Name: Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 15
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 cups all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 4 large eggs; 1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree (reserve 2 tablespoons for icing); 1 cup sugar; 1 cup oil (I used melted coconut oil - could also replace with applesauce); 2 ounces cream cheese; 2 tablespoons unsalted butter; 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree (reserved from above); 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice; 1 cup powdered sugar, more as needed

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Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing. Perfect for Halloween or a Fall sweet treat!

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing - after baking in pan

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I bought this pumpkin cake pan on a whim and the most logical thing to make in it is, obviously, pumpkin cake.

Cake is actually not one of my favorite things, and it probably has a lot to do with icing. I DO however tend to like cream cheese icing, so that seemed like the perfect topping.

When I was thinking of how to make it orange, my mind first went to turmeric. Though I don’t really think that belongs in a sweet pumpkin cake, do you?

Then I realized you can just put in some pumpkin puree to the icing!

Note that the pumpkin puree does make it a little softer and different consistency than regular cream cheese icing.

If you don’t want to keep adding more powdered sugar to thicken, try refrigerating for a bit before attempting to spread it on the cake.

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing. Drizzled icing

Clearly my cake decorating skills need some work.

Believe it or not, I took a cake decorating class with my mom when I was in high school. If only I had known one day I’d have this food blog and actually be icing a cake that needed to look pretty I might have paid more attention.

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing - before adding icing

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing on white plate

If you choose to skip the icing, it’s really just pumpkin bread.

I did use a different recipe than my popular pumpkin bread, but like in that one you can replace the oil here with applesauce if you want to lighten it up a bit. Also there is not nearly as much sugar this time in the actual cake part – but the icing is a different story.

Since I’m not a huge frosting/icing person, I halved the proportion of a normal recipe. If you really like your icing, you’ll want to double that part.

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing. Cutting a piece of the cake.

Any other suggestions for what I can make in this cake pan? Leave them in the comments!

Yield: 15 pieces

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing

Pumpkin Cake with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing. Perfect for Halloween or a Fall sweet treat!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

For the pumpkin cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree (reserve 2 tablespoons for icing)
1 cup sugar
1 cup oil (I used melted coconut oil - could also replace with applesauce)

For the pumpkin cream cheese icing (*see notes):

2 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons pumpkin puree (reserved from above)
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup powdered sugar, more as needed

Instructions

For the pumpkin cake:

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, pumpkin puree, sugar and oil.
Gradually add in flour mixture to pumpkin mixture until combined.
Spray a cake pan (I used a 11x10 inch pan) and add in cake batter.
Bake at 350°F. for about 30 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

For the icing:

Using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter together until fluffy. Stir in the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice.
Gradually add in powdered sugar and mix until combined. If icing seems too soft, you can add in more powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time to thicken. (Note that refrigerating this icing for 20-30 minutes will also help to thicken.)
Let cake cool completely before adding the icing.

Notes

*This will provide enough for a thin layer of icing. If you really like icing or want to have extra, you'll want to double these ingredients.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

15
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 326Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 57mgSodium: 290mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 1gSugar: 21gProtein: 4g

Nutrition information is calculated automatically by an online tool at Nutritionix. It is not always accurate. Please use your own tools to check if you rely on this information.

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