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This Pumpkin Crockpot Cake makes its own frosting! You can make this easy fudge cake in a matter of minutes: it’s simple to do and it’s like a dump cake! Just add it all together and bake.
Easy Pumpkin Crockpot Cake
When it comes to pumpkin recipes, you’re going to love this one. You can eat it as it is, top it with ice cream or whipped cream, or just fill your bowl and not give it a second thought. The uniqueness of this hot fudge pumpkin pudding cake is that you don’t even have to make or add frosting. Yes, it’s that simple and that good!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
- Super simple – just a few ingredients
- Rich and chocolate with tons of fall spice
- Starts with a cake mix!
Pumpkin Cake Ingredients
- Yellow cake mix – You can also use other brands and flavors of cake mix.
- Pumpkin puree – Make sure that you’re not using pumpkin pie mix!
- Water – It needs to be boiling hot.
- Oil – I like to use vegetable oil, but coconut oil works, too.
- Pumpkin pie spice – I like to make my own, but store bought is fine, too.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder and Granulated sugar – these combine with the hot water to make the frosting for the crockpot cake.
How to make Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13″ pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place cake mix, pumpkin puree, water, oil, eggs, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan.
- Add cocoa, vanilla, and granulated sugar to the boiling water. Whisk until it’s dissolved – that’s why it needs to be hot! Pour carefully over the cake in the pan.
- Bake just until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake.
- Best served warm plain or with ice cream. Will last covered on the counter for up to 3 days. The hot fudge pudding sinks to the bottom, so the top will not look frosted.
Expert Tips
- The fudge mixture is heavy in this recipe, so it’s going to sink to the bottom of the cake. When you scoop it out to eat, that’s when you’ll see everything, and you can then dump it in your bowl and enjoy it!
- Leftovers of this pumpkin pie dump cake recipe can be stored in the fridge. Just add a lid to the cake container, and store it up for 3 days.
- I don’t recommend freezing this dessert as it’s best eaten fresh! (You can, however, pair it with frozen ice cream!)
- Use any flavor cake mix and omit the pumpkin to make the perfect all year round crockpot cake!
FAQs
It’s a great dessert where all the ingredients are literally dumped together and baked. Dump cakes aren’t typically your “pretty” recipes, but they taste pretty dang good!
Since you’re using a box cake mix for this pumpkin dessert, a yellow cake mix or vanilla cake mix will be the most popular choice. I also think that using a chocolate cake mix would really change the flavor!
You may have overcooked the dump cake recipe if it’s dry. Just be sure that you’re careful with the measurements and follow the baking time. Use the toothpick test to see if the cake is done so that you don’t end up overcooking it! (Just insert a clean toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done and ready to cool.)
Pumpkin Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1 cup pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie mix
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 ½ cups boiling water
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13″ pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place cake mix, pumpkin puree, 1/2 cup water, oil, eggs, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth. Pour into prepared pan.
- Add cocoa, vanilla, and granulated sugar to the boiling water and whisk until dissovled. Pour carefully over cake in pan – do not mix.
- Bake for 25-32 minutes or JUST until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake. Cool slightly before serving.
- Best served warm plain or with ice cream. Will last covered on the counter for up to 3 days. The hot fudge pudding sinks to the bottom so the top will not look frosted.
Recipe Video
Recipe Nutrition
Pumpkin Pudding Cake is a hot fudge cake that’s pumpkin flavored – an easy dump cake that makes it’s own frosting – perfect fall recipe!
What. In the heck. I never imagined this combination before in a hot fudge cake. But it is brilliant! And I just happen to have some leftover pumpkin puree in the fridge! (By the way, I didn’t read about your husband’s bedbugs experience, but I have lived it, and it is HORRIBLE! I would imagine lice are right up there!)
Your week! I had no idea…I’m so sorry!! Ever since you shared that post about your previous experience with lice, bedbugs with Mel’s travel, etc. I seriously am soooo skeeved out in hotels that I think of you all night long when I’m not sleeping paranoid I will bring home bedbugs. 🙂 Seriously though I am so sorry about the whole situation, major hugs!
This cake…hopefully that was a nice warm hug for you 🙂 I have made both chocolate cake and banana bread in my slow cooker and they start with dumping a bunch of water on it and it seems like it will never work but it does!
I’m just praying the little suckers don’t show up while she’s gone this week…or that she doesn’t pick them up from all those other kids. EWWW. 🙂
Wow, this looks great; wish I had some now. I seem to remember you coming home from that camp experience with pneumonia and you missed a week of school. I like Mir’s suggestion about having Jordan keep her hair in a bun (or even braids). Good luck. xoxo
Ugh, I feel for you. Several kids at my daughter’s school had live earlier this year, including one of her best friends. Just know that there is always an effective treatment! Hope your weekend goes well and that you enjoy the rest of your pudding cake. 🙂
I do not blame you for the tailspin at all, having been through the lice thing once. All I can say is, keep Jordan’s hair up in a bun and yours, too. Tell her to do it that way in camp as well. And yep, just stick her in quarantine when she gets back. 😉
This looks very soothing. I hope you shoveled it in during this stressful week!
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