Pumpkin Cake With Maple–Cream Cheese Frosting
May 10, 2009 posted by Linda Avery
by David Leite
Serves 8
Think of this as a spice cake with pumpkin. It’s a super moist and the maple-cream cheese frosting adds autumnal flavor.
Note: Some readers have found the frosting, as written below, to be a bit too soft, especially if the cake sits out in overheated kitchens. I made a small change to the recipe that offers up a sturdier frosting with only the absolutely slightest sacrifice in flavor: Mix 12 ounces (1 1/2 eight-ounce packages) of Philadelphia Brand cream cheese and 2 sticks (16 tablespoons) of unsalted butter together with the confectioners’ sugar and maple syrup. The extra butter give the frosting more body.
convert Ingredients
For the pumpkin cake
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing pans
1 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk mixed with 1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin
For the maple cream–cheese frosting
Two (8-ounce) packages Philadelphia Brand cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
Method
Make the cake
1. Preheat the oven to 350° (175°C). Butter two 8-by-2-inch cake pans, line them with parchment circles, butter the parchment, and coat the pan with flour. Tap out the excess.
2. In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper into a medium bowl.
3. Add the eggs 1 at a time to the mixer, scraping down the sides after each addition. Alternate adding the flour and milk mixtures, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat in the pumpkin until smooth. Divide the batter equally between the pans. Rap the filled pans once on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 to 40 minutes. Cool the pans on racks for 10 minutes. Invert the cakes onto racks and remove the parchment paper. Cool completely.
Make the frosting
In a stand mixer beat all the ingredients on medium until fluffy. To assemble the cake, frost the top of one cake, place the other cake on top. Frost the sides and top, swirling decoratively. Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes to set up frosting.
Recipe © 2003 David Leite. Photo © 2003 George Jardine. All rights reserved.
© 2009 Leite’s Culinaria, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of use.
LC
on 
LC to your 
I made this cake for my nieces birthday. It was great, everyone loved it. And the frosting is so yummy with the hint of maple syrup. I made it in advance and placed it in the fridge so it would stiffen up. Once the cake was at room temp, I placed it in the fridge as well until chilled to keep the frosting at a thick consistency when frosting.
I’m not too fond of a strong ginger taste nor of a peppery taste in my sweets. So the next time I made the cake I used 3/4 tsp. ground ginger, 1/4 tsp. of salt and totally omitted the pepper. And the result was delicious! This cake is definitely a winner with my family!
Tania, so glad you liked the cake. The frosting can get a bit soft, and your solution is right on the money. Some readers add more confectioners sugar to the frosting, but that yield a sweeter taste, which, to me, masks the flavor of the maple syrup. Some readers add a bit of maple extract and pull back on the syrup, which works, but tastes a bit harsh to me.
David, I say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! The frosting is perfect as is! The second time I made the cake I used one 9-by-3-inch round cake pan, and I split the cake into 3 layers and frosted in between each layer plus the top, leaving the outside bare. The mere thought of it makes my mouth water.
Tania, I love the idea of leaving the sides bare. Kind of like some German Chocolate Cakes I’ve seen. Great idea!
David,
So you were too ill to pick pumpkins, but well enough to bake a cake to serve to your neighbors while you had the FLU? Naughty!
Well, I didn’t serve THAT cake to neighbors, but I did rouse myself out of my flu stupor. Amazing what the anticipation of baking can do for a poor racked body!
David,
You know this is one of my favorite cakes, but I did find the frosting just a little soft. I experimented with the frosting again last week and you are right. Maple extract just doesn’t impart the same flavor that real maple syrup does and extra sugar mutes the maple taste and is too sweet. I have found I need to use Philadelphia brand cream cheese, the full fat variety. Other brands and low fat, while fine for some applications, aren’t as firm and the frosting is simply too soft. Once chilled a bit the frosting firms up enough for spreading neatly.
Cindi
Cindi,
I made the cake again and found that by reducing the cream cheese (Philly brand) by one-quarter and added another stick of butter gave the frosting enough sturdiness to be spread.
Hi David
What grade of maple syrup did you use Grade A, Grade B, etc.
Hi, Jackie. I use both, but I prefer Grade B, which is more flavorful. Here’s a Grade B maple syrup I’ve used and really like.