Simple Pumpkin Cake

October 17, 2023 By Olga Babitskaya

Prep Time: 0m

This simple homemade pumpkin cake is incredibly easy to prepare, making it a perfect choice for any baker, regardless of experience. While it shines as a delicious pumpkin spice cake, the batter is versatile enough to be adapted into an apple cake if you happen to have apple puree on hand—feel free to customize this recipe to your taste!

You’ll find this easy dessert recipe to be a delightful addition to your holiday dessert menu.

Ingredients

For the Spiced Pumpkin Cake Batter:

• 170 grams of all-purpose flour
• 40 grams of almond flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• 200 grams of granulated sugar
• 120 ml of vegetable oil
• 210 grams of roasted pumpkin puree
• Vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, at room temperature

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 400 grams of cream cheese, softened
• 200 grams of heavy cream
• 90 grams of powdered sugar
• Orange zest (from one orange, if desired)
• Optional: a pinch of ground cinnamon and nutmeg for flavor

For the Orange Syrup:

• Juice of 1 orange

For Decoration:

• Fresh berries
• Ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar (for dusting, if desired)

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare the Orange Syrup

1. Boil the juice of 1 orange in a small saucepan and then set aside to cool completely. This orange syrup will be used to moisten your pumpkin cake layers later on.

Step 2: Make the Cream Cheese Frosting

2. In a large bowl, whip together the softened cream cheese, heavy cream, and 90 grams of powdered sugar until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
3. Stir in the orange zest and optional ground cinnamon and nutmeg for an extra spice cake flavor kick. Set the cream cheese frosting aside.

Step 3: Bake the Spiced Pumpkin Cake Layers (Sponge)

4. Preheat your oven to 170°C (340°F). Line two 16 cm (6.3 inches) cake pans with parchment paper.
5. In a large bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients for the spiced pumpkin cake batter: all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, 1/2 tablespoon of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
6. In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients: granulated sugar, large egg, roasted pumpkin puree, and vegetable oil. Add the vanilla extract.
7. Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredient mixture, mixing until just combined. Be careful not to overmix the pumpkin cake batter.
8. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans.
9. Bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Allow the pumpkin cake layers to cool completely in the pans before removing them.

Step 4: Assemble and Decorate the Pumpkin Cake

11. Once cooled, carefully slice each pumpkin cake layer lengthwise to create four thinner layers.
12. Generously soak each cake layer with the cooled orange syrup.
13. Stack the cake layers, spreading a generous amount of cream cheese frosting between each layer.
14. Frost the top and sides of the assembled holiday pumpkin cake with the remaining frosting.
15. For decoration, feel free to add fresh berries between the layers or arrange them on top of the cake. Dust with ground cinnamon and the optional 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar for an elegant finish.