Rich, moist, and filled with savory pumpkin and lots of chocolate, this Pumpkin Chocolate Cake is perfect for fall or to cure your craving for a slice of cake. With a sweet and spicy glaze and plenty of pumpkin spice throughout, this cake is easy, tasty, and sure to impress!
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Pumpkin and chocolate go hand-in-hand, and in this easy pumpkin bundt cake, you can get your pumpkin and chocolate fix. Easy to make, impressive to serve, and it freezes like a dream, this is pretty nearly the perfect pumpkin cake.
I love making this cake for gatherings, parties, or just because. I make it a few times each fall and then freeze it so I can take out a slice or three for the family’s dessert or whenever guests come over. It’s perfect for baking ahead of time and taking to events and parties, too, and everyone always raves over this cake.
I made this cake in a fancy bundt pan, but any old 8-inch fluted bundt pan will work. It is a substantial cake, so make sure your bundt pan can hold all the batter with some room at the top for the cake to expand. You could also bake it in a square pan or even two loaf pans, but I haven’t tested the cooking times for those pans.
What you’ll love about Pumpkin Chocolate Cake
- It makes about 10 servings, so it’s great for a crowd.
- It’s easy to make with no strange ingredients.
- The spice glaze really sets this cake apart!
There’s nothing like the smell of pumpkin spice baking in the oven, and this Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Cake is loaded with pumpkin spice both inside the cake and on the glaze. It’s not too sweet and is perfect with a cup of tea or coffee.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated white sugar
- Brown sugar – Light brown sugar, packed.
- Pumpkin pie spice – For the best flavor, make sure your spice blend is fresh!
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semisweet chocolate – Chunks, or buy a bar of good quality chocolate and cut it into chunks.
- Pumpkin – Use pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling.
- Butter – Melted.
- Eggs
For the glaze:
- Powdered sugar – aka confectioner’s sugar
- Cream – Or milk or half and half.
- Pumpkin pie spice
How To Make Pumpkin Chocolate Cake
For a full list of ingredients and instructions, please scroll down to the bottom of this page for the recipe.
- Spray an 8-inch bundt pan with cooking spray and preheat your oven to 350-F.
- Set aside 1/4 cup of flour in a small bowl.
- Combine the remaining flour, white sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix well with a whisk.
- Combine the pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs in the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix well on medium speed.
- Slowly add the dry mixture to the pumpkin and egg mixture, mixing until combined.
- Toss the chocolate chunks with the 1/4-cup of flour and toss to coat. Add the chocolate chunks to the wet mixture mixing until just combined.
- Transfer the batter to your baking pan and bake at 350-F for about 45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- Cool the cake for 10-15 minutes, then invert the cake pan over a plate to remove the cake.
- Make the glaze by mixing the powdered sugar with the cream and pumpkin pie spice to make a thick but still pourable glaze.
- Glaze the cake when the cake is cool to the touch. Serve and enjoy!
Recommended
Chef Jenn’s Tips for the Best Pumpkin Chocolate Cake
- Never overmix a cake – mix only until the ingredients are just combined. Overmixing can result in a cake that’s too dense.
- You can make the glaze ahead of time and keep it covered with plastic wrap. Just stir it well before glazing the cake.
- Freeze any leftover pumpkin for another pumpkin recipe!
- You can use chocolate chips in this recipe, but not the mini chocolate chips, or the balance of chocolate to cake will be off.
How To Tell When A Cake Is Cooked
Everybody counts on an inserted toothpick to tell them if baked goods are cooked, but if your toothpick comes out clean, it is overcooked! I always look for a few crumbs still clinging to the toothpick. This means your cake will be moist and delish. Raw batter on the toothpick means it isn’t cooked – but a few crumbs are just fine!
How To Glaze A Bundt Cake
The easiest way to glaze a bundt cake is with your bowl of glaze and a large spoon. Drizzle spoonfuls of glaze over the top of the still slightly warm cake, letting it drip down over the sides. Use as much – or as little – glaze as you like.
Step By Step Process
Pumpkin Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- 8-inch bundt pan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour divided
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons brown sugar packed
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 ounces semisweet chocolate chunks about 3/4 cup
- 8 ounces pumpkin puree
- 6 tablespoons butter melted
- 3 eggs
For the glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons cream
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Spray an 8-inch bundt pan with cooking spray and preheat your oven to 350-F.
- Set aide 1/4 cup of flour in a small bowl.
- Combine the remaining flour, white sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and baking soda, and salt, in a large bowl. Mix well with a whisk.
- Combine the pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs in the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix well on medium speed.
- Slowly add the dry mixture to the pumpkin and egg mixture, mixing until combined.
- Toss the chocolate chunks with the 1/4-cup of flour and toss to coat. Add the chocolate chunks to the wet mixture mixing until just combined.
- Transfer the batter to your baking pan and bake at 350-F for about 45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- Cool the cake for 10-15 minutes then invert the cake pan over a plate to remove the cake.
- Make the glaze by mixing the powdered sugar with the cream and pumpkin pie spice to make a thick but still pourable glaze.
- Glaze the cake when the cake is cool to the touch. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Never overmix a cake – mix only until the ingredients are just combined. Overmixing can result in a cake that’s too dense.
- You can make the glaze ahead of time and keep it covered with plastic wrap. Just stir it well before glazing the cake.
- Freeze any leftover pumpkin for another pumpkin recipe!
- You can use chocolate chips in this recipe, but not the mini chocolate chips, or the balance of chocolate to cake will be off.
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
