This delectable pumpkin spice pound cake has a rich pumpkin taste with a delicious note of warm and comforting spices all harmoniously combined into a single cake loaf. The aroma that fills your kitchen as the cake bakes is a sweet reminder of all the wonderful things Fall has to offer.
While this soft and fluffy cake is undoubtedly delightful on its own, pairing it with the velvety, tangy cream cheese frosting simply takes it to a next level. The cake is perfect for sharing with family and friends over Thanksgiving dinner or simply enjoyed with a warm cup of coffee on a brisk afternoon.
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Pound cakes are typically made with an equal weight or proportion of flour, butter, sugar and eggs. Similar to all my other pound cake recipes on this page like the chocolate pound cake, lemon pound cake, matcha pound cake and Earl Grey pound cake to name a few, this pumpkin pound cake recipe keeps true to its name and maintains the ratio of these 4 ingredients intact.
For the pumpkin and spice flavor, fresh pumpkin puree is added along with the aromatic pumpkin spices. The resulting cake has the same texture of a basic pound cake with the addition of lovely pumpkin taste and pumpkin spice aroma. For more pumpkin based treats, check out my super fluffy and moist salted caramel pumpkin cupcakes.
❤️Why you will love this recipe
- This is an easy cake recipe and makes a soft and fluffy cake with tender crumbs and a lovely pumpkin and spices aroma.
- It makes the best recipe for a pumpkin pound cake as the proportion of eggs, flour, butter and sugar are kept equal, just as a pound cake should be.
- The cake can be made using canned pumpkin puree or your own pumpkin puree. Both will yield fantastic results.
- Baked into a standard loaf pan, this cake can be served plain with a cup of coffee or frosted or glazed to make an easy fall dessert.
- The cake is also a great way to use up pumpkins during pumpkin season.
📋Ingredients
For the cake
- Self raising flour + salt + baking powder - these are mixed and sifted together into the cake batter. Sifting helps combine the ingredients and aerate the flour which helps the cake rise well.
- Butter - I use salted butter, but if you prefer unsalted butter, add an extra small pinch of salt in the recipe.
- Eggs - Whole large eggs are used in this recipe, and make sure the eggs are at room temperature to avoid the cake batter from curdling.
- Brown sugar - unlikely a typical pound cake made using white sugar, I use brown sugar in this recipe to give the cake a molasses flavor which pairs perfectly with the pumpkin and the warm spices. Use soft brown sugar. Both dark and light brown sugars will work for this recipe.
- Pumpkin puree - this is the star ingredient in this recipe. You can use both the store bought canned puree or make the pumpkin puree on your own. Pumpkin puree is simply fresh pumpkin cooked and pureed until smooth without any other extra ingredients. Do not confuse with pumpkin pie filling which is typically sweetened and added other ingredients. It will not work for this recipe. If you are new to baking with pumpkin puree, it is advisable to use store bought canned pumpkin ( I recommend Libby brand) as the consistency of canned puree can vary between brands. So does homemade pumpkin puree and this may impact the texture of your cake.
- Pumpkin spice - this is a mix of warm spices, typically cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves. You can purchase this spice mix from your local stores.
For the cream cheese frosting:
- Cream cheese - use full fat cream cheese that is sold in blocks. Spreadable cream cheese will be too soft for this frosting.
- Powdered sugar (icing sugar) - sweetens the frosting and should be sifted before using as it tends to be lumpy.
- Butter - Both salted and unsalted butter will work fine for this recipe.
- Vanilla extract - adds a lovely aroma to the frosting.
- Food coloring - Yellow, orange and moss green.
Decorating tools:
- Palette knife - to spread the cream cheese frosting on the cake.
- Disposable piping bags + icing couplers - I prefer to use disposable bags as it really saves the hassle of having to wash them after using.
- Piping tips - tip 865 (for the large pumpkins), tip 21 (for the small pumpkins), tip 67 for the leaves, tip 16 for the stems of the large pumpkins, tip 2 for the stems of the small pumpkins.
*Refer to the recipe card below for full list of ingredients and exact quantities. For best results, use a digital kitchen scale where applicable*
🧾Substitution and variations
- Self raising flour can be replaced with all purpose flour and baking powder. For every 225g of all purpose flour, add one and a half teaspoons of baking powder. Mix well and sift at least 3 times before using. To make 180g of self raising flour (as per the measurement in the recipe card below), add one and a quarter teaspoons of baking powder to 180g of all purpose flour. The baking powder is in addition to the amount mentioned in the recipe card.
- Brown sugar in the cake can be replaced with granulated white sugar. Use exact same quantity.
