The Ultimate Pumpkin Cake
Brown Butter in both the cake and cream cheese frosting, a drizzle of cinnamon caramel sauce and an adornment of golden marzipan mini pumpkins, elevate the fall favorite to another level with caramel and spice undertones in every bite.
BIG claim huh? THE ULTIMATE. Couldn’t agree more with you.
I don’t think I’m even legit to use such braggy adjectives in my titles just yet.
Well for starters, my blog is only 5 days old. Which makes me the least credible food blogger out there. I hear ya.
Second, I’m Egyptian, which means that until 3 years ago, the only pumpkin-y dessert I had the pleasure to meet was the infamous butternut squash béchamel casserole, that every other aunt in Egypt makes.
Wait…that wasn’t even pumpkin. But close enough.
If you feel like I’ve convinced you to leave already, I can’t blame you. But I strongly encourage you not to or you’ll be missing out on one of the most delicious cakes you could possibly eat.
You see, I was sitting there minding my own business, enjoying peace of mind, not knowing that pumpkin desserts are even a thing. And then Pinterest comes into my life and turns all that upside down.
Fall just barely starts to peak through, and a flood of pumpkin this and pumpkin that drowns your Pinterest feed. You know how it works.
I had to see what the fuss is all about.
Pinterest addicts would agree that it just has mystical ways of making us do and want stuff that we don’t need. But in my case crave. All.The.Time.
After some extensive canned pumpkin puree hunting in Cairo’s supermarkets, my eyes lit up as I held a can in my hand.
Trying to get past the fact the it tasted like baby food in its raw form, I mixed up a pumpkin cake batter, baked it and was counting the minutes for it to cool so I could attack.
First impression: Eeeew!
The cake was mushy, oily, too moist in the worst soggy way and still tasted like baby food.
So…Challenge Accepted!
I was determined to find a recipe for the Ultimate Pumpkin Cake…moist without being dense or soggy, fluffy, perfectly spiced with the warm flavors of the fall, with an incredible frosting and sauce that makes you want to go for seconds.
This cake is just that and more.
After trying out some of the most popular recipes out there for pumpkin cake, I took my favorite elements from each one and smushed them together to make a pumpkin cake worthy of the title. No offense to other pumpkin cakes out there, I love you all, but this just happens to be our favorite of the bunch.
Its just extra special.
Here’s what makes this cake so awesome:
- Brown Butter: Most pumpkin cake recipes use oil, because its known for keeping cakes so moist. Well, Pumpkin cakes are generally already moist, sometimes even unpleasantly so to the extent of sogginess, because of the the pumpkin puree. So butter it is, and if you’re gonna use butter, might as well brown it. Because browned butter is 100 times more delicious that plain ‘ol butter. Its has the most intoxicating nutty aroma and adds incomparable deep tones of caramel to baked goods. Brown butter is used twice here. Once in the cake and another in the frosting. So its a double hit of rich caramel notes.
- Dark Brown Sugar: Brown sugar is basically just sugar with molasses added to it so it kinda tastes like caramel. Make that dark, and it will lend an even more caramel-y flavor to cakes than light brown sugar or just plain white sugar.
- Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting: Using brown butter instead of regular butter, elevates the taste of the cream cheese frosting, making it taste caramel-y. This frosting is so phenomenally good and pipable that I’ve dedicated an entire post for it.
- Cinnamon Caramel Sauce: You know that gooey inside center of a cinnamon roll that we all fight over…yeah well that sauce tastes just like that!
- Mini Golden Pumpkin Marzipan Toppers: These are just there for the cute factor. The cake will still taste just as delicious without them but they just add a touch of elegance.
The mini pumpkins are as easy as 1,2,3, but add to that 6 more steps:)))
Seriously though, they’re so simple to make. Just take a look below.
- You start by shaping the marzipan into a ball.
- Make a round indentation into the top of the ball using anything you have like…your pinky:) I just happen to have a ball tool.
- Smooth out the edges around the indentation so they’re more round and less rigid.
- Using a toothpick, skewer or end of a thin paint brush, press in vertical lines (about 8) from top to bottom.
- Using the ball tool or your finger, smooth out the line to blend with its surrounding.
