Our Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Cake is soft and moist, has a ribbon of cinnamon sugar inside, and is topped with a sweet glaze. It is the perfect coffee cake for breakfast or Thanksgiving morning.
Jump to:
This homemade pumpkin cake is extremely dangerous! Dangerously delicious, that is! I might even go as far as to call it one of the best pumpkin desserts I have ever made.
That's a big claim, but we loved it even more than these pumpkin s'mores bars and these pumpkin muffins.
Why You Will Love This Cake
This cinnamon roll pumpkin cake has all the amazing flavor you love about a pumpkin cinnamon roll with about 5% of the work. No rolling or cutting dough, just cinnamon and sugar deliciousness in every bite.
It has a swirl of brown sugar and cinnamon inside and a sweet sugary glaze on top. You won't be able to resist taking a few extra bites!
Serve this easy pumpkin cake recipe at your next holiday party or weekend brunch and watch it disappear in minutes. Be prepared for everyone to ask you for the recipe because it's that good!
Main Ingredients Needed
You may have everything in your kitchen right now to make a fall breakfast or brunch coffee cake.
- Cream Cheese - This gives the cake an amazing texture and flavor.
- Butter - Adds a rich flavor to the batter and filling.
- Sugar - Brown sugar and granulated sugar add the sweetness to the batter and filling.
- Pumpkin Puree - Make sure you buy a can of 100% pumpkin puree. The canned pumpkin pie mix has added sugars and spices.
- Spices - Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves are essential spices to this pumpkin cake.
- Flour - All purpose flour adds structure to the batter. Learn how to measure flour correctly, so your baked goods turn out correctly every time.
BruCrew Tip: Use the leftover pumpkin puree to make a pumpkin danish or a pumpkin white mocha.
How to make a Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Cake
Not only is this fall coffee cake absolutely delicious, it is quick and easy to make. The batter and filling come together in minutes, and your kitchen will smell like fall flavors as it bakes.
Make the Cake Batter
Add the butter, cream cheese, and sugars to a large bowl and beat until smooth and creamy.
Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and pumpkin puree and mix it again.
Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until a soft cake batter forms.
Add a Cinnamon Sugar Filling
Combine cold butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Use a fork or pastry blender to mix it together until it looks like coarse crumbs.
Spread half the cake batter in a greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle ¾ of the cinnamon sugar filling onto the batter.
Drop the rest of the batter on top and spread it out very carefully. Try to not disturb the cinnamon layer if you can.
Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar filling on top and spread it out gently.
Bake and Glaze
Place the pumpkin cinnamon cake in a preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.
Remove the cake and place on a wire rack and let cool completely.
Whisk together the powdered sugar and milk and drizzle all over the top of the cooled coffee cake.
Storage Recommendations
On the Counter - Store the coffee cake in a sealed container on the counter for 2-3 days.
In the Refrigerator - The coffee cake will keep in the fridge for 5-6 days if sealed tightly.
In the Freezer - This cake freezes well. Wrap the whole unglazed coffee cake or individual slices tightly in plastic wrap, then place in a freezer safe bag or container. Freeze for 1-2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or at room temperature for a few hours.
To Reheat - Slices of this cake are amazing if you heat them in the microwave for 10-20 seconds.
Tips and Tricks
- Set your butter and cream cheese out ahead of time, so that it is ready to work with later.
- Add toasted nuts to the filling and cake batter before baking to add a crunch and a great flavor.
- Use pumpkin pie spice in place of the other spices in the cake.
- For a better swirl in the cake, run a butter knife back and forth a few times.
- Make sure the cake is completely cool before adding the glaze. A warm cake will make the glaze melt into the top of the cake.
- Enjoy slices of this cake with a cup of hot coffee or a pumpkin cream cold brew.
Recipe FAQ'S
Yes, this is a great cake to make 1-2 days ahead of time because it gets better and better each day.
No, the puree is 100% pumpkin with nothing added to it. Pumpkin pie mix has sugars and spices added to it.
If you use the wrong ingredients or add too much flour, a cake will end up dry. Over mixing and over baking the batter can also affect the end texture of a cake.
More Pumpkin Recipes
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Donuts
- Chocolate Pumpkin Donut Holes
- Pumpkin Zucchini Bread
- Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls
Love a recipe you tried from Inside BruCrew Life?
Please leave a 5 star ⭐️ rating and/or a review in the comments section further below.
Recipe
Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Cake
Our Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Cake is soft and moist, has a ribbon of cinnamon sugar inside, and is topped with a sweet glaze. It is the perfect coffee cake for breakfast or Thanksgiving morning.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 - 8 ounce package cream cheese
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
- ½ teaspoon table salt
For the Filling
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 3 tablespoons cold butter
For the Glaze
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with non-stick baking spray.
- Beat the cream cheese, butter, and sugars until smooth and creamy.
- Add the eggs, pumpkin, and vanilla and beat the mixture until mixed in.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and salt to the pumpkin mixture and slowly mix in. Spread half of the batter in the prepared pan.
