How is it mid-October already and I’m only just now posting a pumpkin recipe? Can you forgive me?
Please say yes. Please say yes. Please be my friend.
This pumpkin cake is inspired by fall and my love for all the pumpkin things and my Vegan Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread.
It’s simple, requiring just 1 bowl to make! And it comes together in about 1 hour. How cool is that?
I’ve been doing more experimenting with aquafaba as an “egg” in gluten-free baking and it’s working wonders. This cake is another proud accomplishment in my line of testing vegan/gluten free goods. Oh joy (and more to come).
The base is whipped aquafaba (chickpea brine) and coconut sugar, which keeps this cake entirely naturally sweetened! Cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice amp up the fall flavor, while pumpkin puree and banana add incredibly moist texture and natural sweetness.
The result is a fluffy, tender, pumpkin-infused cake laced with rolled oats and almond flour.
As for the gluten-free blend, I went with a light blend I’ve been loving lately. But I feel pretty confident that, as long as it’s a rice-based blend, it should do well here! And of course, if you’re not gluten-free, feel free to sub spelt flour, whole-wheat flour, or unbleached all-purpose for the gluten-free blend.
I hope you all LOVE this cake! It’s:
Tender
Fluffy
Wholesome
Naturally sweetened
Pumpkiny
Perfectly-spiced
Hearty
& Insanely delicious
This would make the perfect cake for entertaining this fall or if you just want something special on hand for a lazy weekend. I opted for my vegan cream cheese frosting – which requires the cake to be refrigerated – but you could easily go for my vegan buttercream frosting as well (recipes linked below). It would also be just as delicious naked (oy!).
If you try this cake, let us know! I love seeing your comments, ratings, and photos tagged #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
1-Bowl Pumpkin Cake (Vegan + GF)
Ingredients
CAKE
- 2/3 cup aquafaba (chickpea brine – the liquid in a can of chickpeas // or sub 4 flax eggs*)
- 1 1/4 cup coconut sugar (or sub organic cane sugar)
- 1/4 cup ripe banana (mashed // primarily for binding)
- 1/2 cup maple syrup or agave nectar
- 1 1/2 cups pumpkin purée
- 1/4 cup olive oil, grape seed oil, avocado oil, or melted coconut oil
- 3/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (plus more to taste)
- 1 cup water or unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour* (or sub meal with less-desirable results)
- 2 1/3 cup gluten-free flour blend*
FROSTING optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C) and lightly butter/grease two standard 9-inch cake pans. Dust with gluten-free flour and and remove excess. Set aside.
- Add chickpea brine to a large mixing bowl and beat on high for 2-3 minutes until light and airy and loose peaks form. Then add coconut sugar a little at a time and continue beating until light and fluffy and semi-firm peaks form.
- Add mashed banana, maple syrup, pumpkin puree, oil, sea salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice and beat or whisk to combine (see photo). Add water or unsweetened almond milk and apple cider vinegar and beat/whisk again.
- Add gluten-free oats, almond flour, and gluten-free flour blend and stir with a wooden spoon or whisk. The batter should be semi-thick but pourable. If too thick add more water or almond milk. If too thin, add more almond flour or gluten-free flour blend.
- Divide between cake pans and bake for 45 minutes – 1 hour, or until deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out completely clean.
- Remove from oven and let rest in pans until completely cool. Once cooled, gently loosen the sides with a butter knife and use a plate to invert and flip the cakes out of their pans. Transfer to a serving plate or cake stand and frost with desired frosting of choice.
- If frosting with cream cheese frosting, store in the refrigerator up to 3 days. If frosting with buttercream, store at room temperature up to 3 days. Freeze to keep fresh for up to 1 month (though best when fresh).
Notes
*The almond flour (which is comprised of blanched almonds making it different than almond meal) I would recommend is WellBee’s, which can be found on Amazon. You can try subbing almond meal but I haven’t tested it that way and cannot guarantee the results. Almond flour gives a drier, fluffier texture that’s ideal in this cake.
*For the gluten-free blend in this recipe I used Fork and Bean’s Light GF blend, but I would think Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 GF Baking Blend and my DIY Gluten-Free Blend would work well, too! And, of course, if you’re not gluten-free, feel free to sub spelt, whole-wheat, or unbleached all-purpose flour for the gluten-free blend.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated without icing.
devon says
Hi! Would I be able to replace the rolled oats with oat flour, or would it be too heavy? I just don’t really like the rolled oat texture. Thanks!