- Roll a small piece of marzipan to look like a pumpkin’s stem.
- Add a drop of water to the indentation, which will help the stem stick.
- Place the stem into the indentation and press gently to adhere.
- Using a paint brush (dedicated for kitchen use only) brush on some gold lustre dust to color.
Now onto that glorious cake. Shall we?
To get a sleek look with this bare sided cake, you’ll want to use a piping bag with a round tip and pipe a dame all around the edges.
Fill the dame with more frosting then carefully place the cake layer over it. Repeat.
After that, just drizzle away with that caramel sauce.
Can we pause here for a second?
Because this sauce should not be passed by that easily.
Its a super easy caramel sauce made by just dumping butter, brown sugar and heavy cream in a saucepan, bringing it to boil, then spicing it up with a touch of cinnamon and you’ve got yourself a cinnamon roll in liquid form.
The combination of perfectly moist and flavorful brown butter pumpkin cake along with brown butter cream cheese frosting, and cinnamon caramel sauce is dynamite.
I urge you to do yourself a favor and make this cake before fall ends. Because after that it will all be eggnog and peppermint on Pinterest and this cake will feel like…so last year. And who am I to argue with Pinterest.
The Ultimate Pumpkin Cake

Brown Butter in both the cake and cream cheese frosting, a drizzle of cinnamon caramel sauce and an adornment of golden marzipan mini pumpkins, elevate the fall favorite to another level with caramel and spice undertones in every bite.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3 1/2 cups (420g) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoons salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3/4 teaspoon ginger
- 1 1/4 cups (284g) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (200g) dark brown sugar
- 4 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 cups (454g) canned pumpkin puree, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
For the Cinnamon Caramel Sauce:
- 1/4 cup (57g) unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed brown sugar, light or dark
- 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
For the frosting:
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Place the butter in a light colored skillet or saucepan over medium heat until melted.
- Continue cooking, swirling the pan constantly or stirring with a heatproof rubber spatula, until the butter is dark golden brown and has a mezmerising nutty aroma.
- Transfer to a small bowl, cover and place in the freezer for about 45 minutes or until it solidifies but is still soft and pliable. If it gets too solid and cold, give it a quick zap in the microwave to loosen but not melted.
- Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).
- Line three 8 or 9inch pans with parchment paper, then spray with a non-stick cooking spray or butter and flour it.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and set aside.
- In another medium bowl, combine together the pumpkin puree, buttermilk, vanilla and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or handheld mixer) beat the browned butter on medium high speed until creamy, about 1 minute.
- Gradually add both sugars and cream together until lightened in both color and texture, about 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- On low speed, add one third of the flour mixture, followed by half of the pumpkin mixture, then another third of the flour mixture, followed by the remaining pumpkin mixture and ending with the flour mixture, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Mix just until combined. Do not overbeat the batter.
- Divide evenly among the prepared pans. Bake until the cake's center springs back when lightly touched, a toothpick comes out of the center clean and the cake starts to pull away from the sides, 30 to 35 minutes.
- Let cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
- While the cakes are baking and cooling, prepare the frosting and sauce (recipe below).
- When ready to frost, place 1 cake layer on a turntable or cake platter and using a piping bag fitted a large round tip, pipe all around the edges of the cake to create a dame.
- Fill the dame with frosting, then place the second cake layer and repeat with frosting and layering.
- Place the cake in the freezer for 20-30 minutes until the top layer of frosting hardens. This will help protect it from smearing when adding the caramel sauce.
- Pour the caramel sauce on top of the cake, letting it drip around the side. You might need the help of an offset spatula to help spreading it.
To make the sauce:
- In a saucepan, melt the butter, brown sugar, cream and salt over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or heatproof rubber spatula.
- Bring to boil and simmer for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the cinnamon.
- Let cool to room temperature before pouring over the cake.
Recipe Notes
- Make sure you bake this cake all way, as it has the tendency to fool you into thinking its done while its not. If the toothpick comes out clean but the center doesn't spring back when touched, then its probably under baked, so give it a few more minutes in the oven. Make sure that the center of the cake springs back when touched to get a fully baked fluffy interior.
