This moist Pumpkin Space Cake with Maple Glaze is so delicious no one will ever guess it was made with the help of a box mix. This is the perfect fall dessert for any occasion!

Pumpkin Spice Cake is a taste of fall! And this delicious cake is super easy to make because it is made with a box cake mix! I call it “doctor the box”! And it is just so delicious because it is infused with real pumpkin and wonderful warm spices! Let’s make an easy pumpkin spice bundt cake with maple syrup glaze!

For more than a decade, I was a state fair judge. On rare occasions, I was asked to judge cakes. And one of the cake categories I judged was a doctor the box cakes.

They were every bit as good as “from scratch” cakes!

So today, I want to share a delicious way to turn a yellow cake mix into the most wonderful fall-inspired dessert!

So What Is Doctor The Box

Doctor the box is a shortcut way to make a really tasty cake using a boxed cake mix.

It makes the prep portion of making a cake a little easier!

I just dumped the cake mix into a bowl, added all the extra ingredients, mixed them up, and baked it in a bundt pan. Voila, a beautiful Pumpkin Spice Cake!

Sounds easy because it is. Doctor The Box is a genius way to make a cake!

My cake is a little unusual because I baked it in an angel food bundt pan. I like the bottom (which is the part of the cake you can see when you bake the bundt) for the top of my cake. I love that pretty dome. For all my other bundt pans, I use the bottom as the top. I talk about this later in the post.

What readers are saying:

Readers who have made this recipe are raving about it! Here is what they had to say:

I made the pumpkin pie spice bundt cake for my book club last night and it turned out wonderfully. Everyone raved about it! A few weeks ago I made your blueberry muffins which were sooo good. Eager to try more of your recipes!

Nancy S

I made this today and it is absolutely perfect! The maple glaze is the best — will definitely make again. Thank you for the recipe.

Carol

My Baking History May Be Yours Too

I’ve never been a confident baker. And until a few years ago, I had way more baking fails than successes!

I did not grow up with bakers. Cooks, yes, but I had no bakers to pass on their baking knowledge.

However, I learned a lot of head knowledge about baking as a judge!

But I was not confident in MY baking skills! I knew about crumb, moistness, and flavors, but I just did not know how to produce delicious and positive effects in my baked goods.

Recipes like Pumpkin Spice Cake have really helped me up my baking wins and confidence.

I’ve always admired bakers and the works of culinary art they create. But for some reason, I just could not make anything that looked amazing and tasted scrumptious, too!

It was not until I got hooked on YouTube channels where great bakers explained the SCIENCE of baking that I began to understand that baking was more than an art. It is science!

I’m addicted to The Great British Baking Show and watch the seasons over and over again. I am totally amazed by these home baker’s skills! I love watching their hands.

I’ve also come to realize that calm confidence and a well-executed plan go a long way when it comes to a successful bake.

So I started to bake with a plan, followed baker’s step-by-step videos, and one success followed another. I read baking books like romance novels (and still do), and I began to learn the science behind baking.

Now, I love baking and continue to learn the best techniques. And I am now producing more delicious baked goods than baked fails.

Things To Make Pumpkin Spice Cake Successful

Here are a few helpful tips for making Pumpkin Spice cake a baking win for you, too!

I think a box cake has a distinctive fake vanilla flavor. Remember to add real vanilla or vanilla paste to the recipes. Don’t skip this step. Real vanilla makes a huge difference.

Use a space cake mix instead of vanilla for a deep spice flavor.

Box cakes tend to be a bit lumpy when mixed. So don’t overmix the batter. You will probably see small clumps, and that’s totally okay!

This recipe is really a dump-and-mix recipe. You do not have to mix any ingredients separately.

If you use a bundt cake pan, grease it well! Bundt pans are notorious for wanting to hold onto the cakes baked inside them! I like to use butter or Baker’s Joy.

If you don’t use Baker’s Joy, melt some butter, and using a pastry brush, brush every bit of the bundt pan with butter and then dust it with flour.

Put the Pumpkin Spice Cake on a raised wire rack to cool after it comes out of the oven. It needs air to circulate around it.

Bobby washed and dried and put my wire rack away, and I could not find it to cool this cake. So, a couple of tomato soup cans were called into service to get airflow under my cake! Necessity is the mother of invention, for sure!

Completely cool the cake before you glaze it with the thick Maple Syrup glaze.

I also cool the glaze just a bit so it thickens up but can still be drizzled on the cake easily.

This cake freezes well. After baking and cooling the cake, it can be wrapped in plastic wrap and in heavy-duty aluminum foil and frozen. When you are ready to eat the fake, take it out of the freezer and bring it to room temperature before adding the glaze.

About Bundt Pans And Cakes

I’ve started to collect bundt pans because I think they make the prettiest cakes and quick breads and are so easy to glaze!

Here are a few things I’m learning about using bundt pans when I bake…

Bundt pans (10 to 12 cups) are perfect for a cake mix or most double layer cake recipes.

For smaller bundt pans (6-9 cups), only use a recipe for a one-layer cake or use the extra 2 layer batter to make cupcakes.

Cool a cake completely before taking it out of a bundt pan.

To remove a bundt cake from a bundt pan, put a plate larger than the bundt pan over the pan and invert the plate and the pan together. The cake should slide out of the pan and land on the plate.

The bottom of the pan will be the top of the bundt cake. So things like streusel or fruit that goes on the top of the cake should be added to the bottom of the pan. Except for this Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake. I used the bottom (part of the cake that can be seen) as the top of my cake. I liked the rounded look.

The more intricate the bundt cake design, the less icing/glaze should be added to the top. Just a dusting of confectioner’s sugar will do!

If you are using a cake mix in a bundt pan, it’s best to use a plain bundt pan (like mine). Cake mix sponges are too light to work well in intricately designed pans.

Get The Recipe

This recipe is so successful and delicious, too!

5 from 6 votes

PUMPKIN SPICE BUNDT CAKE WITH MAPLE SYRUP GLAZE

A scrumptious pumpkin cake with warm spices made from a yellow cake mix and topped with the yummiest thick maple syrup glaze.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE INGREDIENTS

1 box yellow cake mix
5 TBS flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp real vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
4 large eggs

MAPLE SYRUP GLAZE INGREDINTS

1 cup confectioner's sugar
2 TBS melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup real maple syrup

Instructions

PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE RECIPE

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a bundt pan very well.
Put the cake mix and the flour into the large bowl of a mixer. This recipe can also be hand mixed.
Mix the cake mix and flour to combine.
Add the rest of the cake ingredients and combine on medium speed until the ingredients are incorporated. Do not overmix.
Pour the batter evenly into a prepared bundt pan.
Bake in the center of the oven for 35-40 minutes. The cake is done when it is just golden brown and a test toothpick comes out of the cake clean. Watch the cake closely. It overcooks easily.
Take the cake out of the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
When the cake is cooled, place a large plate over the cake and invert. The cake should fall away from the pan onto the plate.
Glaze with Maple Syrup or dust with confectioner's sugar.

MAPLE GLAZE RECIPE

Sift confectioner's sugar into a bowl.
Add butter and maple syrup into the sugar.
Mix vigorously until completely incorporated.
Drizzle over cooled cake.
Enjoy!

Servings: 12 people

I hope you will try this beautiful fall cake!

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