This Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe combines moist carrot cake, cream cheese frosting, and real pumpkin stems. Two little Bundt cakes are stacked together and decorated to look like an adorable pumpkin, making this such a fun fall dessert.
Although these cakes look impressive, you don’t need a special pumpkin-shaped cake pan. A regular mini Bundt pan creates the curves, and thick cream cheese frosting helps shape the outside. I’ll show you exactly how to assemble and decorate them below.
The carrot cake is tender, warmly spiced, and especially delicious with the sweet cream cheese frosting. These little cakes would be beautiful for a fall dinner, Halloween party, or Thanksgiving dessert table.
Why You’ll Love These Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cakes
- They are made with moist homemade carrot cake.
- You don’t need a special pumpkin-shaped cake pan.
- Thick cream cheese frosting makes the pumpkins easy to shape.
- Each finished pumpkin makes an impressive individual cake that can be divided into two servings.
- They can be prepared ahead and refrigerated until serving.
How I Created These Pumpkin-Shaped Cakes
I came up with this idea after ordering a mini cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes. I loved the individual size and started thinking about how I could turn two mini Bundt cakes into an adorable fall dessert.
After experimenting with the assembly and frosting, I found that stacking two cakes and using a thicker cream cheese frosting worked beautifully. Briefly chilling the frosted cakes makes the frosting firm enough to smooth and shape into realistic pumpkin curves.
Tools You’ll Need
- Mini Bundt cake pan
- Electric mixer
- Cooling rack
- Small offset spatula or butter knife
- Parchment paper
- Sharp serrated knife
- Pastry bag or batter dispenser
- Small real pumpkin stems, or cinnamon sticks
If you use real pumpkin stems, wash and dry them thoroughly and wrap the portion that touches the cake in a small piece of food-safe foil. Cinnamon sticks also make a simple decorative alternative.
Ingredients for This Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe
Carrots: Finely shredded carrots add moisture, sweetness, and a tender texture to the cake.
Cream cheese: Cream cheese is used in both the cake and frosting, giving the dessert a rich, slightly tangy flavor.
Granulated sugar: Sugar sweetens the carrot cake and helps keep it tender.
Cooking oil: Oil adds moisture and keeps the mini cakes soft.
All-purpose flour: Flour provides the structure for the cakes.
Egg: The egg binds the ingredients and helps the cakes rise.
Cinnamon: Cinnamon adds a warm fall flavor that complements the carrots.
Baking soda: Baking soda helps the cakes rise as they bake.
Vanilla extract: Vanilla rounds out the flavors in both the cake and frosting.
Butter: Softened butter helps create a thick, smooth cream cheese frosting.
Powdered sugar: Powdered sugar sweetens and thickens the frosting so it can be sculpted around the cakes.
Are These Pumpkin-Flavored Bundt Cakes?
Although these mini Bundt cakes are shaped like pumpkins, they are actually made with a moist carrot cake recipe rather than pumpkin cake. The carrots and cinnamon give the cakes a warm fall flavor, while the cream cheese frosting adds a sweet and slightly tangy finish.
The pumpkin look comes from stacking two mini Bundt cakes and shaping the frosting around the natural ridges. They make an adorable fall dessert without needing pumpkin puree or a special pumpkin-shaped cake pan.
How to Make a Bundt Cake Look Like a Pumpkin
You don’t need a specialty pumpkin cake pan for this technique. Each pumpkin is made by trimming and stacking two mini Bundt cakes with their flat sides together. Once frosted, the natural ridges of the Bundt cakes create the basic pumpkin shape.
Frosting Colors: I left my cream cheese frosting its natural color, but you can tint it pale orange or another fall shade. Gel food coloring is best because it adds color without making the frosting too thin.
Pumpkin-Shaped Bundt Pans: Specialty pumpkin cake pans are available, but you don’t need one for this recipe. A regular mini Bundt pan creates the curves, and stacking two cakes gives you the rounded pumpkin shape.
