Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cake
Thank you to my friends at Big Tree Farms for sponsoring the creation of this recipe!
This gluten-free pumpkin cake is made with an almond flour base, zero dairy, and is topped off with frosting sweetened with coconut sugar! It’s the perfect simple and cute treat for fall and the holidays.
Why you’ll love this gluten-free pumpkin cake
I will go to great lengths to incorporate pumpkin into as many things as possible during the fall and winter! Whether it be savory recipes like my pumpkin chicken noodle soup, or sweet like my AIP pumpkin pie bars, I will not be putting down those cans of pumpkin anytime soon.
And yes, of course I love pumpkin pie. But messing with a crust is just not my favorite thing to do when I’m already elbows deep in a million other cooking projects over the holidays. So a gluten-free pumpkin cake saves the day! Here’s why you’ll love it…
- Gluten and dairy-free! No gluten, no butter, no milk, just simple gluten- and dairy-free ingredients!
- Powder sugar-free frosting. Frosting without powdered sugar is a bit of a unicorn, but we did it with Big Tree Farms coconut sugar!
- Simple and customizable. This cake can be as cute or as plain as you want. I’ve included instructions for an easy frosting and cute pumpkins to decorate it, but it’s also yummy on its own!
Recipe Ingredients
- Almond flour and oat flour. You can try to swap the oat flour for cassava flour to make it grain-free!
- Coconut yogurt. This adds a creamy moisture and tang to the batter.
- Big Tree Farms coconut sugar. This is always my go-to swap for cane sugar!
- Pumpkin puree. You can roast your own pumpkin (like I do in my dairy-free pumpkin mac and cheese), but of course, canned is fine!
- Palm shortening & dairy-free cream cheese. This is the base for the frosting that keeps it dairy-free, but still tastes like creamy cheese frosting. You can also skip the frosting or use a store-bought version.
How to make Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cake
Here are the simple steps, with photos, to make this recipe. Find full instructions in the recipe card.
Step one. Combine the wet and dry ingredients in two separate bowls.
Step two. Combine to make a batter.
Step three. Add to a parchment-lined baking pan.
Step four. Bake and cool on a cooling rack.
Step five. Whip the frosting together with a hand mixer until smooth.
Step six. Frost the cake and slice!
Michelle’s Tips & Tricks
- The cute little pumpkin buckeyes on top are worth the effort. This is my favorite party trick. I pass them out for trick-or-treating; I add them to pies and baked goods, etc. They’re so cute, easy to make, and are worth the little bit of time to make them. Make a big batch in different sizes and save the leftovers!!
- Save time with store-bought frosting. In a pinch, you can buy a store-bought frosting and simply add pumpkin pie spice!
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cake
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Ingredients
For the cake
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup Big Tree Farms coconut sugar
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 3 tbsp avocado oil
- ¼ cup coconut yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups almond flour
- ⅓ cup oat flour
- ½ tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
For the frosting
- 4 tbsp dairy free cream cheese
- 6 tbsp palm shortening
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ½ tsp Vanilla extract
- 4-6 pumpkin almond butter buckeyes, optional, for topping!
Instructions
- To make the cake, preheat to oven to 350 F and line an 8×8” pan with greased parchment paper.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together in a bowl & the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir well with a silicone spatula.
- Pour the cake batter into the baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cake springs back. Set side to fully cool.
- To make the frosting, combine the ingredients in a bowl and blend with an electric hand mixer until fully whipped and creamy.
- Spread the frosting onto the cooled cake and top with my almond butter pumpkin buckeyes for an extra cute touch if desired! Slice into 9 slices.
