Fall typically means a whole lot of pies and cookies stealing the spotlight, but if you really want to celebrate the season, cake is where it’s at. Nothing screams special occasion like a cake, whether it’s in the form of a simple breakfast pound or Bundt or an elaborate layer cake for dessert. Especially when the recipes are packed with all your favorite fall flavors—apple, pecan, pumpkin, cranberry... Check out our best fall cake recipes—the season’s short, so get to baking.
Looking for a sweet treat for breakfast this fall? Skip the same-old pastries at your local cafe (no shade to banana bread though), and bake your own. Try our cranberry cake, our apple cider donut cake, our apple crisp pound cake, or our apple coffee cake. Looking for more of an afternoon pick-me-up? That’s what cupcakes were made for. Try our pumpkin spice cupcakes, our chocolate-filled pumpkin cupcakes, our sweet potato pie cupcakes, or our football cupcakes. Speaking of football, if you’re as excited about its return as we are, celebrate it! Don’t make the mistake of only serving savory fare on Sunday nights—instead make our football cake (easier than it looks), or go for another simple fall option, like our pumpkin or apple dump cake. Dump cakes are great easy options for low-key weeknight desserts too. If you really want to impress, you’ve gotta go layer cake, cheesecake, or cake roll. Try our sweet potato cake (with marshmallow fluff frosting), our apple crisp cheesecake, our pumpkin cheesecake roll, or our cheesecake-stuffed pumpkins (the pumpkin is the crust). They’ll make anyone you bake them for this fall feel extra special.
Want more fall dessert inspiration? Check out our spookiest Halloween cakes, our best Thanksgiving cakes, and our favorite mini Thanksgiving desserts too.
Cookie Butter Cheesecake Bars
It’s a scientific fact that when you add cookie butter to something, that something becomes infinitely better. We're definitely not opposed to the occasional zhuzhing, and these cheesecake bars are “zhuzh” in a decadent, creamy, oh-so-dreamy dessert form. And did we mention the caramel drizzle topping? There’s a caramel drizzle topping. We're opting for a homemade caramel sauce, but there's absolutely zero shame if you go the store-bought route.
Get the Cookie Butter Cheesecake Bars recipe.
Magic Cheesecake Bars
The classic magic bar, sometimes called “7-layer bars,” consist of graham crackers, condensed milk, gooey chocolate chips (and butterscotch chips), coconut, and nuts. These magic cheesecake bars, though? They take the classic dessert and make it even better, with a buttery graham cracker bottom, chocolate chip bits intertwined in rich cheesecake, all topped with toasted coconut and walnuts.
Get the Magic Cheesecake Bars recipe.
Salted Caramel Apple Crumble Cake
Featuring three layers of tender, lightly spiced apple cidercake sandwiched with apple pie filling, buttery crumble, and salted caramel, this apple crumble cake recipe will delight and impress anyone who’s lucky enough to snag a piece.
Get the Salted Caramel Apple Crumble Cake recipe.
It's The Great Bundt-kin, Charlie Brown
Pumpkin Cheesecake
lot of pumpkin cheesecake recipes pile on loads of flavored garnish and décor (caramel! nuts! crazy whipped cream piping!); but for this, our forever favorite version, we’ve stripped it right back and returned the focus to its true essence: a thick, crunchy crust, and a super-creamy, super-pumpkiny filling.
Get the Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe.
Cracker Barrel Coca-Cola Cake
One bite of this Cracker Barrel Coca-Cola cake, and you'll be instantly transported to a rocking chair on a covered front porch playing with that triangle peg board game (IYKYK). Even if you're not familiar with the Southern comfort food stylings of Cracker Barrel, you can trust us that this chocolate cake is real good (I’m talking right up there with Grandma's).
Get the Cracker Barrel Coca-Cola Cake recipe.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Lasagna
Sure, pumpkin pie is delicious, but when you have family over and mouthes to feed, spending hours making pie isn't exactly feasible. This over-the-top cheesecake lasagna, though? It takes 30 minutes to throw together, and once it's assembled, the refrigerator does the rest.
Get the Pumpkin Cheesecake Lasagna recipe.
Sweet Potato Cheesecake
Sweet potato adds a nuttiness and earthy sweetness that takes a normal cheesecake to another, more festive level. Add that to a gingersnap cookie crust, and you've got a spice-filled autumnal twist on a classic we bet you'll make again and again this fall.
Get the Sweet Potato Cheesecake recipe.
Apple Pie Stuffed Cupcakes
Nothing says Thanksgiving like a warm apple pie. Unfortunately, we don't always have time to make and chill pie dough. These cupcakes are the perfect solution!
Get the Apple Pie Stuffed Cupcakes recipe.
Apple Pie Cheesecake
Layered and absolutely stunning, this apple pie cheesecake really changes the game for us. Now we can enjoy two iconic desserts—apple pie and cheesecake—all in one bite.
Get the Apple Pie Cheesecake recipe.
Tres Leches Cake
This tres leches cake recipe is the perfect light and airy dessert and a Latin American favorite. Tres leches means "three milks", and ours contains sweetened condensed, evaporated, and whole milk. It's basically the original poke cake.
Get the Tres Leches Cake recipe.
Caramel Apple Cheesecake
We're huge fans of the gingersnap crust here—especially since there's caramel involved. But if you're not a fan of the spiced cookie, graham crackers would work well too. (You can use the crust recipe in our pecan pie cheesecake.)
Get the Caramel Apple Cheesecake recipe.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Roll
Ready to kick off pumpkin season with the most impressive (but not intimidating!) fall dessert there is?! Luckily, there's no fret with this pumpkin cake roll. With a few simple tips, you'll have perfect swirls of cake and cream cheese filling that will have everyone oohing and aahing when you slice into it.
Get the Pumpkin Cheesecake Roll recipe.
Apple Cider Donut Cake
In our minds, fall isn't fall 'til we've had at least a dozen apple cider cake donuts. This super-sized version comes together in no time, and there's no deep-frying involved. That's a win in our book!
Get the Apple Cider Donut Cake recipe.
No-Bake Whipped Ricotta Cheesecake
"No-bake" and "whipped" in the same recipe name as "cheesecake"? Sure! This may be the anomaly to cheesecake, but we promise it’s one of the best—we're not being biased—cheesecakes we’ve had. The NY-style, Basque, or Italian ricotta cheesecakes you’re familiar with can step back for a second. The best part of the recipe was eating the filling along the way.
Skillet Texas Sheet Cake
For a traditional Texas sheet cake, the batter and the icing are prepared separately on the stovetop. Using a skillet eliminates a dish and makes things way more fun. Especially when everyone digs in while it's still warm...with tons of ice cream on top.
Get the Skillet Texas Sheet Cake recipe.
Cranberry Cake
This cranberry loaf cake is the softest one we've ever had and by far our favorite way to use cranberries. The cranberries will burst and release all of their juices while baking making each bite excitingly sweet and tart. The sugar topping adds a subtle crunch and the sour cream keeps this cake moist for days. 😍
Get the Cranberry Cake recipe.
Chocolate-Filled Pumpkin Cupcakes
These are TOO cute, and actually crazy easy to make. Use your go-to white cake recipe for the batter, or prepare batter using a box mix. Thanks to a perfectly distracting chocolate hazelnut filling, no one will know the difference. 😉
Honey Cake
The honey cake is an underestimated cake. There are no frills, just really good cake. A dusting of powdered sugar is all it needs. Maybe a spoonful of whipped cream or lemon glaze if you are really feeling fancy.
Get the Honey Cake recipe.
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