This easy pumpkin snack cake is moist and fluffy. Homemade from scratch, only 15 minutes to prepare with a few wholesome ingredients. This pumpkin cake is moist and simple!
I love making easy snacks for my family. Because it's fall, I'm doing all the fall treats, including pumpkin oatmeal balls, pumpkin seed cookies, and gingerbread pumpkin muffins!
Why you will love this recipe:
- Pumpkin Season: The tender texture and moist crumbs alongside the pumpkin spice taste make this the best fall snack cake recipe. Next try these fall apple popsicles and this pumpkin spice granola!
- Snack for the week: This cake makes a 9x13 pan size (that's a rectangular pan)! Perfect snack for a couple of days (up to a week), or freeze into individual squares and even eat for breakfast on the go!
- Wholesome: Using pumpkin puree and spices are the key ingredients to boost the nutrient density of this pumpkin snack.
- Optional twist: Add a maple cream cheese frosting on this pumpkin snack cake! Or throw in some dark chocolate chips for that pumpkin chocolate combo.
Jump to:
- Why you will love this recipe:
- Ingredients for pumpkin snack cake
- Nutrition insight about pumpkin
- A note on cinnamon
- Instructions to make an easy pumpkin snack cake
- How to make 2-ingredient cream cheese icing
- Substitution and variations
- FAQ
- Other easy baked snacks
- Easy Pumpkin Snack Cake Recipe
- Danika Vanderpyl, C.H.N
Ingredients for pumpkin snack cake
Many of the ingredients, I am sure you probably already have in your kitchen! See the recipe card below for quantities and the full recipe.
- Pumpkin purée: You want to use pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.
- Ground cinnamon: This fall spice increases the pumpkin flavor.
- Flour: Use whole wheat or all-purpose flour. When baking for my family, I choose to use organic flour, however, whatever you have will work.
- Baking soda: This makes the cake rise and gives it a cake-like texture.
- Salt: A pinch of salt boosts the pumpkin taste.
- Oil: You can use mild olive oil, vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, or melted coconut oil. I used grapeseed oil.
- Brown sugar, or coconut sugar: Either works to complement the pumpkin and sweeten the cake.
- Vanilla Extract: We love a burst of vanilla for flavor.
- Eggs: Having eggs in this cake makes a moist crumb and helps it rise.
- Milk: I used almond milk, but any milk works!
Optional - 2 Ingredient Cream Cheese Icing:
Adding frosting to this easy pumpkin snack cake makes it creamy and delightful. Honestly, this cake is perfect without icing, but I know some of us love a little cream cheese pumpkin combo!
- Cream Cheese: A cream cheese icing with pumpkin cake takes it from lovely to dessert level. All you do is mix the cream cheese with maple syrup.
- Maple Syrup: The maple syrup is what I like to sweeten the 2-ingredient cream cheese icing, and gives it a fall flavor!
Nutrition insight about pumpkin
I like to add a little holistic insight from my schooling in nutrition, and why I choose to make and feed this to my toddlers and kids! Let's chat about pumpkin!
Pumpkin is a winter squash; it is a complex carbohydrate, meaning energy is released to your body more slowly (instead of a simple carbohydrate, where your blood sugar will rise quickly and crash quickly after eating). Pumpkin is a good source of Vitamin A, C, potassium and magnesium.
A note on cinnamon
Cinnamon contains warming properties - meaning it literally makes you warmer when you eat it, probably why we eat it more in fall and winter! Cinnamon can support the well-being of the spleen, lungs, kidneys, heart, and uterus.
Instructions to make an easy pumpkin snack cake
Follow the step-by-step photos from my kitchen to make this easy recipe.
Learn from me: When testing this recipe, I tried to make it a 1 bowl recipe; however, I found I got a bite with a baking soda taste in the cake. Mixing the dry ingredients first and adding them to the wet is the best way to make sure we don't overmix the cake, yet everything is evenly mixed.
1.Prepare the pan (9x13 rectangular pan) by greasing the sides and bottom with a little oil. Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, place the flour (2 cups), baking soda (2 tsp), sea salt (½ tsp), cinnamon (2 tsp), and nutmeg (1 tsp). Use a whisk to mix thoroughly.
2. In another bowl, place the oil (¾ cup), brown sugar (1 cup), pumpkin puree (2 cups), vanilla (2 tsp), and eggs (3). Use the whisk to combine well.
