This refined sugar free pecan streusel cake was the answer to what can I do that is productive but also make me feel a bit less anxious during uncertain times? Baking and organizing have always been two of my favorite things to do to take my mind off any troubles.

I was cleaning out some old recipe folders and came across a recipe for pecan streusel cake from Woman's Day, circa 2007! However, it just seemed perfect and I knew I could tweak it and improve it a little. You will love how easy it is to make and with no refined sugar added, whole wheat flour and greek yogurt in the mix, has the added bonus of being a bit healthier.
The ingredients in Refined Sugar Free Pecan Streusel Cake are :
- coconut sugar
- monkfruit
- Swerve
- butter
- eggs
- whole wheat flour ( I used white whole wheat flour)
- all purpose flour
- greek yogurt
- cinnamon
- nutmeg
- baking soda
- salt
- pure vanilla extract
The ingredients for the streusel topping are:
- golden monkfruit
- molasses
- quick cooking oats
- all purpose flour butter
- cinnamon
- chopped pecans
- water
How to make the streusel?
Mix the golden monk fruit, molasses, oats, flour, butter, cinnamon and water together. You can use a pastry blender to mix together, however I used my fingers and it was just as easy. Mix in the nuts. The golden monk fruit and small amount of molasses is the substitute for the brown sugar in the original recipe. You will not miss it.
First prepare the pan...
Line a 13 x 9 baking pan with aluminum foil, letting the ends of foil extend about 2 inches over pan on the short end. The reason it is a good idea to use the aluminum foil is because it will make it really easy to lift the cake from the pan, similarly as when taking brownies or other bar type desserts from a pan before cutting them. The cake will not stick to the pan and you will just use the foil as handles to remove the cake when it is ready to serve.
How to make the pecan streusel cake?
The cake is easily made by beating the sugar, butter, spices, vanilla, baking soda and salt together in a mixer for about 3 minutes. It should be thoroughly blended. Then you will beat in eggs one at a time. When the eggs are mixed in, beat in the flour, alternating with the greek yogurt, until just blended. The batter will be very thick.
Spread half of the batter in foil lined pan and then spread half of the streusel mixture over it. The batter needs to be worked to thinly spread it out, but it will be fine if it doesn't fully cover the bottom. Then spread the rest of the batter over the streusel and then put the rest of the streusel over the top batter. Bake in 350°F oven for 30 - 35 minutes.
Here it is, ready to be served. Just lift the cake out of the pan holding the edges of aluminum foil. Cut into 18-24 squares, depending on the size of each square. It is a nicely moist, lightly spiced coffee cake that turned out better than I thought. This 2007 recipe is being moved from the dregs of my old, yellowed ripped out recipes to my tried and true pile. I hope you enjoy!
If you are looking for more coffee cake recipes, you can try my Cinnamon Streusel Cake. Are you staying away from refined sugar, my Blueberry Swirl Pound Cake is refined sugar free and also delicious.
PrintRefined Sugar Free Pecan Streusel Cake
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 18 servings 1x
- Category: Cake
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Pecan Streusel Cake is a moist coffee cake that is lightly spiced and healthier with whole wheat flour, greek yogurt and refined sugar free.
Ingredients
Cake
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- ⅓ cup Swerve
- ⅓ cup Monkfruit
- 1 ½ sticks (¾ cup) softened butter
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups greek yogurt
Streusel
- ¼ cup golden (or white) monkfruit
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- ⅓ cup uncooked quick cooking oats
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon butter, softened
- 2 teaspoon water
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Line a 13 x 9 pan with aluminum foil leaving 2 inches to hang over the end of pan.
- In a mixer, beat sugar, butter, spices, vanilla, baking soda and salt until blended, about 3 minutes.
- Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well.
- Beat in the flour while alternating with the greek yogurt on low speed until just blended.
- Spread half the batter into lined pan, (batter is very thick), sprinkle half the streusel over the batter. Finish with the other half of batter and top with remaining streusel. Lightly press down on the top of streusel into the batter.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until a wooden tester/toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool completely in pan then remove by the handles of aluminum foil onto a cutting board.
- Cut into 18-24 squares, depending on size you prefer.
Keywords: Refined sugar free pecan streusel cake
Dawn says
Can this recipe be made gluten free
Deb says
I haven't made this recipe gluten free. If I were to revise it, I would start with 2 cups almond flour and 1/4 - 1/3 cup coconut flour and see if that works well. However, that is a lot of ingredients for you to experiment with if you're not used to baking gluten free. You would probably be better off googling gluten free streusel cakes. I'm sure there are tons!