- You could bake the cake layers a day in advance, then wrap each layer separately in plastic wrap and store in a zipper lock bag or airtight container until ready to frost.
- The frosting for this cake is enough to fill and cover the top of the cake, while leaving the sides bare. If you wish to cover the sides, then I'd recommend you double the frosting recipe.
- The cinnamon caramel sauce is just enough to cover the top of the cake and drizzle on the sides just like in the pictures. If you'd like extra to spoon over the cake slices during serving, then double the recipe.
- If you can't find canned pumpkin puree, you can make your own following this method. Pumpkins labeled 'sugar' or 'pie' pumpkins, are ideal here, but if you can't find either, large pumpkins similar to those used for jack-o-lanterns can be used. If using large pumpkins, be sure to strain the cooked puree for about 2 hours, as it tends to pack more moisture that other kinds. Any winter squash, like butternut squash will work here too!
Cinnamon Caramel Sauce slightly adapted from Cooks Illustrated
Measurements Note: All recipes of this site have been developed using weight measurements. Although US volume measurements have been included for your convenience, it is highly encouraged that you weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale to get the best possible results. Due to the sensitive nature of baking, kitchen scales are proven to yield more accurate and consistent results than measuring cups. Enjoy!
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This cake looks absolutely DELICIOUS – can’t wait to try it! Quick question (two actually): Where did you find the canned pumpkin? And is “Rayeb” the buttermilk you used?
Thank you Yara! I really hope you give it a shot; its worth it! Also thanks for reminding to write down the sources for canned pumpkin puree in Cairo. I just added that to the Notes section of the recipe. I found it at both Miriam and Kimo supermarkets in Maadi. Check out the Notes in the recipe for their addresses.
Yes buttermilk is just laban rayeb. This recipe will use half of the 200ml container.
Bito, You never fail to impress me…. Seems Molto Delicious,, Yummy Yummy.., The Photography is vey impressive , Congrats.
Thanks Dady! As always you’re flattering me with your sweetest, most uplifting comments:)
CleoB, seriously I never thought I’d enjoy reading recepies. Simply WOW!!!
Getting you to read recipes is a real miracle!! Stay tuned for more Nutella recipes. That time I think you’re gonna want to start baking yourself.
Tasbih.. this is wonderful on all levels…keep it up! First time I read about the brown butter tip.. will give it a try.. also how do you prepare the pans?
Ingy I really love getting feedback from such an amazing baker like yourself. I pale in comparison to your baking capabilities. Brown butter is perhaps the most amazing kitchen discovery ever!! Adds a wonderful depth of flavor and nutty, caramel-y undertones to just about anything. The smell alone is intoxicating. Just be careful not get it too dark or it will smell and taste burnt.
For preparing the pan, I usually spray Pam right on the bottom of the pan, then cover that with parchment paper then spray again with more Pam. When I don’t have Pam on hand, I grease the bottom of the pan then add the parchment, then grease again and flour it.
Oh my god this cake looks incredible! Loving the mini pumpkins especially… definitely something I will be making in the next few weeks!
Thalia you always have the nicest things to say. I really appreciate it coming from a fabulous blogger like you. I will never forget that you were from my first supporters ever since my first post. Means a lot!
what a gorgeous cake!
Hi Dina! I’m terribly sorry, I just found that your comment got caught in spam. I usually answer back comments as soon as I can, but I just saw yours now among others. Thank you for your sweet compliment:)
Congrats on your new blog!! You don’t seem like a newbie at all :)! Your food photography is simply stunning! As a chocoholic, I am drooling over the nutella pops and this heavenly cake! I hope to try the cake recipe soon! Looking forward to more of your posts.
http://mouthfuloflife.com/
Thanks Anjie. How sweet of you to think so. Believe me I have my fair share of horrible photos, I just only post the nice ones:) I really hope you try this cake before we move on to the holiday baking season. Your blog is so lovely too; I really enjoyed browsing through it.
Just found you from your comment on How Sweet it Is…thought I’d check out your cake, which is fabulous. Welcome to the freshman class of new food bloggers. I just started mine at the end of September. Best of luck to you! Your first entries are truly amazing and a visual feast! I’m pinning that cake!
