Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bundt Cake — This easy pumpkin cake is loaded with chocolate chips and drizzled in rich and decadent chocolate ganache. It’s one of the best pumpkin cakes I’ve ever had!! An EASY no-mixer fall favorite cake that everyone just LOVES!
Easy Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake
I originally posted this recipe in the fall of 2012. I had a little girl in the kitchen that day who was just 5 years old helping me. She’s now a freshman in high school. I feel like I remember more about this cake than I sometimes do about the last 9 years that have seemingly passed by in the true blink of an eye.
If you’re lucky enough to have small kids underfoot, bake a pumpkin cake with them! You will thank yourself when they’re in high school and far too busy to be baking cakes with you.
The last decade of blogging hasn’t been like the first few years when I started and (over) shared about my personal life, but I wanted to at least share that memory.
I went on to write a cookbook dedicated to only pumpkin recipes, published in 2014. It’s called Cooking With Pumpkin and I’d love it if you wanted to buy or download a copy! I included this pumpkin chocolate chip bundt cake in my cookbook because it’s just THAT good!
The pumpkin bundt cake I created is predominately a pumpkin-flavored cake, and just hints at a yellow cake, which is exactly what I wanted. It’s the best pumpkin cake I’ve ever had.
And although it’s a bundt cake, it’s not a super tall and overly large Bundt like they can sometimes get to be.
The pumpkin puree keeps the cake moist and dense and the spices, including pumpkin pie spice, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves, complement the pumpkin puree and are a reminder that fall is here. Well, it’s sort of fall-like.
The days are getting shorter, which I don’t like, but it was in the mid-80s in San Diego all September and the day I baked this cake it was 90F, which was just fine with me.
Yellow cake mix cakes are more than fine by me, too. I love their spongy moistness and have childhood memories of some Duncan Hines golden gems coming out of my mom’s oven, but I am breaking free from cake mix.
In an effort to duplicate that springy yellow-cake-mix-cake quality, I added sour cream. Sour cream, or Greek yogurt, gives cakes a spongy and springy quality, tenderizes them, and keeps them soft and moist. There is nothing worse than dry cake and I’d rather have nothing than a piece of dry cake.
I didn’t actually use butter in the cake and used oil instead. Oil makes cakes moister, springier, and softer than butter.
I do love the flavor of butter in cookies and pie crust, but in recipes where the butter flavor would get lost anyway, such as this one with the pumpkin, the spices, and all the chocolate going on, may as well use oil to keep the cake moister. Plus, the butter extract makes up for any lack of real butter.
Being the chocaholic that I am, I used chocolate in two ways. Chocolate chips are woven throughout the cake and chocolate ganache is poured over the top.
The ganache is so easy to make and comes together in about 1 minute in the microwave. Chocolate chips, cream, and vanilla. It’ so simple to make but tastes so decadent.
The ganache stays a bit soft and silky, even over time, which is very different from a chocolate buttercream which hardens and dries out after it’s exposed to the air. I love buttercream but not when it gets crunchy.
Between the chocolate chips in the cake and the chocolate ganache on top, if you like your pumpkin with a side of chocolate, this cake will make you happy.
It made me very happy.
What’s in Pumpkin Bundt Cake?
To make this pumpkin chocolate chip bundt cake, you’ll need:
- Eggs
- Pumpkin puree
- Granulated sugar
- Canola oil
- Sour cream
- Vanilla extract
- Butter extract
- Spices
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Cream or half and half
How to Make Pumpkin Bundt Cake
Whisk together the wet ingredients in a large bowl, then mix in the dry ingredients. Gently fold in the chocolate chips.
Turn the batter into a greased and floured 12-cup bundt pan. Bake until the top has set and is golden, or a toothpick comes out clean (due to the chocolate chips, you may hit some chocolate patches with the insertion test).
Let the cake cool for 15 minutes before inverting it.
Once the pumpkin bundt cake is mostly cool, top with chocolate ganache.
Can the Butter Extract Be Omitted?
I added a bit of butter extract to the batter and if it’s not something you keep on hand, don’t worry about it. From time to time, I use butter extract as a flavor enhancer and flavor booster in cookie dough and cake batter.
I wouldn’t necessarily say it makes things taste ‘buttery’. Rather, it rounds out the flavors, complements the existing flavors, and gives food that homey quality, and although you can’t exactly put your finger on what it is, it just makes you want to have seconds.
Just like adding brewed coffee to chocolate cake batter does not make the chocolate cake taste like a chocolate-coffee-flavored-cake and instead intensifies the chocolate flavor, the butter extract principle is similar. It enhances without making you think you just swallowed a stick of butter or anything.
Butter extract is only about $2.99 for a little vial, compared to about $6.99+ for vanilla extract of the same size, and it’s a fun little bargain extract to keep around. I add a few drops of it to the melted butter to be poured over popcorn for really buttery-flavored buttered popcorn.
Do I Have to Use a Bundt Pan?
I baked this pumpkin chocolate chip cake in a 12-cup Bundt pan, but it can be baked in a 10-cup Bundt, and you’d probably have success dividing the batter among two 8-by-4-inch loaf pans.
I love cake as much as the next person, but many of us are cooking for ourselves or small families and we don’t necessarily need ginormous Bundts just laying around and this one isn’t extreme.
How to Store Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake
This pumpkin chocolate chip cake will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container at room temperature.
Tips for Making a Pumpkin Bundt Cake
I used a mixture of cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, all spice, and cloves in this pumpkin cake recipe. If you don’t have all of these spices on hand, mix and match with what you do have. It will probably turn out fine!