- Pumpkin puree can be replaced with pumpkin powder and milk like in this Halloween marble cake. Add 3 tablespoons of pumpkin powder into the flour and sift it together with the baking powder, salt and spices. Mix the milk into the cake batter alternatively with the flour mixture.
- Butter in the cream cheese frosting can be replaced with shortening. Use exact same amount.
- To make a round cake, double the recipe and bake the cake in two 7 inches round cake tins. To make a bundt cake, use a six-cups capacity bundt tin. Make sure not to fill the batter until full. Leave about one third space for the cake to rise. Bake the cake at 160 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.
- Cream cheese frosting can be replaced with a simple caramel glaze or sugar glaze.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you do try, please let me know in the comments section below!
👩🏻🍳How to make
Baking the cake
Step1: Prepare the cake tin. Grease it with oil or butter and dust it with flour (image 1). Preheat oven.
Step 2: Measure butter and brown sugar into a large bowl. Cream both until light and fluffy with an electric mixer on medium speed (image 2). Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl half way through.
Step 3: Beat in the eggs into the creamed mixture, one at a time (image 3). Each time, beat until all the traces of the eggs are no longer visible but do not overbeat (image 4). Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl again to ensure all ingredients are well mixed .
Note: Make sure the eggs are at room temperature. Cold eggs could result in your cake batter curdling.
Step 4: Add the pumpkin puree (image 5) and beat until it is well combined into the creamed mixture (image 6).
Note: You might find your cake batter curdling at this stage, and that is fine.
Step 5: In a separate medium bowl, measure the flour, baking powder, salt and the pumpkin spices. Mix them with a hand whisk (image 7) and sift into the creamed mixture. Fold with a spatula until all traces of the flour is no longer visible (image 8).
Scrape the bowl after each batch to ensure the ingredients are well combined and the batter is smooth. Do not over mix.
Note: You can also use an electric mixer to fold in the flour. Use a very low speed and do not overmix to avoid the cake from becoming hard.
Step 6: Transfer the cake batter into the prepared tin and level the top (image 9). Bake the cake for 45 to 50 minutes (until a skewer inserted in the center comes out without any wet batter sticking to it). Remove the cake from the oven and let the cake cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely (image 10).
Note: Keep the cake covered with a kitchen towel as it cools down. Wrap with a plastic wrap and refrigerate as soon as it cools down to a room temperature to lock its moisture. Keep the cake refrigerated until it has cooled down completely.
Frosting the cake
Step 7: To make the cream cheese frosting, measure the cream cheese and butter into a mixing bowl. Beat until the ingredients are well combined, smooth and creamy (image 11 & 12).
Note: Make sure the cream cheese and butter are at room temperature. Cold ingredients will take a much longer time to cream.
Step 8: Sift the powdered sugar. Add it into the creamed mixture and mix lightly with a spatula to moisten it before using the electric mixer to whip it. This will avoid the sugar from flying all over (images 13 & 14).
Step 9: Add the vanilla extract and mix again until well combined.
Step 10: To frost the cake, place it on a cake board or cake plate. Cover the cake with the frosting evenly but no necessarily smooth (image 15).
Use a spoon to makes wavy texture on the frosting all over (image 16).
Step 11: Divide the remaining frosting into 3 bowls with 2 of the bowls having slightly more frosting than the third one. Tint the first 2 bowls of frosting with orange and yellow food coloring (image 17). Tint the frosting in the third bowl in green. Transfer the frosting into one piping bag each (image 18).
Step 12: Pipe a row of orange stars (orange pumpkins) on the cake with tip 865 followed by yellow stars (yellow pumpkins) using the same tip (image 19). For each of the pumpkins, add a small green stem in green icing using star tip 16 (image 20).
Step 13: Using the same green icing, pipe tiny tendrils with round tip 2, followed by leaves with tip 67 (images 21 & 22).
Step 14: To make the smaller piped pumpkins in orange and yellow, use star tip 21 (image 23).Top each star with a tiny green dot of icing with round tip 2 (image 24).
Step 15: Finally, add more leaves in green to complete the decoration.
💡Expert tips
- To ensure a fluffy cake, make sure to cream the butter and sugar for at least 2 minutes. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl halfway through to ensure no butter or sugar that is left unmixed.
- Keep to the baking time. Overbaking can lead to dry cake. Check the cake for doneness at least 5 minutes before the baking time is up by inserting in skewer in the center of the cake. If it comes out without any wet batter sticking to it, the is baked and can be removed from the oven.
- Keep the cake covered as it is cooling down. As soon as it cools down to a warm temperature, wrap it in a plastic wrap and keep it refrigerated until it cools down completely. This steps will help retain the moisture in the cake and keep it soft and moist.
