Need a perfect fall treat for a gathering or just for fun? Try this vegan pumpkin spice cake recipe! I got this recipe from @thelittlevlogofvegan on instagram so all credits for the recipe go to them!
Now, this recipe originally uses the metric system but they also converted it to US measurements, I personally used a mix of both because some things were difficult to measure in cups so I will be adding both units of measurement here!
Ingredients
Cake
480ml or 2c of dairy-free milk(I used almond)
2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar
420g or 3 1/3c self raising flour
350g or 3c of caster sugar(it's a little pricey but it's a more ground flour)
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda(aka baking soda)
1 & 1/2 tablespoons of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoons of ground cloves
2 teaspoons of ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
120ml or 1/2c of sunflower oil (You can use any oil except for olive oil, I used canola)
100g or 1/2c of pumpkin puree
Frosting
400g or 1 3/4c of dairy-free block butter
80g or 1/3c of dairy-free cream cheese
360g or 3c of icing sugar (aka powdered sugar)
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
Orange food gel (or food coloring, food gel works the best)
Cocoa powder
Vegan Caramel Sauce – optional (I added some to mine!
Vegan Caramel Sauce
200g or 1 2/3c of caster sugar
100g or 1/2c of dairy-free block butter
200g or 1c of coconut cream
Steps
Cake
Now one tier of my cake was under baked and it ended up deflating after I took it out of the oven, so make sure that when you test it the toothpick is not only clean, but not oily.
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees c or 350 fahrenheit fan and line three, 8 inch loose base / push up cake tins with greaseproof paper. If you don’t have 3 cake tins you will have to bake the cakes separately. Just cover the unused batter until you’re ready to use it.
In a bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined. Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.
In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda(baking soda), cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger.
Mix well to combine.
Add the oil and pumpkin puree into the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine.
Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix.
Pour equal amounts of batter into the lined cake tins. Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.
Pop the cakes into the centre of the preheated oven and bake for around 25-30 minutes. You will know they are done when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch.
Place the cakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool slightly before removing them from the tins. Leave the cakes to cool fully on the cooling rack. Once cool, pop them into a sealed container to keep them fresh before frosting.
Frosting
I did not get to add the cute little pumpkins on my cake since I was running out of time but they would make and adorable accent!
In a large mixing bowl, add in the dairy-free butter and cream cheese, whip until creamy. I use a stand mixer with a balloon whisk attachment, a hand mixer will work great too.
Sift in the icing sugar and cinnamon. Whip on high speed for around 5 minutes to incorporate it.
Place one of the cakes on a serving plate or cake stand. Dollop or pipe some of the buttercream on top and spread out until even using an off-set spatula or pallet knife.
Optional filling: Make a well in the middle of the buttercream and fill with 1-2 tablespoons of caramel sauce.
Place the second cake layer on top. Press it down gently so it sticks, repeat for the third cake. Coat the whole cake with a thin layer of buttercream. This creates a crumb coat.
Place the cake into the the fridge to set for 10-15 minutes.
Remove the cake from the fridge and apply a second/final coat, this time making it thicker, then using a cake scraper to make the edges of cake smooth.
Add some of the white frosting into a piping bag fitted with a star tip nozzle and pipe a swirl around the top edge of the cake.
Separate the left over frosting into two separate bowls. Color one with with a dab of orange food gel and a dash of cocoa powder to create a deep orange colour. Add some cocoa powder to the second bowl to create a chocolate coloured frosting. Transfer the orange frosting into a piping bag fitted with a small round tip nozzle, and transfer the brown frosting into a piping bag and snip off the tip.
Use the orange frosting to pipe little pumpkins around the cake in a scattered pattern. Then use the brown frosting to create a stalk at the top of the pumpkin. If you have left over frosting, you can pipe some mini pumpkins to the top edge of the cake.
Slice and enjoy!
Vegan Carmel Sauce
Any kind of caramel is difficult to make, and i've burnt some before, just be patient and it should come together!
Place the sugar into a medium / large saucepan. Place the pan on the hob over a low heat. Allow the sugar to melt, this will take around 5-8 minutes. Don’t burn the sugar! Make sure to stir the sugar constantly to prevent burning. You can use a wooden spoon or heat proof spatula.
When all of the sugar has melted and is a golden / amber colour, add in the butter. Be careful, as the sugar is very hot. Remove the pan from the heat and stir to combine. Allow the butter to melt into the sugar. It might bubble but thats fine. Once it’s combined, it might go a thick consistency, now add in the coconut cream. It will steam and bubble again so be very careful!
Add the pan on the heat and allow to simmer for 3-5 minutes to help thicken it up.
Remove the pan from the heat. Set aside to cool for 30 minutes, then transfer / pour the caramel into a heat proof jar. Place the jar into the fridge. Allow to chill and and overnight. The caramel will will turn into a toffee consistency.
I hope you enjoyed this recipe! Even though my cake and cupcakes deflated and didn't turn out perfectly, they still tasted amazing.
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