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This pumpkin bundt cake recipe is the perfect dessert to bring to your family’s Thanksgiving! It’s an easier than ever cake recipe that’s semi-homemade and full of pumpkin, spices, and brown butter. This is a heavenly moist cake recipe you’re going to love.
Easy Pumpkin Bundt Cake
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 recipe is a piece of cake! (literally) This is probably one of the easiest and quickest cake recipes you will ever make. I love a bundt cake at fall time – or all year – because they’re so pretty. This one freezes perfectly too so you can make it ahead.
This pumpkin bundt cake recipe starts with a cake mix and is full of brown butter, pumpkin spices, and a delicious brown butter glaze!
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
- Pumpkin Puree- Do not use pumpkin pie mix for this step or it will not turn out as desired, be sure that you use actual pumpkin puree.
- Spices: You can use pumpkin spice or make your own pumpkin pie spice with ground nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and allspice
How to Make Pumpkin Bundt With Cake Mix
- Place the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Melt and keep stirring until the butter turns slightly brown. This should take about 5-7 minutes, be sure to stir it often. During this process, the butter will foam up, then reduce. When it starts to brown move it quickly, butter tends to burn fast so keep an eye on it.
- Measure ⅓ cup of the browned butter and reserve the rest to make the glaze. Mix browned butter with cake mix, pumpkin puree, large eggs, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice in a large bowl. Mix until the batter is completely smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and make for 35-38 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool completely before you remove the pumpkin bundt cake from the pan.
- Place the set-aside brown butter in a bowl. If it has solidified, no worries! You can heat it in the microwave for a few seconds until it’s liquid again. Then, whisk in powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add heavy whipping cream a spoon at a time until it is the right consistency. (around 4 tablespoons.) Drizzle over the pumpkin bundt cake.
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. When greasing the pan use short small bursts instead of long sprays.
- To avoid air bubbles in your pumpkin bundt cake, before you put in it the oven lay the pan on a dish towel and tap on the top of the pan around 5 to 10 times. This allows the air in the batter to be worked out before it bakes.
- 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.
- Store loosely covered on the counter or in the fridge for up to 3 days.
FAQs
You don’t actually have to refrigerate your pumpkin bundt cake. It will stay good loosely wrapped on the counter. If you want it to stay fresh for a bit longer you can definitely put it in the fridge.
Layer the thick batter into the pan and press it all the way to the bottom using a bowl scraper. You want to ensure it’s fully reaching the bottom so it maintains that classic bundt cake shape.
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!
Brown Butter Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe
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
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
Favorite Pumpkin Recipes
- Pumpkin Cupcakes from scratch
- Easy Pumpkin Bread
- Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with a cake mix!
Pumpkin Bundt Cake is an easy cake recipe made with cake mix and pumpkin – a brown butter cake with brown butter frosting! This is such an easy recipe for the holidays.
Last Updated on October 28, 2023
Can I use Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of the cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ginger? If so, how much would I use?
Yes you can! I’d use about 2 teaspoons depending on how spicy you like it!
Thank you. This looks so delicious, can’t wait to try it out
This bundt looks out of this world! Love 🙂
Happy Birthday!!! Â I too am 38, not dreading 40, but coming to terms with the normal of eating things in a lot more moderation than ever before. Â On to this cake, I must make it, freeze a little and bring the rest to work, gone are the days of keeping it all to myself.
Getting to the age where I have to moderate has been like slamming into a wall!! Thanks for reading!
Happy birthday! I am joining you in the 38 club in just a few weeks… we can celebrate together with this awesome brown butter pumpkin bundt!
Yes we should! Happy early birthday!
This = major yummness!!!!!!!!
Thank you!
Must be delicious! This bundt cake looks really really good!
Thank you!
Happy Birthday!
Thanks for posting a true pumpkin cake recipe. Â Pumpkin “dessert” can be a little too all-inclusive these days. Â This cake looks perfect for Thanksgiving! (Since I don’t do pie and all)
I *think* I can forgive you for not doing pie. Haha!! But I don’t do pumpkin pie, so this cake is a must on Thanksgiving!
Mmm now I’ll be dreaming of this cake, too! Happy birthday and bloggiversary, Dorothy!Â
Thank you!!
Nothing wrong with a cake mix! This looks phenomenal! Happy Birthday and blog birthday! I read your love story too – so sweet. <3Â
Thank you Rachel!!
My parents are 15 years apart. I joke that my mom tries to act older and my dad younger. They meet somewhere in the middle!
I’m all of 36, but I’m not eager to get to 40. I’m trying to slow down time here! It’s that metabolism thing. I want it to work for me, not against. Plus, gravity is starting to take over and my body can’t fight it anymore. Aaaaah.
Love this glaze to the moon and back. It’s the best! Brown butter and pumpkin are a dream together!
Totally that – we meet in the middle! Oh, gravity. I forgot about that one!! I definitely see that!
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