CA-013Cocoa-swirled pumpkin BundtCake · Bundt, oil

Rev 012026-09-271 / 3

Cocoa-swirled pumpkin Bundt

A soft, gently spiced pumpkin Bundt with a cocoa-and-chocolate ribbon through the middle.

SourceDorie Greenspan · Adapted, metricContainsWheat · EggLast changeRev 01 · First issue

Equipment12-cup Bundt pan · Stand mixer, paddle · Flexible spatula · Cake tester

Yield · slices12–16

Batter1,637 g

Pumpkin · % flour104%

Plan · plus cooling1.5 h

Oven · 350 °F175 °C

Formula

% · flour = 100

Finish, choose one: confectioners' sugar; card FR-003 cream cheese frosting; or a chocolate glaze. The cake is a year-rounder without any of them.

Altitude, 4,700 ft: 2 tsp soda is generous. Run B (soda −15%) before changing the sheet.

Pan: butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt, or baker's spray. Outside the formula.

† Doesn't scale in a straight line past 2×.

Scale by pan

12-cup Bundt× 1 · 12–16

10-cup× 0.85 · 50 min

9 × 13 in× 1 · 40–45 min

	Ingredient	%	Grams
A Swirl · outside the formula
	Granulated sugar · 3 tbsp	—	38
	Cocoa powder · 1 tbsp	—	6
	Dark chocolate · finely chopped	—	43
	Salt and cinnamon · a pinch each	—	—
B Cake
	All-purpose flour	100.0	408
	Baking soda † · 2 tsp	2.2	9
	Ground cinnamon † · 1½ tsp	1.0	4
	Ground ginger † · 1½ tsp	0.7	3
	Fine sea salt · ¾ tsp	1.0	4
	Cardamom † · ¼ tsp	0.1	0.5
	Nutmeg † · ¼ tsp, fresh	0.1	0.5
	Neutral oil · 240 ml	53.9	220
	Granulated sugar	73.5	300
	Brown sugar	24.5	100
	Eggs · 3 large, room temp	36.8	150
	Vanilla extract † · 1 tbsp	3.2	13
	Pumpkin puree · 1 can	104.2	425
	Batter	401.2	1,637

Continues on pages 2–3: method, done when, fixes, trials, revisions, batch log →

CA-013Cocoa-swirled pumpkin BundtCake · Bundt, oil

Rev 012026-09-272 / 3

Method

Tick each step as done

The batter looks broken until the last egg goes in, then turns satiny. Keep going.

Pure pumpkin puree, not pie filling. Libby's is the least watery.

01
Prep. Rack in the middle; heat the oven. Butter and flour the Bundt; tap out the extra.
—
175 °C 350 °F
02
Swirl. Stir sugar, cocoa, salt, cinnamon and the chopped chocolate together; set aside.
—
03
Dry. Whisk flour, soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, cardamom and nutmeg.
—
04
Cream. Paddle the oil and both sugars on medium until it looks like wet sand.
2 min
Wet sand
05
Eggs. One at a time, a minute each, scraping often. It looks broken until the last one.
3 min
Satiny
06
Pumpkin. Speed down; blend in the vanilla and the puree.
—
07
Dry in. Mixer off. A third of the dry; pulse, then low. Scrape; half the rest; then the last.
—
Just blended
08
Finish. A few turns by hand with the spatula to catch the bottom of the bowl.
—
09
Layer. A third to half the batter in; smooth. Spoon the swirl over, off the sides. Rest on top.
—
Pan half full
10
Bake. Until puffed, cracked on top and pulling from the sides. Tester clean; miss the swirl.
55–60 min
≈ 96 °C inside
11
Rest. In the pan 10 min; turn out onto a rack. Cool fully before dusting, frosting or glazing.
10 min
Until cold

Done when

And how it keeps

Done when

TopPuffed, cracked, pulling from the sides

TesterClean — poke beside the swirl, not through it

Inside≈ 96 °C, if you probe

Keeps

Room temp4 days, wrapped

Frozen1 month, unglazed; thaw in the wrapper

CA-013Cocoa-swirled pumpkin BundtCake · Bundt, oil

Rev 012026-09-273 / 3

If it goes wrong

Most likely cause first

Swirl on the bottomToo little batter under it. Put a full half in first; keep the swirl off the sides

Batter looks curdledNormal until the last egg. Keep beating a minute; it turns satiny

Sunk in the middleUnderbaked, or soda past its date. Bake to cracked and pulling away

Stuck in the panCooled past 10 min, or corners not floured. Time it; tap out the extra flour

Glaze smushed after freezingWarm it with a hair dryer for a few seconds; it smooths out

Trials

Change one variable per trial

A is the sheet as written.

B tests the altitude rule for 4,700 ft.

C is the finish for the staff room — FR-003 swipes against a chocolate glaze.

Variable	Trial A	Trial B	Trial C
Date
Change	As written	Soda 8 g	FR-003 vs glaze
Bake time
Swirl position
Staff rating 1–5

Revisions

Newest last

Rev	Date	Change	From
Rev 01	2026-09-27	First issue	—

Batch log

Fill in by hand

Date

Batch ×

Puree brand

Oven

Bake time

Inside °C

Finish

Notes