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This Pumpkin Bundt Cake recipe is the perfectly spiced pumpkin cake! It’s easy, soft and moist, and topped with an amazing brown butter frosting. You’re going to love this cake – it’s perfect for fall baking!

pumpkin bundt cake with frosting on top in a white platter


Making Pumpkin Cake in a bundt pan is super simple – and this one is so flavorful because I made it and the frosting with brown butter! This bundt cake is probably one of the easiest and quickest cake recipes you will ever make: it starts with a cake mix and is full of brown butter, pumpkin spices, and a delicious brown butter glaze!

ingredients in pumpkin bundt cake

Important Ingredients Needed

  • Butter- Making cake mix with butter makes the cake so much richer in flavor. Since we’re making brown butter you want to use unsalted butter.
  • Yellow cake mix – Use your favorite brand, white cake or butter flavor is fine too.
  • Pumpkin Puree – Do not use pumpkin pie mix for this step – be sure to use canned pumpkin puree.
  • Spices: You can use pumpkin spice or make your own pumpkin pie spice with ground nutmeg, ginger, cloves cinnamon and allspice
  • Powdered Sugar: You’ll need confectioners’ sugar for the frosting.

Additions & Variations

  • Add chopped pecans or walnuts to the batter, or you can sprinkle some over the top of the frosting.
  • You could add chocolate chips to the cake (about 1 cup) but dust them with all purpose flour first so they don’t sink in the batter.
  • You can use nondairy milk for this cake.
  • Use a cream cheese frosting instead of the brown butter frosting – or even brown sugar frosting.
brown butter in pan
cake batter in glass bowl.
pumpkin cake batter in glass bowl.
pumpkin bundt cake batter in pan.

How to Make Pumpkin Bundt Cake

  1. Brown the butter over medium-low heat. This will take a few minutes – the butter is browned once you see those little brown flecks – don’t leave it alone, it burns quickly.
  2. Mix some of the brown butter with cake mix, eggs, and sugar. Reserve remaining butter for the frosting.
  3. Mix in pumpkin and spices.
  4. Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan bake until a toothpick comes out clean.
  5. To make the frosting, mix melted butter with powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. It’s easiest to do this in the bowl of a stand mixer. Frost cooled cake.
pumpkin bundt cake with frosting on top in a white platter

Expert Tips

  • One of the most important steps in making a bundt cake is to grease your pan properly! If this isn’t done in the right way it could end in potential disaster, so take some care. Make sure you use a baking spray and not a cooking spray, they are different. Or use butter or shortening and flour the pan – just get all the little nooks and crannies.
  • You should let the bundt cake completely cool before applying the glaze. Even if the bundt cake is just slightly warm the glaze will melt off of it while applying. 
  • You can also bake this in a 9×13-inch pan.

Storing

Store loosely covered on the counter or in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can freeze cake also – it’s best to freeze it unfrosted and wrapped well with plastic wrap.

FAQs

Can you make mini bundt cakes?

Yes, you can! You can find miniature bundt cake pans at the store and then divide the batter up amongst them for some teeny cute cakes!

pumpkin bundt cake with frosting on top in a white platter

Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe

5 from 5 votes
This Brown Butter Pumpkin Bundt Cake is FULL of the best flavors! A soft, moist, and EASY pumpkin cake is filled with brown butter and topped with a brown butter frosting!
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield 12 servings
Serving Size 1 slice
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Ingredients
 

  • 11 tablespoons (154g) unsalted butter
  • 1 box (approx 15 ounces) yellow cake mix
  • 15 oz can of pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
  • 4 large eggs
  • ⅓ cup (67g) granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon ground  ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
  • 2 cups (226g) powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 3-5 tablespoons (45-75ml) heavy whipping cream or milk
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Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray (the kind with flour in it).
  • Place the butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Melt, then stir often, cooking until the butter browns. This will take 5-7 minutes or so. Stir often. The butter will foam, then reduce. Once it starts to turn brown it burns quickly so be sure and watch it. Remove from heat.
  • Measure out 1/3 cup of the browned butter. Reserve the rest for the glaze. Place the 1/3 cup brown butter with the cake mix, pumpkin puree, eggs, granulated sugar, and cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice in a large bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth. The batter is thick.
  • Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 35-38 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before removing from pan and glazing.
  • To make the glaze: Place reserved brown butter in a bowl. If it has solidified, heat it in the microwave for a few seconds until it becomes liquid again. Whisk in powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add heavy whipping cream 1 tablespoon at a time until you get the desired consistency. (I used 4 tablespoons.) Drizzle over cake.
  • Store loosely covered on the counter or in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Recipe Video

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 401kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 390mg | Potassium: 119mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 45g | Vitamin A: 5980IU | Vitamin C: 1.5mg | Calcium: 118mg | Iron: 1.7mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Author Dorothy Kern

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Favorite Pumpkin Recipes



Dorothy Kern

Welcome to Crazy for Crust, where I share recipes that are sometimes crazy, often with a crust, and always served with a slice of life.

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5 from 5 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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66 Comments

  1. That glaze is KILLING me! I just want to dip my finger in it right now! Browned butter – check. Pumpkin -check. Cake – double check. I love it all! Happy Happy Birthday my friend!

    Reply

  2. YUM! pumpkin+browned butter…yes. also read your love story…so sweet. And Happy Birthday! It’s my birthday this weekend too! Cheers to fall birthdays!

    Reply

  3. And here I was thinking I was a HUGE genius to combine brown butter and pumpkin for an upcoming recipe.  Great minds, friend.  Great minds.

    Reply

  4. I love this doctored up cake mix! I enjoy pumpkin but not cloves. Usually, pumpkin pie spice mix or prepared pumpkin cake mix contains cloves. Its wonderful to have an option besides “from scratch”! Adding brown butter to the cake and frosting is a wonderful idea! All warm and toasty!

    (Happy Birthday to you and to the blog! May the year ahead be full of good health, smiles, and accomplishments! )

    Reply

      1. I am not sure not being able to see it, but if it seems thinner than canned, then probably not. That being said you can also strain it – and this is the one recipe to try it in because cake mixes are really forgiving!

  5. It’s funny….I feel like I was always comfortable with getting older until I actually started getting older. And then not so much! I love your perspective, though….and I love this cake, too! Hope you had a fabulous birthday, Dorothy!

    Reply