Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Pumpkin Cake

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Topped with swirls of cream cheese icing, this pumpkin cake is easy to make and 100% kid-approved — the perfect fall treat for potlucks, bake sales, and holiday parties.

Slices of pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting on small plates with forks.

Topped with swirls of tangy cream cheese frosting, this pumpkin cake recipe is a dessert version of my grandmother’s now-internet-famous pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins. Just like the originals, it’s packed with warm spices and comforting flavors that scream fall. Not only does the cake keep beautifully for days, but it’s also simple to make, easy to transport, and 100% kid-approved—the perfect treat for potlucks, bake sales, and holiday parties.

“Get ready for constant compliments if you make this for a pot-lock! Truly the most delicious and moist cake you could make!”

Phoebe

What You’ll Need To Make Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Cake ingredients including eggs, baking powder, and butter.
  • All-Purpose Flour: Provides structure to the cake, giving it the right texture and support. To ensure accuracy, measure by spooning it into the measuring cup and leveling off to ensure accuracy.
  • Baking Soda & Baking Powder: Work together to help the cake rise, resulting in a light, airy texture.
  • Cloves, Cinnamon & Nutmeg: These warm spices infuse the cake with classic autumnal flavors, complementing the pumpkin. While I prefer using the individual spices, you can substitute them with an equal amount of pumpkin pie spice (1 tablespoon).
  • Butter: Adds richness and moisture to the cake, making it tender, and also contributes creaminess and smoothness to the frosting.
  • Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the cake and contributes to its soft crumb.
  • Eggs: Bind the ingredients together and provide structure, helping the cake to rise and hold its shape.
  • 100% Pure Pumpkin: The star ingredient; adds moisture, flavor, and a dense, rich texture to the cake. I use canned pumpkin, but if you’d prefer to use fresh pumpkin, opt for smaller varieties like sugar, cooking, or pie pumpkins. For guidance on making pumpkin purée, check out this detailed piece from King Arthur Flour. Avoid pumpkin pie filling which is already pre-sweetened and spiced.
  • Cream Cheese: Provides a tangy flavor and creamy texture to the cake’s frosting, balancing the sweetness.
  • Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor of the frosting with its aromatic richness.
  • Confectioners’ Sugar: Sweetens and thickens the frosting, creating a smooth, spreadable consistency.
  • Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements

Step-by-Step Instructions

Begin by combining the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl.

Bowl of unmixed dry ingredients.

Whisk well to combine.

Whisk in a bowl of dry ingredients.

In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine the melted butter and sugar.

Melted butter and sugar in a bowl.

Beat on medium speed until just combined.

Electric mixer with a bowl of butter and sugar.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Egg in a bowl with a butter and sugar mixture.

Add the pumpkin puree.

Pile of pumpkin in a bowl with a butter mixture.

Beat until combined.

Electric mixer in a bowl with an orange-colored mixture.

Add the dry ingredients.

Pile of dry ingredients in a bowl.

Mix on low speed until well combined.

Electric mixer in a bowl with pumpkin cake batter.

Turn the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Baking pan of pumpkin cake batter.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Set the cake on a wire rack to cool completely.

Pumpkin cake in a baking dish.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. Combine the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl.

Bowl with butter and cream cheese.

Beat on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute, then beat in the salt and vanilla.

Vanilla in a bowl with a cream cheese mixture.

Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat on low speed for 30 seconds.

Confectioner's sugar in a bowl with a cream cheese mixture.

Switch to high speed and beat until light and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Electric mixer in a bowl with cream cheese frosting.

Spread the frosting on the cooled cake. I really like using an offset spatula to frost cakes, particularly cakes that are served right from the baking dish like this one. These angled spatulas make easy work of spreading frosting onto the corners of the cake.

Person spreading cream cheese frosting onto a pumpkin cake.

Create swirls in any pattern you like.

Frosted pumpkin cake in a baking pan.

Cut into squares and serve. Cover any leftover cake tightly with aluminum foil and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Slices of pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting on small plates with forks.

