This Easy Pumpkin Cake is our favorite, fluffy, moist, and absolutely delicious. It’s perfectly spiced with a tender, moist, and delicate crumb. The marshmallow-like whipped cream cheese frosting takes this pumpkin cake recipe over the top.
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Helpful Reader Review
“Very easy to make, cake was moist and delicious. I loved the cream cheese frosting because it wasn’t so sweet. Was loved by all the ladies at the luncheon.” – Mandy ★★★★★
Pumpkin Cake Video Tutorial
I’ll show you how easy it is to make the pumpkin cake and cream cheese frosting. If you aren’t a major pumpkin fan yet, you will be after trying this! We are quite smitten with this cake. It is on the regular rotation at our house in the Autumn. Plus, it’s not overly sweet, so there’s no avoiding that second helping ;).
Pumpkin Cake Recipe
This pumpkin sheet cake recipe was shared by one of my readers, Yulia. Thank you so much for sharing this treasure of a recipe with us! I now use the same base for my Pumpkin Bread Recipe, and some of our favorite recipes have been shared by our readers. I love it when you all write in and share your favorite recipes and tips. Those are my favorite kinds of emails! Thanks for thinking of me :).
The first time I made this, I invited all 4 of my sisters and their families over for dinner, and everyone really enjoyed it, especially the kids. I polled my sisters about whether they would be more likely to remake this as a fancy double-decker cake or this easy-peasy sheet cake, and the consensus was: keep it EASY. Like 4 steps easy, including frosting!
Ingredients for Easy Pumpkin Cake
- Pantry Staples – All-purpose flour (measured correctly), baking powder, baking soda (sifted to get rid of lumps), cinnamon and salt. You can add 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg and 1/4 tsp cloves for a more spiced flavor in the cake.
- Granulated sugar – Many of you have asked if it works to reduce the sugar, so I tested reducing it from 1 1/2 to 1 cup, and it still works, although it will be less sweet.
- Eggs – you can quickly bring these to room temperature by placing them in warm water for 10 minutes.
- Oil – use a neutral oil like extra light olive oil, vegetable or corn oil
- Pumpkin puree – use one 15 oz can homemade pumpkin puree.
Ingredients for Cream Cheese Frosting
My homemade cream cheese frosting is so versatile. It has a deeper flavor than buttercream and complements the pumpkin beautifully.
- Cream Cheese – 1, 8 oz package, at room temp, cut into quarters
- Unsalted butter – at room temperature. If you dice it up, it will soften faster.
- Powdered sugar – sweetens the frosting without being gritty.
- Real vanilla extract – I use homemade but storebought is fine
How to Make Easy Pumpkin Cake
Prep: Preheat oven to 350˚F. Using cooking spray or oil, grease a 9×13 non-stick baking pan or a Glass pyrex dish. Tip: If you’re serving it out of a metal pan, line it with parchment paper so you don’t scratch up your pan when serving.
- 1. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp salt.
- In a second medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredients: 3 large eggs, 1 cup oil and 1 can pumpkin, until well combined.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Transfer to prepared baking dish and bake at 350˚F for 35-40 min (my oven took 35 mins), or until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely in the pan.
How to Make Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Combine all of your frosting ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and, using the whisk attachment, beat on medium speed until combined, then beat on high speed 2-3 min or until fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Once the pumpkin cake has cooled to room temperature, spread the frosting over the top.
To make the cake more festive and fun for special occasions, I like to decorate with chopped nuts or sprinkles.
Make-Ahead and Storage
- Make-Ahead Cake: You can pre-bake the cake the day before, let it cool to room temperature, then cover and store at room temperature overnight, or refrigerate up to 2 days. You can also tightly wrap in plastic wrap and foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Make-Ahead Frosting: Cover and refrigerate up to 3 days. To use, let it sit at room temperature for about 1 hour or just until spreadable or pipeable.
- Storing the Assembled Cake: Once the cake is frosted, it will keep well, covered in the refrigerator, for up to 4 days.
For the past 10 years, this is the cake I make most often for Fall family gatherings because it’s so well-loved and comes together fast. This one’s a keeper and is a perfect go-to for Thanksgiving and the holidays.
Easy Pumpkin Cake
Ingredients
Ingredients for Pumpkin Cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, *see note on measuring
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, *
- 1 tsp baking soda, sifted to get rid of lumps
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon, *
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 3 large eggs, room temp
- 1 cup oil, extra light olive oil, vegetable or corn oil will work
- 15 oz pumpkin puree, can
Ingredients for Frosting:
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temp, cut into quarters
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter butter, room temp
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Pecans to decorate, optional
Instructions
How to Make Pumpkin Cake:
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a 9×13 non-stick baking pan or a Glass Pyrex dish.** In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp salt.
- In a second medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredients: 3 large eggs, 1 cup oil and 1 can pumpkin, until well combined.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Transfer to prepared baking dish and bake at 350˚F for 35-40 min (my oven took 35 min), or until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean. Let cake cool completely in pan then spread the top with frosting (see below).
How to Make Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Combine all of your frosting ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, beat on medium speed until combined, then beat on high speed 2-3 min or until fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Once the pumpkin cake has cooled to room temperature, spread the frosting over the top, then decorate with chopped nuts or sprinkles if desired.
Notes
*If you prefer a less sweet cake, you can use 1 cup of sugar, and the recipe will still work.
*Several of you have reported great results adding 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg and 1/4 tsp cloves for a more spiced flavor in the cake.
