Nothing says fall more than a pumpkin pie. This spice sheet cake with pumpkin frosting tastes just like a pumpkin pie! The spice cake is moist, full of different spices and tastes way better than a box mix! It is topped with pumpkin cream cheese frosting, which together makes a pumpkin pie but in cake form!
How To Make The Best Spice Sheet Cake
I think that sheet cakes are super under rated. This cake is fast to make and even quicker to decorate. However, it tastes just as good a fancy layered cake. You can also quickly cut this cake up for parties. It is a win-win!
The key to this cake is all the spices! This cake has all ground spices like ginger, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. This cake is for sure NOT lacking flavor!
Start by combing all of the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl. Put the dry ingredients right into the mixing bowl you are using with a mixer. You can use either a hand or stand mixer. Next, add the oil and melted butter into the dry ingredients.
Then, mix those ingredients together. The batter is going to be very thick, but keep mixing until thoroughly combined. Then, add in each egg one a time. Make sure to mix it in on low! The batter will be less thick, but still thick at this point!
To get the best rise on this cake, make sure the eggs and buttermilk are room temperature before baking!
Combine the buttermilk and the vanilla together. Then, add the buttermilk into the batter in 2 intervals. Don't add it all at once! At this point, make sure you scrape the bowl between intervals and after all the buttermilk is added. We want to make sure it is all mixed together well!
How To Prevent Cake From Sticking To The Pans
I have a method that I use every time I bake that works every single time!
Grab the 9x13 inch pan and spray with a baking non-stick spray. Use the kind with flour in the spray; regular oil spray will NOT work by itself.
Then, line the bottom and 2 sides of the pan with parchment paper. Now, spray the pan again with spray! Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 25-30 minutes.
Once the cake is done baking, let the cake sit for 10 minutes in the cake pan. This lets the cake settle and it pulls away from the sides of the pan. Next, flip the cake on a cooling rack and remove the parchment paper.
Can This Cake Be Made Ahead Of Time?
Yes! The spice sheet cake with pumpkin frosting can be made ahead of time. In fact, I recommend it! Once the cake is done baking, wrap it in cling wrap and place in the freezer.
Transporting cake tip: since the cake is so large, it can be hard to transport. Place the cake on the cooling rack in the freezer for 15 minutes before wrapping in cling wrap. The cold will help it keep together and make it more sturdy.
A colder cake is a lot easier to decorate than a room temperature cake! You will get fewer crumbs in the cake!
Before decorating, pull the cake from the freezer and allow it to sit on the counter for 1 hour.
While we want a little bit of a cold cake for decorating, too cold of a cake will affect the frosting texture.
How To Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting
This pumpkin cream cheese frosting is seriously amazing! I didn't find much out there for pumpkin frosting, and I wanted one that tasted like a pumpkin pie! Perfect for fall!
This recipe uses both butter and cream cheese. They both need to be at different temperatures! The cream cheese needs to be room temperature, pull it out of the fridge 2 hours before making the frosting.
The butter needs to be slightly cold. Pull the butter out of the fridge for 30 minutes before using. The butter should be cold to the touch but you still leave a finger indent in it. The slightly cold butter makes the frosting firmer and easier to pipe.
To prevent a gritty frosting, make sure to sift the powdered sugar! This helps so much to prevent that! Only smooth and silky frostings here!
Start by beating the cream cheese for 1 minute on medium-high. It should be very fluffy before adding in the butter. Next, add in the butter and beat again for 1 minute. Before adding the pumpkin puree, there should be no chunks of butter or cream cheese. If there is, beat again for 30 seconds until it is all smooth.
Next, add in the pumpkin puree. You can use either room temperature or cold pumpkin puree. Then, add in the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice.
Beat the frosting for 1 minute until it is smooth and creamy. If you beat the frosting longer, it will become soup! So, 1 minute is perfect.
Next, chill the frosting for 15 minutes. This helps the butter to solidify again and can give the cake great lines of texture when you frost the cake.
Decorating The Sheet Cake
To get the textured look on this spice sheet cake, use the back of a spoon and go back forth to get the pretty lines.
If you want to take the decorating to another level, you can top with a little dusting of cinnamon or chopped walnuts.
How To Store The Spice Sheet Cake
Store this spice sheet cake with pumpkin frosting in an air tight container in the fridge. Since there is cream cheese in the frosting, the cake has to be stored in the fridge. It will last up to 5 days.
Other Recipes To Try
Make sure to tag me on Instagram @stephaniesweettreats and leave me a review below if you made this cake. I hope you loved it! To get more ideas follow me on Pinterest.
📖 Recipe
Spice Sheet Cake with Pumpkin Frosting
Ingredients
Spice Cake
- 3 ½ cups All-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon Baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 ½ cup Brown sugar packed light or dark
- ½ cup White granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon Ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoon Pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 1 cup Oil canola or vegetable
- ½ cup Unsalted butter melted
- 4 Large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon Pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup Buttermilk room temperature
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup Unsalted butter slightly cold
- 8 oz Cream cheese room temperature
- ⅓ cup Pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
- 2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin pie spice
- 4 cups Powdered sugar sifted
Instructions
Spice Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9X13 inch pan with non-stick baking spray. Line the bottom and up 2 sides of the pan with parchment paper. Spray again. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, and nutmeg. Add in the brown sugar and sugar. Use a mixer and combine on low for 20 seconds.
- Add in melted butter and oil. Mix on medium for 2 minutes until mixture is combined and melded together. It will look like a big and thick ball of batter. Add in eggs one at time, mix on low. Scrape the bowl.
- Combine the buttermilk and vanilla together. Pour in buttermilk in 2 intervals. Scrape the bowl between intervals. Scrape the bowl again and mix on low for 20 seconds. Make sure it is all smooth and combined.
- Pour the batter into the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes. The cake is done baking when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cake sit in the cake for 10 minutes. Then, transfer to a cooling rack. Allow cake to cool completely.
- Transfer cake to the freezer if you made the cake ahead of time. Wrap the cake in cling wrap and transfer to the freezer. Tip: place cake on cooling rack in the freezer for 15 minutes. It will be a lot easier to wrap in cling wrap if it is cold.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting
- Bring cake out from freezer 1 hour before decorating if you froze it.
- To get slightly cold butter, place butter on counter for 30 minutes. The butter will be cold to the touch but you can leave a slight finger indent in the butter. The cream cheese should be room temperature. In a large bowl, sift together the powdered sugar, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.
- Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese for 1 minute on medium-high. Scrape the bowl and add in the butter. Beat for 1-2 minutes. Scrape the bowl halfway through. There should be no butter or cream cheese lumps. If there is, beat again for 30 seconds and check again.
- Add in pumpkin puree, beat for 30 seconds until fully combined. Slowly add in powdered sugar. Scrape the bowl and beat for 1 minute. The frosting should be light and fluffy. Frost the cake.
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