Hi Devon, hmm, we’re not sure about using oat flour vs oats. It will probably turn out more dense like pumpkin bread. If you try it, we’d suggest starting with less oat flour because it may be more absorbent. Let us know if you give it a try!
Jennalee says
I made this as a cake last year for a birthday and got rave reviews. I’d like to try it this year in the form of mini cupcakes, do you have any modifications you’d recommend? Thank you!
Yay! We’re so glad it was a hit at the birthday last year, Jennalee! We’d recommend baking for less time, checking on the cupcakes around ~22-25 minutes. You’ll know the cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Hope that helps!
Diane says
Does adding the sugar to the peaks of the whipped chickpea brine flatten the peaks? I’m just curious because before I went vegan, I always folded in the egg white peak mixture as the final step into the batter. That was the final step to ensure a fluffy cake batter. Thanks for your feedback and I’m excited to make this for Thanksgiving.
Hi Diane, it flattens it a little, but we find it doesn’t impact the final result. Excited for you to try it! Let us know how it goes! xo
Diana says
For a double 6″ round cake would you recommend halving the recipe?
Thanks! : )
Hi Diana, that might not be enough batter, leaving you with a thinner cake. It would probably be closer to 2/3 batch ideally!
Jennifer says
I served this for Thanksgiving. This was hands down the best cake I’ve ever tasted! Even the non-vegan and non-gf people agreed. Thank you MB for continually posting incredible recipes. Since my daughter became gf and then I started eating vegan I have spent so much money on ingredients for failed recipes that I sometimes wonder if the recipes were ever tested before posting, but I never have that fear with your recipes. I really appreciate the integrity you put into your site and the recipes you share with us.
We’re so glad you and your guests enjoyed, Jennifer. Thank you so much for the kind words and support!
Tina says
This was amazing and simple. I used a 9×13, skipped the frosting, and dusted with powdered sugar. So good-did not need frosting (unless celebrating a birthday-must have frosting!!!).
Thanks for another great recipe
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Tina. We are so glad you enjoy the cake! Next time, would you mind leaving a star rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Erin says
I can’t do gluten and my partner cannot do tapioca, could we do oat flour or garbanzo flour as a sun for the gf flour blend?
Hi Erin, we think both of those would cause it to be too dense/gummy. Can you both do arrowroot starch? That would be your best bet in place of the tapioca starch in the GF blend.
Erika Tieszen says
Hi there,
Are cupcakes possible for this? Might be a silly question… maybe just adjust the time?
Thank you!!
Erika
Hi Erika, yes, you’ve got it! Just bake for less time and it should work well. We’d estimate ~27-32 minutes. Enjoy!
Kim says
This was DEVINE! I am vegan and gluten free so it was awesome to not have to adapt a thing. I don’t usually do oil and often substitute apple sauce but I didn’t for this since gluten free baking can be tricky. It was so fantastic and I paired it with your cream cheese frosting. Hubby who can eat anything absolutely loved it as did the rest of the extended family. I definitely will make again and probably soon. Thanks so very much!
Aw, yay! We’re so glad you both enjoyed it, Kim. Thank you for the lovely review! xo
Cala says
Do you think this recipe could be doubled to produce a sheet cake? Thank you!
Hi Cala, we do think it would work! A single batch works well in a 9 x 13 pan. We’d recommend checking on it sooner though!
Sferd says
How long would you suggest for baking in a 9″ x 13″ pan? Thinking of making this for a work event and my colleague is GF.
We’re big fans of your recipes.
Aw, we’re so glad to hear it! We’d recommend checking on it around 35-40 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Hope that helps!
Dolly says
Tasty! I modified the recipe to use up sourdough discard I had. Replaced a portion of the milk and the flour with 150g discard, used two eggs in place of aquafaba, and followed the rest of recipe as instructed. Thank you, MB, for another great recipe made with simple ingredients!
Ooo sounds delish! Thanks so much for the great review, Dolly!
leslie says
Your recipes are terrific! We do not eat oats. What can be a substitute? I want to bake the pumpkin cake and then use is to create a pumpkin trifle.
