The Vegan Pumpkin Cake of your fall baking dreams! Fluffy, moist, deliciously spiced, and easy to make. You’d never guess it’s gluten and oil free too!
I don’t think I’ve been THIS excited to post a recipe in…maybe ever.
My extra eagerness is for many reasons:
- Pumpkin.
- Cake.
- It’s the first official fall recipe I’ve posted, and lemme tell you it’s a good one. Like I may just stop with pumpkin now, this will be near impossible to top.
- THE VIDEO. Honestly you should just stop reading right now and go watch the video because it is everything. All my videography dreams come true. But we’ll get to that in a minute…
- It’s a collab! With my fellow blogger/pumpkin lover and good friend, Sonya. Because as good as pumpkin cake is, pumpkin cake made with friends is 1000x better.
- Also just like really, really good cake ♡
This was one of those times where powers greater than myself gifted me with some major baking good fortune. Taste is easy – pumpkin, loads of pumpkin pie spice, you are now a fall baking flavor master. But texture is always tricky without gluten or eggs. I was emotionally prepared for seven test batches and a fridge full of pumpkin cake. But then batch number two came out PERFECT. Like so perfect I made it again with no changes just to make sure it was real life.
Unbelievably light. With a crumb almost too perfect. More moist than my wildest oil-free cake dreams. No mushy middle slice or too dry corner piece. Fluffy and springy and just so happy you barely need the frosting.
Did I mention I adore this cake?
We could talk about the frosting…but honestly I don’t want to stop admiring the cake itself.
I mean JUST LOOK AT IT.
The number one reason this cake is so good
Because I didn’t make it by myself.
You know how sometimes even when you love doing something you get to a point where you are feeling creatively stuck and uninspired? Well that’s been me in the kitchen lately.
Best solution I’ve found? Find a friend who happens to also have a food blog and live close to you and eat almost exactly the same as you and just click with you on a lot of levels and ask/force her to collaborate. I’m telling you, it works.
So virtually meet my friend Sonya – blogger behind Sonya’s Open Cupboard and co-creator of this perfect pumpkin cake. I haven’t had this much fun developing a recipe in a long time, and I know it’s a not small part of the reason it turned out so deliciously well.
This will not be the last time you hear about her around here…
P.S. If you are feeling in the pumpkin mood but too lazy for cake, I’m pretty sure she made this banana-free smoothie just for you.
The Video
I can only take credit for being an awkward human in this video, all the videography credit goes to my friend Dan and his crazy amazing skills. It was totally weird for me to just make the cake and not even touch a camera or worry about the shot, but I could not be happier with how it turned out! And maybe a little jealous of his editing expertise too.
Since it is so different than my usual video style, I would LOVE to hear what you think. Leave me a comment or email me. And, my fellow creators, if you want to be really jealous and in video awe on the regular, you should follow him on Youtube too.
Make this cake. Settle in with a freshly frosted slice. Watch the video a few (dozen) more times. And happy fall to you, friends.
WATCH HOW TO
Vegan Pumpkin Cake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 9 slices 1x
- Category: cake
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: american
Description
The Vegan Pumpkin Cake of your fall baking dreams! Fluffy, moist, deliciously spiced, and easy to make. You’d never guess it’s gluten and oil free too!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (250g) pumpkin puree
- 2 flax eggs (2 tbsp flax + 4 tbsp water)
- 2/3 cup (90g) coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp (40g) molasses
- 1/2 cup (120g) non-dairy milk
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cup (225g) oat flour
- 1 1/2 cup (165g) almond flour
- 2 tsps baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
Frosting
- 1 1/2 cup (180g) raw cashews, soaked overnight
- 1/4 cup (80g) maple syrup
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2–4 tbsp non-dairy milk or coconut oil*
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the oat flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, spice, and salt until no lumps remain.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the pumpkin, flax eggs, coconut sugar, molasses, milk, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla.
- Add the wet to the dry and stir to combine.
