Ahhhh…leftover night! No cooking (Yay!), and, believe me, a delightful and easy dessert can come also from that bit of leftover pumpkin or squash puree. This Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake comes together in 10 minutes and is so warm and inviting you might want these leftovers tonight!
Do you have “Leftover Night” at your house? Yep, we do, too. When one of my family asks me, “What’s for dinner?”, my answer is “Everybody’s favorite!”. At this point, it’s been quite a while since one of them has excitedly inquired, “What’s that?” And I would say, “Whatever was your favorite thing we’ve had the last 3 days, you can have again!” Well, I thought I was being clever.
But, and I’m sure you can relate, no one wants that leftover half-can of pumpkin from that pasta I made a few nights ago, am I right? So, sometimes I need a creative way to use these odds and ends. Now, I can turn that half-cup of pumpkin into dessert! This Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake is the best way I’ve found to use that last bit of Pumpkin or squash from your puree or your can.
I first saw this recipe made by Katie Lee on Food Network’s “The Kitchen”, as a Maple Pudding Cake. Then I thought adding pumpkin, since I had some leftover, might make it a bit more autumn-appropriate, and WOW! Soft, tender, golden pumpkin-y pillows, all resting over a blanket or thick salted caramel sauce, was so so warm and comforting. I did add a pretty heavy “pinch” of salt, because I do like my caramel salty, as you might know if you’ve ready any of these recipes. And, this recipe was so quick and easy to make! I just simmered some cream with a cup of maple syrup, then spooned in bits of a super-simple one-bowl cake mix. Took just 10 minutes to get the whole thing ready to go into the oven. You can do it all while you’re preheating!
I can imagine several variations for this recipe, too. Substitute a few tablespoons of cocoa for some of the flour to make it a chocolate cake, or maybe use half-n-half instead of heavy cream for a lighter sauce. But this Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake is a such a warm, comforting dessert, with similar texture and flavor to a bread pudding, and so easy to put together.
So when leftover night is approaching, as it always does, this Maple Pumpkin Pudding cake is something mouth-watering to anticipate! But, I’m curious, do you love or or do you dislike Leftover (aka “Everybody’s Favorite”) Night? Better yet, do you have something creative for leftovers? Enjoy!
If you like my Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake, be sure to check out this Pumpkin Cake with Penuche Frosting, or these magnificent Bread Puddings.
PIN Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake for later ->
Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake
Did you think you weren’t going to need a dessert? This one is perfect for the times you need to get something together quickly. Soft pillows of pumpkin goodness cook in a caramellized maple syrup cream. Just heavenly! It can be put together and popped in the oven in the time it takes to pre-heat. Just be sure to put your castiron or cooking pan over a baking sheet as the delicious caramel bubbles up. I used a “chicken fryer”-style castiron pan with a bit higher sides than most.
I adapted this recipe from Katie Lee’s recipe made on “The Kitchen”. I added a couple extra tablespoons of flour since I was adding 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 40-45 min
- Total Time: 50-55 min
- Yield: 6-8 Servings 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 1 c + 2 T AP Flour
- 1/2 c Sugar
- 1 t Baking Powder
- Kosher Salt
- 1/2 c Buttermilk
- 1/2 c Pumpkin Puree
- 4 T Butter, melted, cooled
- 1 T Brown Sugar
- 1 Lg egg
- 1 1/2 c Whipping cream or Heavy Cream
- 1 c Pure Maple Syrup
For Serving (Optional)
- Whipped cream or ice cream
Instructions
Make the Cake Batter:
- Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, place the flour, sugar, baking soda and 1 t Kosher Salt. Stir or Whisk to combine.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, pumpkin, butter, brown sugar, and egg.
- Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until just combined.
Make the Sauce:
- Heat a heavy 9”, straight-slided pan, preferably cast-iron, over medium heat. Add the cream and maple syrup. Stir or whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Add a pinch or salt.
- Turn off the heat and, using a 1 Tablespoon sized scoop, or soup spoon, drop portions of cake batter into the sauce. Don’t worry that they need to be evenly spaced, they will adjust in the oven.
- Bake until cake is golden brown and set, about 40-45 minutes. Serve warm with whipped or ice cream, if desired.
Keywords: Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake
What a yummy combination, Laura! And paired with ice-cream or a little whipped cream? Swoon! Thanks for totally making me crave something sweet right now 😉
Thanks, Dawn! I always appreciate a “swoon”! Thanks for visiting!
Looks like an absolutely decadent cake Laura! Perfect with some vanilla ice cream. I’ll be savoring all the pumpkin for the entire holiday season!
Thanks, Mary Ann! Me too! And you’re right – ice cream alongside is magical!
I do love “Leftover Nights”! Well, to be fair, we normally cook one dish and have it for dinner throughout the week. And I’m fine with this way too. But we’re talking more about holiday leftover nights, right? And the fact that you can stretch the festive dinner for a couple of nights is so cooool. Indeed, since our family is only two people, that might be a leftover week (We were enjoying the turkey for 5 days after last Thanksgiving). But I can assure you there won’t be any leftovers of this delicious cake. It looks fantastic!
Thanks so much, Ben! I imagine with your creative ways, leftover “week” is not boring at all! I appreciate your visit and your kind words!
Sounds so divine and delectable!! YUM!
Thanks so much, Kim! Have a great Thanksgiving!
Oh, we definitely have leftover nights around our house, too. Heck, I don’t know how we’d pull it off if we didn’t have some ‘easy dinner nights’ mixed in there. Excellent use of that leftover pumpkin, Laura! I love the flavors, and serving this one next to a scoop of vanilla ice cream sounds like my kind of dessert!
Thanks, David – this is proof leftovers can actually be “magical” and transformed from what they started. Now, to decide how to use the rest of Thanksgiving leftovers….
Maple and pumpkin are two of my favorite flavors. This sounds DELICIOUS and the texture looks incredible!
Thanks, Kelsie! I agree, these two flavors are perfect together! And caramellized, maple is even better! Thanks for your visit!
Yummy, my kind of dessert. As I have a rather large Kabocha squash on order (yep, we have to special order them here) for a Christmas pie, your Maple Pumpkin Pudding Cake recipe will come in very handy.
Thanks, Ron! Happy to hear you like a good squash, and I imagine your pie will be exceptional! Hope you get the chance to make a pudding cake with the leftovers and you enjoy it as much as we did! Thanks for visiting!
You make beauties using leftovers ! Pinned and shared, needless to say ! 🙂 🙂
Thanks so much! I do enjoy a good leftover, but using it in something brand new is even better! Thanks for the Pin and your kind words!
Thank you for giving me something to do with my last little bit of pumpkin!! I never really know what to do with it! Pumpkin and maple is such a great combination. Happy Thanksgiving to you!!
Thanks, Katherine! It is tough to figure out what to do with that little bit left, isn’t it? i love maple syrup so much, I’ll never go back to the maple-flavored corn syrup stuff. I use it for a sweetener in many things. Thanks for visiting!
Laura, you are a genius! ???
Well, thank you, Gail! (Blushing) I so appreciate your visit!