My Pumpkin Crunch Cake is the original version that you see all over the internet. And believe me when I tell you it will be the best cake you’ve ever tasted! In fact, your family and friends will verify that statement when you serve it to them.
When I was asked to come up with a dish that was Holiday tradition in my homes, it was a no-brainer for me. One very special dessert came to mind, a dessert that usually makes one or two appearances a year, depending upon the parties I host.
But you can be guaranteed that sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you’ll see this extra special cake. It’s also a cake I made for our engagement party the very first year Lisa and I were together.
Since I usually end up eating 75% of the cake by myself, it’s a good thing I don’t make it more often…sigh. Last year I did start distributing wedges of cake to the neighbors, which got me a marriage proposal in the process….luckily her husband took it in stride as did Lisa!
So when you make this cake for your family and friends, be prepared, and also have extra copies of the recipe on hand because you’re going to need them! This cake is just that good!
Holidays can be a very special time; we have been blessed as food bloggers; not only do we have enough to eat, but we have enough to make dishes to blog about……not everyone is that fortunate, and although it should be in our thoughts the entire year, this time of year it needs to be at the top of our list.
Ingredients to make the Crunch Layer
These are the ingredients in their ready form to make the crunch layer and crunch topping for the outside of the cake. Vanilla wafers and walnuts ground in a food processor. Brown sugar and melted butter.
Blend all the ingredients together to make the crunch topping. The crunch topping should be just wet enough to form it. If it’s too dry add a little more melted butter.
Add one very full cup of topping to each pan.
Ingredients to make the pumpkin crunch cake
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Pumpkin Crunch Cake. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
**Make sure to get pumpkin puree NOT pumpkin pie mix. Eggs, butter and yogurt should be at room temperature.
How do I make the pumpkin cake batter?
There are four steps in making the cake batter.
- Whip the softened butter and sugar for about 5 minutes to get it light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl frequently.
- Add in the pumpkin, Greek yogurt, vanilla and pumpkin pie seasoning. Mix well.
- Add the flour mixture (flour, baking soda, baking powder). Mix just enough to incorporate the flour.
- Add the eggs and mix just enough to blend.
When the cake batter is completed, split it equally among the four prepared cake pans.
**Be careful spreading the batter. You don’t want to pull up the crunch topping. Using an offset spatula makes this process much easier.
When the cake has completely cooled, you can start frosting the layers.
**Don’t rush this step, or the layers will start sliding off the cake. You can let the cakes cool overnight to be sure and make the cream cheese frosting ahead of time and let it chill. If the frosting is too hard, whip it with your mixer to soften it up enough to spread.
Repeat the process with the layers until all four have been stacked. Then put a crumb coat of cream cheese frosting on the entire cake.
**If you are better at frosting than I am, you can skip the crunch topping that covers the cake.
Coat the cake with the crunch topping by placing your hand along the side of the cake and dropping the topping along the sides. Keep turning the cake until the entire cake has been coated. Add a layer of the crunch on the top of the cake or leave the top plain, it’s up to you.
Once your incredibly delicious Pumpkin Crunch Cake is finished, it should be allowed to chill for a few hours before cutting; it will help firm up this cake. (When you do cut it, make sure to use a serrated knife). So try to be patient.
FAQ Pumpkin Crunch Cake
Yes, you can; this cake can be made up to 2 days ahead of time.
Yes, it does. The cake should be taken out of refrigeration 30 minutes before serving but kept in the refrigerator the rest of the time.
Yes, you can. Just make sure that the fresh pumpkin is not loose or liquid. The texture needs to be thick and dense.
Yes, you can. Just cut the recipe in half?
No, you don’t. You can eliminate the additional crunch topping and frosting. Just frost between the layers if you like and serve it topped with whipped cream.
More Dessert Recipes You’ll Love!
Pumpkin Crunch Cake
Ingredients
Crunch Topping
- 3 cups walnuts finely chopped or pecans
- 3 cups vanilla wafers about 75 cookies
- 3 cups brown sugar
- 8 oz unsalted butter
Pumpkin Crunch Cake
- 1 ¼ cup sugar
- 6 oz unsalted butter softened
- 16 oz can solid pack pumpkin not pumpkin pie mix
- 2 ½ cups flour
- ½ cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla
- 1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 24 oz cream cheese
- 16 oz mascarpone * you can use cream cheese instead of mascarpone
- 8 oz softened butter
- 2 cups confectioners sugar
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla
Instructions
Crunch Topping
- Melt Butter
- In a food processor, pulse cookies to a fine crumb
- Pulse walnuts to a fine chop
- Mix cookie crumbs, walnuts and brown sugar together, blending well.
