Pumpkin Pound Cake With Maple Pecan Glaze

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 10/12/22
Tested by
Jacqueline Tris
Jacqueline Tris
Tested by Jacqueline Tris
Jacqueline is a freelance recipe tester and developer, with a love of content creation and fun recipes.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Pumpkin Pound Cake with Maple Pecan Glaze

The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 60 mins
Total: 75 mins
Servings: 16 servings
Yield: 1 cake

Serve this great-tasting pumpkin pound cake with the included maple pecan glaze or simply dust it with powdered sugar. Also included at the bottom are instructions for an uncooked maple glaze. It's a great cake for Halloween or any other fall or winter holiday gathering. Also, feel free to leave the pecans out; it's delicious with or without the nuts.

This is a popular cake, and a Bundt cake pan makes it an easy cake to mix and bake. It's very moist and the maple glaze adds amazing flavor.

"This Pumpkin Pound Cake is the epitome of fall. It's not too sweet, is moist, and pairs perfectly with the pecan glaze. It has ginger, cloves, and cinnamon, which highlight the flavor of the pumpkin and make your kitchen smell amazing. I recommend making this for fall gatherings or as a fun weekend baking project. " —Jacqueline Tris

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Ingredients

For the Cake:

  • 8 ounces (1 cup) unsalted butter, more for the pan

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour

  • 2 teaspoons baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, or allspice

  • 1 cup granulated sugar

  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar

  • 5 large eggs

  • 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin, solid pack

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Maple-Pecan Glaze:

  • 2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter

  • 3 tablespoons maple syrup

  • 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

  • 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

  • 3 tablespoons pecan pieces, or finely chopped pecans, optional

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients to make pumpkin pound cake

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  2. Grease and flour a 12-cup Bundt cake pan. Set aside. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 325 F.

    A greased and floured bundt pan

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  3. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Set aside.

    A bowl of flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  4. In another large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin and vanilla.

    A bowl of combined butter, sugar, eggs, pumpkin, and vanilla

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  5. Slowly beat the dry ingredients into the batter. Continue beating on medium speed until the batter is smooth and well blended.

    Pumpkin pound cake batter in a bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  6. Spoon the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake until a wooden toothpick or cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the center, 55 to 60 minutes.

    Cooked pumpkin pound cake on a plate

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  7. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan on a rack. Invert onto a serving plate to cool completely. Glaze with the Maple Pecan Glaze or dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

    Pumpkin pound cake topped with maple pecan glaze

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

Maple Pecan Glaze

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients to make maple pecan glaze

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  2. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, maple syrup, and cream. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Continue to boil for 1 minute.

    A sauce pan of cream, butter, and maple syrup

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  3. Remove from heat and sift the confectioners' sugar into the hot mixture. Whisk until smooth. Let cool for about 15 to 20 minutes, until slightly thickened.

    Whisked mixture of powdered sugar, butter, maple syrup, and cream

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

  4. Stir in the finely chopped pecans, if using. Drizzle over the cooled cake.

    Drizzling maple pecan glaze over pumpkin pound cake

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

Tip

  • For a tall cake like this, it's a good idea to have longer wooden picks on hand. Consider buying some wooden skewers to test deep Bundt or tube cakes.

Recipe Variation

  • Uncooked Maple Glaze: Combine 1 cup of confectioners' sugar with 1 tablespoon of soft butter, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, and 1/4 cup of pure maple syrup. Blend well and add more confectioners' sugar, if necessary. If desired, add a dash of cinnamon to the glaze. Drizzle over the cooled cake.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
356 Calories
17g Fat
47g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories 356
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17g 22%
Saturated Fat 10g 51%
Cholesterol 99mg 33%
Sodium 324mg 14%
Total Carbohydrate 47g 17%
Dietary Fiber 1g 4%
Total Sugars 27g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 1mg 6%
Calcium 71mg 5%
Iron 2mg 9%
Potassium 138mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)