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Print

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Topped with swirls of cream cheese icing, this pumpkin cake is easy to make and 100% kid-approved -- the perfect fall treat for potlucks, bake sales, and holiday parties.
Servings: 16
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients 

For the Cake

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter (1½ sticks), melted
  • cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 15-oz (425-g) can 100% pure pumpkin

For the Frosting

  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 4 oz cream cheese at room temperature
  • teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • cups confectioners' sugar

Instructions

For the Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9x13-inch (22x33-cm) baking dish with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg; set aside.
  • In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the melted butter and sugar on medium speed until just combined. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the pumpkin. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until well combined.
  • Turn the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Set the cake on a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Frosting

  • In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in the salt and vanilla. Add the confectioners' sugar and beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Spread the frosting on the cooled cake. Cut into squares and serve. Cover any leftover cake tightly with aluminum foil and store in the fridge for up to 4 days (bring to room temperature before serving) or at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Notes

Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be made and frosted up to two days ahead of time. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and store in the refrigerator; allow the cake to come to room temperature before serving. The unfrosted cake can also be frozen, tightly wrapped, for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, defrost the cake to room temperature, make the frosting, ice, and serve.

Nutrition Information

Per serving (16 servings)Calories: 417kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 4gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 96mgSodium: 229mgFiber: 1gSugar: 44g

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Comments

  • Thank you for this recipe, it sounds delicious and I’m planning on making it for Christmas eve. Do you think a coffee buttercream frosting will go with it? I’d love the cream cheese frosting but my daughter has requested the coffee frosting that she loves. Thank you so much!

    • — msEm on December 23, 2023
    • Reply
    • It’s hard to say without having tried it, but I think it should work.

      • — Jenn on December 23, 2023
      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    We made it for Thanksgiving. Amazing flavor and texture even though we only used 1 stick of butter instead of 1.5. We also used a different cream cheese frosting recipe using only 1 cup of sugar which we prefer. I look forward to making this again!

    • — Lulu on November 25, 2023
    • Reply
  • Browsing through a number of pumpkin cake recipes looking for one to try, I noticed that most recipes with 2 cups of flour and 4 eggs specify 1-1/2 tsp baking powder in addition to the 1 tsp baking soda. Your recipe has the same quantity of baking soda but only 1/2 tsp baking powder. I just want to confirm if this is correct? Thanks for clarifying! (Will add my review after I try it!)

    • — Jennifer C on November 25, 2023
    • Reply
    • Yep, that is correct – hope you enjoy if you make it! 😊

      • — Jenn on November 27, 2023
      • Reply
  • Hi Jenn, i dont have enough butter for frosting, can i substitute with egg?

    • — Barbara on November 22, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Barbara, I don’t recommend it – do you have coconut oil or shortening?

      • — Jenn on November 22, 2023
      • Reply
  • Would this recipe work as cupcakes also?
    Thank you!

    • — Sophia on November 20, 2023
    • Reply
    • Sure!

      • — Jenn on November 21, 2023
      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Lovely recipe. Made it for the first time today. I reduced sugar in cake by 1/2 cup. I reduced confectioner’s sugar in frosting by 1 1/4 cups! Also, added 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon to frosting. And topped cake with chopped toasted pecans.

    • — Kelly on November 17, 2023
    • Reply
  • I would like to make this for a layered birthday cake also. Would you recommend 8 or 9 inch cake pans?
    Always a fan of Once Upon a Chef recipes!

    • — Kim on November 10, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Kim, So glad you like the recipes! I’d use 8-inch round pans. I’d love to hear how it turns out. 🙂

      • — Jenn on November 10, 2023
      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    I made this for a work function and it was a huge success! The cake was perfectly spiced and the icing was buttery and tasty! I didn’t find it overly sugary and it was flavorful. It was perfect with the cake. Thank you so much for the recipe. Your recipes are always the best!

    • — Sue on October 31, 2023
    • Reply
  • This is now one of my favorite cakes! There is nothing I would change.

    • — Andrea on October 29, 2023
    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Loved this bread and frosting! I omit the cloves and nutmeg, as my family does not like those flavors. My grandchildren gobbled up the bread and loved it.
    I used the frosting on Jenn’s perfect pound cake recipe (which is perfect) and it was delicious!
    Great find – love Jenn’s recipes!

    • — Robin on October 26, 2023
    • Reply

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