- Pour into a baking pan that has been sprayed/coated with oil. I used a 9×6″ baking dish, but an 8×8″ square or round works too.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350F, or until the center bounces back when lightly touched.
- Cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- Drain and rinse the soaked cashews.
- Add to a blender with the maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt.
- Start blending and add the milk/oil slowly. You want to add just enough to get it moving, but not too much or your frosting will be too runny. Keep blending until very smooth and creamy, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.
- Transer to a jar and refrigerate. It will become thicker as it cools.
- Frost your cooled cake, top with a sprinkling of nuts, slice, and enjoy!
- Keep leftovers covered in the fridge. It will dry out with time, but should be good for at least 3-4 days.
Notes
*Coconut oil will help the frosting firm up when chilled, but you can use milk instead to keep it oil free.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 385
- Sugar: 22g
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 46g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 9g
Keywords: vegan, gluten-free, fall, pumpkin, spice, dessert, oil-free, healthy
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It looks absolutely delicious. Do you think it would work with sweet potato puree as well?
Thank you for your response,
de’Borah
Should work, yes! Although sweet potato tends to be a little starchier, so it may make it more dense/heavy.
Do you have a suggestion to replace Almond Flour. I cannot use that.
Looks great but can I sub the almond flour…
Any kind of nut flour would work–cashew, walnut, pecan, etc. I don’t recommend a grain based flour though because you need the higher fat content of the nuts to add moisture to the cake since it’s oil-free and low fat otherwise 🙂
Oh sorry for my other Q about almond flour—I see you answered it here. Shouldve read all first 🙂
No worries 🙂
Do you think i could use ground almonds instead? Il know its not thé same but im trying to keep down thé cost (poor Stundent Here).
Thanks for thé Amazing Work!
Are you grinding your own or buying almond meal? Its never quite as fine as almond flour so the texture will be different, but you can try it!
Any kind of nut flour would work–cashew, walnut, pecan, etc. I don’t recommend a grain based flour though because you need the higher fat content of the nuts to add moisture to the cake since it’s oil-free and low fat otherwise 🙂
Ah, the very best time of the year pumpkin season! This looks awesome! Always happy to find a new vegan pumpkin recipe. I don’t need to be gluten free, what a turn out the same if I switched to spelt or whole wheat white flour?
I haven’t tested it with spelt, but you could certainly give it a shot! It will change the texture, but could work still in place of oat flour. I don’t recommend replacing the almond flour though, since the higher fat content of the nuts is what keeps the cake moist without oil 🙂
Omg, looks awesome! Girl I’m beginning to think we are half of the same person, I don’t know if you saw my stories yesterday but I whipped out the pumpkin too, I made pumpkin chocolate cake, lol! I thought I was the only crazy one whipping out the pumpkin already but glad to see you are just as nuts, LOL! It looks wonderful and I love, love, LOVE the video! I can see why you are so excited about it. I can only imagine the time it must have taken him to edit that, haha. It’s so nice and professional and amazing and personal and all of that good stuff!! I love how pretty and fluffy that frosting looks too, cashews really are so dreamy for frosting. I love using them in frosting, makes things so creamy and set so beautifully. I’m glad that it is September and we can whip out all the pumpkin. I have so many pumpkin recipes in the works to come as well and I can’t wait to see all that you come up with too. I really want a piece of cake now!
Ha and funny enough I ALMOST added chocolate chips to this cake too😆 I can’t wait to see yours, it sounds amazing already, chocolate and pumpkin are so good together! And omg the amount of editing hours it took him is why I can’t do these kinds of videos myself and still get two out a week😳😳 Gah I feel like it’s just going to be pumpkin everything everywhere for the next two months…and I am SO excited about it haha🤗
Would it work to replace the almond flour with a grain based flour, and then add in some oil for moisture? If so, how much oil would you recommend?
This recipe looks delicious!
That could work, but it’s really hard for me to estimate amounts without testing it personally. If you want to experiment maybe replace about 1/4-1/3 cup of the milk with oil. Good luck😊
Natalie!
