredients.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I made this cake last night for today’s breakfast, and i love it! I like that it isnt too sweet. The textures of the rasberry, almonds and crumb work together so well. Its on my rotation list moving forward.
I made this delightful cake yesterday and it will become one of my favorites. Delicious!
Can I replace the raspberries for rhubarb?
Yes, that should be fine. You may want to chop and toss the rhubarb with a little sugar first. Let it sit so the rhubarb softens and absorbs the sweetness. Then go ahead and use in the recipe.
Can I use vanilla extract instead of the almond extract?
Absolutely!
Can I prep this the night before, refrigerate overnight and bake it in the morning?
I don’t recommend it. Once the batter is mixed the ingredients became activated and should be baked right away. You can always warm it up in the morning if you want to serve it warm!
I love your recipes! I make a dessert once a week and you’re my go to gal. If I wanted to make this crumb cake lemon raspberry, how could I incorporate the lemon without changing the recipe a whole lot?
Hi Marissa! You can try replacing the almond extract with lemon extract and also adding some lemon zest. Let me know how it turns out!
Your recipe sounds like it taste delicious. I would like to make individual servings by placing the batter in a muffin tin and baking them in my toaster oven. Do you foresee any problems or changes that I would need to make with this method?
That should work just fine.
Hi Sally,
I just made this cake last Friday evening with King Arthur gluten free measure for measure flour and it was delicious!! I brought it to a demo a friend of mine was having and the girls devoured it! Thanks so much for always providing such yummy recipes…and I love all of your baking tips as well!
Ciao,
Rosetta
Can i change the sour cream for greek yogurt??
Absolutely!
HI Sally!
I made this cake last week and let me say it is now in my top 5 most favorite cakes!! I love these types of cakes the best. I used blueberries and lemon zest …cannot wait to make again! Thanks!!
Question could you sub in some almond flour like maybe the 1/3 cup?
thank you!
Michele
Michele
I’m so glad you enjoy this crumb cake. It’s definitely one of my favorites! You can try using *some* almond flour in place of the all-purpose. I haven’t tested this, so let me know how it turns out!
Hi Sally
The cake was delicious although I had to make substitutes…
My husband bought frozen blueberries instead of raspberries. The blueberries did run into the cake and there is blue layer but it tastes great!
Too late I realized that we only had whole almonds and not sliced…. Turns out that if you microwave the almonds for 30 seconds, they are soft enough to slice. Didn’t know that. The almonds were thicker than store bought sliced almonds but gave this very satisfying crunch. I would actually make it like that again!
I used a 24cm (which a bit bigger than 9inch) round spring-form pan and I might go for something smaller next time as the cake was thin. Do I need to adjust any of the ingredients?
Thanks for much for the great recipe – so far everything on your site turns out amazing!
Roze
Hi Roze! I’m so glad you tried this raspberry almond crumb cake recipe with blueberries! Yum!
I did not know that about almonds– microwaving them so they soften and are easy to slice. So interesting and it makes total sense. 9 inches is the smallest pan I would ever bake this cake in. It will overflow or sink in the center in a smaller pan.
Dear Sally, made this raspberry almond crumb cake yesterday and have one slice left. Loved how flavorable combination of raspberry/almond/cinnamon. Sooo yummy. I did dust it with powder sugar which added just the right amount of sweetness. Thank you so much for your fine blog and excellent recipe. I use and enjoy reading all your baking tips. Will be making more of your recipes, thanks again!
Sally, this cake is simply amazing! It is the best one I ever made. I used lemon zest instead of almond extract.
The first time I made this was with frozen blueberries and I would caution anyone considering doing that against doing so. I suspect there was a lot of frozen moisture in the blueberries and it gave the cake a hard time. The blueberries sank into the middle, so the outer circle of the cake finished baking before the inner circle, but of course I had to keep baking so the center would be done. This resulted in the cake being slightly dry in certain areas and a bit too moist in others. Also, the crumble completely disappeared. It was like it absorbed into the cake. I think that may have also had something to do with all the moisture from the frozen blueberries. In any case, made this a second time with fresh raspberries and it was perfect! 😉
I baked this to have for a special breakfast treat for a visit from my daughter. She loved it, even scooped up all the crumbs on her plate. My husband raved about as well. He gets excited whenever he sees me with a “Sally” recipe. Oh, and yes, I loved it, too. It is delicious with lots of wonderful taste and textures. Thank you Sally for another great recipe.
I just made this for my mom for mother’s day and it was amazing and a huge hit! Definitely will need to make it again soon 🙂
Soooooo Good! Going to make this all Summer long. Thank You 🙂
Sally, I have this in the oven now….how long do you cool it before removing the springform ring?
Thanks!!
(PS – super easy to make and my kitchen smells divine! )
Just a few minutes. I like serving it warm. 🙂
Thanks! That’s what I did and they released beautifully. I didn’t have a large springform so I used 2 6” ones and the cakes turned out great! Took one to a friend’s for brunch and it disappeared! I had to bake them about 15 minutes longer but I attributed that to the cakes being deeper in the smaller pans. The raspberries are the perfect combo in this. I know I will make it again and again!
Could you double the recipe and bake in a 9 x 13 Pan? I want to make for a larger group but only have one 9 inch springform pan.
Hi Kelly! Doubling the recipe would be too much for a 9×13. I would 1.5x the recipe.
I just made it, it’s delicious!
Hello Sally, do you toast the nuts before sprinkling them on top with the crumbs?
I do not toast them. They’ll toast on top of the cake as it bakes!