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AIP Pumpkin Cake is that perfect cake to bake casually in a casserole dish or, for a festive occasion, to make into a layer cake … topped and piped with Dairy-free Buttercream Frosting! Also grain-free, nut-free and egg-free, you can serve this cake to any of your loved ones, a great recipe to make with confidence.
Fall
The bulging orange pumpkins of autumn keep our moods bright, as October’s sun and colors fade into shorter November days, later sunrises, greyer horizons and swifter winds.
This recipe is an ode to autumn. And it’s for all of you, my AIP friends, who LONG for great cake and frosting!
AIP Pumpkin Cake {dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free}
Serving AIP baked goods to folks on “normal” diets is the best way to confirm their quality. This pumpkin cake passed that test with flying colors: guaranteed to please kids and adults on any diet!
It’s a great cake to make into a layer cake, perhaps for a fall birthday, or keep it casual and easy as a sheet cake.
While this cake celebrates seasonal eating, it uses canned pumpkin, so you can make it anytime of the year.
AMAZING “Buttercream” Frosting
Maybe the component of this cake that will most have you doing a happy dance is the “buttercream” frosting. I’m pretty excited about it myself. It took me four tries, which is a lot for me; but I did it, and I’m proud. It’s that good. 
This Buttercream is dairy-free, coconut-free and fruit-free.
While I like frostings with palm or coconut (and certainly I love butter) this recipe is made specifically for those on the autoimmune protocol who mustn’t have dairy, and who may be tired of everything-coconut.
I do think you might be able to make this recipe with palm (THIS ONE, not the bright orange one) but I haven’t tried yet, because I can’t have fruit.
So, get ready: This frosting is made with lard.
I hope you know the value of pig fat. It’s super high in vitamin D, pretty flavorless, and solid at room temperature.
This Buttercream whips beautifully! Frostings from days gone by were made with lard, even though it sounds foreign to our ears and tastes. Ultimately, that’s what it comes down to: Does the frosting perform and taste awesome? And the answer is, Yes, it does.
I actually love putting this frosting on my other baked goods, too, like my morning waffle and eating wedges of waffle — like pastry-meets-toast with whipped yumminess on top.
The flavor of the dairy-free-buttercream is apple-cinnamon. It’s lovely. I don’t eat it by itself. But on any cake etc. it’s WONDERFUL.
ALSO, it pipes beautifully, as the photos in the frosting post display.
I really do think this recipe will work with palm (find it here), so if you can’t embrace the idea of lard-based frosting let me know how it goes.
Either way, this frosting is for you! Now you have an AIP frosting you can turn to again and again, for all your cakes and traditional treats, one that tastes classic.
Okay, enjoy!
AIP Pumpkin Layer Cake
Equipment
- cake pans
- oven
Ingredients
- 1 cup pumpkin canned, organic; or leftover winter squash pureed would probably work well, too
- ⅔ cup filtered water
- ⅔ cup coconut butter warmed slightly; see Recipe Notes for source
- ½ cup cassava flour Otto's (see link below)
- ⅓ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup avocado oil or olive oil, or coconut oil melted and cooled slightly
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon gelatin see Recipe Notes for source
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda , sifted
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease preferred cake pan(s), depending on what size/shape you'd like for your finished cake.
- Stir together wet ingredients in a medium size saucepan over very low heat: pumpkin, coconut butter, water, avocado oil, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar. The goal is not to heat the liquid but to prevent the cold ingredients from solidifying the coconut butter. If all of your ingredients are room temperature, including the maple syrup, then you can just mix them in a medium size mixing bowl. Set aside.
- In another medium size mixing bowl whisk together the dry ingredients: cassava flour, coconut flour, gelatin, baking soda and sea salt.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold together thoroughly using a rubber spatula.
- Pour batter into prepared pan(s).
- Bake until very golden brown, starting to check for doneness at about 25 minutes, depending on the pan size(s). (A 9" by 13" will take a minimum of 35 minutes.) When done a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean or with a few crumbs adhering.
Notes
Nutrition
Get the AIP “Buttercream” Frosting recipe HERE. (dairy-free)
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
Wow! Wow! Wow! I’ve never had any buttercream like that before but it looks amazing! Such a neat recipe, I never would have thought of using that “secret” ingredient. And the cake, it’s just perfect.
Megan Stevens says
Thank you, Emily!! xo, so sweet. 🙂 🙂
Renee Kohley says
This is so special Megan! I can’t wait to try out that frosting – so amazing!
Megan Stevens says
Thank you, Renee! I hope your family loves it.
