Easy Pumpkin Praline Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Glaze
This easy (and super moist) pumpkin praline bundt cake with a simple homemade cream cheese frosting glaze is absolutely a crowd-pleasing favorite for Fall, Thanksgiving, and Christmas gatherings!
Print
Pin
Servings: 12 -14 pieces
Equipment
Ingredients
Pecan Praline Topping
- 1/2 c unsalted butter
- 1/4 c whipping cream
- 1 c light brown sugar
- 3/4 c chopped pecans
Pumpkin Cake
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1/3 c vegetable oil
- 1/2 c water
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 1 c pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Cream Cheese Frosting Glaze
- 4 oz cream cheese softened (at least room temp)*
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter softened
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 c powdered sugar
Instructions
For the pecan praline topping:
- Place butter in a saucepan on the stove top over medium heat, and begin melting the butter.
- Add the whipping cream and sugar, and continue to stir the mixture on the stove top until the ingredients are fully blended - about 5 minutes or so.
- Stir in the chopped pecans, remove from heat, and set the saucepan aside for now.
For the pumpkin cake:
- Preheat oven to 325.
- Using a stand or a hand mixer, add the yellow cake mix, vegetable oil, and water to the bowl and mix together with the whisk attachment.
- Add in eggs, one at a time, mixing between additions, and scraping the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure all the ingredients get mixed well together.
- Add the pumpkin puree & pumpkin pie spice, and continue to mix the cake batter until it's fully blended together. Set aside.
Pairing the praline topping & cake batter:
- Pour the pecan praline mixture into a greased bundt cake pan. If you need to, use a spatula to gently spread the pralines around so they evenly cover the bottom of the pan.
- Pour the cake batter across the top of the pralines. It's ok if the pralines separate a bit - this is unavoidable, and it's no big deal!
- Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from testing the cake.
- Remove cake from oven and set on a rack to begin cooling. Cool for about 20-30 minutes, and then remove the cake from the bundt cake pan onto a plate or cake platter.
For the cream cheese frosting glaze:
- Add butter to a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds to melt the butter.
- Add the room temperature (or warmer - see my notes on why this is important!) cream cheese to the bowl, and microwave again for about 20 seconds.
- Stir in powdered sugar and vanilla until the glaze is thoroughly mixed. It should be runny enough to drizzle onto the cake at this point, but if it's not, just zap it in the microwave for an additional 15 seconds or so - just until the glaze is runny enough to drizzle over the cake.
- Using a spoon, drizzle the glaze evenly over the cake, and if you wish, top with some extra chopped pecans for garnish.
- Allow cake to fully cool before placing a lid/cover over it. You can store the cake on the counter overnight, but if you're storing it for more than a day, keep it in the fridge - the pumpkin in the cake causes it to spoil faster if you don't refrigerate it.
To make this extra special, serve with some homemade whipped cream or vanilla ice cream! YUM!
Notes
*I've learned you really want to bring refrigerated cream cheese up to room temperature (or warmer) before mixing it with other ingredients in order to avoid a lumpy cream cheese mixture.
Here's a quick baking hack: If I forget to set the cream cheese out with enough time to bring it up to room temperature, I just remove the block from the cardboard container, and set it on my oven top while my oven is preheating for the cake. Softens the block up in no time!
Note on storing this cake: because the cake contains the pumpkin puree, you'll want to make sure to store the cake in the refrigerator if you have leftovers or if you're making it well in advance of your gathering. It's fine if you leave it out overnight, you just don't want to leave it sitting out on the kitchen counter for more than a day or so.