Apple Pumpkin Cinnamon Vanilla Bundt Cake - the best and the easiest Autumn bundt cake you'll ever make. You can optionally drizzle the cake with dulce de leche (or caramel sauce) and top it with chopped pecans, even though the cake is already really delicious. Perfect Fall treat! Great holiday recipe for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
You will fall in love with this apple pumpkin bundt cake and will be making it over and over again! The cake is so moist and fluffy, so very flavorful - it's like having Autumn on your plate! It will make a great addition to your dessert menu for Thanksgiving as an alternative or a companion to a pumpkin pie! As far as I am concerned, this cake is permanently on my menu regardless of holidays!
Even if you don't care much for pumpkin, you'll love this recipe because this cake is not overwhelmed with pumpkin, yet very flavorful. And, it has lots of chopped apples in it. It has the texture and the feel of a very good carrot cake. It won't last long in your house: you'll be eating it for breakfast, mid-day snack, and dessert!
More recipes with apples and pumpkin
I love the apple and pumpkin combination and have quite a few Autumn recipes featuring both apples and pumpkin:
- Pumpkin Banana Bread with Apples
- Pumpkin Pancakes with Cinnamon Apples
- Pumpkin Banana Muffins with Apples and Cinnamon
How to store apple pumpkin cake
- Because this cake is so moist, it keeps well on the kitchen counter for several days. I like to loosely cover it with foil and keep it loosely covered like that at room temperature.
- You can also cover the cake with plastic wrap and keep it refrigerated for up to 1 week.
- This cake can be frozen for up to 1 month.
Topping for bundt cake
And don't even get me started on the caramel topping + chopped pecans! So yummy! Homemade or store-bought regular (or salted) caramel sauce will work great! Or, you can also use dulce de leche instead of the caramel sauce. Remember to heat up the caramel sauce in the microwave for several seconds to soften it up so that it's manageable before pouring it over the apple pumpkin bundt cake.
This apple pumpkin cake came out perfectly in a bundt pan: it rises high in the pan as it bakes. And, to be frank, this cake is so good on its own, it does not even need the caramel topping, but why not pour it all over and sprinkle with the cake with chopped pecans, right? 🙂
I would say it again and again: this is an absolutely amazing apple pumpkin bundt cake: moist, light, not dense. It gets only better the next day! I hope you will welcome this gorgeous and delicious Autumn on a plate into your house as well .
Apple Pumpkin Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 cups all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 4 cups apples , cored, peeled and diced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a medium bowl, using electric mixer, beat eggs, white sugar and brown sugar until light in color and creamy, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add oil and vanilla extract and beat for 1-2 minutes more to blend in the ingredients. Add pumpkin puree and continue beating for 1 more minute to combine.
- In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Do not over mix. Fold in the apples.
- Spray the bundt pan with baking spray. Carefully pour the batter into the bundt pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 50 or 60 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool on a wire rack for about 40 minutes. Invert the bundt pan onto the serving platter and let the cake to cool further.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Could you make this cake without a Bundt pan? Like in a square pan! Thanks.
Anne, yes, you can! If making this in a shallower pan, I would obviously reduce the baking times considerably.
Do you think it would work to make this cake using vegan egg substitute instead of eggs? Thank you.
Janet, yes, that should work!
I'm making this cake tonight and taking it to a Christmas party tomorrow afternoon. I have a question on the caramel topping. Should it go on while the cake is a bit warm or right before serving?
Kathy, I would add the caramel topping right before serving, or at least once the cake is completely cooled so that it stays on the cake!
I made this cake a few nights back. It is so moist and delicious, we didn't even add the topping. Thank you for sharing!
Claire, your comment made my day! 🙂 So glad you loved the cake, even without the topping!
Can you freeze this cake.
Dorothy, yes, it freezes really well. I would divide it into smaller portions so that you don't have to thaw the whole cake.
I made this cake for Thanksgiving and it was absolutely delicious! Our daughter is anaphylactic to dairy, so I used about a half of a can of store bought Salted Caramel Icing to drizzle on top of it followed by the chopped pecans. Everyone raved about this cake!!
Ada, I am so happy this recipe was a success! Thank you for taking the time to share the feedback! 🙂
Can you add a splash of rum to it?
Melisa, of course! A moderate amount of alcohol elevates any dessert!
Can I use a tube pan?
Annie, yes you can a tube pan! I would check the cake for doneness earlier - in case it bakes faster in a tube pan.
This looks awesome; I just took it out of the over. Wondering about quantities for pecans and caramel sauce? Assuming that can be done a day and a half in advance as well?
Kim, I would use about 1/4 cup caramel sauce for drizzling (or use more) and 1/3 cup chopped pecans to sprinkle on top. Yes, you can do that a day in advance.
If using store-bought sauce and it's too thick, warm it up slightly in the microwave. Or, warm it slowly on low heat and add a teaspoon (or more) of heavy cream to thin it out.
Hi! Wondering if you can sub applesauce for the oil? I didn’t see in the comments where anyone tried it, and i don’t always have the best luck with substitutions in baking! Was thinking the applesauce might enhance the apple flavor ♀️
Jennifer, apple sauce should work fine. I would replace half of the oil in the recipe with applesauce. So in this recipe, I would use 1/3 cup of vegetable oil + 1/3 cup of applesauce. Then, if that works out fine, next time I would just replace all of the oil with apple sauce.
Curious, do I use pure pumpkin or pumpkin pie filling? Thanks!
Laura, use pure pumpkin (the ingredients list should list just PUMPKIN), not pumpkin pie filling.
Julia, this cake is amazing! It has become one of my favorite. It comes together so easy and turns out stunning!! I didn't change a thing.and I don't think it needs it. I've made it twice, the first time I won an office baking competition!! Thank you, Happy Holidays
Marcia, your comment really made my day! 🙂 I am so thrilled you won an office baking competition with this cake! 🙂 Happy Holidays!!!
What size can of pumpkin puree? Can you use regular can pumpkin?
Linda, I used 1 cup of pumpkin puree (US measuring cup) from a large can of pumpkin puree. Yes, you can use regular can pumpkin - the ingredients list should list pumpkin as the ingredient. It doesn't have to say "pumpkin puree".
Which type of apples do you use ?
Lori, I used sweet, firmer apples, such as Fuji or Gala.
OMG!!!! What a cake looks ,tastes and smells wonderful. Made it for Thanksgiving and I can't wait to see everyone comment on it.
So glad you like this cake! 🙂 Thank you for your enthusiasm and Happy Holidays! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Delish! Added .25 tsp of ground ginger and .125 tsp allspice.
That's a great idea to add these spices! Thanks for sharing - helpful to me and other readers! 🙂
Looks delicious, but can I use ALMOND OR COCoNUT flour to avoid white flour.....I have so much and no King Arthur gluten free.....
I love this cake! Does it freeze well?
Heather, yes, this will freeze well!