This pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting takes little to no effort to make. It’s a super straightforward recipe that anyone can perfect. The ingredients are easy to find, and the frosting simply spreads on top. No layering or revolving cake stand is needed.
Perfectly spiced, moist, and with a hint of sweetness, this pumpkin spiced cake will quickly be a party favorite. Even better, it’s super easy to transport so that you can steal the show with this cake. You won’t have any leftovers! Want more delicious pumpkin recipes? Try my Pumpkin Bars or Pumpkin Roll.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE
Spices — I use a combination of warm spices, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, to flavor my cake. Keep in mind that the longer spices sit in a cabinet, the less flavorful they are. Check every so often to make sure your spices are still fresh.
Pumpkin purée — be sure to purchase 100% pure pumpkin purée and not pumpkin pie filling. While similar, pumpkin pie filling comes flavored and pre-sweetened, whereas pumpkin purée is pure pumpkin. I highly recommend using Libby’s.
Oil — use a flavorless oil such as vegetable or canola oil for best results. The oil helps keep the pumpkin cake soft and moist.
Butter — when selecting butter, be sure to use unsalted butter. A salty cream cheese frosting will be unpleasant. Make sure the butter is soft enough so when you press into it, your finger leaves a dent. It’ll be challenging to beat it into a smooth consistency for the frosting if it’s cold.
Cream cheese — be sure to use full-fat cream cheese and not the spreadable type from a tub. The full-fat cream cheese will give the frosting a creamy consistency that’s slightly tangy. If the cream cheese is not at room temperature, you’ll end up with lumpy frosting.
HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN CAKE
1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin, oil, eggs, vanilla, and sugar.
3. Whisk until smooth.
4. Pour into the flour mixture and stir together just until combined.
5. Pour into the prepared cake pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
6. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter until smooth. Add the cream cheese and beat at medium-low speed until the mixture is well combined. Beat in the vanilla and salt.
7. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the powdered sugar. Once incorporated, increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.
8. Spread the cream cheese frosting over the top of the cooled pumpkin cake.
PRO TIPS FOR MAKING THIS RECIPE
- If you don’t have powdered sugar, you can see my post here on how to make powdered sugar.
- Not all canned pumpkin is the same. Libby’s is my preferred brand as it is thick with rich color and taste. Different brands may be lighter in color and more watery in their consistency. You might have to blot the pumpkin to absorb the extra liquid if you use another brand of pumpkin purée.
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake that will yield a dry and dense cake. The best and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don’t have one, then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off. If you scoop the flour straight from the bag, you overpack the measuring cup.
- The egg should be at room temperature to ensure they incorporate into your batter evenly. If you forgot to take your egg out of the fridge ahead of time, you could quickly bring it to room temperature by placing it in a large bowl and covering it with warm tap water for 5 minutes.
- An offset spatula is perfect for frosting the cake.
- I use a cookie scoop to portion out the cream cheese frosting on the cake before spreading. Doing so helps with spreading the frosting evenly.
- Avoid overmixing as you risk over-developing the gluten in the batter leading to a tough and dense cake.
- You can use chocolate pumpkins, fall-themed sprinkles, or buy silicone pumpkin molds and make your own candy toppings to decorate. Or, you can keep it simple with a light sprinkling of cinnamon.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I use the batter for cupcakes?
I recommend checking out my Pumpkin Cupcakes recipe if you’d like to make cupcakes instead. If you don’t have a 9×13-inch cake pan but have a bundt pan, you can try my Pumpkin Bundt Cake!
Can I make this cake ahead of time?
Yes, you can make this pumpkin cake ahead of time. You can store it, frosted, covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. Allow the cake to come back to room temperature before serving. You must store the cake in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese frosting.
Is this freezer-friendly?
This pumpkin spice cake is freezer-friendly! It’s best to skip frosting the cake if you plan on freezing it, as the cream cheese frosting might split. To freeze, allow the cake to cool to room temperature before wrapping it tightly with plastic wrap and then tin foil. Store for up to 2 months. When ready to eat, thaw in the fridge overnight, bring to room temperature, then frost before serving.
IF YOU LOVE THIS RECIPE TRY THESE OUT!
If you’ve tried this Pumpkin Cake recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Pumpkin Cake
Equipment
- Mixer
- Offset spatula
- 9x13-inch cake pan
Ingredients
For the Pumpkin Cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1½ teaspoons ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups granulated sugar (300g)
- 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree
- 1 cup vegetable oil (240mL)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature, (170g)
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature, (226g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 3 cups powdered sugar sifted (360g)
Instructions
For the Pumpkin Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9x13-inch cake pan or spray with baking spray with flour.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together sugar, pumpkin, oil, eggs, and vanilla, until smooth. Pour into the flour mixture and stir together just until combined. Pour into the prepared cake pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth. Add the cream cheese and beat on medium-low speed until the mixture is well combined, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla and salt.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the powdered sugar. Once incorporated, increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Spread over the top of the cooled cake.
Notes
- If you don’t have powdered sugar, you can see my post here on how to make powdered sugar.
- Not all canned pumpkin is the same. Libby’s is my preferred brand as it is thick with rich color and taste. Different brands may be lighter in color and more watery in their consistency. You might have to blot the pumpkin to absorb the extra liquid if you use another brand of pumpkin purée.
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake that will yield a dry and dense cake. The best and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don’t have one, then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off. If you scoop the flour straight from the bag, you overpack the measuring cup.
- The egg should be at room temperature to ensure they incorporate into your batter evenly. If you forgot to take your egg out of the fridge ahead of time, you could quickly bring it to room temperature by placing it in a large bowl and covering it with warm tap water for 5 minutes.
- An offset spatula is perfect for frosting the cake.
- I use a cookie scoop to portion out the cream cheese frosting on the cake before spreading. Doing so helps with spreading the frosting evenly.
- Avoid overmixing as you risk over-developing the gluten in the batter leading to a tough and dense cake.
- You can use chocolate pumpkins, fall-themed sprinkles, or buy silicone pumpkin molds and make your own candy toppings to decorate. Or, you can keep it simple with a light sprinkling of cinnamon.
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