Once the dry ingredients are mixed into the wet, don’t over mix! This is a thicker cake batter, and you can easily over-develop the gluten and create a dense cake.
The pumpkin bundt cake MUST cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before it can be inverted. If you try to invert the cake right away, you run the risk of the cake sinking.
Pin This Recipe
The Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake with Chocolate Ganache
This is the best pumpkin cake I’ve ever had!! It’s a cross between a pumpkin spice cake with just a bit of the buttery qualities of a yellow cake-mix-cake, but entirely from scratch, and there’s loads of chocolate in every bite.
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup sour cream (Greek yogurt may be substituted)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon butter extract, optional
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt, optional
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Chocolate Ganache
- 2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup cream or half-and-half
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- optionally add 1 to 2 tablespoons rum or bourbon, coffee liqueur, or chocolate-flavored liqueur
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 12-cup Bundt or tube-cake pan with cooking spray (I use Pam for Bakingwith excellent results) or grease and flour the pan; set aside.
- In a large bowl combine eggs, pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, sour cream, vanilla extract, butter extract, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, allspice, cloves (if you don’t have all of them on hand, just use what you do have) and whisk to combine until mixture is smooth and silky.
- Add the flour, baking soda, salt and stir until just combined (don’t overmix or the gluten will over-develop and cake will be tougher).
- Fold in the chocolate chips and pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing it lightly with a spatula if necessary and give it a slam on the counter to release any air.
- Bake for 38 to 42 minutes, or until top has set (it may crackle, this is okay) and is golden or a cake tester, toothpick, or blade of a knife comes out clean (due to the chocolate chips, you may hit some chocolate patches with the insertion test).
- Allow cake to cool in pan for about 15 minutes before inverting and releasing cake from pan and placing it on a rack to finish cooling. While cake cools, make the ganache.
Chocolate Ganache:
- Place chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl and heat on high power for 1 minute to soften chocolate; set aside.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup, heat the cream (I used half-and-half) on high power just until it begins to bubble and show signs of boiling, about 1 minute.
- Pour hot cream over chocolate and let it stand about 1 minute. Whisk vigorously until chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth and velvety.
- Add vanilla, optional alcohol, and whisk to combine. Set bowl aside for about 5 minutes, allowing ganache to cool and thicken a bit.
- Whisk mixture briefly before preparing to drizzle it over the cake. Ganache will set up a bit with time, but remains quite viscous and drippy.
Notes
Cake will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container at room temperature.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 405Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 139mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 3gSugar: 33gProtein: 4g
More Easy Pumpkin Desserts:
Easy Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting — Moist pumpkin cake is topped with a creamy homemade cream cheese frosting. This easy fall dessert is perfect for Thanksgiving, Halloween, and more!
The Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread — This pumpkin chocolate chip bread is truly the best homemade pumpkin bread you’ll ever make. It’s moist, packed with chocolate chips, and tastes like fall!
Pumpkin Spice Cookies — These pumpkin spice cookies are made without pumpkin puree but are full of flavor thanks to the pumpkin pie spice! These are so soft and fluffy!
Pumpkin Banana Bread — This bread is a mixture of both pumpkin and banana flavors whereas today’s cake is more robustly pumpkin-flavored. Depending on the flavor profile you want, they’re both moist, dense, pumpkiny, and you can’t go wrong with either!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Brownies — Rich, fudgy brownies topped with pumpkin and chocolate chips!! An EASY, no mixer pumpkin brownie recipe that’s FASTER than using a boxed mix! Bring on pumpkin spice season!!
Cream Cheese-Filled Pumpkin Bread — This is without a doubt the BEST pumpkin bread recipe! This pumpkin cream cheese bread tastes like it has cheesecake baked into the middle. You’ll definitely want a second slice!
Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies — Between the molasses, pumpkin pie spice, and pumpkin pie spice extract that I used, these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies beautifully showcase the flavors of fall!
Originally posted October 1, 2012 and reposted September 29, 2021 with updated text.
Delicious and so easy. Just made it for Thanksgiving (Canadian) tomorrow and couldn’t resist trying a piece tonight. It’s moist and thought my ganache was too thin but it’s fine, maybe will firm up more overnight. Thank you!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it was delicious and easy! One of my favorite pumpkin cakes ever!
Hi Averie, I made this last night, and oh. my. gosh! Moist, favorable, and decadent. I used coconut oil in place of the canola oil. Not a fan of canola oil. I also used the heavy cream. This is delicious! Everyone wanted seconds.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad this was a winner and that everyone wanted seconds!
Wonderful Gluten-free and Dairy free. I took it to friends for Friday night dinner dessert and they all loved it. I used XO all purpose flour, Chosen Foods avocado oil, yoso coconut yogurt, and So Nice Barista instead of the cream. The non-dairy chocolate chips were left over my my April stock-up because I can’t get them year-round. The reason I specified brand names is that it’s always an experiment with gluten/dairy-free substitutes. It took 10 or 15 more minutes to cook in the Bundt pan – I can’t remember which – I’m sorry – I was in a hurry and needed it to cool enough to glaze and the glaze to harden in the fridge before we covered it to take to to dinner…
Thanks for the five star review and great to hear that you were able to make it GF and DF!
“The reason I specified brand names is that it’s always an experiment with gluten/dairy-free substitutes.” — And yes I 100% wholeheartedly agree as I was GF and DF for a few years and had more flops that successes so always nice to hear something that was a win!
I have a Nordic Ware angel food/pound cake bundt pan, 16 cup capacity. Will this pan work for this recipe? Thank you!
It’s hard to say without personally having tried this. With baking you just never know until you give some thing a try.
