This pumpkin snack cake is moist, fluffy, lightly sweet, packed with pumpkin flavor and fall spices, and topped with an easy pumpkin spice cream cheese frosting. It’s the perfect dessert for pumpkin lovers and a great alternative to pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving.
Ingredients
- Pumpkin puree – gives this cake its signature pumpkin flavor while keeping it moist.
- Unsweetened applesauce – adds natural sweetness while also reducing the amount of oil needed.
- Canola oil – for a little fat and extra moistness.
- Brown sugar – lends a caramel-like flavor to the cake. You can use light or dark brown sugar. Dark variety adds a richer flavor, while light is a little more mild.
- White whole wheat flour – for a little extra punch of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients (over all purpose flour).
- Fall spices – this cake is seasoned with pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg.
- Eggs – for binding and thickening the batter.
- Vanilla extract – for a hint of sweet vanilla flavor.
- â…“ less fat cream cheese – forms the base of the cream cheese frosting. 1/3 less fat cuts back on the fat without sacrificing the creaminess.
- Butter – we prefer plant butter to cut back on the fat, but you can also use unsalted butter.
- Powdered sugar – to sweeten and stiffen the cream cheese frosting.
Tips for Making Pumpkin Snack Cake
- Soften the cream cheese and butter – take the cream cheese and butter out of the refrigerator while the cake bakes so that it can soften at room temperature. This will help yield smooth, airy frosting.
- Don’t overmix the batter – this batter is a little thicker and it’s easy to overmix. Fold in dry ingredients until just incorporated and there are no large lumps or streaks of flour.
- Smooth the batter – use a spatula to smooth the cake batter into a single layer to prevent dips and to help the cake bake evenly.
- Don’t rely on time for baking – all ovens bake a little differently, so we recommend using time as a guideline. Set the timer a few minutes less than the 30 minute bake time and test for doneness by sticking a knife in the center of the cake. It should come out clean with a few wet crumbs sticking to it (not streaks of wet batter). Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire cooling rack.
- Cool the cake before frosting – for the best results, cool the cake for several hours before frosting. This will help the frosting set up properly and not melt.
How to Make Pumpkin Snack Cake
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9″x13″ baking dish.
Mix together the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl.
In a stand mixer, whisk together the pumpkin puree, applesauce, oil, eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix to incorporate.
Spoon the cake batter into the prepared baking dish. Smooth with a spatula. Cook for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean (a few crumbs can be sticking to it). Cool for 45 minutes to an hour on a cooling rack before frosting.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed for 1 minute, or until fluffy.
Add the vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. Beat on high speed until incorporated.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the powdered sugar (about ½ cup at a time for the first 2 cups). Increase the speed to high for an additional 2 minutes, or until the frosting is light and fluffy.We used about 2 cups of powdered sugar to get to our desired frosting thickness (which is a little runnier). Continue to add powdered sugar until you achieve the desired consistency (3 cups will get you a thicker, fluffier frosting).
If you’re not a big cream cheese frosting fan, try out our fall-worthy brown sugar buttercream frosting recipe. Trust us, you’ll love how fluffy it is!
Once the cake is cooled, spread the frosting out on the cake. Serve and enjoy!
Let us know what you think about this recipe for pumpkin snack cake by dropping a comment and/or rating on the recipe card. Also, please consider sharing this recipe on social media/Pinterest if you enjoyed this recipe (we greatly appreciate it)! đŸ’•
How to Store
- Room temperature – store unfrosted cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator – store frosted cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Snack cakes are typically sheet cakes (single layer cakes) with a thin layer of icing or no icing at all.
We don’t recommend using fresh pumpkin in this recipe since the moisture content is typically higher than that of canned pumpkin. If you do use fresh pumpkin, blot out excess moisture with paper towel.
The moisture content of canned pumpkin can vary considerably across brands and even across different cans of the same brand. This batter is supposed to be a bit thicker, but if it seems too thick, add a few tablespoons of water to thin the batter slightly (refer to pictures for consistency).
Check out our other fall-inspired sweet treats:
- Cherry Cobbler
- Blackberry Cobbler
- Dark Chocolate Cranberry Walnut Cookies
- Easy Apple Muffins
- Baked Apple Cider Donuts
Pumpkin Snack Cake
Equipment
- 9×13 inch glass baking dish
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake
- 2 c white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 eggs
- 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree (about 2 cups)
- ½ c unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ c canola oil
- ¾ c light or dark brown sugar
- 1½ tsp vanilla extract
Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz â…“ less fat cream cheese, softened
- â…“ c plant or unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2-4 c powdered sugar (as needed)
Instructions
Pumpkin Snack Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9"x13" baking dish.
- Mix together the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl.
- In a stand mixer, whisk together the pumpkin puree, applesauce, oil, eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix to incorporate.
- Spoon the cake batter into the prepared baking dish. Smooth with a spatula. Cook for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean (a few crumbs can be sticking to it). Cool for 45 minutes to an hour on a cooling rack before frosting.
Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed for 1 minute, or until fluffy.
- Add the vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. Beat on high speed until incorporated.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the powdered sugar (about ½ cup at a time for the first 2 cups). Increase the speed to high for an additional 2 minutes, or until the frosting is light and fluffy.We used about 2 cups of powdered sugar to get to our desired frosting thickness (which is a little runnier). Continue to add powdered sugar until you achieve the desired consistency (3 cups will get you a thicker, fluffier frosting).
- Once the cake is cooled, spread the frosting out on the cake. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- The cake batter may be thicker depending on the brand of pumpkin used. Brands and cans of pumpkin vary in moisture content and your batter will be thicker or runnier based on this.
- If you prefer a thinner frosting you can add 1-2 tablespoons of milk, cut out the butter, or reduce the amount of powdered sugar. Each option yields thinner frosting, but will differ slightly in taste.
- Not a cream cheese frosting fan? Try this with our brown sugar buttercream.
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