This pumpkin cake with a cake mix is the easiest way to make a pumpkin cake starting with a yellow cake mix! It’s great baked as a 9×13 pan, 10 inch bunt, or round cake. Top it with your favorite cream cheese frosting and you’ve got a killer pumpkin dessert!
This pumpkin cake tastes homemade and no one will ever guess that it started with a yellow cake box mix from the store. It’s a perfectly seasoned, moist, flavorful pumpkin cake. I recommend topping it with cream cheese frosting for the best combination ever!
Fall is such a beautiful time of year. The weather starts to cool down and the leaves start to change their colors. I love fall, and honestly the only reason I ever hesitate picking it as my favorite season of the year is because the start of fall means we are one step closer to winter starting. And although I love the holiday season, I don’t love the cold and how much snow we get here in Utah.
Nevertheless, I’ve decided to make the best of the fall season while its here, and made a fall bucket list. With some fall favorites like visiting a pumpkin patch, our favorite place to go also includes a corn maze, hayride, and apple cider donuts – that’s a killer combo if I do say so myself. What are your favorite fall activities?
Fall to me also means that its time for all the fall desserts – apple and pumpkin are on a repeat over here. Homemade pumpkin cake is a must make for me these days, with a moist cake base and topped with tangy cream cheese frosting!
Now, my usually pumpkin cake recipe, isn’t a hard one to make, but I know sometimes people get intimidated by making cakes from scratch. This pumpkin cake takes it one step further for you on the easiness scale – and starts with a cake mix. This cake literally couldn’t be easier to make.
How to make a pumpkin cake with cake mix?
This cake starts with a yellow cake mix. You’ll add in oil, water, and eggs, like you would with a normal cake mix, but the amounts are a little different. Then you’ll also add in pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling), a little sugar, and cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice to give the cake the full pumpkin flavor.
You’ll bake it up just like you would if you were making the cake mix according to the package. Top if with your favorite frosting, I recommend cream cheese frosting – because it pairs perfectly with pumpkin and voila. A delicious pumpkin cake, and no one will ever know that it started with a cake mix.
This pumpkin cake is so easy to make, and can be whipped up in just minutes. It’s the perfect fall dessert, and might just become your new favorite!
Take this delicious cake to a fall party, or have some friends over for dinner. Every one will be impressed by your delicious cake and will never guess that it all started with a yellow cake mix from a box.
Looking for more easy Pumpkin Recipes?
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Pumpkin Cake with a Cake Mix
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1/4 cup water
- 4 large eggs
- 15 oz pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix together the cake mix, sugar, oil, water, eggs, pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon.
- Stir for 2 minutes until the batter is super smooth.
- Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and bake until a toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- For a 9x13 pan, bake for 25-30 minutes
- For a 10inch bundt cake, bake for 30-40 minutes
- Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes then remove from the pan to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Top with powdered sugar, vanilla icing, or cream cheese frosting.
Nutrition
Cathy Holl says
Delicious!! Although I didn’t use boxed yellow cake I used carbquick and splenda for a diabetic cake.
Thanks,Cat
Gloria Davis says
Cake was good and moist……will definitely make it again
Aimee says
I’m so glad you liked it!
chahinez @lifestyleofafoodie says
This literally looks like it’s from nothing bundt cakes! You ladies did an amazing job turning box cake into something magical!
I actually made brownies using cake mix too and they turned out amazing! Hope you like them as much as I liked your recipe 🙂
Melanie says
Making a second 1! First one was a big hit with husband and 2 kids!
Aimee says
So glad you loved it!
Hope Brown says
I only had white cake mix to use for this recipe but it still turned out awesome!
Ellen says
I am so glad. Good to know. I believe the yellow cake mix mostly helped with color. Did you notice if it was a lighter pumpkin color?
I usually only have yellow cake mixes on hand, but it’s great to know they both work!
Doris says
I had to cook it for 55 minutes in my bumt aluminum pan. But it came out moist and delicious. I used white cake mix since I ran out of yellow.
Aimee says
So glad it worked with the white cake mix too! 🙂
Itimoney says
Can you stack this cake? I would like to make a double layer round cake.
Ellen says
Yes, you should be able to bake this cake like a double layer caked. You will need to adjust cooking time.Let me know how it turns out.
CATHY WOODBY says
How long should I bake cupcakes using this recipe? Could I add chocolate chips to the batter?
Aimee says
I haven’t tried either, so I can’t say for sure – but I would guess it should bake fine with chocolate chips, and I’d bake the cupcakes for somewhere from 15-22 minutes, check them with a toothpick to check doneness.
Suzanne Grzeszkowiak says
This cake was very tasty and moist. I used a yellow cake mix from Aldi. Put a homemade buttercream frosting on it. Made it for a men’s club dinner at church and it was a big hit.