We do not have canned pumpkin puree in Australia. Can I use ordinary pumpkin, mashed, or apple puree?
I would say used cooked mashed pumpkin. It’s going to depend on the moisture content Of the pumpkin you use how that will translate into the purée that you use versus what we can buy an a can. Which could affect The amount of flour that you need to use in case it were to be on the very watery or runny side but hopefully not.
If you use the 15 oz box of Krusteaz spice quickbread mix what other ingredients do you add to this for the cake?
This recipe that you commented on is a recipe for a scratch cake and the recipe and all the ingredients are listed in detail.
If you want to use a boxed mix, you can make that recipe and follow the directions and ingredients I’ve written for that recipe.
They are two different recipes.
Hey Averie – I have some leftover pumpkin puree that I froze after Thanksgiving that I was thinking of using up. Do you foresee that being an issue if I thaw it out and use it (e.g. too watery or changing the flavour)?
Thanks!
I have never used pumpkin purée that has been frozen and then thawed. Like you, I worry that it could become too watery. Rather than making a recipe that doesn’t turn out, I would just use a new can.
I make my own pumpkin puree from pumpkins in our garden and freeze it all the time! If it’s too watery before you freeze it, it will be too watery when it’s thawed. But if it is a good consistency before you freeze it, it will be fine when you thaw it!
That’s all very good to know for people that are not familiar. For me personally, I am a canned Libbys pumpkin purée girl all the way :)
I made this yesterday to serve today, and it was delicious. I used cream instead of half-and-half and found that the ganache was too thick to drizzle, so I would recommend adding more cream or a little water to thin it out. It was still yummy, but I had to spread rather than drizzle it. Also, my cake didn’t look as fudgey inside as in the photos even though I used 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips, so I’ll add more next time. Otherwise, this was perfect!
I meant to add that maybe the reason the cake wasn’t as fudgey as it should have been was because some of the chips didn’t melt. I don’t know why this happened; the cake was perfectly baked.
Cream is thicker than half and half and that’s why yours probably came out a little thicker.
Chocolate chips don’t always melt. Paradoxical but true – some brands are more resistant to melting than others. Think of a chocolate chip cookie. Some chips melt, some just soften.
Glad you loved the cake!
Will it be okay if I let the batter sit for a while before baking?
Not at all! Once you mix it up, you have to bake it right away or it won’t rise properly.
Made this today with cooked down pumpkin. It was incredible! Oh my goodness is all I can say! Next time I think I will 1 and a half times the recipe to make a little larger bundt and last just a tad longer. Going to make this again for my religious women’s group on Thursday. Thank you for this awesome recipe!
This is one of my all time favorite pumpkin cakes and pumpkin recipes, period…and I wrote a pumpkin cookbook! I loved it so much I put it in the book. And I’m glad you loved it too and are going to 1.5x the batch. LMK how it goes.
I have never made this with homemade cooked down pumpkin (only canned puree), glad to know it works just fine too!
I made this today and pulled it out after 39 minutes only to have it fail when I inserted my cake tester. I popped it back in for three minutes and it was perfect. It tasted delicious! I did however have a problem with the ganache. I have made it before with no problem. This time I took the suggestion of adding a tablespoon of coffee liqueur and it thinned the ganache to the point it would not set. I even tried popping it in the freezer to no avail. I still used it as a glaze but more ran off the cake than stayed on and the presentation wasn’t as nice as I would have liked. I would suggest NOT adding additional liquid unless the ganache was thicker by adding more chips or less cream/half and half.
Glad the cake tasted delicious!
Needed a quick cake for a dinner party tonight. It was perfect! Didn’t have time for the ganache, but everyone still loved it. Thank you! Can’t wait to try it with the ganache.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
Love that you’re making pumpkin in the ‘off season’. This is one of my all time favorite cakes on my entire blog, 1000+ recipes, this is one of my personal faves. Glad you loved it too!
I made this for a Halloween party yesterday. I used a box of the Pacific organic pumpkin purée, 16oz container and the only spices I used was the 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp do pumpkin pie spice, instead of the allspice and cloves. I added one tablespoon of butter because I didn’t have the butter extract. I also used mini chocolate chips in the cake instead of full size. I did every thing else as directed.
This bunds cake came out perfect. It was so moist and so delicious, amazing. I was looking for a pumpkin cake that reminded me of the pumpkin cake cookies and this was exactly what I was looking for. I had a piece for breakfast this morning and it tasted even better than it did yesterday.
Tasted great, looked pretty and I will be making this again for sure. Thank you!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
Thanks. Have been dying to make this , will try this weekend “as written” ….
Hi Averie
could you use half white sugar and half light brown in this recipe??
I have only made it the way as I wrote it and can’t speak to the results if you tinker with the recipe.
With thanksgiving just around the corner, my pumpkin cravings are in overdrive so I made this cake last night with a few, healthier modifications: used organic pumpkin instead of Libby’s, coconut oil instead of veg oil, cane sugar in place of granulated, organic kefir instead of sour cream (just happened to have that on hand), organic/fair trade 70% chocolate (roughly chopped) in place of the choc chips, omitted the butter extract, almost doubled all spices, and baked in a medium sized sheet pan. All other ingredients were organic. Here is my take on it: one very disappointing thing is that it was not as pumpkin-y as I hoped. There is a hint of pumpkin, but definitely not full pumpkin flavour. Maybe if the cake sits tightly wrapped for a day or two, the flavour may intensify. Even with the extra spices I used, I feel the cake could certainly use more. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a tasty cake, just not enough pumpkin! And that’s about the only negative thing I can say. I love everything else about the cake. It was so soft, so light, and so moist. The chocolate chunks are a great addition, especially when they melt with my coffee. So yummy. My cake baked in about 25 min in a convection oven, in the sheet pan. I will certainly be marking this recipe and making the cake again. I always like to keep some baked yummies stashed in my freezer for unexpected company, last minute guests, and what not and this recipe will be great for that. It’ll make a lovely base for tortes and other layered butter cream cakes too!