3. Dump the flour mixture into the wet pumpkin mixture. Using a scraper, just mix until all the wet and dry ingredients are combined. If there are a few flour streaks left before you spread the cake batter into the pan, that's fine, then stir the flour in as you spread the batter into the pan.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, and spread it until it is evenly distributed in the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes (27 minutes comes out perfect for me every time), it will be ready when the middle of the cake slightly springs back when you touch it. Let it cool.
How to make 2-ingredient cream cheese icing
Using this pumpkin cake icing recipe is not needed to make this cake delicious. However, if you have cream cheese in the house and want to take this cake to the next level, it makes the perfect fall dessert...
1. Place the softened cream cheese and maple syrup (4 tbsp) into a mixer with a whisk attachment. Whisk for 2 minutes, then scrape down the sides of the bowl before whisking another 3-5 minutes until completely smooth.
2. Spread cream cheese icing on the cooled pumpkin cake. (Putting the icing on when the cake is still warm will cause the frosting to melt and become runny instead of thick and fluffy).
Substitution and variations
Here are a few ways you can change this snack cake recipe, or switch it up the next time you make it!
- Chocolate chips: Add ½ chocolate chips with the wet ingredients to make pumpkin chocolate chip snack cake for all the chocolate lovers!
- Pumpkin spice flavor: Use pumpkin pie spice blend instead of cinnamon. These warm spices will increase the fall flavor, making a delightful pumpkin spice snack cake!
- Pumpkin bread: Bake this cake batter in a greased loaf pan lined with parchment paper at 350°F for 60-70 minutes. Enjoy the pumpkin bread with icing too!
FAQ
Snack cake is usually single single-layer cake made in a sheet pan, or square pan instead of a round layer cake. To make snack cakes healthier, ingredients like carrots, zucchini, pumpkin, apples, pears, and strawberries are often added. Snack cake is commonly eaten without icing.
Usually, homemade cake is healthier than store-bought cake. Homemade cake is healthier because it contains no preservatives, less sugar, and fewer processed ingredients. Homemade cake often uses whole food ingredients that are minimally processed, with vitamins and minerals still intact.
Leftover pumpkin puree can be used for various recipes: pumpkin muffins, add it to creamy hummus, use it as baby food, make pumpkin pie, a pumpkin cheesecake, a homemade pumpkin spice latte, or make savoury dishes like pumpkin soup. There are so many awesome pumpkin puree recipes!
Yes, you can make your own pumpkin puree from your whole pumpkin that you picked from the pumpkin patch!
To make your own homemade pumpkin puree:
All you need to do is chop the whole pumpkin into pieces (no bigger than about a baseball). Bake chunks of pumpkin on a cookie sheet in the oven (375°F) for 45 minutes to 1 hour until it is soft.
Remove the pumpkin seeds from the cooked pumpkin (you can use these for something else or throw them out). Remove the pumpkin flesh from the pumpkin skin and place the orange flesh in a food processor. Blend until smooth. If you want a thicker pumpkin puree, you can strain the pumpkin puree. This pumpkin puree freezes well.
Pumpkin puree will last in the fridge for about 5-7 days. Be sure to store opened pumpkin puree in a sealed container when keeping it in the fridge. Use your senses to look for any signs of spoilage, such as a bad smell or mold growth.
If you have leftover pumpkin puree, you can use it for other delicious pumpkin recipes. If you open a large can of pumpkin puree or pumpkin pie filling from the grocery store and don’t plan to use it right away, the best way to use a can of pumpkin purée over an extended period is to freeze it for later use. This reduces food waste.
You can freeze fresh pumpkin puree (homemade) or canned store-bought puree in an airtight container (make sure to use freezer-safe containers), or a plastic freezer bag.
Another easy way to freeze canned pumpkin puree is into ice cube trays. After they are solid, transfer the cubes to freezer bags and place them back into the freezer (these ice cubes make it the easiest way to defrost the leftover puree)!
To prevent freezer burn on pumpkin puree, remove as much air from the bag or container as possible. With proper storage, the frozen puree will last a long time, 6-8 months in the freezer.
Other easy baked snacks
Looking for other healthy and easy snack recipes like this? Next try these pumpkin seed muffins and these pumpkin seed bars.
Did you make this easy pumpkin cake recipe? I wanna hear about it! Let me know down below the recipe and leave a star rating! It totally makes my day and helps others find this recipe.