Ramona you’re comment is so uplifting and just what a needed at a time when I’m trying to figure this whole blogging thing out! You just made me smile from ear to ear:) I just checked your blog and I’m impressed at how you were able to fill your blog up in less than two months without compromising quality. Your photos looking stunning and your food is making me drool. Good luck to you too:)
You’re too kind. My first posts were pretty rough, but I’m learning more each day. Feel free to email me if you ever need to vent or share…
So I was musing aloud trying to figure out what to do for Thanksgiving. No clue where I will be, but I know I should probably bring something…
I grew up not celebrating holidays, so these questions always leave me in a conundrum. Regular menu items bore me, however, I know better than to experiment right before the big day. I wanted to do something with pumpkin, but I don’t like it in pies. A novice when it comes to this strange vegetable, I found myself dumbstruck as to what to do. (I had the same concerns about the texture, and how it would affect consistency) Then I found this post. Of course, why not make a cake?! (Sure there are cupcakes, but I didn’t want to make those either). This is going to be perfect, and it’s all because of you! I’ve never had a desire to follow a baking/cooking blog/website until now. Four days old, and you’re already producing these kinds of results? Never leave us. NEVER
Sincerely,
Me and the rest of the Interwebs
P.S. Currently obsessed with creating a butternut squash béchamel casserole (lasagna) sometime in the near future. Had no idea it was so popular in Egypt. #themoreyouknow
Wow Kris!! That comment…just wow! Thank you sooooo much. That just made my day…no probably my week! Hearing that someone actually has the intention to try one of my recipes, is just music to my ears. Let alone follow what I have to share here. Thanks for trusting me. This cake is a real show stopper and I hope it makes your Thanksgiving a very special one. All those who tasted it were all over it, even those who were trying something pumpkin-y for the first time, so that’s saying something. Please make sure you read the notes at the bottom of the recipe before starting because you really don’t want to undertake it. Its somehow a bit deceiving. Also to take some load off of the day you’ll be serving it, you can make the cake layers a day in advance, wrap each layer separately in plastic wrap and store in a zipper lock bag or airtight container at room temp till the next day. However, I like to make the frosting fresh on the day of.
Our butternut squash béchamel casserole is so good too, but its a dessert dish, more like the sweet potato casserole popular in North America. I’m gonna have to share it with here with you one day. Gotta call the aunt of mine for the recipe:)))
Please let me know if you have any other questions and I’d love to know how it turns out:)
Good Luck:)
Gorgeous!! And sounds delicious 🙂
Is it 1 1/4 sticks or cups of butter?
Thanks Nasimah! I wish I could say that it’s only 1 1/4 sticks but it’s 1 1/4 cups
I tried making this but into cupcakes last Thursday for a family friend’s Thanksgiving Dinner, it tasted absolutely DELICIOUS!
Thank you so much for these amazing recipes!
xx
That’s great to hear! I’m so happy you loved it. You’re the first one to report back about this one; thanks for letting me. Also thanks for letting all of us know that they work well as cupcakes. Never tried them as cupcakes so I was curious to how they’d turn out.
Cleob I love ur recipes and I want carrot cake next time Plz 🙂
Thank you so much Sarah:) I love carrot cake too and I have a great recipe for it. Will definitely have to share it with you very soon, but sadly it will be very difficult next time, as I’m already working on and photographing other recipes for the posts coming up the next couple of weeks. Promise to keep it in mind as soon as I’m done posting them.
Thanks for letting me know what you’d like to see here:)
Wow, just wow! I just stumbled across your blog & fell in love with all your beautiful recipes. I’m so excited to try this out, I don’t even care that it’s summer 😉
Your pipable cream cheese frosting is genius, I just discovered the wonders of brown butter so I’m super excited to try this cake and all it’s delicious accompaniments!
Thank you for stopping by:) I’m so happy you like it here. I’m totally on board with you; pumpkin should be all year round!
I really hope you like this cake as much I do:)
Hello! I just took these cakes out of he oven and the smell is divine!! I’m just wondering if I’m baking them a day in advance do I let them cool to room temp and then wrap in plastic wrap or wrap them up warm? I’m in love with your site and so excited to try these…thanks for sharing your recipes!!
