Rich, moist, and perfectly spiced Pumpkin Cake that’s smothered under a delicious cream cheese frosting. It’s everything you want in a pumpkin roll, but easier and faster!
If you want to make a mini version of this cake, you should try our Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes! Or get your pumpkin on with with this Pumpkin Cheesecake (VIDEO).
Table Of Contents
Recipe Details
It’s always been a tradition at our house to make a pumpkin roll for Thanksgiving, but they’re kind of finicky. I love the taste and texture, but not so much the making of it. Enter this Pumpkin Cake, which is made with the same ingredients, but is so much easier!
- TASTE: This cake is sweet and full of pumpkin flavor. The rich cream cheese frosting is deliciously tangy.
- TEXTURE: Moist and fluffy, this Pumpkin Cake is melt-in-your-mouth good. The frosting is thick and creamy, too.
- TIME: This recipe will take 45 minutes.
- EASE: This is so easy, and it tastes just as amazing as a pumpkin roll! It’s practically foolproof.
What You’ll Need
Ingredient Notes
- Flour- All-purpose flour is the base for this cake batter. It has a better consistency for the moistness in this recipe than cake flour.
- Sugars- Brown sugar adds lots of moisture as well as sweetness to the Pumpkin Cake. And the powdered sugar will be used to make the sweet cream cheese frosting.
- Baking powder and Baking soda- These are leavening agents that make it airy and light.
- Butter- This creates a smooth buttercream frosting texture and adds rich flavor.
- Eggs- These are both a binder and a leavening agent that incorporates air into the batter.
- Pumpkin puree- For great pumpkin flavor and more moisture.
- Pumpkin spices- These give that familiar and lovely pumpkin flavor to the cake.
- Cream cheese- For a sweet and tangy frosting to top the cake.
Add-ins and Substitutions
- Substitute a different frosting- You can use other frostings here as well, like a chocolate buttercream, ganache, or chai spiced frosting.
- Add chocolate chips- Add chocolate chips to the batter before baking to make this Pumpkin Cake extra sweet and tasty.
- Make it allergen-friendly- Use gluten-free all-purpose flour in place of the regular flour, 1:1, and substitute vegan butter and cream cheese in the frosting.
- Add nuts- Adding chopped and toasted walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts to the top of this frosted cake adds so much great flavor.
How to Make Pumpkin Cake
- Preheat the oven. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Then line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray it with nonstick spray.
- Sift the dry ingredients together. In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice together. Then set it aside.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In another bowl, use an electric hand mixer to combine the eggs, vanilla extract, brown sugar, oil, and pumpkin puree. Mix on medium-high speed.
- Combine wet and dry. Then combine the dry ingredients and the wet thoroughly with the hand mixer.
- Bake. Pour the batter into your prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Then transfer the baked cake to a cooling rack to cool for at least an hour.
- Make the frosting. Add the softened butter to the softened cream cheese in a bowl. Whisk together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add rest of frosting ingredients. Then add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Mix again until smooth and creamy.
- Spread on the frosting. Once the cake has cooled, generously smother the cake with the cream cheese frosting. Top with chopped toasted pecans if you like.
Pro Tip: The best way to preserve the texture and taste of this cake is to put it in a cake storage keeper with a snap-on lid and keep it in the fridge until ready to serve.
Recipe Tips
- Make your own pumpkin spice- If you haven’t got pumpkin spices, then you can mix your own with 1/2 tsp. ground allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and clove with 1 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon.
- Use canned pumpkin- Homemade pumpkin puree is great, but it tends to be more watery and stringy than canned. The flavor of canned pumpkin is also a little better.
- Check for doneness- Baking time may vary depending on the oven. The best way to tell if the cake is done is when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to fully cool- Because we’ll be spreading frosting on this cake, you want it to completely cool or it will cause the frosting to melt.