Maybe it’s the brand of pumpkin puree – they can vary wildly in their intensity of pumpkin flavor which is why I use Libby’s because I get consistent results but I’m glad that you enjoyed it overall.
Hi Averie,
Your Pumpkin cake looks delicious! I want to make it ahead for Thanksgiving. Does it freeze well?
I haven’t frozen this cake but in general, cakes freeze fairly well. However if you’re making the cake Mon-Tues to serve Thursday, for instance, you wouldn’t need to bother freezing it.
okay I need your baking wizard brain help. I am wanting to make this cake for my daughter’s birthday party, but would need more than a bundt-load (pun!). Is this recipe transferrable to a bigger sheet cake pan in terms of how it would bake? I just didnt know if bundt pans do something special in the recipe in terms of heating the mix or if its all interchangeable in terms of pan shape.
With baking, there are times when recipes are interchangeable with the pan used and other times, no. This cake is one that I have only ever made as a Bundt and don’t know how it would translate to being baked as a sheet cake. You can test it out and see what happens. I personally would bake a million Bundts because the texture of the cake is just so good as a Bundt and not sure how that would be as a thinner sheet cake. LMK how it goes!
I made this recipe into cupcakes and dipped the cupcakes into the ganache. They were so good! will definitely make this recipe again!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you as cupcakes!
Sigh… I just finished baking this and realized I had misread a key instruction: I used an entire can of Libby’s “pure pumpkin” for a grand total of 2 cups rather than 1 cup! I wonder now whether I should have bought the “organic pumpkin puree” instead. Tasting the batter, I also found that the spices – especially the cloves – overpowered the pumpkin flavor. We’ll see how everything turns out with the ganache. I was going to bring this cake to a party tomorrow night, but I may end up keeping it in the family.
I wrote an entire cookbook about pumpkin and never used organic and used Libby’s for everything. If you used the entire can, they’re 15-ounces and that’s about 1 3/4 cups, not the 1 cup called for in the recipe. Whether you use organic or non-organic doesn’t matter so much as measuring correctly because with baking, that’s very important.
The batter is nicely spiced but it does mellow after being baked. However, if you prefer more bland tasting foods, you can always reduce the spices. I adore this cake and it’s one of the most popular pumpkin cakes on my site and readers seem to love it…I have a feeling (if it turns out due to the mis-measuring issue) that you will really enjoy it too! Thanks for trying the recipe.
You said cream do you mean sour cream?
There’s 2 creams, sour cream and half-and-half/cream. I would guess it’s probably the later. Just follow the recipe exactly as written b/c the cake is perfect that way!
This cake was the first made in my bundt pan for last night’s Thanksgiving feast, and it turned out great made gluten free! Thanks for the delicious recipe! My family loved it!
That’s awesome that you made this GF and it turned out great! Wonderful to hear!
I made this cake today and it looks and smelled yummy. I cooked it for longer than the time and it was firm to the touch but no sooner did I pull it out, it fell. After I let it cool and put on the ganache, I served it and it was slightly gooey on the inside. I think the main difference was the fact that I was not using canned pumpkin but pumpkin that I had cooked myself. Just a thought, you may want to indicate that in the recipe. Maybe it needs a little bit more flour when using homemade pumpkin. Other than it being slightly gooey, it was delicious and we all enjoyed it!
Thanks!
Janelle
http://www.parsnipsandparsimony.com
Thanks for trying the recipe and yes the recipe was written and intended for canned, storebought pumpkin puree rather than homemade. With homemade, it’s usually denser, has more water and in this and all recipes if you are using homemade, you’ll likely want to increase the flour and also possibly decrease the amount of pumpkin used. But with all baking, it’s kind of an experiment until you’re looking in the mixing bowl and stirring. Thanks for trying the recipe and glad you enjoyed the cake regardless! But yes, if you plan to remake, I would add a bit more flour so it’s not as gooey.
This cake looks great! If I plan to make it one day but serve it the next, should I put the ganache on the day that I make it or the day that I serve it? Thanks and can’t wait to try this recipe!
If you have a choice, I’d add it day-of serving. An few hours before so it can set up. Enjoy! And actually the cake itself will taste better on Day 2. The flavors marry and it will get better with time! Enjoy it!
Thanks for the recipe. I made it last night and it was easy to throw together in no time. It was delicious yesterday but even better today. I love the crumb -so tender, and light with a lovely texture. Loved that it’s not too sweet – perfect for having with coffee or tea in the afternoon.
Glad that you love this cake as much as I do! Thanks for the detailed feedback and glad it’s a hit with you!
Well, I made the cake. It was a huge hit. I didn’t get to submit it into the contest as hoped but everyone LOVED it. I used spiced RUM in the ganache, delicious! Also made a batch of cupcakes with this recipe and they turned out just as moist and delicious. Thank you for sharing this glorious cake recipe!
Rum in the ganache sounds amazing! And love that you also did a batch as cupcakes, too! Thanks for trying this recipe!
Must try! I will be trying it with gf flour and coconut oil.
I am making this cake to enter into a dessert contest we are having at my place of employment. I’m excited to make it even more so after reading all the positive comments. The photo drew me in, beautiful and delicious looking. I’ll post the outcome. So excited!! :-)
Hope you enjoy it!