This looks wunderbar! Do you suppose brown rice flour or teff along with the almond flour would work? I’ve never considered a “frosting” with possibilities. Woo-hoo!
Jackie
Hmm not sure about swapping out the oat flour, neither of those are as naturally sticky/binding as oat flour, but you could try it and see! Good luck😊
I’m obsessed with your cake/muffin recipes; always the BEST texture using both almond and oat flours (my two favorites!!). 🙂
It’s the BEST combo! I wish I had discovered it sooner, but so good for fluffy and moist without oil texture🤗
Hi Natalie,
This recipe looks amazing & cant wait to try. In past experiences, baking with oat flour made my cake almost too moist with a gummy texture. Any advice to avoid this?
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Yep, that can definitely happen with oat flour recipes, but the combo of oat and almond here keeps the texture really nice and not gummy! Just don’t over mix the batter😊
Can I use cassava flour instead of oat flour, or what kind of flour do you recommend for substituting the oat flour?
Thanks
Buckwheat or quinoa would work in place of oat!
What an inspiring blogger collab! And the perfect recipe to ring in Pumpkin Season! As soon as I saw the picture and title of this recipe I felt like it was made JUST FOR ME! How kind of you 😉 Although I love your typical style of video, it is great to see you in action making such a fun, cozy dessert. Let the Fall baking extravaganza begin!!!
Um of course, we had YOU in mind the whole time😉 Thanks for the feedback on this new style, and I hope you dive into pumpkin baking soon too🎃🎃
This looks HEAVENLY. I am *obsessed* with pumpkin season. Now that I can’t eat wheat anymore sooooo many of my former favourite recipes are off limits. Your blog gives me opportunities to make some NEW favourites. I love what you create 🙂 and constantly look forward to what you post next! I do have a question— I’m not really a frosting kinda gal (I know, I know! I also can’t stand mushrooms or avocado which seems to be a prerequisite for being a vegan 🤗 #sorrynotsorry haha) would this pumpkin spice cake taste just as good naked? (Scandalous!) Maybe I’ll sprinkle some enjoy life mini chocolate chips on top of it in the last five minutes or so of baking. Thoughts? 🙂
Hi Vicky! Well I’ve got LOTS of wheat free pumpkin goodies and more to come soon so I hope you have fun experimenting🎃 And I’m lol-ing to the mushroom/avo part…Instagram really does make that feel mandatory😂😂 But cake! Yes, it’s delish without frosting, I ate most of my test batches that way and so so good! Chocolate chips on top would be yummy too, but not even necessary if you ask me😋 Happy baking!
Hi Natalie! I love that the protein is NINE grams per serving! That’s awesome. 🙂 Hi-pro cake! Breakfast baby! I WOULD like to lower the sugar. I always tweak recipes to make them lower sugar. I love sweet, but it takes a lot less for me to experience sweet and I don’t want to get 22g at one sitting. 🙂 (I try to limit to less than 10g per sitting/serving. Do you by any chance have any idea if most of that is coming from the frosting (which like Vicky I could totally do without)? Do you have any nutrition info for cake only? (I can figure it out by putting it into MyFitnessPal but i figured if you have it…) THANKS! I cant wait to make this for my holiday guests! Oh, maybe the protein comes in part from the cashew frosting? hmmm. Oh also, is the almond flour absolutely essential? As opposed to other flours? Like, nut flour is what gives it the texture? I may play with this and I’ll let you know. Just had the chocolate banana pancakes today for the 6th time btw 🙂
Totally understand! So the frosting only contains a couple of tbsp maple syrup, so most of the sugar content is in the cake itself. You could definitely cut back on the coconut sugar though, maybe try 1/3 or 1/2 cup and omit the molasses. According to the nutrition calculator I use, 1/2 cup coconut sugar and no molasses would take the sugar down to 12g per serving without frosting and still 8.5g protein (most is in the cake, not the frosting). You could swap out the nut flour, but yes it is what makes the texture so nice and keeps it moist without oil so I don’t recommend it. It’s also where the majority of the protein content comes from! Here’s what the stats would look like, hope that helps:
And haha that’s awesome, I am so happy you are loving those pancakes too! Speaking of quinoa flour, you could swap that in for the oat here to boost the protein even more if you wanted 🙂
Could you substitute honey for the coconut sugar?
