If you are still thinking about your holiday desserts, I have a delicious option for you to consider! This ooey gooey pumpkin cake is my favorite.
This is sort of like a cake meets a pumpkin pie. You get the creamy pumpkin, cream cheesy filling on top of a yellow cake. Seriously delicious and so simple to make! This is really heavenly right out of the oven- it melts in your mouth.
In our home, we aren’t huge fans of pies. We prefer cookies or cakes or ice cream to pie so for Thanksgiving we actually don’t have pumpkin pie. I feel a little like I am missing out though since pumpkin pie is such a classic Thanksgiving dessert. This cake has been a perfect compromise. You still get that delicious pumpkin flavor that is warm and gooey and the yummy cake underneath instead of a traditional pie crust.
This recipe comes from Paula Deen so prepare yourself for a lot of butter. I have tried reducing the butter in this recipe and haven’t been as happy with the results. You can certainly tweak it a bit to make it healthier but honestly we have this once a year and enjoy every darn bite so I think it is worth the calories. If you want to reduce the amount of sugar just note the batter might be a little too thin to set properly.
This is a sweeter dessert but I do not care for anything that is too sweet and this cake doesn’t bother me at all.
Ready to get baking? Here is the recipe:
- I package yellow cake mix or spice cake mix
- 1 egg
- 8 tablespoons melted butter
- 8oz cream cheese, softened
- 15oz pumpkin puree
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 8 tablespoons melted butter
- 16oz powdered sugar (about 3½ cups)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add cake mix, egg and butter to the bowl of a mixer and combine.
- Prepare a 13x9 inch baking dish with butter and pour cake mix into the bottom of the dish.
- Using your fingers or the back of a spoon press the mixture into an even layer. Set aside.
- Now mix the cream cheese until light and fluffy- adding the pumpkin and continuing to mix until creamy.
- Add eggs, vanilla and butter until incorporated.
- Beat in the powdered sugar and spices until the entire mixture is creamy.
- Pour over the top of the cake and bake for 40-50 min.
- The center will be gooey- do not overbake.
- Serve with fresh whipped cream or a light dusting of powdered sugar.
I can’t even count how many times I have made this cake- it has been a family favorite for years. A few notes that are very important to get a perfect result:
Make sure you use a 13×9 dish. I have used a slightly smaller casserole dish in the past and there was way too much filling and the cake overflowed disastrously in the oven.
You do want to watch the cake carefully toward the end of baking time- the center should be slightly gooey as it will continue to bake once you remove it from the oven. If you overbake, the cake portion at the bottom of the dish will burn.
I like this cake warm from the oven- it just melts in your mouth. If you prefer chilled desserts, no problem! Pop this guy in the fridge.
Please come back and let me know what you think of this one. This recipe has over 2000 5 star reviews on Food Network so I am hoping you like it as much as we do.
Recipe adapted from Paula Deen
Here are a few other recipes you might enjoy:
The best sweet potato casserole
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