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  5. Our Best Fall Cake Recipes

Our Best Fall Cake Recipes

By The editors of MidwestLiving.com Updated August 02, 2021
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Cocoa Gingerbread
Credit: Carson Downing

Savor fall flavors—cinnamon, ginger, pumpkin, apples, nuts, cranberries and more—in these delicious, moist cakes.

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Cocoa Gingerbread with Heaven Frosting

Cocoa Gingerbread
Credit: Carson Downing
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A humble snack dresses up for company. With its nutty flavor and tiny flecks of toasted milk solids, browned butter elevates a simple cream cheese frosting to saintly levels.

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Doughnut Bundt

Doughnut Bundt
Credit: Carson Downing
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Nutmeg is the secret ingredient that makes this playful Bundt taste just like a cake doughnut. (Be sure to use freshly grated nutmeg—you'll really notice the difference in flavor.)

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Apple Sour Cream Kuchen

Apple Sour Cream Kuchen
Credit: Carson Downing
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This German-style, not-too-sweet, yeast-raised cake begs for a cup of coffee. For an extra tang, you can serve it with a dollop of lightly sweetened sour cream.

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Cranberry Orange Upside-Down Cake

Cranberry Orange Upside-Down Cake
Credit: Blaine Moats
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Invert this moist cake while it's still warm to reveal a fall kaleidoscope of glistening, tart berries and sweet mandarin oranges.

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My My's Brown Sugar Pound Cake

My My’s Brown Sugar Pound Cake
Credit: Andy Lyons
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Patty's grandmother sifted together the flour and baking powder three times before adding them to the batter. We had good results just whisking them together. This recipe comes from Patty Pinner's cookbook Sweets (crownpublishing.com).

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Chocolate Pumpkin Cake

Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
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This utterly unforgettable autumn cake layers moist chocolate-pumpkin cake, luscious milk chocolate ganache and fluffy pumpkin-spice whipped cream. The recipe comes from Minnesota blogger Amanda Rettke (iambaker.net).

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Bourbon-Apple-Rye Upside-Down Cake

Bourbon-Apple-Rye Upside-Down Cake
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We hid shredded apple in the cake for extra flavor and moistness, but the real star here is the gorgeous array of fall fruit, glazed with bourbon-infused caramel.

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Pioneer Wedding Stack Cake

Pioneer Wedding Stack Cake
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This wonderfully moist and generously spiced six-layer cake is a showy spin on humble applesauce cake.

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Quick Black Forest Cherry Cake

Quick Black Forest Cherry Cake
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This quick twist on the classic German chocolate-cherry cake uses boxed cake mix and cherry preserves. Don't skip the kirsch or brandy; it adds that signature Black Forest flavor.

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Applesauce Spice Cake

Applesauce Spice Cake
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No granulated sugar is added to this recipe; the sweetness comes from cider, fruit and applesauce.

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Cranberry Layer Cake

Cranberry Layer Cake
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This moist white cake combines toasted pecans and refreshing orange peel with cranberries. Orange peel flavors the thick cream cheese frosting, too.

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Walnut Cake with Caramel Whipped Cream

Walnut Cake with Caramel Whipped Cream
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Fill layers of walnut cake with caramel whipped cream and drizzle it all with caramel sauce for a rich fall dessert. 

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Chocolate Harvest Fruit-Topped Cake

Chocolate Harvest Fruit-Topped Cake
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This spiced chocolate cake brims with seasonal flavors, including a topping of pears, apples and cranberries.

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Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cornmeal Cake

Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cornmeal Cake
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A buttery-sweet mixture of apples, cranberries and pecans covers cornmeal cake. Try serving with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream for even more fall flavor!

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Maple Syrup Cake

Maple Syrup Cake
Credit: Mark Thomas
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Ruth Smiley of Parke County, Indiana, gave us her recipe for Maple Syrup Cake, which she makes in a fluted tube pan. We mixed up an easy maple syrup icing to drizzle over the top. 

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Fresh Apple Cake

Fresh Apple Cake
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This nutty comfort cake from Sharon Buckner of Rhineland, Missouri, gets a sugary top and caramelized gooey bottom as it cooks. Don't be surprised by the thick batter; it will bake into a moist, dense cake.

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Ginger Carrot Cake

Ginger Carrot Cake
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Fresh ginger flavors this classic cake, topped with Double-Cream Cheese Frosting.

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Pumpkin-Praline Layer Cake

Pumpkin-Praline Layer Cake
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This nutty layer cake is a favorite dessert with Midwest Living® readers. Whipped cream topping complements a moist filling of pumpkin, brown sugar, pecans, butter and more whipping cream.

