What’s the Right Crumb Cake Ratio? This Recipe Tries to Find Out

Melissa Clark argues the secret is in a base layer of cake that’s delicious enough to eat on its own.

Most crumb cakes are more about the crumbs than the cake.

A thick, nubby topping of cinnamony streusel will make up for any dry blandness underneath, so that bottom layer often ends up seeming like a mere vehicle to bring crumbs to mouth.

But a truly great crumb cake — a tender, velvety bed with a blanket of shaggy nuggets on top — achieves harmony, each bite a balanced interplay of spices, butter and sandy brown sugar. I’ve been obsessed with making them ever since I started baking as a kid.