This Chocolate Pumpkin Cake is made from chocolate and pumpkin batter swirled together in a pretty marbled design. This chocolate pumpkin bundt cake is a perfect fall cake or Halloween treat!
Pumpkin is the ultimate fall dessert! Almost everyone loves pumpkin, and this time of year, everyone is eating and drinking pumpkin flavors.
While I enjoy pumpkin desserts, I am not big on pumpkin all by itself. I like my pumpkin desserts to include one of my other favorite flavors – chocolate or cheesecake!
The combination of pumpkin and chocolate is amazing. This dessert takes a little time to make, but it makes a fancy Halloween Bundt cake which makes it worth the small bit of extra effort involved.
Check out Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifle or Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins for more seasonal pumpkin recipes!
🥣How to Make Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
What makes this cake a little complicated is that you need to make both a chocolate and a pumpkin batter and then swirl them together for a marble effect.
1. Make the Base Batter
Cream the butter, sugar, and eggs in a stand mixer. Then add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix.
The base batter is then divided into two more or less equal parts. One half is turned into pumpkin spice-flavored batter, and the other half is made into a chocolate cake batter.
2. Make the Pumpkin Batter
Stir the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice into one of the bowls of base batter. Don’t use a mixer. Stir it with a spatula or spoon to avoid over-mixing.
3. Make the Chocolate Batter
In a medium bowl, microwave the chocolate chips in 20-second intervals, stirring after each. Once the chocolate is smooth, gradually stir in the milk to make thick chocolate. Stir the chocolate mixture into half the base batter without using the mixer.
4. Bake the Cake
Layer the two batters alternately in the Bundt pan, adding about half of each batter at a time. The two combine to give the dessert its swirled look. Use a knife to mix the batter layers together a little bit, or just let them mix as the pumpkin cake bakes.
Bake it for 45 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
🎃Chocolate Glaze (Optional)
The glaze is just semi-sweet chocolate melted with butter and oil, drizzled on the cake, and allowed to reharden. It tastes great without the chocolate ganache, but my kids always want extra chocolate on top!
If you skip the glaze, sprinkle the entire cake with cocoa powder or powdered sugar. Without the glaze, it is more like a pumpkin pound cake.
🍴Serving Ideas
This delicious recipe makes a treat that is elegant enough for a holiday dessert or a Halloween party. The combination of rich chocolate cake alternating with pumpkin spice flavor is irresistible!
Find more pumpkin and chocolate recipes, like Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Pumpkin Trifle, or White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars.
💭How to Store
Keep leftovers in a cake saver or another airtight container, or cover in plastic wrap. It stays fresh at room temperature for 3-4 days.
📝FAQ
Overmixing the batter is the most likely reason for dryness. Stir the chocolate and pumpkin ingredients in by hand, do not use a mixer for a soft and moist cake.
Use nonstick spray, and make sure you spray all the little crevices. Bundt cake can be tricky to get out of the pan without breaking if you aren’t thorough.
Yes, you can bake this cake in two loaf pans. Just divide the batter between the two pans and swirl it together with a knife.
⭐Tips for Making the Best Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
Be sure to check out the step by step instructions
- If you don’t have a Bundt pan, bake in two loaf pans.
- Do not overmix the batter. Stir by hand for the last few steps to avoid overmixing, which makes it dry.
- Pay attention when greasing a Bundt pan. Ensure you get all the little crevices so it comes out of the pan cleanly.
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Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
Ingredients
Base Batter
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
Pumpkin Batter
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Chocolate Batter
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup warm milk
Chocolate Glaze (optional)
- 2 squares semi-sweet chocolate
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon corn syrup
Instructions
Base Batter
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray your bundt pan with nonstick baking spray. If you don’t have a Bundt pan you can bake this in two loaf baking pans.
- Beat the butter and sugar in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment until soft and fluffy.3/4 cup unsalted butter, 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- Add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each. Then add the vanilla.4 eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Mix the flour with the salt and baking powder in a separate bowl.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl. Mix until just combined, making sure to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Separate the base batter into two medium bowls, with about half the batter in each.
Pumpkin Batter
- Add the cinnamon, pumpkin puree, and spice to one-half of the batter. Mix by hand, not with a mixer, and do not overmix.3/4 cup pumpkin puree, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Chocolate Batter
- Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave it in 20-second intervals, stirring after each, until it is melted and smooth.1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Once it is melted, slowly stir in the warm milk until smooth and creamy.3/4 cup warm milk
- Add the chocolate mixture to the other half of the batter. Stir it by hand until it is combined. Be careful not to overmix.
Baking the Cake
- Drop spoonfuls of the pumpkin batter into the prepared cake pan. Leave space between the spoonfuls and use about half the batter.
- Then add about half of the chocolate batter into the empty spaces. Repeat another layer of each until the batter is used up.
- Use a knife to swirl the two colors together for a marble effect.
- Bake for 45 minutes until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let it cool for 10 minutes, then invert the pan onto a wire rack.
- Once the cake cools completely, top it with the optional chocolate glaze or sprinkle the top with cocoa powder or powdered sugar.
Chocolate Glaze (optional)
- Combine the chocolate squares and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds.2 squares semi-sweet chocolate, 1 Tablespoon butter
- Stir and continue to microwave for 10 seconds at a time until it is smooth and melted.
- Stir in the corn syrup and drizzle the glaze over the cake. The glaze will harden in a few hours.1 teaspoon corn syrup
Notes
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Nutrition Information
Nutrition facts are estimates.
Hi there. Just stopped by to let you know that I featured this on my Saturday Spotlight post this week! Thanks for linking to A Round Tuit. Hope you have a lovely weekend!
Thank you for sharing this at my Pinterest Party. It looks delicious — so delicious that it (and you) are the featured blogger at this week’s party! I hope you’ll stop by again and share some more great posts!
May all your adventures be happy ones!
This looks so cool! Perfect for Halloween. The first time I saw pumpkin and chocolate together was in a recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. At first, I thought it was odd. But they do go so well together.
Thank you for linking with See Ya in the Gumbo this week.
I made it this morning, just poured the chocolate glaze on it.
Pumpkin is one of my favorites, as well as Chocolate. I’ve never had the two together, but I definitely want to try it. This Bundt Cake looks so delicious.
Great recipe. I made it exactly without any changes it came out so good. My ganache is not dark color and smooth but the cake is moist and delicious.
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