Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake

Pumpkin, spice and coffee come together tastefully in this flavorful Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake with a very soft and moist pumpkin cake soaked in espresso syrup and topped with a creamy espresso buttercream frosting. This is a simple one layer cake that packs a big punch of flavor! It shows off all the cozy flavors that we love about Fall. If you like making pumpkin desserts, try my popular Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins and my Chewy Pumpkin Cookies.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

• Easy to make - all you need is a whisk, a bowl and a spatula to make this recipe. It is super simple. It's a one bowl recipe!
• Moist pumpkin cake- this pumpkin cake is SO moist on its own, and then especially soft with the coffee soak added.
• Soft and fluffy texture - you will love the fluffy texture.
• Pumpkin spice latte flavor - the spiced pumpkin cake is marbled with espresso pumpkin cake to create this flavor that is inspired by Starbucks' iconic Fall beverage. Coffee and pumpkin spice marry well together in desserts.
• Coffee syrup soak - you brush a simple mixture of espresso and sugar over the cake and it soaks in slightly to give a beautiful marbling effect.
• Coffee buttercream - rich, creamy coffee buttercream gives the "latte" vibe to complete this themed cake.

INGREDIENTS FOR PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE CAKE

• Oil - you can use any neutral-tasting oil, but I prefer sunflower oil for baking since it has a very clean flavor and is stable.
• Granulated sugar - I use white sugar since there are so many other flavors in this cake, but brown sugar would also work and add additional caramel-like flavor from the molasses.
• Pure pumpkin puree - canned pumpkin is easily accessible and inexpensive. You can also make it yourself, but it is important to reduce it down so it is very thick otherwise the moisture balance will be off in the recipe. Make sure you use pure pumpkin and NOT pumpkin pie filling which has sugar and spices already added.
• Eggs - one large egg will add enough structure in combination with the pumpkin.

• Pure vanilla extract - vanilla will add rich undertones. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
• Yogurt - a bit of plain yogurt balances the sweetness and adds more body.
• All purpose flour - regular unbleached all-purpose flour works great for most cakes.
• Pumpkin spice - a fragrant blend of cinnamon, ginger, clove, allspice and nutmeg is a classic pairing with pumpkin and caramel.
• Espresso - I use espresso powder to make instant espresso for the soak and also for the buttercream. you just need sugar, cinnamon and bit of cocoa to make the swirl mixture.
• Butter - I pair this cake with a quick buttercream frosting that is perfectly sweet and adds so much creamy coffee flavor.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS: HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE CAKE

• STEP 1). Make the pumpkin cake. Combine dry ingredients. Combine flour, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then set aside the flour mixture.
• STEP 2). Combine wet ingredients. Combine pumpkin, oil, yogurt, egg and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk well until smooth.
• STEP 3). Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and fold together until the batter is uniform.
• STEP 4). Make coffee batter. Remove ½ cup of batter and gently stir in ½ teaspoon espresso powder.
• STEP 5). Bake. Pour the pumpkin batter into the prepared baking pan. Dollop the espresso batter on top and swirl it in. Bake the cake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
• STEP 6). Make the latte soak. While the cake cools, make the latte milk soak by mixing together the espresso, milk and brown sugar.
• STEP 7). Make the frosting. Beat the very soft butter with powdered sugar until very fluffy. Add 1 tablespoon cream and vanilla. Sprinkle the espresso powder on top of the cream and beat until combined. Gradually beat in the remaining tablespoon of cream until smooth and creamy.
• STEP 8). Decorate the cake. Spread the creamy frosting all over the cake and then drizzle with a bit of the coffee syrup and sprinkle with cinnamon.

EXPERT BAKING TIPS FOR PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE CAKE

• Do not over-mix the batter. Once the flour is just combined, then the batter is ready for baking. It may look a little lumpy, but resist over mixing which will create tunnelling in the cake.
• Cool the cake before adding the syrup. Sometimes I like to add a warm soak to a warm cake, but this pumpkin cake is already very moist and tender on its own so I prefer to let it cool before adding the warm soak so that the finished cake doesn't become mushy.
• Reserve a tiny bit of syrup for decorating. I like how the droplets of espresso look over the frosting.

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