Tips for Making Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cakes
- Thoroughly coat every ridge and the center tube of the pan with shortening. Dust the pan lightly with flour and tap out the excess.
- Fill each Bundt cavity only to the level specified in the recipe so the cakes don’t overflow.
- Let the cakes cool in the pan for 5–10 minutes before carefully turning them onto a cooling rack.
- Allow the cakes to cool completely before trimming, stacking, or frosting them.
- Use a serrated knife to create flat, even surfaces that fit together neatly.
- If the cream cheese frosting becomes too soft to shape, refrigerate the cake briefly before continuing.
- Briefly chill the cakes rather than freezing them solid. The frosting only needs to become firm enough to shape.
How to Assemble the Pumpkin-Shaped Cakes
Trim the rounded bottoms from two completely cooled mini Bundt cakes so each one has a flat surface.
Spread cream cheese frosting over one cut surface. Stack the second cake on top so the two trimmed sides face each other, forming a rounded pumpkin shape.
Place the stacked cake on parchment paper and cover it with cream cheese frosting. Use a small offset spatula or butter knife to smooth the frosting and define grooves from the top to the bottom of the pumpkin.
Chill the cake briefly until the frosting is firm but not frozen solid. If necessary, lightly dampen a clean fingertip or spatula with cold water and gently smooth the frosting.
Refrigerate the finished cake until the frosting is set. Before serving, add a cleaned and wrapped pumpkin stem or a short cinnamon stick. Let the cake stand at room temperature for approximately 30–60 minutes before serving.
Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Cake
- ¾ cups carrots shredded
- ½ cup sugar
- 6 tbsp cooking oil
- ½ cup flour
- 2 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 1 egg
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
Frosting
- ⅛ cup butter room temperature
- 3 oz cream cheese room temperature
- ½ lb powdered sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 real pumpkin stems you can use cinnamon sticks if you like
For Preparing the Pan
- 1 tbsp Crisco or vegetable shortening or as needed
- 1 tbsp flour or as needed
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Prepare the mini Bundt pan. Grease and flour the inside of the Bundt cake molds.
- Attach the whisk attachment to a stand mixer.
- Beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth.
- Add carrots and beat them together.
- Next, add egg and beat until smooth.
- Now, alternate adding the flour and oil to the cake batter.
- Add salt, cinnamon, baking soda, and vanilla to the mixture. Beat well.
- Transfer the batter to a piping bag or batter dispenser for easier filling.
- Fill bundt pan about halfway to the top of the hole.
- Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack for 5-10 minutes.
- Take a toothpick and move along the edges between the cake and the pan. This will help loosen the cake from the pan.
- Turn the pan over and gently move the cake back and forth in the mold. And with your hand, gently try and pop out the cake from the pan.
- Place on cooling rack right side up.
Frosting
- Cream together the room temperature butter and cream cheese.
- Slowly add powdered sugar and vanilla.
- Beat until smooth.
How to Assemble the Pumpkin-Shaped Cakes
- Allow the mini Bundt cakes to cool completely before assembling them.
- Use a sharp serrated knife to trim the rounded bottom from each cake, creating a flat surface.
- Turn one cake upside down so the trimmed side faces up. Spread a layer of cream cheese frosting over the cut surface.
- Place a second trimmed cake on top, with the two flat sides facing each other. The stacked cakes should now resemble a small pumpkin.
- Place the cake on parchment paper and cover it with a thin layer of cream cheese frosting.
- Use a small offset spatula or butter knife to smooth the frosting. Follow the natural lines of the Bundt cake to create grooves running from the top to the bottom of the pumpkin.
- Refrigerate or briefly freeze the cake until the frosting becomes firm enough to shape. Do not freeze it solid.
- Dip a clean fingertip or spatula in a small amount of cold water and gently smooth the chilled frosting as needed.
- Refrigerate the finished cakes until the frosting is set. Add a clean pumpkin stem or cinnamon stick shortly before serving.
- For the best texture and flavor, let the cakes sit at room temperature for approximately 30–60 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Can You Freeze Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cakes?
