This pumpkin caramel cake is a layered soft pumpkin cake, with maple cream cheese frosting, and salted caramel filling and drip! This cake even stays soft while cold!
This pumpkin caramel cake is perfect for celebrating in the fall and still indulging in your love of caramel! It is a delicious cake with caramel inside and out, that still reminds you why pumpkin season is so great. Pumpkin and caramel are a delicious combination that should be used more often as I discovered with these caramel pumpkin cheesecake bars.
Here is why pumpkin caramel cake is so good
This pumpkin cake combines a soft moist cake texture with the incredible flavors of pumpkin and homemade caramel.
- Soft texture: This cake is moist and has that perfect texture that makes you want to keep eating.
- Pumpkin flavor: Nothing says fall better than pumpkin desserts. This cake celebrates pumpkin flavor and has a great balance of pumpkin spices.
- Homemade caramel: Homemade salted caramel makes everything better. This pumpkin cake is no exception, as it is SO good with the caramel filling and drip.
This cake has such great flavors, and the best thing is that they are perfectly balanced so you can fully enjoy them all!
Tips for making caramel pumpkin cake
Here are my tips, so yours turns out like this recipe!
- Tip 1: Watch the pumpkin moisture. The reason this recipe calls for 8 paper towels to absorb the extra moisture because pumpkin puree has LOTS of moisture.
- Tip 2: Don't compact your flour. Scoop your flour into your measuring cup with a spoon. If you press you measuring cup in and press it against the side to get a scoop of flour you can compact extra flour into the cup. This can lead to a dry cake.
- Tip 3: Room temperature dairy is important. If you skip the step where you bring your sour cream and eggs to room temperature they can be more difficult to mix into your batter or frosting smoothly. If you are on a time crunch I highly recommend placing the eggs or container of sour cream in warm water to get them warmer faster rather than skipping this step.
- Tip 4: Be patient with the salted caramel. While cooking the caramel on the stove it may be tempting to turn the heat up, but caramel cooks very quickly once all the sugar crystals are melted. If you use a higher heat it is easy to burn.
How to assemble the pumpkin caramel cake
First, place the first cake layer down on your work area. Spread ¾ths cup of frosting on top. Then, you will pipe a border around the edge of the cake. This frosting border will keep the caramel layer from running out of the side of the cake when the next layer is placed on top of it.
After spreading the caramel on the first cake layer place the second layer of cake on top. At this point you will frost the cake with a light layer of frosting and place it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
This is a crumb coat, but we are doing this step after each layer to make sure the caramel is locked inside the cake. If it is too warm or thin it can squeeze out, and chilling it prevents that.
Repeat this process with the final cake layer. After it has chilled for 10 minutes, frost the cake with a full layer of frosting. Freeze it one more time before adding the caramel. This will help prevent the caramel drip from running all over.
When doing the caramel drip, start with pouring the caramel in the middle of the cake and spread it towards the edges with an offset spatula to let it drip down naturally.
If the caramel is too thick, heat it in the microwave for 15 second intervals until it is a pourable consistency.
Caramel Pumpkin Cake FAQ's
Can the cake layers be made ahead of time?
Yes you can make the cake ahead of time! Once the cake layers are done cooling, wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Then, freeze up to 30 days. Pull them out 1 hour before decorating.
Can I use another size cake pan?
Yes you can. You can use 9 inch cake pans, but it will be thinner. You can also use 6 inch cake pans for thicker layers.
Can this be made into cupcakes?
Yes it can! This recipe will make roughly 24 pumpkin caramel cupcakes with chocolate frosting. You can halve the recipe for 12 cupcakes. You will cut holes in the center of the cupcake and fill with caramel. Top them with frosting.
How can I store the pumpkin caramel cake?
Store this cake in an airtight container like a cake carrier. Store in the fridge up to 5 days.
You can freeze the cake in individual slices. Place the cake slices in an airtight container and freeze up to 30 days.
For more pumpkin recipes, check out my
- Pumpkin Oatmeal Cream Pies
- Mini Pumpkin Pies
- Pumpkin Cupcakes
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Carrot Cake
Make sure to leave a STAR REVIEW if you loved this recipe! Make sure to tag me on Instagram @stephaniesweettreats. To get more ideas follow me on Pinterest.
