Pumpkin Crunch Cake Recipe
This pumpkin crunch cake is delicious, fragrant and a true celebration of autumn. Made with shredded pumpkin for maximum flavour, crunchy caramelised walnuts, and pillowy soft cream cheese frosting. Perfect for Thanksgiving and other celebrations!
Equipment
- Food processor
- 3 x 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pans
- Piping bag with ½ inch (1 cm) nozzle
Ingredients
Pumpkin cake
- 250 grams vegetable oil (1 ⅛ cups)
- 100 grams buttermilk (⅓ cup)
- 200 grams brown sugar (1 cup)
- 50 grams maple syrup (¼ cup)
- 4 eggs, large
- 500 grams raw pumpkin, grated (3 cups)
- 1 lemon zest
- 400 grams cake flour (3 ⅛ cups)
- 10 grams baking powder (2 teaspoons)
- 5 grams baking soda (1 teaspoon)
- 8 grams cinnamon powder (3 teaspoons)
- 3 grams nutmeg powder (1 teaspoon)
- 3 grams ginger powder (1 teaspoon)
- 3 grams allspice powder (1 teaspoon)
- 5 grams salt, fine (¾ teaspoon)
- 150 grams raisins, optional (1 cup)
Caramelised walnuts
- 200 grams walnuts (1 ⅔ cups)
- 200 grams sugar (1 cup)
Cream cheese frosting
- 600 grams cream cheese, full fat (2 ⅔ cups)
- 400 grams butter, unsalted (1 ¾ cups)
- 400 grams white chocolate, chopped (2 ½ cups)
Instructions
Pumpkin cake
- Prepare the pumpkin by peeling, coring and slicing it into smaller pieces. Use a food processor to shred the pumpkin. Set aside.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Line three 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pans with baking paper.
- Beat the eggs together with the salt until they become frothy. Start sprinkling in the sugar, whilst continuously mixing until the sugar is fully dissolved.
- Pour in the vegetable oil, butter milk and maple syrup, mixing well to combine.
- Separately, whisk the flour, baking soda and baking powder. Add the flour and all the spices into the batter. Use a whisk or hand mixer to combine everything, without over-mixing.
- Toss in the grated pumpkin and raisins. Fold everything in with a spatula until the pumpkin is evenly incorporated.
- Divide the batter equally between the three trays. If using a kitchen scale, each pan should have roughly 570 grams (26 ounces) of batter.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. If the top begins to brown too quickly, cover the cake pans with aluminium foil.
- After baking, let the cakes cool in the pans for 30 minutes. Afterwards, remove them and let them cool fully before placing in the fridge for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
Caramelised walnuts
- Toast the walnuts by placing them in a wide-base pan over medium heat. Keep tossing them around until they start browning slightly.
- Reduce the heat, then form a well in the middle of the pan. Pour the sugar in to caramelise it. Avoid mixing it too much.
- Once the sugar has melted into a caramel (2-3 minutes), mix everything together to fully coat the walnuts.
- Place the caramelised walnuts on a lined baking tray, ensuring there are no clumps. Let them cool down for at least 2 hours.
- Put the cooled walnuts in a ziplock bag and crush into smaller pieces with a rolling pin.
Cream cheese frosting
- Follow the steps in my in-depth recipe for White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting. This recipe calls for 4 batches of frosting.
- Place the cream cheese frosting in a piping bag fitted with a ½ inch nozzle and use immediately. Do not refrigerate once placed in the piping bag.
Assembling the cake
- Place the first pumpkin cake layer on a cake board. Pipe cream cheese on top, levelling it with a spatula. Sprinkle some caramelised walnuts on top, avoiding the edges.
- Place the second layer of pumpkin cake on top, pressing down gently. Repeat the process above for the filling.
- Put the final cake layer on top, then cover the entire cake with cream cheese frosting. If two layers of frosting are needed, chill the cake for 1 hour in between layers.
- Stick caramelised walnuts on the base of the cake, pressing down gently to help them stick.
- Decorate the cake with orange and blue dollops of cream cheese to resemble pumpkins.
Notes
- I recommend using a kitchen scale in grams for more accuracy. The cups used for the conversion are standard US customary cups (1 cup flour = 136g). There are many different types of cups across the globe, which is why I strongly recommend using grams instead.
- Weigh the pumpkin after peeling it and removing the seeds.
- Raw pumpkin cannot be replaced with pumpkin puree in this recipe.
- Store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- This cake is enough for 20 small slices or 16 larger slices.
Nutrition
Calories: 720kcal
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