Jean says
This cake is gorgeous, and sounds perfect for the holidays. I love all pumpkin desserts!
Megan Stevens says
Me too. Thank you!
Carrie @ Clean Eating Kitchen says
What a gorgeous dessert. I love that you used cassava flour too!
Megan Stevens says
It’s definitely my favorite flour. Thank you, Carrie! 🙂
Jessica DeMay says
This cake is beautiful and that frosting looks perfect! What a fun treat!
Megan Stevens says
Thanks, Jessica! It makes the cold weather easier to take when you have a pumpkin treat! 😉
Irena Macri says
Buttercream is the way to my heart! This is gorgeous xx
Megan Stevens says
Thank you, Irena! xo
Melissa @RealNutritiousLiving says
This sounds amazing! You had me at buttercream!
Megan Stevens says
Yay! Thank you, hope you get to make it!
Kari Peters says
This cake is incredibly gorgeous, and I can never turn down buttercream!
Megan Stevens says
Me neither, just the name! 😉 Thank you!
Donna says
Such a great cake, I’ve recently found cans of pumpkin in the supermarkets here in the UK which really makes my life way easier for recipes like this!
ChihYu says
Love everything pumpkin ! Thanks for sharing your lovely recipe !
Amanda Torres says
Absolutely stunning cake! Bravo at creating such a beauty – you’d never know it was gluten-free much less AIP!
Katja Heino says
This looks amazing. And that frosting!! YUM!
Becky Winkler says
What a beautiful cake!!
Cristina Maria Curp says
MIND BLOWN with the lard frosting! Wish I would have tried that during my elimination phase!
Chris says
Dying to know… I just took the cake out of the oven, and although I have lard, I’m having a hard time making myself use it for the buttercream. Who has made this with lard and how did it taste?
Andrea says
I made this frosting with palm shortening and it turned out so nice! I doubled the amount of cinnamon in both the cake and the frosting. My family loves that the cake tastes like pumpkin bread with frosting on it. Bonus – it smelled heavenly while baking, too!
Megan says
Wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing, Andrea! 🙂
Stacie says
Would this shortening work too? Nutiva Organic Shortening, Original, 15 Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KRFLH5U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_IskvEbJZAS0DR
Megan says
Hi Stacie, I haven’t tried that product, although the sourcing and ingredients look great. Other reviewers say that it works great for frostings, so it looks like a good bet!
Mauri says
I just made the cake and its a mushy mess in the middle. I am not sure what I did wrong because I followed the directions. Now I’m not sure what I’ll serve for my guests tomorrow. ☹
Megan says
Hi Mauri, I’m sorry I didn’t observe your process or ingredients, so I could help you troubleshoot more. Most likely it traces back to one of your ingredients, like the brand of cassava flour used (I only recommend Otto’s for this reason).
Egri Judit says
Hey! Can I skip or sub coconut butter?
Thanks!
Megan says
Hi Egri, are you AIP and no nuts/seeds in your diet? If so, tiger nut butter may work. Otherwise, seed or nut butter.
Suzanne says
This looks so good! What a great way to still enjoy a treat while sticking to the good stuff! Do you use this frosting for any other recipes?
Megan says
Hi Suzanne, thank you! Yes, any AIP cake you can search for on the site. AIP Birthday Cake is a great option: https://eatbeautiful.net/aip-birthday-cake-vanilla-cake-with-frosting/
Vanessa says
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Megan says
Hi Vanessa, You’re welcome. Covered in the fridge for 4 days, it keeps well, or you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
Daun says
How would the cake work if I used an egg?
Megan says
Hi Daun, it hasn’t been recipe tested with an egg because it was created as an egg-free recipe, so I don’t know, sorry.
Robin says
Since I would like to also serve this to someone on GAPS, do you think I could replace maple syrup with honey? I believe all the other ingredients are GAPS legal.
Megan says
Hi Robin, I do think the recipe will work with honey, but sadly cassava flour is not GAPS legal.
Dan says
I’ve had this recipe on my to-make list for a while now. I finally tried it, and it turned out great! I made the coconut butter, per the linked recipe, right before making the cake batter. I baked the cake in 2-6″ rounds for 35 minutes on 375. My husband does not like frosting, so I just topped the cake with a little maple syrup, cinnamon, and maple sugar. The cake is very moist and has such a satisfying texture. Such a nice Fall treat.
Thank you for sharing!
Megan says
Awesome, Dan! My pleasure. SO glad you enjoyed and found what was just right for you both! I love that you finally got around to making it, yay! Thanks for sharing all you did and how it turned out!