Pumpkin Lava Cake with Chocolate Ganache Center

Name: Pumpkin Lava Cake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 33 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup white chocolate, chopped; 4 tbsp unsalted butter; 1 egg; 1 egg yolk; 1/3 cup light brown sugar; 1/3 cup pumpkin puree; 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice; 1/4 tsp salt; 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips; 1/4 cup heavy cream; 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

This pumpkin lava cake with chocolate ganache center tastes like fall and is the perfect dessert for two or more if you want to go crazy!

close-up of chocolate ganache oozing out of lava cake made with pumpkin on white plate

The fall leaves are here in Maryland, which means it is my favorite time of the year. It also means, that pumpkin has overtaken my life.

You know it's hard these days to come up with something that's never been posted on the internet. My wife and I love chocolate lava cakes as they're an easy dessert to make for two.

And with fall here I was looking for a fall-inspired lava cake and thought of pumpkin lava cake! When searching, I actually didn't find a ton of options which surprised me. Even more surprising was none of them had a chocolate center, which is what I wanted.

So I went to work on developing a pumpkin lava cake with a chocolate ganache center. I'll admit I was nervous on how it would turn out because dessert isn't my strong suit since it's much more of a science than cooking.

But luckily for us and for anyone reading this, it turned out amazing! I was actually inspired by the ganache center from Half Baked Harvest.

Make no mistake this lava cake tastes like pumpkin, but the chocolate ganache is the perfect complement to this dessert. So if you're looking for something different, this dessert might just be what you're looking for!

When using pumpkin, this lava cake as well as pumpkin chocolate chip pancakes, baked pumpkin donuts, pumpkin oatmeal muffins and pumpkin gnocchi are my go-to recipes.

Jump to:

Ingredient Notes
Ingredient Swaps
Step-by-Step Photos
FAQs
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
Other Dessert Recipes
Pumpkin Lava Cake

lava cake made with pumpkin on white plate with ice cream on top

Ingredient Notes

Chocolate - you use a combination of white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate. The white chocolate is for the batter and the semi-sweet is for the ganache.
Heavy cream - important in thinning out the ganache and creating that lovely chocolate texture in the middle.
Eggs - important as it creates the structure needed and adds moisture.
Pumpkin - use puree as it is easier than scooping out from a fresh pumpkin. This is where the pumpkin flavor comes from.
All-purpose flour - a little goes a long way. Too much flour gets in the way of that gooey factor.
Pumpkin pie spice - you can just buy at the store or make your own, which I prefer.

Ingredient Swaps

As with any recipe, you can mix up some of the ingredients. Some variations include:

While I like light brown sugar for the sweetness, you can use granulated sugar or dark brown sugar.
Pumpkin puree is much easier, but you can scoop out and roast your own pumpkin if you want.
I'm a fan of all-purpose flour for these lava cakes, but if you want to go a little healthier, whole wheat flour works too.
I like semi-sweet chocolate chips for the ganache, but milk or dark chocolate are good substitutes.

Step-by-Step Photos

process shots of melting chocolate and white chocolate

Make the ganache by melting the chocolate with cream in a small bowl in the microwave for 30 second intervals until smooth. Stir in vanilla extract and cover, placing in the fridge. Now melt the white chocolate and butter in the microwave for 30 second intervals until smooth and set aside.

process shots of mixing cake ingredients and adding chocolate ganache to center of ramekin

Whisk together the eggs, sugar and pumpkin in a large bowl until combined. Add in the white chocolate mixture and dry ingredients and whisk until no lumps are left. Butter and flour two ramekins and fill with the batter. Spoon 1-2 teaspoons of the chocolate ganache in the center.

process shots of covering ganache with batter in ramekin and baking in oven

Scoop some of the batter over the ganache to cover it and place in the fridge for 15 minutes. Bake the lava cakes at 400°F for 18 minutes or until firm on the edges. Let cool for 3 minutes before turning onto a small plate and serving with vanilla bean ice cream.

FAQs

What is the Difference Between a Soufflé and Lava Cake?

While they are similar, there are differences between soufflé and lava cakes.

• Most of the ingredients are the same, but the main difference lies in the texture and how they are presented.
• A soufflé is fully cooked, whereas a lava cake has a runny, lava-like center. However a soufflé is moist in the center.
• A soufflé is usually served in the ramekin, while a molten lava cake is popped out of the ramekin and served on a plate, so you can see the lava flow out when you cut into it.

How to Make Pumpkin Pie Spice?

Most grocery stores carry pumpkin pie spice these days, but you can always make your own. Check out Taste of Home’s recipe.

In a small bowl, whisk together 4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cloves and ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg.

How Do I Make Sure My Cake Actually Oozes?

First you need to make sure that the cake will actually come out of the ramekins. You do this by buttering the ramekins and then adding a little bit of flour so it's coated. Tap against your hand to remove excess flour.

You'll know the lava cake is down when the edges are firm, but it's still slightly jiggly in the center. Luckily with the ganache, even if you over bake it, the ganache will still ooze out.

Can I Prepare Lava Cakes Ahead of Time?

Yes you actually can. If you have guests coming over, you can prepare the batter and place in the ramekins up to one day.

However if you do this, make sure you cut some parchment paper to size of the ramekin and place on the bottom before adding the batter so the cake doesn't stick. Just cover the ramekins with plastic wrap and refrigerate after that.

You can also just keep the lava cake batter in the bowl you mixed in and cover with plastic wrap in the fridge for 2 days before adding to the ramekins.

Once ready to bake, remove the lava cakes from the fridge and allow them to come to room temperature before baking.

Pro Tips/Recipe Notes

Make sure you let the ganache sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes so it hardens. You want it to be hard so you can drop a dollop of it in the middle of the cake batter. Don't worry as it will melt when baked.
Microwave the white chocolate and butter in 30 second intervals until just melted. If you microwave too long, the chocolate will separate.
Do not skip buttering and flouring the ramekins, otherwise you will not be able to get the lava cake out.
You know the lava cake is done when the edges are firm, but the center is still slightly jiggly.
Let the cake cool for 3-5 minutes before flipping over on plate. You can also just eat out of ramekin as well.

pumpkin lava cake with ganache oozing out and ice cream on top

Other Dessert Recipes

If you’ve tried this pumpkin lava cake recipe or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.