- Add in Melted Butter and mix together.*if the mixture is too dry add additional melted butter
- Divide mixture into 4 prepared (greased and floured) cake pans – standard 9-inch rounds (One very full cup per pan), pressing into bottom and spreading it evenly into the cake pans. Reserve about 2 cups of the mixture which will be baked to use on the sides of the cake.I** like using a parchment cake circle in the bottom, the cake releases easily.
- Set pans aside and begin cake.
- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake the reserved crunch mix for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees F. Or until it crisps up a bit. Don't let it burn!Allow to cool before adding to the sides and top of the cake.
Pumpkin Cake
- In your mixer beat sugar and butter for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl frequently.
- Add in the pumpkin, Greek yogurt, vanilla and pumpkin pie seasoning. Mix well.
- Add the flour mixture (flour, baking soda, baking powder). Mix just enough to incorporate the flour.
- Add in the eggs, one at a time just until blended.
- Divide batter equally into your 4 prepared cake pans, smooth it out and make it as even as possible in the pan.**Be careful spreading the batter, you don't want to pull up the crunch topping. Using an offset spatula makes this process much easier.
- Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you use 2 racks to bake on in the oven, at the halfway mark rotate the pans.
- Allow pans to cool about 10 minutes, then turn them out onto a wire rack and allow to completely cool.
- while your cakes are baking prepare a Cream Cheese Frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Whip the cream cheese, mascarpone, and butter till very smooth and creamy
- Slowly add in the confectioner's sugar while the mixer is on low setting
- Add in vanilla and mix well. Set aside till needed.
Assembly
- After your cake is completely cooled (you can even refrigerate for a few hours) begin frosting the layers and putting the cake together.**Don't rush this step, or the layers will start sliding off the cake. You can let the cakes cool overnight to be sure and make the cream cheese frosting ahead of time and let it chill. If the frosting is too hard, whip it with your mixer to soften it up enough to spread.
- When you have assembled all the layers with some frosting between them, start to spread the remaining frosting on the sides and top.
- Coat the cake with the crunch topping by placing your hand along the side of the cake and dropping the topping along the sides. Keep turning the cake until the entire cake has been coated. Add a layer of the crunch on the top of the cake or leave the top plain, it's up to you.
Video
Notes
After heating place a plate on top of the pan, and invert quickly. Tap the pan with the heel of a knife to help release the cake.
Jennifer Couche says
What size pans? Looks so good, can’t wait to try it;)
Chef Dennis Littley says
Standard 9 inch cake pans are best, but it will work with 8 inch rounds also.
Deb Wasnock says
Definitely on my fall baking list! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Chef Dennis Littley says
You’re welcome and I hope you enjoy the cake as much as we do!
Platter Talk says
Goodness gracious this looks incredible! If you can limit yourself to eating just 75% of it yourself, you are far ahead of me! Beautifully done, Chef!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you! It really is an amazingly delicious cake!
darlene says
I must be blind cuz ive looked a zillion times and still cant find what size pans the recioe calls out for.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Darlene I always use standard size round cake pans which are 9 inches in diameter. You’ll find that most recipes are geared towards this size cake pan.
darlene says
Thank you so much for replying i kinda thought that but i soooo hate assuming lol…
Jessica says
Just wondering how long the ‘crunch’ stays…well….crunchy. Has anyone let this cake sit for more than just a few hours? I’m serving this cake tomorrow night and I’m wondering if I’ll just have a soggy mess if I add the crunch on the outside tonight. Maybe I’ll just cook the crunch now and add it before guests arrive.
Chef Dennis Littley says
hi Jessica
the crunch topping stays crunchy for up to a week, I’ve never had any cake left over after that point. It usually gets eaten up before then.
Brenda says
I want to make this cake, but was wondering if all of the crunch mixture could be baked separate from the cake and added to the layers after the cakes are baked. This would avoid the mixture sticking in the pans. Or would parchment paper in the pan help release the sticky part from the baked cakes?
Chef Dennis Littley says
Brenda, the only time you have issues with the cake sticking is when you let it sit too long cooling. The easiest way to remedy that is to place the cake pan on a hot burner of your stove for about 5 seconds and the heat will help release the cake.
You can of course do it the way you asked, I just don’t know how this cake recipe would respond. If you plan on cooking the crunch separate, I would use one of your go to pumpkin spice cake recipes instead of my cake recipe for the layers.
You could of course use parchment paper to avoid them sticking.
Brenda says
Thank you, Chef Dennis, for your reply.