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Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
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The famous St. Louis dessert gets a makeover from Emily Hobbs of Springfield, Missouri. She adds pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice to the moist cake.

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Chocolate-Pear Spice Cake

Chocolate-Pear Spice Cake
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Cloves and nutmeg scent your home as the cake bakes, but the toppers are what really sets this dessert apart: chopped chocolate, nuts and homemade pear chips. 

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Graham Cracker Cake

Graham Cracker Cake
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This special-occasion dessert features a moist cake with crushed graham crackers, cream filling between the layers and brown sugar frosting on the outside. Top with additional graham crackers just before serving if you like.

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Gingerbread Cake Roll

Gingerbread Cake Roll
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If this isn't a forkful of fall, we don't know what is. The cinnamon, molasses and maple glaze transport us to bonfires and hayrack rides in just one bite.

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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Sandwich Cake

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Sandwich Cake
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A cream cheese layer and rich chocolate frosting make this pumpkin cake a crowd-pleaser. 

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Glazed Gingerbread Cake

Glazed Gingerbread Cake
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Lemon glaze and a sprinkle of crystallized ginger enhance the flavor and presentation of this old-fashioned gingerbread.

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Apple Upside-Down Cake

Apple Upside-Down Cake
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Cinnamon, ginger and apples give robust fall flavor to this gooey upside-down cake. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. 

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Pumpkin Pie Cake

Pumpkin Pie Cake
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Sprinkle moist pumpkin filling with a cake mix topping for a quick and easy cake. The recipe is from Farmer's Inn in Havana, North Dakota.

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Butterscotch Chip Oatmeal Cake

Butterscotch Chip Oatmeal Cake
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Chopped pecans and butterscotch pieces crown this easy one-bowl cake.

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Spiced Pecan Sweet Potato Cake

Spiced Pecan Sweet Potato Cake
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Deborah Biggs of Omaha completes this amazingly moist dessert with Maple Whipped Cream. 

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Pumpkin Cake Roll

Pumpkin Cake Roll
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Our  "twist" on the pumpkin craze. Nutmeg, ginger and cinnamon add even more fall flavor.

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Hummingbird Cake

Hummingbird Cake
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This tall layer cake, with a medley of flavors from nuts, fruit and spices, comes from the kitchens of Silver Dollar City theme park near Branson, Missouri. Add a sprinkling of pecans on top for even more crunch.

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Apple-Butter Cakelets

Apple-Butter Cakelets
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Caramel sauce adds a creamy-sweet finish to individual Apple-Butter Cakelets created by Midwest Living® in honor of Illinois' Amish bakers. You can choose between two Prairie State ingredients, apples or pumpkins, for this treat.

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By The editors of MidwestLiving.com

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    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

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    View All

    1 of 31 Cocoa Gingerbread with Heaven Frosting
    2 of 31 Doughnut Bundt
    3 of 31 Apple Sour Cream Kuchen
    4 of 31 Cranberry Orange Upside-Down Cake
    5 of 31 My My's Brown Sugar Pound Cake
    6 of 31 Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
    7 of 31 Bourbon-Apple-Rye Upside-Down Cake
    8 of 31 Pioneer Wedding Stack Cake
    9 of 31 Quick Black Forest Cherry Cake
    10 of 31 Applesauce Spice Cake
    11 of 31 Cranberry Layer Cake
    12 of 31 Walnut Cake with Caramel Whipped Cream
    13 of 31 Chocolate Harvest Fruit-Topped Cake
    14 of 31 Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cornmeal Cake
    15 of 31 Maple Syrup Cake
    16 of 31 Fresh Apple Cake
    17 of 31 Ginger Carrot Cake
    18 of 31 Pumpkin-Praline Layer Cake
    19 of 31 Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
    20 of 31 Chocolate-Pear Spice Cake
    21 of 31 Graham Cracker Cake
    22 of 31 Gingerbread Cake Roll
    23 of 31 Pumpkin Cream Cheese Sandwich Cake
    24 of 31 Glazed Gingerbread Cake
    25 of 31 Apple Upside-Down Cake
    26 of 31 Pumpkin Pie Cake
    27 of 31 Butterscotch Chip Oatmeal Cake
    28 of 31 Spiced Pecan Sweet Potato Cake
    29 of 31 Pumpkin Cake Roll
    30 of 31 Hummingbird Cake
    31 of 31 Apple-Butter Cakelets

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