Averie, I absolutely love your blog! So many great recipes on here (including this one!) and I always come here when I need something to bake! I also own your cookbook-it’s one of my favorites!
And by the way, I have made this cake SIX times now-my family (and I) cannot get enough of it! I’ve been bringing it to parties pretty regularly now! thanks for the recipe!
Six times – that’s almost more than me I think :) But seriously I love this cake too and as a little surprise, it’s been included in my next cookbook. More on that later. But so glad you have my first book and thanks for your support and praise and that you come to my site for baking inspiration! Thank you!
Averie,
You are a genius! My husband and I LOVE the pumpkin bundt cake! It’s delicious. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. Yolanda
It’s one of my fave pumpkin recipes, ever! And definitely one of my fave cakes on my site – glad you love it!
Just wondering if I can substitute the canola oil for coconut oil like you did in the pumpkin cake. I would think so?
I haven’t tried it that way so can’t say for sure. You’d probably be okay. LMK if you try!
Hi…I don’t usually comment if a recipe doesn’t turn out right but I made the cake today and followed the recipe to the letter, but it turned out gummy and fell while cooling in the pan, any ideas as to what I might have done wrong?
You probably just underbaked it. If it was gummy and fell, those are 2 signs with any cake of it just needing a bit more time in the oven. Probably another 5 mins or so is all that it would have needed. If you try again, LMK! I am sure it was just a little underbaked – this is one of the most popular fall cakes on my site and so many people love it and I’ve made it dozens of times and it always works. So just bake a little longer!
Thanks I will definitely try it again!
I literally dream about this cake even months after I’ve seen it! I’m not kidding. I’ve always wanted to bake it, specifically because pumpkin desserts are my absolute favorite. So what’s my problem? Well, I’d probably eat the whole thing by myself. It still looks amazing and I just wanted to leave a comment and tell you that this is probably my favorite thing on your blog!
Thank you, Monique. I loved these photos too and still really like them. There are certain images that I love at the time, but then quickly change my mind and I’m still happy with these. And I am not kidding, of all the cakes on my blog, this is my fave one. It will take a lot to top it, too. From both the taste perspective as well as EASE of making it, it really is such a great cake.
Made this last night for Thanksgiving dinner and everyone loved it! What an amazingly delicious combination. It was easy to make and the ganache turned out really great and yummy. I just added a tablespoon of butter for extra yummyness. For the cake itself I looked everywhere for butter extract but couldn’t find any, however the results were still phenomenal. Even my sister that doesn’t like pumpkin desserts asked to take some home with her! I can’t wait to try your chocolate cake next. Thank you so much for this wonderfully simple and delicious recipe!!!! :)
Oh that’s awesome – so glad you liked it! I have a couple chocolate cakes – there’s one with molasses and a Baileys glaze and then another one that’s just with a chocolate ganache. Both are really good depending on what you’re going for. I also have a cake coming up this week that’s super good and easy!
Butter extract in my grocery stores is usually kept where all the extract are, i.e. mint, vanilla, butterscotch, lemon, etc. & it’s usually really cheap compared to the others but regardless, glad you loved the cake! And your sister, too. Your ganache sounds perfect :)
You are so nice to find the time to reply to every comment on your posts. It just makes me want to visit your blog that much more! :)
That’s where I looked for the butter extract but either the stores were out or they just didn’t carry it. I’ll keep looking though!!
I meant the chocolate cake with the chocolate ganache (love me some ganache!!!!) but the other one sounds amazing too. Where do you buy your molasses? Also can’t wait for your new recipe! I follow you on pinterest now so hopefully I’ll see it there!
I wrote about molasses and where I get it (grocery store) here
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/11/chocolate-molasses-chocolate-chip-cake-with-baileys-irish-cream-glaze.html
Enjoy which ever chocolate cake you end up making!
Shez, they also carry butter extract at craft stores that sell cake-decorating items; I got mine at either Michaels or A.C. Moore.
Averie, so glad I found your blog….through an old Brown-eyed Baker “Weekly Dish” email (I’m super-behind on my food-blog emails; it was from November!) that pointed me to your mouthwatering Chocolate Molasses Chocolate Chip Cake with Bailey’s Glaze, and at the end of that post you featured a picture of this beautiful pumpkin cake, which I plan to make very soon! Something funny about the link to this recipe though – the one you had on the molasses cake page sent me to your Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache, and I couldn’t find it in your search bar either….but Google saved the day :)
Thanks for saying hi and the pumpkin cake is probably my fave cake on my whole blog! And if you notice a wrong link on a certain page, please let me know what page it is and I will correct it. From your comment here it’s a little hard to figure out where exactly there was a mis-direct.
What a fantastic cake!!! That glossy ganache looks outstanding!!!
what is the size (oz) of the pumkin pure can
15 ounce can (regular, not the ‘biggie’ size which I believe is 29 oz)
I absolutely love this bundt cake – amazingly moist and simply delicious. Would you recommend doubling it? I have a large group of guests coming and would love to make enough to give everyone some! Thanks!
I would recommend making the recipe from start to finish and baking it in one Bundt pan like I did. And then if you want to make a second cake, make batter for a second cake and pour into a second Bundt. I have not literally doubled the ingredients and then divided it between two pans and although I’m sure it would be fine, I haven’t tested it and so am recommending the most conservative path, i.e. making two sets of batter. The cake is SO GOOD I wouldn’t want any issues for you. It’s my fave cake I have on my entire blog! LMK if you make it!
Hello!
