To say that I’m obsessed with this cake is an understatement. Pumpkin Cake with Milk Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting is what pumpkin cake dreams are made of! The moist, spiced pumpkin cake is decadent on it’s own, but then a smooth, milk chocolate cream cheese frosting is spread over the top and it is to die for! The perfect Fall dessert recipe.

This cake has been a family-favorite since the beginning. It is actually still John’s favorite cake that I make, and I bake one up every Fall for us to enjoy!

Baking this cake truly makes me happy from the inside out. The way that it all comes together in one bowl, to the way it stays perfectly moist and all the way to the way the milk chocolate cream cheese frosting smooths over the top. It’s a heart-cake! A tried and true family recipe.

Cake Ingredients

To start us off, one of my favorite things about this cake recipe is that it uses a WHOLE can of pumpkin! That’s right, no half-used cans of pumpkin around here. Full pumpkin flavor is achieved through the pumpkin pureé, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Let’s break down the other ingredients:

• Eggs – use large eggs for this recipe. I always try to grab organic if I can.
• Oil – a plain-flavored, light-colored oil works best here such as canola or vegetable oil. Keeps the cake nice and moist!
• Sugar
• Brown sugar
• Flour – regular, all-purpose flour can be used for this recipe.
• Baking soda
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Pumpkin pie spice – you can’t have anything pumpkin without it!
• Cinnamon – gives the cake batter a wonderfully warm-spiced flavor that can’t be missed.

Let’s Talk Frosting

After the cake has baked and is cooled, it’s time to get to the fun part: frosting! This frosting recipe is one you’re going to want to keep for the books. Milk Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting – can it get any better? I think not!

I highly recommend using milk chocolate for this frosting recipe vs. semi-sweet chocolate. Milk chocolate is much more mellow and smooth, which makes it a perfect pairing for the cream cheese frosting. Semi-sweet chocolate tends to dominate the frosting too much. Milk chocolate chips or milk chocolate bars can be melted down and used for this recipe.

Let me just tell you this: if you’ve never had a milk chocolate cream cheese frosting before, now is the time! It is out of this world! You have all the classic, decadent flavors of a cream cheese frosting, and then the milk chocolate is the perfect hint of chocolate to not be too overpowering. Trust me, it pairs perfectly with the pumpkin cake!

How to Serve

Bake this simple yet show-stopping dessert up for any gathering, Halloween, Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving or holiday party. Or even just because you need some cake in your life! The simplicity of this recipe along with how amazingly good it is will make you come back to this recipe again and again.

Slice and serve this cake on it’s own, whip a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream. Vanilla, chocolate or even coffee ice cream would pair deliciously with this cake!

Use a cake stand and a cake server set to get the ultimate cake effect.

Looking for other Cake Recipes? Check these out!

Frosted Pumpkin Sheet Cake

Hot Fudge Bundt Cake

Classic Chocolate Cake

Recipe Video:

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Pumpkin Cake with Milk Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

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(6 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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5 from 6 reviews

• Author: KJ & Company - Kate Poskochil
• Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
• Yield: 10 servings 1x

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Description

To say that I’m obsessed with this cake is an understatement. Pumpkin Cake with Milk Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting is what pumpkin cake dreams are made of! The moist, spiced pumpkin cake is decadent on it’s own, but then a smooth, milk chocolate cream cheese frosting is spread over the top and it is to die for! The perfect Fall dessert recipe.

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Ingredients

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For the cake:

• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 15 oz pumpkin puree
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the frosting:

• 2 – 8 oz packages cream cheese, softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup melted milk chocolate, slightly cooled

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Instructions

For the cake:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, vegetable oil and pumpkin puree until combined. Whisk in the sugar and brown sugar until smooth.
2. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon into the wet ingredients. Whisk until a smooth cake batter forms without any lumps, being careful to not over-mix.
3. Grease and line two 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray and parchment paper. Evenly pour the batter into the two cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool slightly in the pans before turning them out onto a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting:

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy, about a couple minutes. Reduce the speed to low and add in one cup of powdered sugar at time until a smooth frosting forms.
2. Add the vanilla extract and melted milk chocolate into the frosting and mix on low speed until combined and smooth.

To assemble:

1. Use your desired cake stand or plate of choice. Start with one cake layer as the base and work your way up. Frost the top of the first cake layer, top it with the second cake layer, and then frost the top and sides of the assembled cake. Enjoy!

Notes

• You can make the cakes a day in advance and frost and assemble them the next day. Cool the cakes completely before wrapping them tightly in plastic wrap and storing them in the refrigerator overnight. Make the frosting and assemble the next day as instructed above.
• Prep time includes time for the cakes to cool.
• Nutritional information for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

• Prep Time: 1 hour
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Baking

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1
• Calories: 839
• Sugar: 80.8g
• Sodium: 421mg
• Fat: 43.8g
• Carbohydrates: 105.3g
• Fiber: 2.4g
• Protein: 10g
• Cholesterol: 127mg

Keywords: Pumpkin Cake with Milk Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

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Recipe originally posted on 11/15/2018 – updated on 10/25/2021.