💭FAQs
A pound cake has an equal proportion of eggs, flour, butter and sugar in the recipe while a vanilla cake does not necessarily contain such equal proportions.
Without the cream cheese frosting, this pumpkin pound cake can last at room temperature for a good 4 to 5 days provided it is handled without any moisture. Once frosted, it is best kept in the refrigerator (as cream cheese does not last well at room temperature) and should also be able to last for a good 4 to 5 days..
There are a few factors that can contribute to a dry pound cake. Firstly, overbaking can result in the cake losing its moisture and become dry. Secondly, exposing the cake to open air for too while cooling down can also make the cake dry. The cake should be covered in a kitchen towel as it cools down and kept wrapped in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container.
Not adding sufficient liquid in the cake batter is another reason that can contribute to a dry cake. Hence it is important to measure all ingredients accurately.
The fluffiness of a pound cake is largely determined by how well the butter and sugar are creamed. Ideally, both should be whipped until they turn light and fluffy. For this recipe, that should be done for at least 2 minutes, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through to ensure the ingredients are well and thoroughly mixed.
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📖Recipe
Pumpkin Spice Pound Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
For best results, use the metrics measurements. US customary measurements have not been tested and are only meant for guide.
Ingredients
Cake
- 180 g self raising flour
- 180 g butter
- 180 g brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 90 g pumpkin puree
- 1½ teaspoon pumpkin spice powder
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 180 g cream cheese
- 600 g powdered sugar
- 60 g butter
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Orange, yellow and moss green food coloring (a few drops)
Instructions
- Pre heat oven to 170℃.
- Prepare the cake tin. Grease it with oil or butter and dust it with flour. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine the butter and brown sugar. Cream both until light and fluffy with an electric mixer on medium speed (see Note 1). Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl half way through.
- Next, beat in the eggs into the creamed mixture, one at a time (see Note 2). Each time, beat until all the traces of the eggs are no longer visible but do not overbeat. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl again to ensure all ingredients are well mixed.
- Add the pumpkin puree and beat until it is well combined into the creamed mixture (see Note 3).
- In a separate medium bowl, measure the flour, baking powder, salt and the pumpkin spices. Mix them with a hand whisk and sift into the creamed mixture. Fold with a spatula until all traces of the flour is no longer visible (see Note 4). Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure the ingredients are well combined and the batter is smooth. Do not over mix.
- Transfer the cake batter into the prepared tin and level the top. Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes (until a skewer inserted in the center comes out without any wet batter sticking to it) (see Note 5).
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Keep the cake covered with a kitchen towel as it cools down. Wrap with a plastic wrap and refrigerate as soon as it cools down to room temperature to lock its moisture. Keep the cake refrigerated until it has cooled down completely.
- To make the cream cheese frosting, measure the cream cheese and butter into a mixing bowl. Cream until they are well combined, smooth and creamy (see Note 6).
- Next, sift in the powdered sugar. Mix lightly with a spatula to moisten the sugar before using the electric mixer to whip it. This will avoid the sugar from flying all over.
- Add the vanilla extract and mix again until well combined.
- To frost the cake, place it on a cake board or cake plate. Cover the cake with the frosting evenly but no necessarily smooth. Use a spoon to makes wavy texture on the frosting all over.
- Divide the remaining frosting into 3 bowls with 2 of the bowls having slightly more frosting than the third one. Tint the first 2 bowls of frosting with orange and yellow food coloring. Tint the frosting in the third bowl in green. Transfer the frosting into one piping bag each.
- Pipe a row of orange stars (orange pumpkins) on the cake with tip #865 followed by yellow stars (yellow pumpkins) using the same tip. For each of the pumpkins, add a small green stem in green icing using star tip #16.
- Using the same green icing, pipe tiny tendrils with round tip #2, followed by leaves with tip #67.
- To make the smaller piped pumpkins in orange and yellow, use star tip #21. Top each star with a tiny green dot as stems for the pumpkins in green with round tip #2.
- Finally, add more leaves in green to complete the decoration.
Notes
- To ensure a fluffy cake, make sure to cream the butter and sugar for at least 2 minutes.
- Make sure the eggs are at room temperature. Cold eggs could result in your cake batter curdling.
- You might find your cake batter curdling at this stage, and that is fine.
- You can also use an electric mixer to fold in the flour. Use a very low speed and do not overmix to avoid the cake from becoming tough.
- Overbaking can lead to dry cake. Check the cake for doneness at least 5 minutes before the baking time is up by inserting in skewer in the center of the cake. If it comes out without any wet batter sticking to it, the is baked and can be removed from the oven.
- Make sure the cream cheese and butter are at room temperature. Cold ingredients will take a much longer time to cream.
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