Mobile menu
Home » Pumpkin Cake

Pumpkin Cake

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

This is the original pumpkin quick bread from my wheat flour days that I’m sure many of you used to bake.  I’ve been making it gluten-free for years, it can be dairy-free without any of the dairy add-ins/ons. Without the cream cheese, a slice or two is a good sustaining breakfast or snack.  

I try and use less xanthan gum or even none if I can, as you get an even fluffier texture when baked. 

There is no xanthan gum in this recipe.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 of 15 oz can (8oz) roughly 1 cup solid pack pumpkin, not pie filling (ingredient list should only be pumpkin)
  • 1c + 2 tbsp sugar (8 oz) 
  • 1/2c (4oz) melted coconut oil or almond oil or avocado oil
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/3 c water 
  • 1 tsp gluten-free vanilla extract 
  • 1+1/4 c (5+3/4 oz) my gluten0free flour mix or same by weight of King Arthur Flour gluten-free all-purpose flour (no xanthan gum, no baking powder, only flour blend)
  • 1 tbsp (15 ml) gluten-free apple pie or pumpkin pie spice that you know you can eat. So many brands aren’t labeled gluten-free. 
  • 1/2 c (2 oz) almond meal 
  • 1 tsp (5 ml) baking soda
  • 1 tsp (5ml) gluten-free baking powder 
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/3 c craisins – dried cranberries
  • 1/3 c golden raisins (known as sultanas in UK) or ordinary raisins
  • 1/3 c chopped pecans or other nuts. 

Cream Cheese Center
Mix together:

  • ½ of 8 oz brick of cream cheese softened– I use lite 
  • 1 egg yolk or 1 tbsp liquid egg substitute
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp gluten-free vanilla extract 

Streusel
Mix together:

  • ¾ c chopped pecans or nut of choice 
  • ¼ c sugar 
  • 2 tbsp light brown sugar 
  • 1 tsp gluten-free apple or pumpkin pie spice

Directions:

  1. Put pumpkin, oil, sugar, eggs, water and vanilla in large mixing bowl and beat well for 2 minutes until air bubbles are visible.
  2. Stir all dry ingredients together, then add and beat in dry ingredients. Stir in fruit and nuts.
  3. Grease and gluten-free flour a 10” bundt pan.
  4. Sprinkle half of the streusel around base of pan and pour in half of batter.
  5. Gently spread cream cheese mix on top of batter.  It won’t be perfect and might sink a bit.  Try not to spread cream cheese to sides of pan or it will stick.
  6. Gently pour in second half of batter and sprinkle second half of streusel on top.
  7. Bake in preheated 350 * oven for 45-55 minutes. If top is browning too much, cover with foil. The cake will rise and dome and look cracked from nuts and sugar.
  8. I prefer using a bundt pan, the cake looks prettier than in a loaf pan and with the hole in the middle, the cake cooks more evenly with less chance of a raw center. Cake should be well risen, it will be dark brown because of spices, firm at edges and pulling away from sides. I poke at middle of cake with a fork, since I find that most gluten-free cakes need longer cooking than regular flour cakes. Remove from oven, leave to cool for 10 minutes, turn out onto cooling rack and allow to cool completely.  Cake keeps fresh for quite a few days, freezes and nukes well.

Watch me make variations of this cake:

For Halloween, make the pumpkin cake in cupcakes, without filling. Frost with cream cheese frosting, tinted orange if you want (mix red and yellow food coloring together.  A recent bottle of McCormick’s food coloring stated it was a gluten-free food.) Top with Halloween candies that are gluten-free. 

Note: cream cheese filling and streusel adapted from a recipe in Port Danby Cozy mystery by London Lovett.

My rice-free GF mix:

  • ½ cup potato starch 
  • ¼ c tapioca starch from Asian market or Goya or Yoki brand in supermarkets.  
  • 2 tbsp amaranth or millet flour: Bob’s Red Mill (millet is roughly one third the price of amaranth, is not so nutritious, but is more readily available.)
  • 2 tbsp sorghum flour: Bob’s Red Mill. 

Larger quantity:

  • 1 x 14 oz bag potato starch, which is 3+1/2 cups – that’s the size I can buy. 
  • 1+3/4 c of Tapioca Starch is 7 oz
  • Just under 1 cup of Amaranth or Millet (actually ¾ c plus 2 Tbsps is 4 oz)
  • Just under 1 cup of Sorghum (actually ¾ c plus 2 Tbsps is 4 oz)

Making about 7 cups total of mix.

OUR PARTNERS

Think you may have celiac disease?

Symptoms Checklist
OUR PARTNERS