Heather 🙂
Hi Heather!
I’m so sorry if my reply is too late; time difference EEEEEEK? I was long asleep when you sent it.
But anyway here’s the answer to your question. Allow them to cool to room temperature first then wrap in plastic wrap and better yet store in an airtight container so they stay nice and moist. Wrapping them while still warm will cause condensation which could make the cake soggy and dense. I hope you loooooove this cake❤️ FYI I just made it yesterday swapping sweet potato puree for the pumpkin and it was divine.
I’m so happy you like it here and its an honor to have you trying the recipes.
Hello Cleobuttera!
I just wanted to ask, how much is in 1 can of pumpkin puree in grams? Thanks!
Or in the measurement of cups!
Oh, so sorry, I misread, I missed the word ‘cups’. Thank you!
Awesome! 2 cups by weight would measure out to be 1 pound or 450 grams. Enjoy?
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Hi Tasbih I jut did the cake and it turned out amazing everyone loved it so much I had to do another one because it was all eaten up , I halved the recipe and covered the cake with cinnamon flavor poured fondant icing it was really good. Thank You
Mmmmmm…cinnamon flavored poured fondant??? That sounds incredible! I’m so happy to hear that it was such a hit.
Hi Tasbih,
I have been wanting to make this’s for a long time and I finally have a dinner party today. So I’m in the process of making it. Can’t wait to eat it. And the brown butter was easier to make than expected. I thought I was just gonna burn it. Haha.
Just a small question, in the instructions for the cake, in step 10, you mention to add the sugars and cream. What cream? Haha. I read over the ingredients a 100x and can’t find what cream you are referring to.
Thanks 🙂
Hi Nour! Best of luck on your cake. Seems like it’s all going great already. I really hope you love it.
About the cream…you’re right there’s no cream. I’m sorry if my instructions confused you. What I mean by “cream” is that you mix the butter and sugar together until creamy…hence the phrase “cream together.” I hope that helps!
Happy baking ?
Haha. Yes. That makes more sense. Sorry. A rookie in the baking world. Thanks so much for your quick reply. ?
Hi Tasbih,
This looks amazing! I’m thinking I need to try it out for Thanksgiving. I have a question about the ginger… is it dry or fresh? And I didn’t see it listed in the recipe only the ingredients, unless I missed it…
Thank you!
Tori
Hi Tori! Hope you love this as much as we do! It’s dried ground ginger. Didn’t realize that I forgot to add it to the instructions. Thanks for pointing it out. I’ll fix it ?
Thank you for the quick response! Can’t wait to try it! 🙂
This cake is incredible. It’s so incredible my daughter wanted it for her wedding cake. We had a little trouble stacking it because it was so heavy (that’s because it is soooooo moist), so if you do stack it make sure you use a very sturdy support system. I did 3 layer tiers: 12, 10, 8 and 6. I made a semi naked cake. Everyone raved and raved about the flavor of the cake and the frosting. Delicious. Thank you for this fabulous recipe. It made her day extra special.
Mikel your message is overflowing my heart with joy and tickling my emotions. The happiness I feel, knowing that this cake made someone’s special day a little sweeter, is indescribable. I’m so glad it was loved by everyone, especially the bride. Thank you so much for trusting my recipe and for coming back to share your feedback.
Hello Tasbih!
I prepared the cake on Saturday and, although it was very tasty, it crumbled very badly, so much so that I had to eat it with a spoon.
Do you have any idea what might have happened? I’d like to do it again, but first I want your advice.
Thank you!
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I’ve made this cake twice this past week. It’s fantastic! Thanks for the recipe.
hello cleo, I tried the pumpkin cake and it was awesome. super moist i was scared it would be suggy. i have an issue tho, the cake is super sweet. Is there any way i can reduce the sugar level?
I made this, and it was one of the best cakes (not pumpkin cakes, but all cakes) ever. It is sooo good and moist and flavorful. I used cake strips and the cakes came out perfectly flat, and I did a naked frosting job on it with rosettes on top. Everyone said it was beautiful and beyond delicious! This is my new Autumn go-to cake. Thank you!