This copycat Trader Joe’s pumpkin spice mini sheet cake recipe features a moist pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting. This is an easy one-bowl pumpkin cake recipe and can be baked in under 30 minutes!
After conducting the pumpkin muffin bake off, I had plans to develop a recipe for my ideal pumpkin muffin (similar to developing my dream pumpkin bread recipe).
But instead, I couldn’t stop thinking about the Trader Joe’s pumpkin spice mini sheet cake that I had recently tried for an assignment. The little tray of cake was so simple yet PERFECT. With a tight yet tender crumb, the moist cake is topped with a satisfyingly thick swoop of tangy cream cheese frosting that perfectly offsets the not-too-sweet, lightly spiced cake. It’s the perfect dessert for fall!
I felt confident I could adapt one of the nine pumpkin muffins recipes to be a close copycat to the pumpkin spice cake. And after a few tests, I think we nailed it!
How I tweaked the original recipe
For the starting baseline, I was torn between two of my favorite pumpkin muffin recipes in the bake off. Lovely Little Kitchen is an easy oil-based recipe that I thought would be quite similar to the Trader Joe’s cake. However, Joy the Baker (with a mix of brown butter and oil) had a slightly tighter crumb that I thought might be a bit closer to the Trader Joe’s cake texture.
Ultimately, the Trader Joe’s cake ingredient list shows just canola oil, so I went with Lovely Little Kitchen to be truer to the original recipe (and also for the ease–no browning butter required!). From there, I just made a few small tweaks:
- 8×8 pan: The most important change was to swap the muffin tin for an 8×8 pan to mimic the sheet cake shape. I also tried this in an eighth sheet pan which will also work, but the cake will be much thinner than the original. A half batch of the original muffin recipe works perfectly in an 8×8 pan.
- Vegetable oil: The original recipe calls for coconut oil. For simplicity, I call for vegetable oil (which I use interchangeably with canola oil or any other neutral oil like grapeseed, avocado, etc.)
- Light brown sugar: Julie uses a mix of granulated and dark brown sugar. I used light brown sugar to more closely mimic the bright orange hue of the Trader Joe’s mini sheet cake.
- More leavener: Borrowing from Joy the Baker’s recipe, I added 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder to help with a taller lift.
- Updated the spices: Per the ingredient list for the Trader Joe’s sheet cake, their recipe includes cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. So I increased the amount of nutmeg slightly and added ginger.
- Cream cheese frosting: My typical cream cheese frosting uses a 1:1 ratio of cream cheese to butter. However, the Trader Joe’s frosting is extremely tangy, so I used a slightly higher ratio of cream cheese in this frosting. And there is plenty of powdered sugar, which leads to a frosting that crusts over slightly (you can probably reduce it by 1/4-1/2 cup if you want it less sweet–taste and adjust!).
Recipe ingredients
- Granulated sugar and light brown sugar: I used a mix of these to give a lighter color to better mimic the very orange hue of the Trader Joe’s cake. Dark brown sugar can also work–it’ll just make your cake slightly darker.
- Vegetable oil: Any neutral oil will work–canola, avocado, grapeseed, or even olive oil if you don’t mind a hint of olive oil in the cake. If you’re trying to avoid seed oils, you can try replacing this with melted butter but your cake may be a little more dry.
- Pumpkin puree: Libby’s pumpkin puree is my brand of choice, though I also use Trader Joe’s pumpkin puree in a pinch. Make sure to use pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie mix. Double this recipe to use the entire can of pumpkin!
- Cream cheese: I always prefer using full-fat cream cheese, preferably Philadelphia. For the frosting, I usually soften the butter for 10-15 minutes at room temperature, but use cream cheese straight from the fridge. I find using cold cream cheese helps prevent overbeating the cream cheese and causing it to split.
How to make this pumpkin spice mini sheet cake
This pumpkin sheet cake is easy to make in just one bowl. Once I have all the ingredients out, it usually takes me 10 minutes or less to mix everything. Bake for 20-25 minutes and while the cake is cooling, you can get started on the cream cheese frosting.
Make sure the cake is cooled completely before frosting!
Step 1: In a large bowl, whisk together the sugars, oil, pumpkin puree, egg and vanilla extract.
Step 2: Whisk the leaveners and spices (you can sub pumpkin spice here if that’s all you have) into the wet ingredients.
Step 3: Fold in the flour.
Step 4: Spread evenly in a greased 8×8 pan and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.
Step 5: Cream together the slightly softened butter and cold cream cheese. Add the powdered sugar, cream, vanilla and salt and beat for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.
Step 6: Frost the cooled cake with the cream cheese icing and use an offset spatula to trace lines across the top to mimic the original sheet cake. Enjoy!
Storage
This cake can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Looking for more fall baking inspiration?
You can use any leftover pumpkin puree in these pumpkin cottage cheese pancakes or this pumpkin cottage cheese cheesecake.
- Try this classic pumpkin streusel bread!
- Find your dream apple cake in the apple cake bake off
- Caramel apple cake
Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake (Trader Joe’s copycat)
Ingredients
For the pumpkin cake
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar 100g
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar 53g
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil 60g
- 7.5 oz pumpkin puree (1/2 a 15oz can) 213g
- 1 large egg 50g
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- pinch cloves
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour 105g
Cream cheese frosting
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened slightly 57g
- 6 tbsp full-fat cream cheese (softened or cold from the fridge) 85g (3 oz)
- 2 cups powdered sugar 227g
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp heavy cream or milk, optional
Instructions
For the pumpkin cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 and grease an 8×8 pan with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1/4 cup vegetable oil, 7.5 oz pumpkin puree, 1 large egg and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract until smooth.