- Combine all the filling ingredients in a bowl and use a fork or pastry blender to mix in the cold butter until it looks like crumbs. Spread ¾ of the mixture over the batter in the pan.
- Gently spread the rest of the cake batter on top, and then sprinkle the remaining sugar crumbs on the top. Bake for 35-37 minutes. Do not over bake. Remove and let cool completely.
- Whisk together the powdered sugar and milk and drizzle over the top of the cooled cake. Store in a sealed container.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 210Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 39mgSodium: 190mgCarbohydrates: 30gFiber: 1gSugar: 20gProtein: 3g
*This Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Cake was originally posted August 2016. It was updated and republished November 2022.
Bess
Sorry…I didn’t scroll down far enough to see the baking time!
Robin
Hi Jocelyn. This sounds ridiculous lol. I’d like to make for a fall baby shower coming up. Do you think I can make in a jelly roll pan? If so, would I one and a half the recipe or double? Any thoughts? I’ll make regardless but was just thinking…..
Thanks so much.
Jocelyn
Are you trying to make the cake larger, so it goes further? I haven't baked this in any other pan, so I'm not quite sure. I definitely wouldn't change the recipe, even this much batter may overflow. I personally wouldn't make this particular recipe in a jelly roll pan just because it's more of a coffee cake style, which is better thicker.
Robin
Ok. Thank you for your advice. I guess my thought was to have it less tall and more bar like if that makes sense. Making for a crowd so I’ll follow the recipe exactly and I’ll just make two cakes. Thanks again.
Linda
I read you great family recipes all the time. Most of them are great for me. This one is absolutely going to be made. It touches all the buttons for total comfort food! Thanks for sharing!
Louisa
So I just made this and it's super yummy. I wanted to check though, is there a certain type of brown sugar you should use? I can feel the granuals in my cake, and I'm not sure if that's normal or if I used the wrong kind. Thanks on advance.
Jocelyn
Do you mean in the cake itself or the brown sugar swirl? How long did you beat the cream cheese, butter, and sugars for the batter? It should be creamy before you add anything else. The sugar swirl should kind of melt into the cake, but will still be there so you will taste and see it. I hope that helps.
Bess
Hi Jocelyn! This recipe sounds amazing and looking forward to making it as a treat for my coworkers.
How long do you bake the cake? I looked through the recipe but didn’t see a time listed. Thanks!
Lisa Bedigian
This cake was INSANELY good!!! I compared it to a donut in that it has all this amazing flavor, it's fluffy and sweet and omg perfection! This is the cake I've chosen for my birthday this year and I NEVER pick anything but chocolate!
Kathi Rutherford
Where is printed recipe with measurements?
Jocelyn
How far did you scroll down? The printable recipe card is at the very bottom of the post after all the pictures.
Virginie
Hello Jocelyn, what is the quantity that corresponds to 1 cup in grams? +/- 400 grams?
Thanks for your confirmation!
Jocelyn
I don't actually use grams when I bake, so I'm not quite sure. I did google it, and everything I found was that 1 cup of pumpkin was 225 grams or 8 ounces. Hopefully that is helpful and you enjoy the cake.
Virginie
Perfect with 225g as 1 cup! Already fully approved, let's wait tomorrow to taste it fully chilled! :-p
Brenda Black
Is this all purpose flour or self rising ? It just says flour
Jocelyn
It is all purpose flour. All the recipes on my site use all purpose flour, unless otherwise stated. I hope you enjoy the pumpkin cake.
Diana
Oh, I guess I read the recipe too quickly (excited to see if I had all the ingredients on hand!) thanks for the quick reply ?
Jocelyn
No problem 🙂 I hope you love it as much as we did!!!
Diana
15 oz can or 29 oz?
Jocelyn
The recipe calls for 1 CUP of pumpkin...not a can. A 15 ounce can has 1 1/2 cups pumpkin, so I would use that one 🙂
Holly Nilsson
I love all things pumpkin but this cake... I literally just can't stop thinking about it! I'm definitely adding to to my fall baking list!
Jocelyn
Girl, I can't stop thinking about it either! It was so stinking good...and the photos really do not do it justice!!! I hope you get a chance to try it this fall!!!
Cynthia | What A Girl Eats
Are you kidding me? Everything about this cake has my name on it! I'm a huge pumpkin freak...er, fan!
Heather Kinnaird
I wasn't ready for pumpkin yet, and then I saw this cake...wowza
now I can't wait to get baking
Kristen Chidsey
It may be August, but I am craving pumpkin I have to give this a try!
Catherine
Dear Jocelyn, I woke this morning to a slight chill in the air and it really felt like fall was here. This sweet pumpkin cake sounds so perfect right now. I'm all excited for fall baking...this would be perfect with coffee! xo, Catherine
Jessica @ A Kitchen Addiction
I would love a big slice of this cake with a cup of coffee! That cinnamon swirl looks so good!
Aimee @ ShugarySweets
Now I'm totally craving pumpkin cake...and cinnamon rolls....and everything fall flavored!