Bask In The Flavors of Fall With These Delicious Cake Recipes

Go one step above a candle and give your home the scent of fresh baked goods with a homemade holiday […]

Nov 1, 2022

Go one step above a candle and give your home the scent of fresh baked goods with a homemade holiday baking marathon. Break out the apples, pumpkins, pecans, and spices, and get ready to give your guests something to drool over the moment they walk in the door.

Cake, Cake, Cake, Flavors of Fall

Hummingbird Cake

What you’ll need:

Cake Layers

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 teaspoon table salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 ½ cups vegetable oil
  • 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 (8-oz.) can crushed pineapple in juice, undrained (such as Publix Crushed Pineapple in Pineapple Juice)
  • 2 cups chopped bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
  • 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
  • Vegetable shortening

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 2 (8-oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 2 (16-oz.) packages powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Additional Ingredient

  • 1 cup pecan halves, toasted

How to:

  1. Prepare the Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl; add eggs and oil, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in vanilla, pineapple, bananas, and toasted pecans.
  2. Divide batter evenly among 3 well-greased (with shortening) and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
  3. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely, about 1 hour.
  4. Prepare the Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer on medium-low speed until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Increase speed to medium-high, and beat until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.
  5. Assemble Cake: Place first cake layer on a serving platter; spread top with 1 cup of the frosting. Top with second layer, and spread with 1 cup frosting. Top with third layer, and spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Arrange pecan halves on top of cake in a circular pattern.
  1. Prepare the Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl; add eggs and oil, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in vanilla, pineapple, bananas, and toasted pecans.
  2. Divide batter evenly among 3 well-greased (with shortening) and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
  3. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely, about 1 hour.
  4. Prepare the Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer on medium-low speed until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Increase speed to medium-high, and beat until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.
  5. Assemble Cake: Place the first cake layer on a serving platter; spread top with 1 cup of the frosting. Top with the second layer, and spread with 1 cup frosting. Top with third layer, and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Arrange pecan halves on top of cake in a circular pattern.

Pumpkin Spice Battenberg

What you’ll need:

  • 2/3 cup (about 5 1/4 oz.) salted butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 3/4 cups (about 7 1/2 oz.) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/4 cup canned pumpkin
  • 1 teaspoon ground pumpkin pie spice
  • 3 tablespoons apricot jam
  • 1 (7-oz.) pkg. marzipan
  • 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, sifted

How to:

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Cut a 25- x 8-inch piece of parchment paper. Fold parchment rectangle in half (short end to short end), pressing firmly on folded end to make a crease. Fold creased end over about 3 inches, pressing firmly to make another crease in parchment paper. Unfold entire piece, and turn over. Pinch and pick up middle crease, creating a 3-inch-tall divider in middle of rectangle. Place in greased pan, pressing paper onto bottom of pan to fit as tightly as possible, and making sure divider is in the middle. Allow excess paper to extend over sides to use as handles. Coat top of parchment paper with cooking spray.
  2. Beat butter, granulated sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer at medium speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs and egg yolk. Add flour, baking powder, and salt to egg mixture; beat at medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Remove 1 1/4 cups batter to another bowl, and stir in canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Spoon plain batter into 1 side of the parchment paper divider in prepared pan; spread until smooth. Spoon pumpkin batter into the empty side of the parchment paper divider of the prepared pan; spread until smooth.
  3. Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 30 to 33 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Lift cakes from pan, using paper sides as handles, and place on wire rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
  4. Remove cakes from parchment paper; trim the edges and tops of both cakes, as needed. Cut each loaf in half lengthwise, creating 4 equal strips.
  5. Place jam in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave at HIGH just until warm, about 30 seconds. Spread jam on tops and sides of cake strips. Gently press 1 strip of each color together at long sides; top with remaining 2 strips, alternately stacking to create a checkerboard pattern.
  6. Roll marzipan on a surface sprinkled with sifted powdered sugar into a 12- x 8-inch rectangle. Place cake loaf, top jam-side down, in center of marzipan rectangle with the short ends of loaf facing the long sides of rectangle. Brush remaining 3 sides of cake with jam. Wrap marzipan around cake loaf, and gently press to adhere. Trim ends and where seam meets. Place cake loaf on platter, seam side down. Brush surface of cake lightly to remove excess powdered sugar. Lightly score top of cake in a diamond pattern with the edge of a sharp knife.

Fresh Apple Cake

What you’ll need:

  • 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, divided
  • 1 stick butter, melted
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into wedges
  • Cream Cheese Frosting

How to:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 5 to 7 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through.
  2. Combine butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract in a large bowl until blended. Combine flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda and butter mixture, stirring until blended. Stir in apples and 1 cup pecans. Spread thick batter into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch pan.
  3. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes. Remove from oven when a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack for 30-45 minutes. Spread frosting (your choice) on cake and sprinkle with remaining pecans.

The Ultimate Carrot Cake

What you’ll need:

  • 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon table salt
  • ½ cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • ½ cup canola oil
  • 3 large eggs
  • ¾ cup buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 cups grated carrots
  • 1 cup peeled and grated Granny Smith apple
  • 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
  • Brown Sugar-Cream Cheese Frosting
  • Candied Carrot Curls

How to:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Toss together first 3 ingredients; spread in a single layer in a foil- lined pan. Bake 10 minutes or until toasted, stirring once.
  2. Stir together flour and next 4 ingredients. Beat butter and both sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended. Add oil; beat until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended.
  3. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Stir in vanilla; fold in carrots, next 2 ingredients, and 1 cup toasted pecans. Spoon batter into 3 greased (with shortening) and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
  4. Bake at 350°F for 23 to 28 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely. Spread Brown Sugar-Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Top with Candied Carrot Curls and remaining toasted pecans.

All recipes courtesy of Southern Living.