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Pumpkin Cake
Yield: 14 servings
Pumpkin cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting will be your go-to fall cake recipe. Moist and fluffy pumpkin cake layers flavored with pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice iced with sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting with a hint of cinnamon. The recipe is incredibly easy to make and absolutely delicious.
Equipment
- Stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or electric hand mixer
- Cake pans - four 6-inch pans or three 7-inch pans or three 8-inch pans or two 9-inch pans
Ingredients
Pumpkin Spice Cake
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup sour cream
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 7 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp salt adjust to your taste
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
Pumpkin Cake
- Preheat oven to 335° F. Prepare cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and parchment circles.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, combine light brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk until well combined.
- Add in pumpkin puree and sour cream. Whisk until smooth.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and whisk gently until the batter is smooth and there are no lumps.
- Portion the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans (See equipment or blog post for sizes). Spread the cake batter using an offset spatula.
- Bake the cake layers for approximately 35 minutes until they bounce back when gently touched or an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Baking times may vary depending on what size cake pans you use.
- Remove the cake layers from the oven and allow the cakes to cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Level the cake layers using a serrated knife.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine butter and cream cheese. Whip on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes until creamy.
- Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined. Add in remaining half of the powdered sugar and continue to mix on low until well combined and smooth.
- Add vanilla extract, salt, and cinnamon. Mix on low speed until the ingredients are fully combined.
- Turn the mixer on high speed and whip for approximately 3-5 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Assembling the Pumpkin Cake
- Place one cake layer on a cake board or plate. Add a generous amount of the cinnamon cream cheese frosting on top. Use an offset spatula to spread and smooth the frosting over the entire cake layer.
- Next, add the second cake layer. Repeat the process by adding more frosting and smoothing it out.
- Now, add the final layer. A great trick is to flip the cake layer upside down so the bottom of the layer is the top of the cake.
- Frost the cake with a crumb coat (a thin layer of frosting) over the entire cake. Chill the cake for 20-30 minutes to firm up the frosting.
- After a quick chill, frost the cake with a generous amount of the cinnamon cream cheese frosting. For the cake pictured, I added texture with an offset spatula and sprinkled some additional pumpkin pie spice on the top edges of the cake.
Notes
Pumpkin cake can be stored in an airtight container or cake box in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Cover any exposed cake with plastic wrap or parchment paper to prevent the cake from drying out.
The cake is best served at room temperature. Remove from the cake from the refrigerator an hour before serving.
Metric conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
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