If only Cosmo Kramer had focused on selling the tops of crumb cake crumbs instead of muffin tops, he’d have had a hit.

Now, everyone who has delighted in the crumbs on top of a crumbcake can revel in jumbo crumbcake crumbs from Kenny’s Krumbs.

Kenny has transformed the streusel (the crumb topping—see section below) into crunchy, cookie-like nuggets of cinnamon goodness. They’re crumb cookies—there’s no cake involved, although you can use Kenny’s Krumbs on any cake you like.

OUR TOP 10 WAYS TO ENJOY KENNY’S KRUMBS

Who needs cake. Here, crumb cake topping baked up as cookie-like “crumbs.” Photo courtesy Kenny’s Krumbs.

Kenny’s Krumbs sells them packaged in 12-ounce resealable bags. Four bags of Krumbs are $28.00, 12 bags are $72.00, plus shipping.

You can also buy Krumbs in large metal gift buckets and smaller tins from Hahn’s Old Fashioned Cakes ($27.50 to $30.00).

Kenny’s Krumbs and Hahn’s deliver anywhere in the continental U.S. Plan ahead: These crumb cookies are a great teacher gift or stocking stuffer.

Long popular as the topping on Streuselkuchen, Germany’s crumb-topped yeast cake, streusel (pronounced SHTROY-zul) is a topping made from butter, flour and sugar. It can also contain chopped nuts or rolled oats.

The word derives from the German “streuen,” meaning to sprinkle or scatter. The original Streuselkuchen was very flat, with crumbs equal to the height of the cake (think one inch of cake topped with one inch of crumbs).

Note that all crumbcakes are coffee cakes, but not all coffee cakes are crumbcake. Another popular coffee cake, also a yeast cake, can be strewn with raisins and nuts and drizzled with a variation royal icing* (and we wish we had a piece right now).

The crumb cake is believed to have originated in Silesia, which today is in western Poland (if you’ve read James Michener’s Poland, you know the borders changed regularly).

The original recipe engendered variants with tart fruits (apples, gooseberries, sour cherries, rhubarb), poppy seeds and pastry cream.

Today, Americans can enjoy their crumbcakes with with a layer of fruit (apple, apricot, raspberry), chocolate and other flavors.

Or, those who have discovered Kenny’s can simply enjoy the crumbs!

 
*To make coffee cake icing, mix until smooth 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, 2 tablespoons warm milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.