- Sprinkle 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, and 1/4 tsp ground ginger over the pumpkin mixture and whisk to combine thoroughly. Finally, fold in 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour until fully combined (don't overmix to prevent overdeveloping the gluten–a few lumps are normal and okay!).
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Place on the middle rack and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the top springs back under your finger and an inserted tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan completely before frosting.
For the cream cheese frosting
- Add 4 tbsp unsalted butter and 6 tbsp full-fat cream cheese (softened or cold from the fridge) tbsp cream cheese to a stand mixer and mix on medium speed until softened and creamy, about 1 minute.
- Add 2 cups powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla and a 1/4 tsp kosher salt, then whip on medium-high for 2-3 minutes, or until it lightens in color and is very airy. If the consistency looks thicker than you'd prefer, add 1 tbsp cream or milk and whip for another minute until smooth and billowy. Spread frosting evenly on top of the cake, then use an offset spatula to draw lines on the top of the cake to mimic the Trader Joe's cake. Enjoy!
Sachie
I finally made this recipe – it is amazing! My kids think it’s better than Trader Joe’s. 🙂 A great way to use up pumpkin puree after making pumpkin pancakes this weekend. Thank you so much!
erika
The best validation!! <3
margot
exceptionally delicious however the top layer of the cake tore everywhere when I was frosting it. tbh this is a common problem for me so not your fault but I wonder if it would be easier to direct people to use softened cream cheese?
erika
If you want to avoid that in the future, I’d recommend chilling your cake (either freezer or fridge) until cold before frosting your cake. The cream cheese temp shouldn’t be an issue as long as you whip it long enough to be creamy, but I can update to softened or cold from the fridge–appreciate the feedback!
Emma
Pumpkin purée is not sold where I live, so I made it myself. I don’t think the consistency is exactly the same, but it came out really good and the flavor is honestly amazing. The frosting is a little too sweet for me, but it’s an easy adjustment.
Amazing recipe anyways! Will make it again ❤️
erika
Amazing that you made your own puree! Thank you for the review <3
Renée
Erika, your recipe is terrific! I tend to collect up recipes and only a few get a gold star placed on top. This one is a winner. I wanted to make a pumpkin birthday cake for a friend and the recipes I had on hand just weren’t right for the occasion. I went directly to thepancakeprincess.com and found the copycat recipe. I was so happy the cake was made in just one bowl! I poured the batter into two 6″ cake rounds to make a small layer cake. I was surprised the frosting didn’t call for softened cream cheese, but I gave it a whirl and it worked like a charm. The cake is light and delicious. It was an incredible hit with my friends. In fact, birthday girl had an immediate second slice! What more could you want?! What a gift. Thank you.
erika
Thank you so much, that’s so amazing to hear that this is a gold star recipe!! I need to try making this as a layer cake!
Lori
Doubled the recipe on a 9×13. Was absolutely delicious! Could these be made a cupcakes?
erika
Yay glad to hear! Yes, they should definitely work as cupcakes. I might start checking on them after 22 minutes but I’d guess these will take 25-28 min to bake as cupcakes (depending how full you fill the muffin wells).
Simi
Hi! I want to make this for my sister’s birthday but would like to make two layers and frost the entire cake instead of just frosting the top. Would doubling the frosting recipe be enough frost the entire cake?
erika
Would you be doubling the cake to make 2 layers? If so, I would probably 3x or 4x the frosting. If you’re baking just a regular batch of cake into 2 6″ layers, I think you could get away with doubling!
Sonya
I made this today and it was absolutely delicious and easy to make. I ended up using store bought frosting as I was lazy but it was great. Thank you and look forward to more easy and quick recipes like this!
erika
Love it, thank you Sonya!!
Cindy
I’ve never had the Trader Joe’s version of this cake but I don’t want to! This is a 10/10. I doubled it and made a 9×13. It baked for 28 minutes and it’s so soft and moist and perfect!
erika
Ahh love to hear it!!
Kim
I made your pumpkin sheet cake and the family devoured it. I look forward to trying more of your recipes
erika
So happy you enjoyed it!
Joanne Chung
I truly love trying your recipes, Erika.
This one was an absolute hit in my office! The cake was incredibly moist and full of flavor – dare I say, even better than the Trader Joe’s version. Thank you so much for sharing!
erika
So glad it was a hit! Thanks for reporting back Joanne!
Marie Clifton
Love the cream cheese frosting! So easy and delicious!
erika
So glad you enjoyed!
Janet Max
Saw this the day I happened to have a leftover roasted sweet potato in the fridge, so I swapped it in one-for-one amount with the pumpkin purée. The cake was excelllent—moist and flavorful. I was too lazy to make the frosting, but it was great plain.
erika
Wow that sounds so great! Thanks for letting us know it works with sweet potato!
Ruth Rice
This is a great recipe–easy to make. I actually doubled it and used a 9X13 pan. I also subbed in Bob’s Red Mill gluten free flour mix. Baked up beautifully. I then frosted it with some left over swiss meringue buttercream.
erika
Sounds gorgeous–so glad to hear it worked well with the gf flour mix!