Thanks,
Aw, thanks Leslie! We’d suggest trying a lesser amount of sorghum flour in place of the oats, though we haven’t tested it in this recipe and can’t guarantee it will turn out the same. Let us know if you try it out!
Agnieszka says
I made this cake for my friend’s bday. It was incredible! I followed the recipe and made the cake a day ahead as I had to travel with it. It was moist and delicious, everyone were very impressed and ate it all! It was hard to believe the cake was GF and Vegan!
Thank you for the recipe!
Woohoo! So glad you all enjoyed, Agnieszka. Thanks for the great review!
Michelle says
So, I normally hate it when people rate a recipe when they completely change the recipe BUT here I am doing it anyway.
I had extra mashed yams and looked up vegan pumpkin cake because I actually like yams in baking better than pumpkin. And, it’s what I had. Change #1: substitute yams for pumpkin
I am trying to use no/less oil in my cooking these days so I decided that since I also had a gang of avocados that were ripe, I would use one of those instead. Change #2: substitute 1/4 cup mashed avocado for the 1/4 cup oil.
Finally, I live at 5000+ feet above sea level, so I adjusted the baking soda and powder by -25% as I usually do with baked goods.
Result? OMG! It is the most moist, flavorful cake that I have ever made that is both VEGAN and GLUTEN-FREE and I MADE IT AT HIGH ALTITUDE. Thank you thank you thank you… this is definitely going on our list of favorites and desserts to take to parties.
(Note: Yeah, another change. I didn’t use cream cheese frosting but I had a cashew maple frosting recipe (no oil) that I used instead and it is simply divine!)
Woohoo! Thanks so much for the wonderful review and for sharing your modifications, Michelle! So glad this recipe was a success for you!
Liv says
I looked at your recipe for buttercream and was excited at the prospect of vanilla cupcakes! Until I saw ap flour.
Do you have a vanilla cake recipe with almond and/or gluten free flour? Just realized how much I miss vanilla cake! 🤣
Hi Liv, yes! Find our gluten-free vanilla cupcakes here and cake here. Hope that helps!
Jenny says
I made this but used coffee instead of water/milk, flax eggs instead of aquafaba, added a chocolate crumble topping, and made it in a 13×9 pan. DUHHLICIOUS!
Woohoo! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Jenny!
Jessica says
What can I sub the banana for? I’m allergic to bananas. I generally cook and bake gf vegan, but bananas always confuse me as to what they are doing in baking…i.e…. egg replacer or xantham gum… Binder…?
Thoughts?
Thank you!
Hi Jessica, we’d suggest another fruit or veggie purée such as applesauce, mashed sweet potato, or pumpkin. Yes, they’re often for binding, but can also add sweetness and moisture. Hope that helps!
Katie says
This recipe is fantastic. I’ve made it twice now. The first time, I did it mostly as written with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free blend, just with an addition of vanilla and ground cardamom. I brought it for a friend’s birthday party and it was a major hit. The second time, I doubled the recipe but did not have flax eggs, banana, or gluten free flour. The almond flour that I was able to find was a very thick grain so I did not want to use it for the whole recipe because it’d turn out mealy. So, I used regular old cake flour plus more almond flour for the gluten free blend called for in the recipe. I again added vanilla and ground cardamom, used more pumpkin in place of banana, and used chicken eggs. The recipe turned out fantastic again, although it was better as written the first time I did it. It was more of a thick quick bread texture, I think because of the almond flour I used. The second day after baking the flavours of this one really come together beautifully!
We’re so glad it worked out both ways! Thank you for the lovely review, Katie! xo
Lisa says
Your Aquafaba waffle was a total hit for today’s brunch! Thank you!
I was looking for other recipes to use the leftover aquafaba. Is the 2/3 cup of aquafaba in a foam measurement (stiff-peaked) or a liquid measurement (chickpea brine)? If it’s a liquid measurement, how much does 2/3 cup of chickpea brine yields aquafaba?
Woohoo! We’re so glad to hear it, Lisa. For this recipe, 2/3 cup is before whipping. We’d estimate it double or triples when whipped. Hope that helps!
