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    Home » Recipes » Quick Bread/ Loaves

    Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes

    By Wendy Sondov · Published: Oct 2, 2021 · Modified: Sep 1, 2022 · This post may contain affiliate links · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes are delicious and beautiful right out of the pan without any decorating needed. The warm, spiced flavors of these mini pumpkin cakes match the fall themed molds perfectly.

    Four mini Pumpkin Butterscotch Loaf Cakes on a white platter.
    Pumpkin mini cakes make great gifts and care package treats.

    Why you'll love this recipe

    Pumpkin loaf cake is a moist, delicious treat. Melted butterscotch chips are added to the batter to give these mini pumpkin loaves a warm depth of flavor.

    Using a Nordicware Harvest Mini Loaf Pan , made the mini pumpkin cakes come out of the oven too cute to cover up. The variety of molded shapes on top (leaves, turkey, squirrel, and acorns) are fun for all fall cake eating occasions.

    However, you don't need a special pan to enjoy these loaves. The recipe can be used in a regular full size or mini loaf pans.

    Nordicware mini cake pan with fall molds and baked molded min cakes.
    Mini pumpkin bread loaves are especially cute when baked in a mold pan.

    The little cakes are so flavorful that additional topping isn’t needed, though you can sprinkle the little loaves with confectioner’s sugar or drizzle a bit of spiced icing if you prefer.

    If eating these at home, drizzle with icing right before serving. If mailing, package the pre-measured icing ingredients in a small ziplock bag. Add water right to the bag to mix up the icing when ready to eat.

    These loaf cakes are quick and easy to make, two bowls and no electric mixer!  In addition to sending the cakes in care packages, make them as gifts and keeping a few for a treat with your coffee or tea.

    Ingredients

    Ingredients collage with text overlay: sugar, eggs, flour, confectoners' sugar, vanilla, spices, baking powder, pumpkin, oil.
    • Be sure to use plain, canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling which has added spices and sweeteners.
    • Find butterscotch chips in the baking aisle of most supermarkets where the chocolate chips are displayed. My favorite brand is Guittard, but the chips are made by numerous brands.

    Instructions

    This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.

    Instructions; whisk dry ingredients, melt butterscotch chips, combine all ingredients, spoon into pan.
    1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, white sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
    2. In a separate bowl, microwave butterscotch chips at 50% for one minute. Stir. If not completely melted, return to microwave for an additional 20 seconds or until melted.
    3. Mix the pumpkin puree into the melted butterscotch. Then stir in the oil, eggs, and vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
    4. Divide batter into a mini loaf pan coated with non-stick spray. Fill no higher than ¾” from the top of each mold.
    Instructions; bake until toothpick comes out clean, invert onto wire rack to cool completely.
    1. Bake for 18-23 minutes.
    2. Cool the cakes in the pan for 30 minutes before inverting to unmold onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
    Icing in a ziplock bag before drizzling onto cakes in background.

    Tips

    • If using icing, I recommend adding it to the individual Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes right before eating. Package the cakes and the icing ingredients separately for shipping.
    • A super easy way to package the icing for shipping is to pre-measure the dry ingredients into a small ziplock bag. Include directions to add 1- 1 ½ teaspoons of water, massage the bag to mix the contents, cut a tiny bit off one bottom corner of the bag, and drizzle onto the cake.
    • Don't ship pumpkin loaf cake in hot weather(moist cake is more prone to molding in warm weather), in cooler temperatures these cakes will stay fresh for at least 5 days.

    Storage

    Wrap each cake individually in plastic wrap. Then, store at room temperature (or refrigerate) in an airtight container for about 5 days.

    Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes and a bowl of butterscotch baking chips.
    Pumpkin Butterscotch cakes are full of warm fall flavors.

    Frequently asked questions

    What does pumpkin do in baking?

    In addition to adding delicious flavor, pumpkin adds moisture, sweetness and can substitute for some fats in baking recipes.

    What is the difference between pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie filling?

    The main difference is that puree contains only pumpkin. Pie filling is puree with sweetener and spices added.

    Can I use pumpkin pie filling instead of pumpkin puree?

    No. If a recipe is written for pumpkin puree and you use pie filling instead, the baked goods will come out overly sweet and overly spiced.

    Related recipes

    If you love baking with pumpkin, the next time try crunchy Pumpkin Biscotti.

    If you love citrus, you will want to try Orange Olive Oil Loaf Cake and Lemon Loaf. Both are soft, tender and bursting with bright citrus flavor.

    Oatmeal Raisin Loaf is a cozy quick bread spiced with cinnamon. It tastes like your favorite oatmeal cookie turned into a loaf cake.

