Moist and perfectly-spiced pumpkin cake soaked in caramel, topped with sweetened cream cheese filling, and sprinkled with toasted pecans!
It’s not too early for a pumpkin recipe, is it?
Good, I didn’t think so.
Ever since August hit, I’ve been absolutely ITCHING to post a new pumpkin recipe. I know that the official start of Autumn technically isn’t until September 22nd, but your girl just couldn’t help herself. I figured that as long as I waited until September, I was safe from any Season Scrooges out there. You know, the ones that ridicule you for putting Christmas decorations up the day after Halloween? Yeah…THOSE ones.
All I have to say is, “live and let live.” You can live without pumpkin until fall officially starts, while also letting me live WITH pumpkin now. Capeesh?
Now that we’ve settled that totally unnecessary internal argument, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this post. Well, not literally meat and potatoes…you know what I mean.
THIS.
This unbelievably sexy (yes, I said sexy) Pumpkin Caramel Poke Cake is so many of my favorite things wrapped into one mouthwatering dessert–moist, fluffy pumpkin cake soaked with caramel, rich cheesecake-like topping, and toasted pecans!
It’s desserts like these that bring out my inner basic b!tch. Once I get a taste of that charmingly delicious pumpkin sweetness, I’m in full-on fall mode, and there ain’t no turning back. Now I crave pumpkin EVERYthing. I honestly don’t know why I choose to deprive myself of this heavenly flavor during the spring and summer months when I have access to canned pumpkin all year round. It makes NO sense.
But what DOES makes sense? This cake. There’s really no excuse for you NOT to make this cake immediately. (Unless if you hate pumpkin. In which case, why are you even reading this post then?) Aside from it’s obvious attractiveness, this cake is embarrassingly easy to throw together, thanks to the fact that it all begins with a cake mix. AKA, one of my most favorite shortcut ingredients in the entire world!
All that’s added to the cake mix is a few eggs, some milk, a little vanilla, a can of pureed pumpkin, and some spices. Now, since I didn’t have any pumpkin pie spice on hand, I had to make my own. However, feel free to substitute the spices with 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice if you already have it!
Once the ingredients have been thoroughly mixed together, the batter is poured into a greased 9 by 13-inch baking dish, and baked in the oven for about 25 minutes. While the cake is cooling, it’s time to make the lusciously gooey caramel! Just like the cake, the caramel is a breeze to make since it involves just TWO ingredients–store-bought caramels and milk. All I did was take a bag of Kraft caramels, unwrap them, and heat them in a bowl in the microwave with a few tablespoons of milk until smooth and melted.
Now that you’ve got your shortcut caramel, it’s time to poke holes in the cake! I used the handle end of a wooden spoon, and simply poked rows of holes (about an inch apart) over the entire cake. The holes should only go about halfway through the cake, not all the way. The caramel is then evenly poured over the cake, while you use a spatula or knife to push the caramel into/over all the little holes.
Moving on to the divinely sweet and tangy cheesecake topping! This is pretty much your standard no-bake cheesecake filling, but in this case it’s going to be used as a topping. Beat together some cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Fold in some whipped topping, and finally, slather it all over the cake.
Before diving into this fall beauty queen of a dessert, you’ll need to allow the cake to chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. Not only does this ensure that the cheesecake layer is firmed up and set, but it also gives the caramel time to fully saturate the cake with its mouthwateringly divine sweetness. Believe me, the wait is so TOTALLY worth it.
After the cake has gotten its beauty rest, you’re just a couple of steps away from reveling in its sweet, sweet pumpkin paradise. For some added crunch and flavor, toasted pecans are sprinkled on top. MAKE SURE THE PECANS ARE TOASTED. Toasting enhances the nut’s flavor immensely, so this is a crucial step that should never EVER be skipped. Besides, it’s as simple as scattering the pecans on a pan, and popping them in a preheated 350ºF oven for about 7-10 minutes.
And finally, since there’s no such thing as too much caramel, an extra drizzle of warmed caramel is drizzled over the entire thing. You have the option of using store-bought or homemade caramel. If you choose to go homemade, I HIGHLY recommend the salted caramel sauce from this lovely recipe right HERE.
Really, have you ever seen anything more beautiful than this?
I think not.
Pumpkin Caramel Poke Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 (15.25 oz) box yellow cake mix, dry
- 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
- 3 eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon*
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger*
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves*
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg*
Caramel:
- 11 ounces caramels**
- 3 Tablespoons milk
Cheesecake Topping:
- 12 ounces cream cheese
- 1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- 1 (8 oz) tub whipped topping
For Decorating:
- ¾ cup toasted chopped pecans
- Caramel sauce homemade or store-bought***
Instructions
Make the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir the cake mix, pumpkin puree, eggs, milk, vanilla, and spices together until smooth. Pour batter into the baking dish and bake for 23-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool while you make the caramel.
Make the Caramel:
- Place the caramels and milk into a medium microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave for 45 seconds, remove and stir. Return bowl to the microwave, heating in 15-second increments until caramel is completely smooth.
- Poke holes evenly over the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon. Pour caramel over the top of the cake, spreading with a knife or offset spatula.
Make the Cheesecake Topping:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt, beating until fully incorporated. Add a third of the whipped topping, mixing until smooth. Remove bowl from mixer and fold in the rest of the whipped topping.
- Spread cheesecake topping evenly over the cake. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- Just before serving, sprinkle chopped pecans over the cake and drizzle with caramel. Cut into squares and serve!
Notes
**I used Kraft caramels.
***If you want to make your own homemade caramel sauce, I highly recommend the salted caramel sauce from this wonderful recipe right here.