Easy Pumpkin Snack Cake Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 2 cups white flour
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg optional
Wet ingredients:
- ¾ cup oil
- 1 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 cups pumpkin puree
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 eggs
Optional Icing:
- 1 cup cream cheese, soft 1 block, 250 grams
- 4 tablespoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon (optional for extra flavor)
Instructions
- Start by greasing a rectangular 9x13 pan and preheating the oven to 350°Fahrenheit (175 °C). In a medium bowl place the flour (2 cups), baking soda (2 tsp), sea salt (½ tsp), cinnamon (2 tsp), and nutmeg (1 tsp). Use a whisk to mix thoroughly.
- In another bowl, place the oil (¾ cup), brown sugar (1 cup), pumpkin puree (2 cups), vanilla (2 tsp), and eggs (3). Use the whisk to combine well. Dump the flour mixture into the wet pumpkin mixture, using a scraper fold the mixture together just until mixed, don’t overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spread the batter until it is evenly distributed in the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350°F (27 minutes comes out perfect for me every time), it will be ready when the middle of the cake slightly springs back when you touch it. Let it cool.
- Optional Icing: Place the softened cream cheese, maple syrup (4 tbsp) and cinnamon if using, into a mixer with a whisk attachment. Whisk for 2 minutes, then scrape down the sides of the bowl before whisking another 3-5 minutes until completely smooth. Spread icing on the cooled cake.
- Storing: Cover, and store cake in fridge if using icing. Cover and keep at room temperature if you make the cake without icing. It will stay good for 1 week.
Notes
- This snack cake will last about three days on the counter (keep covered). If you want to make it last longer, place the cake in the fridge after that. If you are frosting this snack cake, store it in the fridge.
- This healthy cake is also freezer-friendly. Cover the tray well with Saran Wrap and tin foil to freeze. To thaw leave the cake leave it on the counter at room temperature for a few hours or overnight. Or wrap individual cake pieces and freeze, grab as needed and eat on the go. Enjoy the pumpkin cake within 3 months of freezing; after that, it won't go bad, it just may not taste as fresh.
Nutrition
Danika Vanderpyl, C.H.N
I create snack recipes with healthy ingredients that are mostly already in your kitchen. I'm certified in Holistic Nutrition and I care about giving my kids real food. Let me share my nutrient-dense easy snacks with you.
Carla @ Foodie Digital says
My whole family loved (and devoured) this snack cake! So moist and flavorful. Like other commenters I also tried with GF flour and it worked beautifully. I think raisins might be a good add-in next time too.
Danika Vanderpyl says
Carla! Thanks for sharing your family input! Glad to know with gluten free flour the cake comes out moist. I love the raisin idea.
Rachel says
Love this recipe, it is so quick and easy to make and also easy to modify to make it gluten free. My family all loves this pumpkin cake, it tastes amazing and is so moist and flavorful!
Danika Vanderpyl says
I love hearing that this works well with gf flour too! Thanks for sharing!
Aileen Davidson says
SO DANG GOOD! Made this yesterday and enjoyed some for work snacks today. I added some other spices like cardamom, turmeric, cloves, and the amount of cinnamon the recipe calls for and it's so tasty. I made a ridiculous amount of pumpkin puree (good winter squash year in my garden this year!) so this will definitely be repeated many times this winter! Perfect texture.
Danika Vanderpyl says
Yeah you did! Yay! Yesss this is a fave and I have also made it on repeat. Extra hi 5 for the real pumpkin !!
Erik says
Such a tasty recipe- I’ve made it twice now!
Danika Vanderpyl says
Great to hear, I'm sure the flour was just the perfect texture for you to enjoy this amazing fall cake.
Jordi says
I used GF flour and made them into muffins! So moist, so good!! Definitely will be my go to pumpkin recipe!
danikavanderpyl says
Thanks for sharing this Jordi! So helpful, glad you enjoyed these!
Danika R says
This was deliciously light and fluffy, and spiced perfectly. I subbed half the white flour for whole wheat and used homemade purée. Mine took a lot longer to bake (close to 40 minutes) but I should have maybe accounted for high elevation.
danikavanderpyl says
Thanks for taking the time to share this Danika, glad you enjoyed it.
Kennedy Schmidt says
Ok this was soooo good. Basically pumpkin pie in loaf form. So moist and subtly sweet but not over the top. IN LOVE.
danikavanderpyl says
Incredible right?! Thanks for sharing Ken.