Today’s high altitude pumpkin butter swirl cake features an easy recipe for a one layer brown butter pecan cake, swirled with jammy ribbons of sweet and spicy pumpkin butter. This simple but delicious cake is moist, buttery, and full of fall flavors.
You might also love these high altitude one layer cake recipes for chocolate ricotta cake, walnut chocolate chip cake with ganache, and almond cake.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Make. This is a simple one layer pumpkin swirl cake that you can make without a mixer or any special equipment.
Moist for Days. The brown butter and nutty chopped pecans in the cake batter keep the cake extra moist for days after baking.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Butter. To add the most incredible flavor to this cake, don’t skip the step of browning the butter first.
- Granulated Sugar. Adds sweetness and moisture, as well as creates the caramelized, golden brown edges on the cake.
- Eggs. Gives the cake structure and helps the batter to hold together.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
- Whole Milk + Sour Cream. Adds fat and moisture for a moist, tender cake.
- Flour. All-purpose flour gives the cake structure and strength.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavor of the almonds.
- Baking Powder. Leavening agent, so the cake rises when it bakes.
- Spices. Cardamom and allspice adds warmth to complement the flavor of the pumpkin butter.
- Pecans. The pecans are very finely chopped, like pecan flour, so you don’t get large pieces of nuts in the cake. But it adds moisture and so much flavor. You’ll love the cozy flavor of the pecan cake with pumpkin butter swirl.
- Pumpkin Butter. Pumpkin butter is a seasonal ingredient, but in the fall you should be able to find it on the jam aisle of many well-stocked grocery stores. You might even be able to find it at World Market. I used Bonne Maman pumpkin spice spread in my pumpkin butter swirl cake.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment paper, or spray it with non-stick baking spray.
- In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Continue to cook the butter until nutty, golden brown milk solids form at the bottom of the pan. This process might take about 10 minutes. First the butter will hiss and splatter as the water evaporates, then as it quiets down, a layer of foam will form on top of the butter. This means the butter is done. Immediately remove from the heat, and scrape the butter, including the brown milk solids, into a large bowl. Let cool for 10 minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter with the granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, milk and sour cream, until combined.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, cardamom and allspice. Add the flour mixture and the chopped pecans to the wet ingredients, whisking just until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Spoon the pumpkin butter on top of the cake batter in small dollops, then gently swirl it in with a knife.
- Bake the cake for about 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the cake (not the pumpkin butter) comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool for about an hour, then serve warm, or at room temperature.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use apple butter instead of the pumpkin butter?
While I haven’t tested this recipe with an apple butter swirl, the consistency is similar to pumpkin butter, and it would likely work just fine.
Can I use other nuts besides pecans?
You can use any type of finely chopped nuts (unsalted) in this recipe. Besides pecans, other good options include almonds, walnuts or macadamia nuts.
How should I store this cake?
Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
You Might Also Like
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High Altitude Pumpkin Butter Swirl Pecan Cake
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- â…” cup whole milk, room temperature
- â…“ cup sour cream
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¾ cup pecans, very finely chopped
- ½ cup pumpkin butter or spiced pumpkin spread
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment paper, or spray it with non-stick baking spray.
- In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Continue to cook the butter until nutty, golden brown milk solids form at the bottom of the pan. This process might take about 10 minutes. First the butter will hiss and splatter as the water evaporates, then as it quiets down, a layer of foam will form on top of the butter. This means the butter is done. Immediately remove from the heat, and scrape the butter, including the brown milk solids, into a large bowl. Let cool for 10 minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter with the granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, milk and sour cream, until combined.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, cardamom and allspice. Add the flour mixture and the chopped pecans to the wet ingredients, whisking just until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Spoon the pumpkin butter on top of the cake batter in small dollops, then gently swirl it in with a knife.
- Bake the cake for about 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the cake (not the pumpkin butter) comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool for about an hour, then serve warm, or at room temperature.
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