Melinda R. says
Chef…I made this cake on Thanksgiving and now making it again for Christmas. It was sooo amazing, that my family members had at least two slices per day till it was devoured. It only took 2 days! LOL! The texture, the crunch, the smell and the crunchiness all made this cake possibly the best we’ve ever had and I am proud to say that I made it, (from your receipe, of course!)
Chef Dennis Littley says
thanks for the feedback Melinda, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Steph says
I’ve cooked many cakes in my day, but in no way consider myself a baker. This cake changed my life and the lives of many others. Let me preface by saying I don’t even like cake. I enjoy baking and watching my cake loving husband enjoy. I ate this cake and I ate at least 5 pieces. Never happens. The delish cake with a perfect amount of cream cheese and crunch!! I served last night at an early Thanksgiving dinner and EVERYONE raved about this cake! It’s delish and gorg! I followed the recipe exactly. I screwed up by inverting the cake pans while cooling…… Don’t do! I had no problem getting the crumb layer and cake out after spraying with loads of Pam. Seriously the bomb and life altering!! THANK YOU DENNIS!!!!!
Pier says
Oh Chef! Thank you for such a great recipe. I made it twice in the last 24 hours. One for my family and after I tasted it, I had to share with my friends so baked up another. The crunchy topping is so yummy – nutty, butterscotchy, and almost graham cracker-like but better -waaay better – and goes well with the moist pumpkin cake. The flavors were so good together. And the frosting! Mmmm. Never made cream cheese frosting with mascarpone before – it added to the creaminess and mellowed the sweetness of the powdered sugar. Might make a 3rd cake for the weekend. Thank you!
Chef Dennis Littley says
I’m very happy to hear that you enjoyed the cake, it has to be my all time favorite cake!
Anne Mouton says
Hi Dennis. I am from South Africa. I have 2 questions. I dont find Pumpkin Pie Spice on our supermarket shelves. What mixture of spice is it? Is it cinnamon or which spices should I combine? Also what exactly is vanilla wafers…….. is it a baked kind of biscuit or cookie? I want to try this recipe but scared I might spoil it if I dont use the right ingredients. I am allergic to nuts but will make it for my family. I love to treat my hubby. We just had our 30th anniversary !
Chef Dennis Littley says
Hi Anne
you can use cinnamon and nutmeg in place of the pumpkin pie spice and as for vanilla wafers aka Nilla wafer its a cookieits a vanilla flavored wafer style cookie, shortbread cookies would work intead
Dennis
paula goodman says
This is absolutely the BEST> CAKE>EVER>! I served it for the first time this past Christmas and is now the new and much requested tradition. The cake was served BEFORE the Christmas meal. Due to small kitchen quarters it took me five hours (of love and devotion) to prepare this cake. Seven more months…. I am ready!!!!
JW says
During the holidays, I made Chef Dennis’s Pumpkin Crunch Cake for one party & his Tiramisu for another. They were both fantastic! I made my own Lady Fingers & mascarpone for both recipes. Everyone, about 26 people, raved about them.. I have become your follower as you seem to prepare the kinds of dishes I like to make for guests. Thank you so much for posting these recipes. They are keepers!
Carla Harrison says
Just finished eating the first piece of this cake! My husband says this is the best cake I have baked in a lng time! What a great recipe….and so unique. Thank you for sharing! This cake is fabulous!
Chef Dennis Littley says
hi Carla
thank you so much for letting me know you and your husband enjoyed the cake! I just made one for Christmas and wowed my guests, you gotta love it!!
Best wishes for a very Healthy and Happy New Year!
John Benning says
I recently made the pumpkin cream crunch cake and everyone loved it. I did not have wallnuts so I substituted chopped pecans. I also halved the sugar in the cream cheese/marscapone frosting as my wife prefers a “less sweet” cake.
It was a real treat. Thanks!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks for letting me know the cake turned out well John! I use pecans sometimes too.
Rebecca C says
I made this cake last night and brought it in for a work holiday party, and let me tell you it was one of the best flavor cakes I have ever made……..The frosting is the perfect fit for the this type of cake. The layers were so beautiful and the crumbs was so delish! It makes a lot of crumbs, but it’s okay because I plan on making this cake again for Christmas Day. PERFECT AND DELISH! Glad I ran into this recipe on Google. Thank you Chef Dennis! For sure saving your website as one of my favs!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you so much for letting me know that your cake turned out well Rebecca, I’m making one for Christmas as well, and I love having left over crunchies and frosting to add to my slices…lol…
If you’re looking for another dessert to wow your friends take a look at my Tiramisu recipe, its really not difficult and simply amazing!
Happy Holidays!
Dennis