📖 Recipe
Pumpkin Caramel Cake
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake
- 3 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 3 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon Pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 1 cup Oil canola or vegetable oil
- 2 cups Pumpkin puree 1 ½ cans of pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ cups White granulated sugar
- ¼ cup Brown sugar packed light or dark
- 4 Large eggs room temperature
- 2 tablespoon Maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup Sour cream room temperature or greek yogurt
Salted Caramel
- 2 cups White granulated sugar
- ½ cup Unsalted butter room temperature and cubed
- 1 cup Heavy cream room temperature
- 2 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 cups Unsalted butter room temperature
- 12 oz Cream cheese room temperature
- 6 cups Powdered sugar sifted
- 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoon Maple syrup
Instructions
Pumpkin Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ Spray three 8-inch cake pans with baking spray. Line the bottoms of the pan with parchment paper circles and spray again. Set aside
- Spread the pumpkin puree on a large plate. Use 8 pieces of paper towels to soak up the moisture from the pumpkin. Start with two at a time and press it into the puree. Do this 4 total times.2 cups Pumpkin puree
- In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and nutmeg. Set aside.3 cups All-purpose flour, 2 teaspoon Baking powder, 1 teaspoon Baking soda, 1 teaspoon Salt, 3 teaspoon Ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoon Pumpkin pie spice, ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- In a large bowl, mix the oil, sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla, maple syrup, eggs, and sour cream together.1 cup Oil, 1 ½ cups White granulated sugar, ¼ cup Brown sugar, 4 Large eggs, 2 tablespoon Maple syrup, 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract, 1 cup Sour cream
- Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour the batter evenly into the three cake pans.
- Bake for 18-23 minutes. Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Let the hot cakes sit in the pans for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Let the cakes cool completely before decorating.
Salted Caramel
- This should be made ahead of time, or when the cakes are baking.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add in the sugar. Let the sugar start to melt before mixing with a whisk. Once more of it starts melting, keep mixing until all sugar crystals are melted.2 cups White granulated sugar
- Let the sugar turn amber in color, this take less than 30 seconds once the sugar is melted. Watch it carefully. Remove from heat. Add in half of the cubed butter, mix it in until the butter is melted. Add in the rest of the butter and mix this in.½ cup Unsalted butter
- Add half of the cream in, this will bubble up a lot, mix until combined. Add in the rest of the cream and mix. Add in the vanilla and salt. It is okay if any sugar is stuck on the bottom of the pot.1 cup Heavy cream, 2 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon Salt
- Return the caramel back to the heat. Let it come to a bubbling simmer. Let it bubble for 2 minutes, make sure to continuously stir so it doesn't burn. This thickens the caramel for the filling.
- Pour into a glass measuring cup and let it cool completely. To speed up this process, you can place it in the fridge.
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large bowl, sift the powdered sugar. Set aside.6 cups Powdered sugar
- Using a mixer, beat the butter on high speed for 2 minutes. Add in the cream cheese and mix for 1 minute. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl with a baking rubber spatula. If any butter or cream cheese chunks remain, beat for another 30 seconds.2 cups Unsalted butter, 12 oz Cream cheese
- Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined. Add in the rest of the powdered sugar and mix it in.
- Add in the vanilla, salt, and maple syrup. Mix on high speed until smooth.1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract, 2 tablespoon Maple syrup, Pinch of salt
Assemble
- Place a small amount of frosting on the board you are decorating on.
- Place the first cake layer down, spread ¾ths cup of frosting over the cake. Place some frosting in a piping bag, pipe a border around the edge of the cake. I did two borders, so the caramel won't escape.
- Spread a ½ cup of caramel in the middle of the cake. It needs to be pourable, if too stiff, heat in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Place the second cake layer on top.
- Spread a light layer of frosting around the sides of the cake. Freeze for 10 minutes. This is the crumb coat layer of the cake, it will lock the frosting on the cake, and no caramel will leak through.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3. The last cake layer needs to be placed with the bottom of the cake facing up. Repeat step 4.
- Frost the rest of the cake. Freeze for 10 minutes before adding the caramel drip.
- Again, the caramel needs to be pourable, heat in the microwave. Otherwise, it won't drip down the side of the cake. Pour half of the caramel on top of the cake, use an offset spatula to press the caramel to the edges of the cake so it drips down naturally. Add the rest of the caramel to the top. Freeze for 10 minutes to set the caramel.
Lilly Samerson says
Hey there! I dont live near a place where I can get pumpkin puree, i recently ordered and only got 1 can. I want to make this cake tomorrow, how can I only use 1 can of pumpkin puree but still keep that moist, pumpkin flavour alive? Thank you so much.
HEATHER says
I made this cake for my daughters birthday. I had difficulty with the caramel escaping from the layers and had quite the mess. However, once cut and served it was great! I even served this to a non pumpkin person and they LOVED it! Thank you for another great recipe!