Tara says
A scrumptious cake! I made this for Thanksgiving and topped the frosting it with homemade candied pecans. As usual for me with Minimalist Baker cakes, I used small cake pans & make a pretty little 3-tiered cake. I’ve commented a few times on here over the years but with it being a season of gratitude in an unsettled world, I’m feeling especially grateful for your recipes and this beautiful, educational website. Years ago, my now college-age son was diagnosed with several severe food intolerances plus a need to eat low fodmap. Your website is the one I turn to time and again. You’ve also unknowingly given me the courage to experiment with your recipes to make them custom to his needs. He loves visiting home because he knows it will be a week of delicious minimalist baker meals and desserts. Thank you!
Aw, we’re so glad you and your son have enjoyed our recipes! Thanks so much for your kind words and lovely review, Tara! xo
Kat says
Hi! I plan on making this for Thanksgiving but only really have a Bundt pan…..would you recommend adding oven time?
Hi Kat, we haven’t tried it in a bundt pan, but think it would work with the same time. Let us know if you try it!
Anj says
Could this be made without the almond flour by replacing it with the GF flour blend? Do you think that would work without altering the texture too much?
Hi Anj, we wouldn’t recommend it. Oats + gluten-free blend + almond flour is key for texture with this one!
Megan says
I just made this cake this week and I like the flavor a lot but I’m wondering if I could leave out the pats for a more classic straight crumb texture? If I did that should I reduce the liquid a little or sub a little more of the almond flour or gluten free flour? Also I lost a lot of the fluff and volume of the aquafaba when adding the sugar…I added 1/4 cup at a time until mostly incorporated new it just flattened right out. I don’t work with aquafaba much; is this to be expected? I let it whip on high for quite some time after which helped a little but it was just light and creamy not fluffy. Thanks for any guidance! I love using and sharing your recipes!
Hi Megan, I’m not sure what you mean by leaving the “pats” out. As for the aquafaba it’s natural for it to deflate a little!
Megan says
Haha sorry pats was supposed to be oats!
Oh, that makes more sense. Hmm, I’m not sure! We haven’t tested it that way but if you do, let us know how the texture turns out!
Torianna Newton says
I am out of maple syrup and agave nectar. Could I replace that item with honey?
Hi Torianna, we’re not sure that would work from a texture perspective. But if you try it, we’d suggest using less since honey is sweeter. Let us know how it goes!
Jessie says
I plan on using all-purpose flour. Do I still need the almond flour? Thank you!
Yes, we’d recommend it for best results! It helps keep the cake moist.
Farha says
My daughter is allergic to bananas. Do you recommend another substitute for your baking recipes that call for bananas? Thanks!
Hi Farha, another fruit or veggie purée such as applesauce, mashed sweet potato, or pumpkin. Hope that helps!
Rima says
This looks YUM! I can’t use almond flour. How would oat flour work do you think? And.. how much could I reduce the sugar without affecting the texture? I’m always challenged to figure that out. Thanks so much.
Hi Rima, oat flour might work, but we haven’t tried it. We wouldn’t suggest reducing the sugar by more than half.
Miriam says
Does the cake hold the shape well? It looks very crumbly on the pictures (and super delicious!). I want to try this recipe on a different mold and I’m scared it might just fall apart.
I think it should do well! If you’re nervous, these muffins do hold together a bit better!
Kim says
If I’m using all purpose flour instead of the gluten free blend do I still include the oats?
Hi Kim, We’d probably still suggest them for a textural element. Let us know how it goes!
sandra forte says
WOW this cake is unbelievably delicious!! If there was ever a cake that could blow my mind this is it. Perfect texture, taste and both vegan and gf…..I tell everyone but its convincing them I speak the truth. You are truly magical…..thanks for making this gluten free vegan a happy girl xx
Whoop! Thanks so much for the lovely review, Sandra! xo
Ivana says
I have a nut allergy and am wondering if it is possible to sub coconut flour for the almond flour? If so, would the measurement remain the same?
Hi Ivana, Coconut flour is much more dense and absorbent, so we wouldn’t recommend subbing it 1:1. Oat flour or a seed meal might be better options, but we haven’t tried either. Let us know if you do some experimenting!
Esther says
This was my very first time making a vegan dessert and I was really nervous because of some unfamiliar ingredients (like the chickpea brine). But I must say, this dessert was a hit at a Friendsgiving! I paired it with the coconut whipping cream and it was amazing. Thank you for this recipe!
We’re so glad to hear it, Esther! Thanks so much for sharing! xo