FAQs
When it comes to a ceam cheese frosting, the butter will give it more structure while the cream will make it runnier, depending on how much is added. As for flavor, it depends on if you prefer a more buttery taste or not.
Besides this moist and delicious Pumpkin Cake with cream cheese frosting, you can also make pumpkin bread, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin roll, pumpkin cinnamon rolls, pumpkin creme brulee, and much more.
Serving Suggestions
This fall-flavored Pumpkin Cake is great with so many other desserts and drinks. Here are some tasty ways to serve this delightful cake.
- Pumpkin treats: Pair it with other pumpkin favorites, like this
- Cookies: Serve this dessert with some
- Pies: Serve a slice of this Pumpkin Cake alongside
- Beverages: Enjoy this cake with coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. Or try it with a speciality drink like this Pumpkin Spice Latte, Iced Caramel Macchiato, or Caramel Frappuccino (Starbucks Copycat).
Make This Recipe in Advance
Make ahead: You can make this cake ahead of time, let it cool, and then store it in the fridge or freezer. Then when you’re ready to serve it, allow it to come to room temperature before frosting.
Storing: After you’ve assembled your cake, you want to keep it refrigerated in a semi-airtight dish for up to 4 days.
Freeze: The best way to freeze any cake is by letting it come to a solid frozen state in the freezer. Then wrap the iced cake in plastic wrap and then foil, freezing for up to 3 months. If you want to thaw your frozen cake, remove the foil and plastic wrap and let it defrost at room temperature. This cake should take roughly 2-3 hours to thaw after being frozen solid.
More Tasty Pumpkin Treats!
Full Recipe Instructions
Pumpkin Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups golden brown sugar
- 1 cup vegetable or corn oil
- 15 oz pumpkin puree canned
Cream cheese frosting
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter softened
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 3/4 cup pecans chopped (for topping)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Then line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray it with nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, sift the 2 cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, and 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice. Then set it aside for later.
- In a separate bowl, use an electric hand mixer to combine 4 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 1/2 cups golden brown sugar, 1 cup corn or vegetable oil, and 15 oz can pumpkin puree. Mix on medium-high speed.
- Then add the dry ingredients into the wet. Use the hand mixer to combine everything thoroughly.
- Now pour the thick cake batter into your prepared 9×13 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Baking time may vary depending on the oven. The best way to tell if the cake is done is when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Transfer the baked cake onto a cooling rack and allow it to cool for at least 1 hour.
- In the meantime make the cream cheese frosting by adding 1/4 cup unsalted softened butter and 8 ounces softened cream cheese into a bowl. Whisk together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Then add 3 cups powdered sugar, 2 tsp vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Mix again until smooth and creamy.
- Once the cake has cooled, generously smother the cake with the cream cheese frosting. Top with chopped toasted pecans (optional).
Notes
- Make your own pumpkin spice- If you haven’t got pumpkin spices, then you can mix your own with 1/2 tsp. ground allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and clove with 1 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon.
- Use canned pumpkin- Homemade pumpkin puree is great, but it tends to be more watery and stringy than canned. The flavor of canned pumpkin is also a little better.
- Check for doneness- Baking time may vary depending on the oven. The best way to tell if the cake is done is when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to fully cool- Because we’ll be spreading frosting on this cake, you want it to completely cool or it will cause the frosting to melt.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted on Nov 18, 2015, we’ve tweaked it a bit since then.
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Antonia says
What a beautiful cake. I bet it tastes amazing!
simplyhomecooked says
Thank you Antonia!
Anna says
Looks easy! I love anything pumpkin, thanks!
simplyhomecooked says
This cake was a winner for us because of how simple it was to make, and of course the taste as well 🙂 Hope you enjoy it Anna!
LORETTA GILBERT says
That looks delicious and your instructions are very clear. Thanks for the inspiration, I would love to give it a try. Happy Thanksgiving.
simplyhomecooked says
Thank you Loretta, I tried my best 😉 Happy Thanksgiving to you too.