**If you’re serving it out of a metal pan, line it with parchment paper so you don’t scratch up your pan.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Dreamy Pumpkin Recipes
If you love cozy pumpkin recipes, you will find some new favorites in this list:
- Pumpkin Cupcakes
- Pull-Apart Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Flax Granola
- Pumpkin Pancakes
- Creamy Pumpkin Soup
- Pumpkin Cake Roll
- Pumpkin Pie
- Fluffy Pumpkin Waffles
I used this recipe to make cupcakes last night just 3 hours before a Halloween party. Was praying they would come out okay. They were phenomenal! The pumpkin cake and the cream cheese frosting were absolutely delicious! They were a hit! For reference, the cupcakes took about 17-20 mins in the oven at 350. Thank you Natasha for a great recipe! I will be coming back to your site for more ideas.
Hi Angelica! You are very welcome. Thank you for the feedback.
The BEST pumpkin cake EVER! My goodness, it’s spectacular. I made it gluten free, due to celiac disease. It came out absolutely perfect. My husband (not gluten free) thought it was outstanding. With only two people in our household, I’m looking to share a few pieces to get it out of here before we eat it all.
THANK YOU for sharing this amazing recipe!
I love carrot cake & this is a great recipe! Thank you Natasha!
Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. This recipe is one of my favorites. I always make it in the fall.
Followed exactly as on the recipe and it turned out delicious but texture is not as it supposed to be. I think sugar needs to be mixed with eggs,purée and etc.and not dry ingredients. So if will be more spongy texture rather than smooth like a pie (that’s how it turned out).
Hi Tatyana, I just made this cake again 2 days ago and I always make it the same way resulting in a soft and spongy cake. I wonder if maybe you accidentally forgot the leavening (or mixed up the baking soda and baking powder?) to make the cake rise? Or if possibly your baking powder or baking soda were expired and not activating properly?
Can you substitute granulated sugar with coconut sugar and organic flour and would you use the same amount? Trying to use organic ingredients. Thank you.
Hi Judy! I haven’t tried coconut sugar, but I assume it would be fine. Organic flour would be done to use if it’s also all purpose flour.
Great recipe and I love how you include the ingredient amounts in the steps. Much better for phone cooking.
Oh my!! So wonderful!! Made it for church potluck. Will definitely make it again.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Cindy!
Can you use almond flour in place of the all-purpose flour?
Hi Nancy! I have not tried using almond flour. I imagine it will work but you will for sure need to make some adjustments.
Hello Natasha, I made your pumpkin cake and pumpkin bread for my ladies breakfast at church and they both were a hit. Everyone loved it. Thank you for always having some great recipes.
this turned out EXACTLY how I wanted it to the middle was a little bit under cooked but it’s totally fine , you can eat it hot, cold, warm it’s just the perfect cake when you are hosting a party or just want some cake at home! 10/10 my whole family loved it!
This is my go to pumpkin cake recipe now. I’ve recently added in some chocolate chips for additional sweetness. I also poked holes in my cake, like a poke cake, and then poured my icing over top. O.m.g.!!!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Kaly!
I made this pumpkin cake the other day and loved it. I used 3/4 cup of coconut oil since I didn’t have any other kind of cooking oil at home at the time. I also used less sugar than the recipe calls for and added raisins and toasted pecans. The coconut oil made the cake extra flavorful which me and my family loved. I will make this cake many more times. I don’t like frosting so omitted that. Thanks to Natasha for another great recipe.
I made this pumpkin cake the other day and loved it. I used 3/4 cup of a coconut oil since I didn’t have any other kind of cooking oil at home at the time. I also used less sugar than the recipe calls for and added raisins and toasted pecans. The coconut oil made the cake extra flavorful which me and my family loved. I will make this cake many more times and rightly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a tasty pumpkin cake recipe. Thank you fam sharing this recipe, Natasha.
You’re very welcome! Thank you for sharing that with us.
Thank you for your recipes they are delicious and easy 💝💝
I’m so glad you’re enjoying my recipes, Joyce!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us Natasha! I just made it last night and it came out amazing! My kids asked me for this again for breakfast this morning and they’re not really fans of anything pumpkin at all. I did use homemade pumpkin and butternut squash mixed purée instead of canned since that’s what I had on hand. I also added 1.5 teaspoons of pumpkin spice mix and few dashes of nutmeg. I glazed the cake with a simple powdered sugar glaze. I will definitely be making this again many times this fall!
I also wanted to tell you my husband and I have been following your recipes for over a year now and you are our go to when looking for a recipe. We have tried so many of yours and they’re all great. We really appreciate you sharing all your delicious recipes! God bless you and your family!
You are so very welcome Brenda. Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback. Be blessed!
Delicious Cake!
Lighter than any other pumpkin cake or bread than I’ve tried, but still moist. Instead of the cream cheese frosting, I topped it with pumpkin spice whipped cream. My family loved it. Natasha, I’ve tried many of your recipes. They are terrific!
This cake is delicious. I make this multiple times a year, especially in the fall. My kids love it. I am actually making it tonight 🙂
Natasha, I want to thank you so much for your awesome recipes. I make so many of your recipes on a regular basis, such as cheesecake, chicken marsala, hamburger sliders and so many more. Everyone of them is delicious. Keep up the good work.
Thank you so much, Zemina!
This cake is great, I make it quite a few times a year. The only problem I have with it is the frosting. One cup of powdered sugar isn’t enough, it’s too sour. I add 2 and a half cups and it works for us. I always come back to the recipe when I’m making pumpkin cakes.
I made this today. Very easy and really good. Creamy frosting that isn’t super sweet. Thank you for the recipe!
How much of each of the spices did you add? (Also, is this really moist?) Thank you!!
Hi Donna. Yes, it’s a moist cake. Click on “jump to recipe” at the top of the page to get to the ingredients list.