    Fill your kitchen with the warming aromas of cinnamon and ginger baking Gingerbread Loaf Cake. Super quick to prepare when you mix the batter in the blender!

    Moist Tea Brack is a traditional Irish fruit cake made with tea. If you love raisins, you will love this loaf!

    Chocolate Marble Pound Cake is a moist and delicious loaf with swirls of vanilla and chocolate dough.

    Cherry Bread is a beautiful pink quick bread full of glistening maraschino cherries. Perfect for tea time or brunch!

    You will love this moist and delicious Honey Cake Loaf made with applesauce. It's a year round reader favorite!

    Recipe summary

    Follow along with these recipe summary slides! The photo slides change when you click or automatically after 7 seconds.

    Mini Pumpkin Cakes

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    Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes

    Pumpkin Butterscotch Cake

    Butterscotch Pumpkin Cake is wonderfully fluffy and moist pumpkin bread. Perfect care package mini loaf cakes, they are individual portion sized, pack well, travel well, and taste delicious.
    4.57 from 16 votes
    Print Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Cool down: 30 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour
    Servings: 10
    Calories: 399kcal
    Author: Wendy Sondov

    Equipment

    • 4 cavity mini loaf pan

    Ingredients

    For cake

    • 2 cups all-purpose flour
    • 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
    • 1 tablespoon baking powder
    • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup butterscotch chips
    • 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
    • ½ cup vegetable oil
    • 3 large eggs
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    For optional icing

    • 4 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
    • ¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
    • 1-2 teaspoons water

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350° F. Coat baking pan with non-stick vegetable oil spray.
    • In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
    • In a large mixing bowl, microwave butterscotch chips at 50% for one minute. Stir. If not completely melted, return to microwave for an additional 20 seconds or until melted.
    • To the melted butterscotch, mix in the pumpkin puree until blended. Then stir in the oil, eggs, and vanilla.
    • Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and stir to combine.
    • Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, no higher than ¾” from the top of each mold.
    • Bake for 18-23 minutes for mini cakes. Cake is done when a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. If the batter rose above the top of the molds, and the cakes are touching each other, use a knife to score the touching edges before cooling.
    • Cool the cakes in the pan for 30 minutes before inverting to unmold onto a wire rack to cool completely.
    • Store at room temperature (or refrigerate) in an airtight container for about 5 days.
    • Optional: Pumpkin spice icing ingredients can be mixed with 1-2 teaspoons of water and drizzled on the cakes immediately before serving. If shipping the cakes, put the dry ingredients for the icing in a small ziplock bag with directions to mix with water and drizzle.

    Notes

    • This batter can also be used in a full sized, 12 cup bundt pan. Increase baking time to 40-50 minutes.
    • If using icing, I recommend adding it to the individual Pumpkin Butterscotch Cakes right before eating. For shipping, the cakes and the icing ingredients should be packaged separately.
    • A super easy way to package the icing for shipping is to pre-measure the dry ingredients into a small ziplock bag. Include directions to add 1- 1 ½ teaspoons of water, massage the bag to mix the contents, cut a tiny bit off one bottom corner of the bag, and drizzle onto the cake.
    Packing tips
    Wrap individual cakes in plastic wrap. Place wrapped cakes snuggly in a plastic storage container with no room for movement during shipping. If there is excess room at the top or sides of the container, use crinkled wax paper to fill the spaces.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 399kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 331mg | Potassium: 95mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 45g | Vitamin A: 3901IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 92mg | Iron: 2mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @TheMondayBox or tag #themondaybox!

    First published October 24, 2016. Last updated September 1, 2022. Updated for additional information and better reader experience.

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    Comments

    1. Amber

      October 13, 2021 at 10:32 am

      3 stars
      I made these a couple days ago and they were just much too sweet and very dense. I did use the cheap Walmart "Great Value" butterscotch chips so maybe that was the issue. Either way, they were inedible for the six of us that tried them. If I made these again I would probably cut both the sugar and the butterscotch chip amount by half.

      Reply
      • Wendy Sondov

        October 13, 2021 at 11:13 am

        Hi, Amber. Sorry to hear that these cakes weren't to your taste. They are a sweet cake that doesn't require icing or frosting so that the design of the pan can shine. Rather than cutting key ingredients in half, I would suggest finding a different recipe. Sugar contributes to moisture and texture in a cake as well as sweetness and cutting back in this case may not achieve your desired result.

        Reply
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    I'm Wendy, a baker, care package maker, and smile creator. On The Monday Box you’ll find care package inspiration and recipes for delicious treats that make it easy for you to share home baked love. Let’s spread happiness, one cookie at a time!

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