I’ve been a recent fan of your blog and made this yummy cake for my son’s violin teacher last week. All I did was add pecan sprinkled on top.
The hardest part was not getting a taste of it. She took it home to her family of 3 and said it was gone in two days!
We’re making her the butter mints next.
Thanks for all the great ideas and love the fantastic high quality pictures. They really make it special and even more enticing.
Donna
I so wish you had been able to try the cake but how nice of you to donate it to the teacher! Wow!
Enjoy the mints and I have a couple nice winter-themed cakes coming up you can make if you don’t get around to the pumpkin cake again this year.
Glad you like my pics – I work as hard on them as the recipes :)
Oh my! I love all of your pumpkin recipes! I just cannot have enough pumpkin this time of the year!
Oh my goodness. This looks amazing!
Loving all the pumpkin related recipes! Its just getting cold in London and the thought of pumpkin baked goods makes it a bit easier to cope with :)
x Laura
stay warm in cool and dismal London this time of year!
Just found your blog and I can’t leave! ‘So many lovely dishes. I don’t know what to make first!@
Well thanks for finding me and glad you stayed awhile!
Loving the pumpkin recipes from you lately! I agree with the sour cream/Greek yogurt add, it gives cakes a lift and also makes them super moist. Oh, and I’ve used butter flavor before too — definitely adds another layer of richness!
you’re the Greek yog queen! I know that TJs has a seasonal pumpkin greek yog. How good would that be in here!
Yummy!
I love me some Bundt cake!!!
oh goodness. That close up picture looks amazing. I really want to make and eat..sold on that hint of yellow cake mix flavor. I love that. Sold again with that Chocolate Ganache. You are so creative and really make sure it is perfected…looking forward to the homemade yellow cake mix.
Well homemade yellow cake meets pumpkin cake! The two combined!
“There’s a hole in this cake”…sorry, I could not resist quoting it. haha. This looks incredibly delicious. I used to love yellow cake, but I would rather make cakes from scratch instead of from a box, even though I know it is convenient and easy.
Averie, I am so excited about this cake. Quite awesomely, I bought a large bundt cake pan and 10 cans of organic pumpkin puree when it went on sale a few days ago here at a local health food store. I didn’t want to run the risk of it running out! ;-)
We have an Oktoberfest to go to this weekend, and although this is not German fare, we are allowed to bring a fall inspired dessert to share so I am bringing this! It is so beautiful – EVERYONE will be dying over it!! Gorgeous photos of this dessert, Averie. Your photos are incredible. They really are!
It’s an incredible cake. You will LOVE how moist it is. I just loved every second of it, Michele! LMK how it turns out for you!
I would very much like some of this cake for breakfast. How can you go wrong with pumpkin and chocolate?
It hit 99 in our neck of the woods this afternoon–still, this cake looks scrumptious, and I would be more than willing to turn on my oven tomorrow night once it cools down to try it. Stay cool in this heat, and thanks for a great recipe!
Ooh I don’t think I’ve seen butter extract before! Your photos are so great, totally drooling over this now.
It’s right next to the other extract in the grocery store and way cheaper than vanilla extract which is nice bonus :)
Oh gosh! That cake looks sooo delicious. Oh-so-delicious!
I also love the chocolate cake with the ganache. That thick layer of ganache is worth drooling! :)
The layer of ganache takes it over the top in a good way :)
This is to die for, Averie! I seriously want to make this so I can keep the entire bundt cake to myself. Yeah, no sharing at all. And I really think I could finish this on my own.
And thanks for the tweet, sweets! :)
Do you even know how amazing your cake looks? I can’t even read your words because I am mesmerized by the beauty of the cake!!
I made a double batch of the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! I used my cookie scoop for the first time! The cookies look just like yours! And are fantastic! My son works on an organic farm and corn maze and sugar pumpkins are big this time of year! Guess I’ll have to get more so we can do the bundt cake! Looks sinfully delicious! Thanks so much!
Who would have thought that chocolate and pumpkin go so well together? Love this bundt cake, Averie! I just shared my loaf cake with the same theme. Also with chocolate glaze :)
That is a stunning cake! I love the chocolate. And the pumpkin. And the cake mix! The heat? Not so much!
Well I didn’t use any cake mix. It’s 100% from scratch!
Ohhh I love the addition of the butter extract! I ALWAYS have it on hand!
It just adds that extra something to things!
That pumpkin bundt cake looks delicious! I want to try cooking with pumpkin myself – have you ever cooked/baked with pumpkin straight from the vegetable, as opposed to from the can?
Canned pumpkin puree, i.e. Libby’s, is actually a blend of squashes I’ve read. Not actually pumpkin. I haven’t been inclined to roast a whole pumpkin and puree it down b/c from everything I’ve been told and read, it’s a LOT of work and canned puree (which is actually squash) is just as good. There are some things I will make from scratch and others where I say ya know….probably not :) Just b/c of what I’ve read & reviews on it all.
Interesting – thanks for the info!
Wow, this cake looks so moist and chocolate with pumpkin? Can’t do better than that.
So much pumpkin flooding the blogs. I have fallen in love with a Pumpkin Syrup for hot drinks. Super simple and at least 200 calories less than Starbuck’s, not to mention pennies per serving. A new daily drink for me. http://canned-time.com/2012/10/01/pumpkin-spice-sugar-free-drink-dessert-syrup/.
Love the photos as usual, I can almost taste the icing :O
your syrup/puree looks so versatile! It’s sort of the base for just about anything! My vegan pumpkin spice latte copycat ‘Bucks recipe is my highest viewed recipe on my entire site. You are not alone in loving your PSL’s!
