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Last Updated on September 24, 2019

This Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake is packed with pumpkin spice flavor! This recipe includes easy adaptations for a Pumpkin Spice Crunch Cake, as well. 

If you’ve been following Blackberry Babe for a while, you’ve probably noticed that I’m really not much of a baker. I love to EAT baked goods, but from-scratch baking just isn’t my thing. That’s why most of the desserts on this blog start with a cake mix. And, I’m all about dump cakes like this Caramel Apple Dump Cake, which are about the laziest possible form of baking! 

I set out to make a pumpkin dump cake this weekend, and really, it wasn’t good. I think this was because most pumpkin flavored cake mixes really have an artificial flavor to them. I looked around at other pumpkin dump cake recipes online and the reviews weren’t so great for them, so I ditched the idea of a true pumpkin dump cake altogether. I’m so glad I did, because it led me to this Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake recipe! It’s almost as easy as a pumpkin dump cake, but trust me, it’s worth the extra steps!

This Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake starts out as a spice cake mix, and real pumpkin is added to the batter. Delish. The cream cheese topping is dabbed on the top of the cake batter, and then swirled. So, pretty similar to a dump cake, just a different approach! 

How to Convert This Recipe to a Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting 

I added chocolate chips and a cream cheese swirl to the original recipe, because I LOVE the combination of pumpkin and chocolate!

If you’d like to make a traditional pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting, all you need to do is change some of the steps! Bake the pumpkin batter WITHOUT adding the cream cheese swirl. Allow it to cool completely before frosting with cream cheese mixture. 

How to Convert This Recipe to a Pumpkin Crunch Cake

Pour the pumpkin batter into the pan, skipping the cream cheese filling step. Top with the crumb topping below before baking, gently pressing the crumb topping into the batter. 

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Yield: 12

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake

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This Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake is packed with pumpkin spice flavor! This recipe includes easy adaptations for a Pumpkin Spice Crunch Cake, as well. 

Ingredients

Pumpkin Cake Base:

• 1 box Betty Crocker Spice Cake Mix w/ Pudding in the mix
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup canned 100% pure pumpkin
• ¾ cup water
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• Cream Cheese Filling
• 8oz room temperature cream cheese
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• Optional – Chocolate chips for topping

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9x13 baking pan with non-stick spray.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pumpkin, eggs, water, oil, sugar and pumpkin pie spice. Pour into the prepared pan.
3. In another bowl, melt the butter and mix together with the room temperature cream cheese. Stir in the powdered sugar and mix until well combined.
4. Place spoonfuls of the cream cheese mixture all over the top of the cake mixture. Using a knife, gently swirl through the cream cheese. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top and bake for 30-35 minutes.
5. When done, allow the cake to almost completely cool. If you cut before it cools, the cake will be too soft.