Classic Crumb Cake, like Papa Used to Buy

When I was little we used to go to my grandparents' house on Sunday mornings for brunch, and if the weather was warm, an afternoon of swimming in Wincoma Bay. The brunches were typical Long Island Jewish affairs, with piles of fresh, chewy bagels, the whipped cream cheese I loved because we only ate it there, my Papa Lenny's herring (still an object of horror), lox, tomatoes, and onion slices. And those bagel sandwiches were really, really good...

But nothing beat the crumb cake.

If you've never eaten New York crumb cake, picture a thin slice of cake covered in at least 1 1/2 inches of dense brown sugar-butter-cinnamon crumbs. To be truthful, the cake part was never that spectacular; the typical slice crumbles into dry, tasteless pieces as soon as it makes contact with your mouth, causing minor choking problems. But we endured the cake in order to put off the slow, extravagant eating of the rich crumbs, trying to make them last just long enough to make our siblings jealous but not to invite the attention of our dad, who is an unethical eater when it comes to his favorite treats. ("Let me show you how to lick that ice-cream cone." "Can I see that cookie?")

So why does this admittedly flawed cake incite so much pleasure? In part the memories amplify its deliciousness and downplay its flaws, especially since my grandpa passed away, but it's also because the cake has potential. The crumbs are already delicious, right? So all that remains is to turn the bland cake into a lush crumb accompaniment.

Abigail Johnson Dodge does just that in The Weekend Baker, which, by the way, is totally worth the purchase. It's full of fast and delicious homemade goodies that you can whip up at 7am the morning of a birthday brunch because you kind of forgot to make something. I mean, who does that, though?

Dodge's cake is soft and subtly flavored with vanilla, which is a nice counterpart to the spiced topping. It just gets better as it ages, too, because the crumb top softens and solidifies into a rich mass (it's a lot more appetizing that it sounds) and the cake gains a certain density. The only alterations I made were to add an extra bit of cinnamon, use only brown sugar (and to reduce the amount slightly), and to just barely reduce the amount of melted butter, which is pretty extravagant.

The 9x13 cake will feed a small breakfast army, so make this for the people you love. And eat it with them.

Classic Crumb Cake (from The Weekend Baker)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Melt 3 1/2 sticks butter (yeah, I know) in a small saucepan. Set aside 3/4 C for the cake.
3. To make the topping: Mix the remaining butter (16 T) with 3/4 C brown sugar, 1/2 C granulated sugar, 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, pinch of salt , and 2 2/3 C flour in a large bowl. Set aside.
4. To make the cake: In a large bowl, mix 3 C flour, 1 1/4 C granulated sugar, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt. In a separate bowl, combine the reserved butter (12 T), 1 C whole milk, 2 eggs, and 2 tsp vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
5. Pour the batter into a lightly greased 9x13 baking pan. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the top in an even layer (it will be quite generous).
6. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the cake springs back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
7. Let cool before eating. And, if you can wait, don't eat it for a few hours. It just gets better.