These Almond Caramelized Pecan Crumb Cakes are incredibly moist and delicious. They are egg free, gluten free and mildly sweetened with coconut sugar.
Robby and I have started a new habit where we put our computers and phones away at 12 pm every Sunday. We have done it the last five weeks and it’s been incredible! It is truly a process of habit breaking, yet there is a sense of freedom that I can’t quite explain. We now spend real quality time together. We have been doing puzzles and playing board games as well as spending many hours in deep conversations. We also noticed that we felt strange being on our devices the next day.
We as a society have become so dependent on our devices. Most of us spend most of our time staring at our phones missing the world around us. I must admit, I still go through a mini withdrawal each Sunday but it quickly passes. There are so many other things to do like making these crumb cakes. When was the last time you took a break from technology?
I have had a love affair with crumb cakes ever since I can remember. I was obsessed with hostess crumb cakes as a kid so I decided to try a gluten free healthier version. I am very pleased with the outcome and I know you will be too. I admit there are a lot of ingredients but it is worth it. I love to serve these crumb cakes with half and half or coconut cream.
Almond Caramelized Pecan Crumb Cakes - CaliZona
10 - 20 Crumb cakes
Ingredients
SINGLE BATCH - 10
Caramelized Pecans
- 1 Cup Raw Pecan Pieces
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Pure Maple Syrup
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Crumb Topping
- 1/2 Cup + 2 Tablespoons Coconut Sugar – packed
- 1/4 Cup + 1 1/2 Tablespoons Butter
- 3 Tablespoons Millet Flour
- 3 Tablespoons White Rice Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Almond Flour
- 1/2 Cup Caramelized Pecans - ground
- 1/4 Cup Caramelized Pecan Pieces
- 1/4 Teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1/4 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Almond Batter
Dry
- 1 Cups Almond Flour I used Bob’s Red Mill almond flour – packed and leveled
- 1/2 Cup White Rice Flour -packed and leveled
- 1/4 Cup Millet Flour -packed and leveled
- 1/4 Cup Tapioca Flour -packed and leveled
- 2 Tablespoons Chia Seeds ground (measure after grinding)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda – leveled
- 1/2 Teaspoon Agar Powder
- 1/4 Teaspoons Sea Salt
Wet
- 5 Tablespoons Filtered Water
- 2 Tablespoons Chia Seeds - ground (measure after grinding)
- 1/4 Cup Butter – room temperature
- 1/4 Cup Coconut Oil or butter
- 3/4 Cup Coconut Sugar – leveled
- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Almond or Vanilla Extract
DOUBLE BATCH - 20
Caramelized Pecans
- 2 Cups Raw Pecan Pieces
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons Pure Maple Syrup
- 1 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Crumb Topping
- 1 1/4 Cup Coconut Sugar – packed
- 1/2 Cup Butter
- 3 Tablespoons Coconut Oil
- 1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons Millet Flour
- 1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons White Rice Flour
- 1/4 Cup Almond Four
- 1 Cup Caramelized Pecans - ground
- 1/2 Cup Caramelized Pecan Pieces
- 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1/4 Teaspoon Sea Salt
Almond Batter
Dry
- 2 Cups Almond Flour I used Bob’s Red Mill almond flour – packed and leveled
- 1 Cup White Rice Flour -packed and leveled
- 1/2 Cup Millet Flour -packed and leveled
- 1/2 Cup Tapioca Flour -packed and leveled
- 1/4 Cup Chia Seeds - ground (measure after grinding)
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda – leveled
- 1 Teaspoon Agar Agar Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoons Sea Salt
- 1/4 Teaspoon Cinnamon
Wet
- 10 Tablespoons Filtered Water
- 1/4 Cup Chia Seeds - ground (measure after grinding)
- 1/2 Cup Butter – room temperature
- 1/2 Cup Coconut Oil or butter
- 1 1/2 Cups Coconut Sugar – leveled
- 2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 Teaspoons Hazelnut or Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Caramelized Pecans
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in the middle of the oven. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Add all the ingredients to a cast iron or a saute pan and cook over medium heat.
As soon as the syrup starts to bubble, stir continuously. They will start to get really sticky.
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When all the moisture is gone and the syrup in the pan just starts to become golden brown, remove from heat. (about 8 minutes)
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Spread onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Separate them as best you can.
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Place the pecans in the oven on the middle rack for 8 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
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In a food processor, grind half of the pecans to a fine crumble. Set aside.
Crumb Topping
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In a small sauce-pan, melt the butter and coconut oil on medium-low.
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While butter/oil is melting, in a medium bowl, mix together the flours, sugar, ground and pieces of maple pecans, cinnamon and salt.
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When the butter/oil is melted add it to the flour and toss with a fork until moist clumps form. Set aside.
Cupcakes
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Line a 10-muffin tin with paper muffin/cupcake liners.
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In a large bowl, mix together the flours, almond meal, baking powder, agar and salt.
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Mix well and set aside.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
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Add the water to a medium bowl and quickly whisk in the ground chia.
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Continue to whisk until it starts to pull away from the bowl. Set aside.
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Using an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the sugar, butter, almond extract and apple cider vinegar until fluffy then add the chia egg and mix well.
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Make sure and scrape the sides and bottom. (Liquid will sometimes stay on the bottom.)
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Add the flour and mix well.
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Scoop the batter using a 1 oz. cookie scoop or 2 leveled tablespoons into in the cupcake liners.
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Add 1/2 oz. cookie scoop or 1 leveled tablespoon of the crumb topping.
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Break apart the crumb topping to cover the batter.
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Repeat steps
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Bake for 30 minutes. *Let cool completely!!
Recipe Notes
You can double the pecan recipe and sprinkle the remaining pecan pieces on top of the crumb cakes after they are finished baking. Or just eat them.