It won’t work as a 1-for-1 sub since honey adds a lot more moisture that will throw off the texture, but you could try reducing the milk and swapping the sugar for honey. Can’t say for sure if it will work without trying it, so you will have to experiment 🙂
Used 1/3 cup Honey instead of coconut sugar, 1/4 cashew milk, and subbed 2 tbs date syrup for maple syrup. I also subbed 1/4 tsp nutmeg and allspice and 1/8 tsp cloves for the pumpkin pie spice as I am allergic to cinnamon. OMG! The results were amazing! Best pumpkin cake ever! My kids ate it for dessert and again for breakfast.
Ahhhhh YAY!! I am so happy it was a hit, and kid approved too. Haha cake for breakfast, oh how I love healthy baking🤗 And that’s awesome to know that the sweetener swaps worked. Thanks for sharing, and enjoy🧡
Can you sub out oatmeal? I’m gluten grain free due to allergies.
Sure, try quinoa or buckwheat flour instead!
Thank you for the recipe, can I skip the molasse or for what purpose is it? 🙂 Since I need the recipe for someone who is highly allergic to almost everything i would rather not use it…
The molasses is for a richer flavor and it also adds moisture, but not essential. You could swap in a different liquid sweetener instead, or leave it out but the cake will be less sweet. Hope that helps!
Would this make 12 decent sized cupcakes?
Hmm havne’t tested this one as cupcakes, but you may only get 8-10 from this batch size. May be smart to 1.5x the qualities to make sure you get 12!
Instead of flax egg can I use a regular egg😉
Yep, that will work! Two of them though😊
Oh my goodness this cake was so delicious! I love the cozy pumpkin spicy vibes first of all, but not going to lie I had doubts, so much so I just made a half batch( a mistake in the end lol), I always find most oat flour and almond flour cakes to come out so dense or gummy but this cake came out wonderfully. I happen to be an October baby and after trying this I definitely want to make it again for my birthday. I used your cashew- yogurt frosting from another recipe and man! it was tangy like a sour cream and went so well with the sweet cake mmhhmm good! My non-vegan older brother went craazzy for it too and said if he could eat that everyday he would be vegan, that is a very strong statement coming from him and made me so happy. Thanks so much for creating and sharing your lovely recipes, they are awesome. <3 🙂
★★★★★
Woohoo!! I am so so happy you tried it even if skeptical (i know EXACTLY what you mean about dense/gummy oat flour cakes😜) Mmm yes, that yogurt frosting is my favorite I bet it paired perfectly. Haha non-vegan approval is always the ultimate test. Well thank you for the wonderful feedback Kiera, and I hope the next bday batch is even more delicious🤗🤗
I followed the recipient exactly and my cake turned out very dense. I was really hoping for fluffy. Any idea what could have gone wrong?
Hmm if you followed everything exactly I’m not sure what went wrong😕 You mixed by hand, yes? Sometimes over mixing or using a hand beater can make it gummy…
My guess is your stove was too hot. These cook best at a very low heat!
Do u make your own oat flour or used premade? When I use premade, the results are so dense and gummy. Am I packing too much in? Or is it better and fluffier to make your own from oats? If so, would I use rolled or quick oats?
I made my own, always! Hmm not sure that either is better/fluffier, if anything I imagine the store-bought would be more finely ground and fluffier, but oat flour can turn gummy quite easily in recipes especially if the recipe is really low fat or if you over mix the batter. THat’s why I love combining it with almond flour like in this cake, the different texture and higher fat content of the almond flour makes the texture really nice and light!
So good, I made this in a bundt pan, turned out great. No icing needed
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