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2011/09/pumpkin-spice-latte.html
Oh yum, I’d forgotten about your version. It’s like drinking pumpkin pie :)
You know, I don’t even own a bundt pan? I would love to make this though, just as a bread. I dont’ think butter belongs in cakes, muffins, or anything other than cookies and pie crusts. The solid at room temperature is what makes it so great in those things, and makes cakes and muffins dry. Oil all the way for those cakey desserts!
$5.99 grocery store. They work just as well as the high end ones.
That is SUCH a great point about the consistency at room temp, viscosity, etc. I have never thought of it that way. Things that you want to stay firm and harder, cookies and pie crusts, great. And muffins/cakes – no! I just had a eureka moment of how to explain this to others of what goes on in my brain in a much more rambling sort of way. I can tell you’re a teacher :)
I NEED a piece of that cake. Like right now!
You’re the pumpkin queen! I want those toffee cookies you made – I wish we could do a virtual swap :)
Pinned to 3 different boards too ;)
You’re a dollface, thank you! :)
Girl, you are killing it with this cake ~ amazing photos and flavors :)
i love the granola recipe! such a great fall-inspired breakfast or crunchy snack. and pretty, too!
Wow, this looks wonderful! Great pics and adore the flavor combo! I have a raw pumpkin pie recipe that uses fresh, raw pumpkin that’s one of my favorite pumpkin recipes. Also a pumpkin pie-themed soft serve that’s divine. Truthfully not a fan of dry cake mixes because most of the ones I’ve had are pretty dry and unexciting.
This cake looks great! I love cakes made with oil. I’m actually not sure if I’ve ever had a true yellow cake; I can’t believe that. My favorite pumpkin recipe of all time if Pumpkin Whoopie Pies (http://piesandplots.net/pumpkin-whoopie-pies-with-marshmallow-filling/) I make them as often as possible, as they may be the best thing I’ve ever eaten. I also make these pumpkin bars, which is really a pumpkin cake that are outstanding (http://piesandplots.net/pumpkin-snack-cake-with-frosting/). Everyone asks me to make them again and again, so they are frequently in my oven.
this is crazy but I just made those whoopie pies! Not from your site, but from a cookbook I was sent for review and that’s what her recipe is in her book with regard to all the major dry ingredients, egg, oil, etc. Very interesting!
This is one fiiiine looking cake! Love this idea :)
oH MY GOSHHH my mouth is watering. What a gorgeous cake!
Oh my gosh, Averie! This looks divine.
I love it, we are on the exact same wavelength with our posts today! :) That ganache looks incredible!
Thanks for the pin and we are clearly on the same wavelength!
Uh, please don’t be offended if I start calling you That Ganache Lady.
Seriously, the things you do with ganache should just about be illegal. AMAZING CAKE.
Oh Averie! You’ve got me swooning over here – this is gorgeous! I love anything pumpkin or chocolate, so this cake is a tempting sight to my eyes.
Are you kidding me? You’ve put this pumpkin cake over the top, and Averie your photos are getting to be unbelievable. Seriously, that last shot is….I don’t know…I can’t take it. The subtle hints of turquoise throughout the photos in the post are lovely, too. Now I have to go make this.
I am so glad you like it! I was thinking of you the entire time I was recipe-formulating, pondering, OVER-thinking it :) and then eating it and editing it. I am so glad I piqued your interest! I was really happy with the way the pics turned out but I honestly don’t think any pics do this cake justice. It’s so good! For such a simple/one-bowl/5 min batter, it’s just a killer cake! Thank you for the jumping off place. I am not a fan of nuts in desserts, and wanted to bump up the butter quotient (and the fat…lol…for moisture) so the sour cream is perfect (but they sell pumpkin greek yogurt at TJs right now and if I had that, I’d try it with that too!) If you do make a new version of it, LMK!
omg this looks insanely good! I am coming to your house
Oh my goodness… the chocolate and all of it’s awesomeness. I’m clearly behind on the whole bundt loving thing. Need to fix that.
Averie, what a gorgeous cake! Thank you for explaining why you chose oil instead of butter and how you added the flavor back in with the extract – something I never would have thought to do! I’ve only used butter extract in cookies before, but it is screaming for some new use. I pour it on popcorn too!!!! Sometimes with cinnamon. That sounds weird, but totally delicious.
The cook itself looks SO moist from the oil, the cup of pumpkin and the sour cream – I love using sour cream in my baked confections like muffins, breads, or cakes! It adds SO much much in the texture department. The woven chocolate chips hiding inside almost take on a marble effect, Averie! They make your slices look so pretty. A chocolate ribbon hiding inside. The pics are gorgeous- i like your simple glass cakestand! I’d warm this cake up on a chilly morning for an indulgent weekend breakfast. My mom would LOVE this cake too! We share a pumpkin obsession :)
We are twins! I make popcorn with cinnamon, butter extract, and sometimes stevia, or nutritional yeast sprinkled…salty, sweet, cheezy, and cinnamony all rolled into one!
The cake was incredibly moist! Like falling apart soft and I just loved it and glad you liked the oil rationale. I used it for my choc cake that I made in Aruba and in all the research and trials Ive done on cakes like this, where the butter flavor is masked or clouded by so many other things, the oil results are just awesome if you don’t care about the butter flavor (or can add it back in w/ extract!)
I found that cakestand at Target in a set of 3 for like $19.99 I totally lucked out about a month ago!
I have been thinking of bundt cake latley and have been researching them for — there are so many varieties that I am having a hard time trying to come up with something special. This is great inspiration, however.Lucky little brother to have a sister that loves to bake!Cheers!Virginia O.
