Pumpkin Earthquake Cake

This Pumpkin Earthquake Cake is a moist pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting baked inside of the pumpkin sheet cake. With butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, pecans, and coconut, this is one over-the-top pumpkin cake that’s sure to be a new fall favorite. 

Easy Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

I don’t know if you’ve ever found yourself in the presence of an earthquake cake. If you have, this pumpkin earthquake cake needs no introduction. If you haven’t, well, let me tell you: you’re in for a life changing cake.

An earthquake cake is a cake that has a cream cheese frosting actually baked inside of the cake. It makes for the softest, richest, and gooiest cake you’ll ever have. Every bite has a pocket of rich cream cheese filling, and it makes this pumpkin cake almost custard-like in texture. It gets its name from the “cracks” and “divots” the cream cheese filling makes as the cake bakes.

To make matters even more over-the-top, this pumpkin cake begins with a layer of coconut and pecans, then has the pumpkin cake batter poured on top (and half of the reason this is such an easy recipe is because the recipe begins with cake mix), then the homemade cream cheese frosting is swirled in the batter, and finally, a trio of chocolate chips are sprinkled on top.

It’s truly a remarkable and memorable dessert from first bite to last. This cream cheese pumpkin cake is so incredibly rich, so decadent, and so moist.

Three Reasons I’d Eat This Pumpkin Earthquake Cake Straight Out Of The Dish:

• Easy: This is by far one of the easiest pumpkin desserts, yet it tastes like you spent a lot of time working hard on this pumpkin cake. It begins with a box of white cake mix. Add in a few ingredients, make the frosting, and let it bake into perfection.
• Cream Cheese Frosting: Cream cheese frosting might just be my favorite frosting of all time, especially when paired with pumpkin cake. But when it’s baked inside of the cake and it turns into a gooey cheesecake filling yielding a pumpkin pudding cake texture? It’s near perfection.
• Chocolate Chips: A trio of white chocolate chips, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips are mixed into the cake batter, and all of the flavors enhance the pumpkin cream cheese flavor so well.

Once you bake this pumpkin earthquake cake, I highly suggest you try this Pumpkin Sheet Cake next, then this Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bundt Cake, and lastly this Pumpkin Ice Box Cake.

Ingredients:

• Cake Mix: You can use white cake, spice cake, or yellow cake.
• Pumpkin Puree
• Cinnamon and Pumpkin Pie Spice
• Salt
• Vanilla Extract:
• Cream Cheese: This is the most important ingredient, as the cream cheese filling sinks while it bakes, creating the cracks and texture that gives this cake its very name.
• Eggs
• Oil
• Unsalted Butter
• Water
• Powdered Sugar & Brown Sugar
• Chocolate Chips & Butterscotch Chips: Use any kind of chips you’d prefer–white chocolate, milk chocolate, semi sweet, butterscotch, etc.
• Coconut and Pecans: You can use any nut you prefer, or omit them all together.

Let’s Make This Pumpkin Earthquake Cake:

1. Pumpkin Cake: Mix the cake mix with canola oil, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, eggs, and water. Using a hand mixer, whisk until well combined.
2. Cream Cheese Frosting/Filling: Beat the butter and cream cheese together until well combined. Add in powdered sugar and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Add in a pinch of salt and mix until combined.
3. Assembly: Grease your baking dish well, then sprinkle the pecans and coconut in the bottom of the dish. Pour the pumpkin cake batter on top and spread in even layer. Using a spoon, dollop the cream cheese all over the batter. Then, use a knife to swirl the cream cheese filling into the batter. Sprinkle with chocolate chips.
4. Bake: Bake the cake for 35-40 minutes, or until the cake is set and jiggles only slightly in the middle (think like a cheesecake).
5. Cool: Allow the cake to cool at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
   1. Pro Tip: As the cake sets, it will likely sink a little in spots, which is normal.

Storage Tips:

Because of the cream cheese filling in the cake, all leftovers do need to be refrigerated. Truthfully, in my opinion, this cake tastes even better when it’s cold. The cream cheese frosting turns into more of a rich cheesecake filling, and there’s nothing better than pumpkin and cheesecake.

If you prefer the cake warm, as it has a pumpkin pudding meets gooey pumpkin bar thing happening when it’s warm, you can microwave the cake or reheat it in the oven when serving the leftovers. Or, if you want to make this ahead of time, you can make it the day before, refrigerate, and warm it before serving.

Variations and Substitutions:

• Chocolate Chips: We use a combination of white chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips. However, you can use any kind of chip you prefer. Milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, cinnamon chips, or even peanut butter chips.
• Toffee: Instead of coconut, try using toffee bits! Or use coconut and toffee.
• Nuts: Not a fan of pecans? Sub almonds, walnuts, or macadamia nuts.

Quick and Easy Final Reminders To Make This The Perfect Pumpkin Earthquake Cake:

• Cake Mix: Just a reminder: do not follow the directions on the back of the box. We’re going rogue with this cake mix by doctoring it up ourselves with different ingredients.
• The Jiggle: The cake is done when the top of the cake is set and the center of the cake just slightly jiggles, much like the center of a cheesecake.
• Toppings: This cake is so rich and gooey on its own so you don’t really need toppings. But if you want toppings, a scoop of vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream would be nothing but a chef’s kiss.

5 from 6 votes

Pumpkin Earthquake Cake

Prep: 20 minutes mins

Cook: 35 minutes mins

Total: 55 minutes mins

This Pumpkin Earthquake Cake is a moist pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting baked inside of the pumpkin sheet cake. With butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, pecans, and coconut, this is one over-the-top pumpkin cake that's sure to be a new fall favorite. 

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Ingredients

 

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Pumpkin Cake

• ▢ 1 box white cake mix (15.25oz)
• ▢ 1/2 cup canola oil
• ▢ 1/2 cup water
• ▢ 1 cup pumpkin puree
• ▢ 1/2 cup brown sugar
• ▢ 1 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• ▢ 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• ▢ 2 tsp vanilla extract
• ▢ 3 eggs

Cream Cheese Filling

• ▢ 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• ▢ 3 cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ▢ 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ▢ dash of salt

Additional Ingredients

• ▢ 1 cup pecans, chopped
• ▢ 1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened
• ▢ 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips, optional
• ▢ 1/4 cup butterscotch chips, optional
• ▢ 1/4 cup white chocolate chips, optional

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish well.
• Sprinkle chopped pecans and shredded coconut over the bottom of the baking pan. Set aside.

Cream Cheese Filling

• In a medium sized bowl with a hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat the cream cheese and unsalted butter together until well combined. Add in the powdered sugar, pinch of salt (to balance the sweetness of the frosting), and vanilla extract. Set aside.

Pumpkin Cake Batter

• In a large bowl, mix cake mix, canola oil, water, brown sugar, and eggs together. With a hand mixer (or stand mixer), whisk until combined.
• Add in pumpkin puree, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla extract. Whisk until well combined. Pour the batter on top of the pecans and shredded coconut.

Assembly:

• Dollop the cream cheese filling all over the top of the cake batter.
• Using a knife, swirl the cream cheese filling and pumpkin cake batter together.
• Next, sprinkle white chocolate chips, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips on top, and gently swirl into the cake.

Bake

• Bake for about 35-40 minutes. The cake should be set on top, and the center should jiggle very lightly when the cake pan is gently moved.
• Allow to cool at least 30 minutes before serving. Cake can be served warm or cold.
• Store leftovers in the fridge.

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The nutrition facts provided are calculated using a third-party tool and are estimates only. Actual nutritional content may vary based on the ingredients and brands you use, as well as portion sizes. For accurate results, please consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

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