Yes, these mini pumpkin Bundt cakes can be frozen. First, refrigerate the decorated cakes until the frosting is firm. Wrap each cake carefully in plastic wrap, followed by a layer of foil, and freeze it in an airtight container for up to three months.
Thaw the cakes overnight in the refrigerator while still wrapped. Once thawed, remove the wrapping and let the cakes sit at room temperature for approximately 30–60 minutes before serving. For the best quality, avoid repeatedly thawing and refreezing them.
Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe FAQs
No. This recipe uses a regular mini Bundt pan. Two cakes are trimmed, stacked, and frosted together to create the pumpkin shape.
Thoroughly coat every ridge and the center tube of the pan with shortening and flour or a baking spray containing flour. Let the cakes cool for 5–10 minutes before carefully turning them out onto a cooling rack.
Yes. Bake the cakes one day in advance and store them in an airtight container. You can also assemble and frost them ahead, refrigerate them, and add the stems shortly before serving.
A thick frosting holds its shape and allows you to sculpt the pumpkin grooves. If the frosting becomes too soft while you work, refrigerate it briefly before continuing.
Yes. Short cinnamon sticks make simple decorative stems. If you use real pumpkin stems, wash and dry them thoroughly and wrap the portion that touches the cake in a small piece of food-safe foil.
Because these cakes contain cream cheese frosting, store them covered in the refrigerator. Let them sit at room temperature for 30–60 minutes before serving so the cake and frosting can soften.
More Fall Dessert Recipes You’ll Love
If you enjoyed these mini pumpkin Bundt cakes, here are a few more fall desserts to try. From pumpkin treats to cozy autumn bakes, these recipes are perfect for seasonal gatherings and holiday menus.
Italian Cream Cake with a Twist of Pumpkin
Pumpkin Hand Pies Recipe (Mini Pastries)
These mini pumpkin Bundt cakes are such a fun way to turn a simple carrot cake into a memorable fall dessert. The stacked cakes, cream cheese frosting, and little stems make them look special without requiring a pumpkin-shaped pan.
Serve them for a fall gathering, Halloween party, or Thanksgiving dessert. They can be made ahead, which makes them especially helpful when you’re planning a holiday meal.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy making this Mini Pumpkin Bundt Cake Recipe for your next fall gathering!
Cheers,
- Fall Cake Ideas - September 19, 2026
- Fall Fabric Pumpkins - September 16, 2026
- Pumpkin Carving Tips: 15 Easy Tricks for the Perfect Jack-o’-Lantern - September 14, 2026
Rachelle Rubio
Adorable, and they look like the perfect amount for dessert.
happyhappynester
Rachelle,
It is the perfect amount for dessert and it’s so fun! Thanks for your sweet comment!
Coco in the Kitchen
These are ADORABLE!
And I love that I don’t need molds for them!
Sharon
Genius! I hought you were going to tell us you used fondant as the icing and the way you used the frosting was so clever! Thanks for a great, adorable dessert. 🥰
Janine Waite
Hi Sharon,
The cake and icing are so tasty. Yes, I’m not a fan of fondant either! You’re so welcome and thank you for your visit and lovely comment!
Kim | Shiplap and Shells
What an amazing recipe! This is so creative and I’d love to share your recipe on my weekly wrap up blog post.
Janine Waite
Thanks so much, Kim!
Jennifer Howard
These are insanely cute!!!! I cannot get over how realistic they look!!
Jean
Why did you cut them in two pieces?
Love your blog. These look amazing and I liked that i didn’t need a special pan.
I’m over the moon on your pink thanksgiving table. Is it pink? My monitor makes it more like a pale coral color.
Janine Waite
I just cut them in two so you place some frosting in between the layers. Also if you cut the mini bundt cakes is half and only want to use the top portion you can do that so that you have a rounded top and bottom to your pumpkin shape. That would leave you with a lot of unused bottoms. I think they probably have pumpkin shaped mini cake pans!
Renae Frey
These cakes are the cutest cakes ever! I love them.