Hi Averie, first, let me tell you, I couldn’t take my eyes off that first photo, it is so-so beautiful. a truly zen one… It made my day…. Thank you!
Pumpkin? Oh yes, I do love pumpkin, actually a lot, but mostly as a vegetable, haven’t tried it in cakes (no surprise, as you know, my sweet tooth forgot to grew, or someone else got it…) :)
Thanks for the compliments on the photos and glad you enjoy the pumpkin…and the Zen :)
I saw this picture and I immediately thought of Sue’s pumpkin bundt bread, and it’s so funny that you made her bread as well, small blog world. I have been making her bread for a year now and it’s one of my kid’s favorites. I actually just made it last week and it was gone within 2 days. It’s just a super easy throw together bread. I always seem to have the ingredients on hand, so I make it often come winter or fall. I do love your addition of the chocolate gnache topping and I’m sure my kids would love the bread even more with that addition. I don’t think it would qualify as an after school snack if I topped it with gnache though, it would be more like a dessert. I may add the greek yogurt next time as wellI. Why not, right? I was thinking of replacing the vegetable oil with coconut oil. What do you think about that? I’m not a big fan of vegetable oil, but don’t know if the coconut oil would change the flavor of the cake at all. Any thoughts?
xoxo,
Jackie
The coconut oil would change the flavor for one thing and because of the viscosity and melting/solidification issues, I worry that at certain temps the cake would take on one texture and at another, would take on different textures. That is the only issue when baking with coconut oil – that at around 78-79F the oil changes and could impact results. Now I don’t know for this cake but just thinking out loud that texturally, you may have issues. Flavor-wise, you definitely will. I do love the flavor of coc oil & with pumpkin can be great but not everyone will like that. Love that you’ve been making her bread for a year! I wanted to add sour cream, add more extracts, add more chocolate, remove the nuts and change things up…I can never just make a recipe as is :)
Hi Averie. Thanks for insight on coconut oil! I have seen it used so many times in recipes and I just don’t know enough about it to feel comfortable trying it myself. I’m going to try the bundt cake with your additions next!
I seriously just want to dig right into that piece of cake!!! The ganache on top is calling my name:-)
And it called my name too…over and over :)
ohhhh and you did just that: made it with oodles of chocolate.
i love the ganache addition.
I should try making a pumpkin something with ganache shouldn’t I?
I so want your crumb cake! And I have a pumpkin project Im doing today which will render me with about 1/2 can leftover..I think I need to make your cake. And find that football team so I can donate some of this stuff to them :)
My favourite fall/pumpkin recipe is Angela’s pumpkin gingerbread with spiced buttercream. I have made it numerous times, and it always gets rave reviews.
Oh thanks for the reminder on her bread! I really need to make that one and have had my eye on it for year! Glad to hear it’s always a hit!
YUM! This looks heavenly!
That looks fantastic. Perfect holiday dessert too. I have yet to break into my pumpkin stash other than one soup so far. Maybe I’ll have time to come up with something yummy this week.
Look how gorgeous this is! I never was a pumpkin + chocolate believer until recently. But now, I’m all about it. And all about this fantastical bundt cake. Look at all that smooooth + silky chocolate ganache! You are the ganache queen, my dear, and everytime I see a picture of it I want to lick my screen!
That’s my goal – is to make everyone want to do that :)
Pumpkin and chocolate are amazing together. I love that you used chocolate chips in the cake batter AND a chocolate ganache. It looks simply divine!!
I figured may as well really get after it!
I’m really loving pumpkin and chocolate together–it’s getting up there with other classic chocolate combos. I love pumpkin in any form of pie, cake, bar, quick bread, etc. but one of my favorite non dessert ways to use it is a pumpkin “chili” (I don’t use a formal recipe but go with a can of diced tomatoes, 1/2 can pumpkin,, 1/2 of a sautéed onion, a can of any white bean, a very generous TBS of garam masala and salt to taste). Sometimes I add cauliflower or ground poultry and just adjust my liquids and seasonings.
Oh years ago I made a pumpkin soup. It’s really, really ugly :) But it was good (from memory!) and I want to make pumpkin chili!
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2010/10/savory-pumpkin-potato-and-carrot-soup.html
I’ve also wanted to add a pinch of cocoa powder, espresso powder, maple drizzle and maybe coconut oil, to it too! Ive seen lots of chili recipes with cocoa/espresso pinches and they always sound so good to me!
Oooh-thanks for the link to your pumpkin soup–it looks thick and hearty! And a pinch of espresso/cocoa sounds like a nice touch too. Love that idea!
This looks fantastic Averie!
I totally want to make thi swith Greek yogurt! I actually have a budnt pan that I’ve never used. Glad it came out just as you wanted!! Chocolate and pumpkin rock together
Greek yogurt or sour cream would both work and I know you love your pumpkin! Have fun breaking in that Bundt & lmk if you try it!
i baked a pumpkin chocolate bundt cake too! it is such a lovely combination. the luscious glaze on your cake looks fantastic, A!
Look at that chocolate fountain on that cake!! Pure bliss. The cake looks so moist. Want!
It was SUCH a ridic moist cake and yes, chocolate fountain….that’s a good name for what it really was! I wish I could send you a piece!
I like the cake batter of yellow cake best-then again I seem to like the raw form of any baked good best.
The pumpkin bundt looks deeeeeelicious. Make that capital D delicious. I mean Deeeeeelicious.
I should stop rambling now:)
It’s one of the best cakes I’ve eaten in a long time and I’d give it a capital D, too :)