Pumpkin Bundt Cake

What you Need

This recipe is divided into three simple parts: dry ingredients, wet ingredients and the glaze.

I’ve also included and linked suggested tools, i.e. one of my favorite bundt pans.

Wet Ingredients:

• pumpkin purée – I used canned pumpkin, which is thicker and less liquid-y than homemade purée. Also make sure your canned pumpkin is *not* pumpkin pie mix.
• maple syrup – A little bit of maple syrup for a liquid sweetener. I wouldn’t leave it out without making other adjustments to the wet ingredients ratio.
• greek yogurt – Use plain full-fat greek yogurt or skyr for the best results. Sour cream would also work as a substitute.
• eggs – We’re using two large eggs in this recipe that help provide structure and lift. Also, using room temperature eggs will help ensure everything is more easily incorporated.
• oil – I used light olive oil but avocado oil is another good substitute. If using coconut oil, make sure all of your ingredients are room temperature.
• sugar – I used coconut sugar here but brown sugar is a good substitute. Cane sugar also works.

Dry Ingredients

• Whole wheat pastry flour – I like whole wheat pastry flour for cake recipes like this, so they’re more tender than a traditional whole wheat flour. If you’re looking for a gluten-free substitution, you can use 1:1 All-Purpose Gluten Free Baking Flour (such as Bob’s Red Mill).
• cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice – for lots of pumpkin spice and cinnamon flavor.
• baking soda – to lift the cake .
• salt – I always use kosher salt or fine sea salt for baking.

Glaze

For this Pumpkin Bundt Cake I opted for a simple brown butter glaze – big on flavor but pairs well with the pumpkin flavor.

It’s just:

• unsalted sweet cream butter
• confections sugar (also known as powdered sugar)
• vanilla extract
• milk, to help thin the glaze

Another popular icing topping would be a cream cheese glaze, but you’ll have to make sure the cream cheese has been softened before using.

Step-by-Step Directions

Here is a full breakdown of how to make this pumpkin bundt cake recipe, including images.

For the full recipe card that includes ingredient amounts and instructions, scroll towards the end of the post.

Preheat Oven

Make sure you start the oven (350ºF) so by the time your batter is ready, you can pour it into your bundt pan and bake straight away.

You can also spray your bundt cake pan with cooking spray or grease with butter at this time. If you’re using oil to grease the pan, I’d wait until after the flour mixture has been combined so all of your oil doesn’t gather in one spot.

Mix Dry Ingredients

To ensure all of the baking soda and spices gets evenly distributed into the flour, combine all of the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside.

Mix Wet Ingredients

In large bowl whisk together pumpkin, oil, sugar, applesauce and maple syrup. Then whisk in Greek yogurt, eggs and vanilla extract.

You can also use a hand mixer on low to medium speed, or paddle attachment with stand mixer – just scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary to make sure you’re not leaving any ingredients on the bottom.

Combine

Now it’s time to fold the flour into the bowl of wet ingredients, making sure to gently mix until just combined. Your cake batter will be fairly thick.

Bake Cake

Pour batter into a greased bundt pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, OR until cake is lightly browned and inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow cake to rest for 15 minutes while you make the glaze.

TIP: If you feel your cake is browning too much, cover with aluminum foil for the last 5-10 minutes of baking.

Make the Brown Butter Glaze

Add the butter to a small skillet or saucepan and melt over medium heat. Then continue whisking until butter starts to produce a nutty aroma – this can take several minutes, but it’s best to stay right at the skillet because browned butter can go from brown to burnt in a matter of seconds.

Once the butter is browned and you start to see flecks at the bottom of the pan, remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Once cooled, add the butter to a medium bowl with the confectioners sugar, along with the vanilla extract and milk. Check for desired thickness – if you want a thinner glaze, add 1-2 teaspoons of extra liquid at a time.

NOTE: if you want a simple glaze, you can opt for a maple syrup glaze – substitutions and notes in recipe card below.

Flip the Bundt Pan

Now this part can be a little scary, especially if you’ve never worked with a bundt cake pan before. Here’s what I do:

Gently bang pan on counter to loosen cake, then place a cooling rack or plate on top of cake pan and flip over.

Glazing Tips

Place a large round plate under the cooling rack. Use a spoon to glaze the cooled bundt cake, moving in zigzag pattern over the creases in the bundt pan. You may have reserve glaze that catches on the plate, which you can use to go back over the cake if you’d like.

TIP: Make sure to let the cake cool completely before glazing, or the glaze will melt right into the cake.

You can also glaze the entire cake, as I did in the photos.

When should I make this Pumpkin Bundt Cake?

Does one really need a special occasion to make a pumpkin cake? I think not. But if you’re looking for some ideas:

• Birthday Cake, for the pumpkin lover.
• Thanksgiving dessert, for the non-traditional.
• Holiday brunch, because pumpkin isn’t just for fall!
• Weekend baking activity, because why not?