Vegan Pumpkin Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

It’s that time of the year where we all are craving pumpkin spice everything and this Vegan Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting is sure to be your new favorite Fall dessert. The only thing that can make a slice of warm and fluffy vegan pumpkin cake better? A thick layer of vegan salted caramel frosting! 

Steps to make a vegan pumpkin sheet cake

The best part of making a sheet cake is that you can make it in ONE pan and it only takes 25-30 minutes to bake into the perfect fluffy moist cake.

First things first-  make the cake batter

This eggless & dairy-free pumpkin cake is incredibly moist because of the canned pumpkin and melted coconut oil. If all you have on hand is a vegan butter or another oil such as olive oil, it should be okay to substitute this 1:1 for coconut oil in this recipe.

I like to make this cake by whisking all the wet ingredients together and then sifting the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl before adding them into the wet ingredients. This helps to make sure the spices and baking powder/baking soda are well dispersed!

P.S- If you have any leftover canned pumpkin you can use it to make my Vegan Pumpkin Bourbon Cupcakes or Pumpkin Pie Truffles next!

Bake the cake!

Once the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together, you’ll pour it into a 9*13 baking dish with parchment paper inside.

If you are wondering why I use parchment paper, it is really to make removal of the cake from the baking dish super easy. If you prefer to just cut the slices right out of the pan, this cake also bakes well without any parchment paper (just make sure to grease the pan first or it will stick).

This vegan pumpkin cake recipe is so easy that it can be prepped in about 10 minutes and baked up in 25-30 minutes.

Then, make the frosting

Honestly, the part of this recipe that takes the most time is making the vegan salted caramel frosting. I will tell you- it is WORTH the extra time, but if you want a more simple frosting recipe you can follow the vegan vanilla buttercream recipe I used in these Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes instead (just make sure to double it for this cake!)

 Vegan salted caramel frosting FAQ:

The first step to making the perfect salted caramel frosting is making salted caramel.

I personally like to make my salted caramel the day before to spread out my time in the kitchen and to give it more time to set and thicken in the fridge.  After the caramel sets, it’s just a matter of whipping it with the vegan butter, vegan shortening, and powdered sugar to form a fluffy caramel frosting.

How Long Does the Caramel Take to Make?

After reaching a boil, this vegan salted caramel needs about 35-40 minutes to simmer and thicken to the right consistency and caramel flavor. Then it needs at least 1 hour to “set” in the fridge.  You don’t want to overcook your caramel sauce so make sure to watch it closely and stir when needed towards the end of the cooking time.

How is caramel made?

There are many ways to make caramel including the wet method (sugar and water) or dry method (cooking the sugar until it turns into a liquid). This recipe is slightly different than those traditional methods because it is made with coconut milk. The caramel needs more cooking time, however, I find it’s a little more forgiving and develops a deeper caramel flavor because of that extra time!

Should I stir the caramel while cooking?

Honestly, not really. Stirring the caramel too much will splash sugar onto the sides of the pot and lead to sugar crystals forming. This will make the caramel gritty and that would be unideal. If any sugar does stick to the sides, use a pastry brush coated in water to brush it back into the pot. I really only stir the caramel once or twice until the last 5 minutes or so to make sure it doesn’t overcook or burn.

How long does salted caramel keep?

This vegan salted caramel will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks in a closed container. It will thicken quite a bit, so you may need to warm it up to get that drippy caramel consistency back. This recipe includes extra caramel to drizzle on top of the cake, so there will be some leftovers after making the frosting. No judgments if you eat it by the spoonful!

ALWAYS Add Extra Salted Caramel!

After that, all you have to do is add 6-8 Tbsp of the vegan salted caramel to the frosting to get that delicious caramel flavor. The most important step in making this Vegan Pumpkin Cake? Save some salted caramel to drizzle on top! Not only does it make this cake look gorgeous, but it tastes great too.

I can’t wait for you all to make this moist and delicious Vegan Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting! Let’s be honest, this cake will be front and center at our Vegan Thanksgiving celebration this year. While I don’t like to pick favorites on my blog, I am going to break my own rules and say this is my favorite vegan pumpkin dessert recipe I have made this Fall season. Enjoy!

-TSG

If you are looking for other vegan cake & cupcake recipes on SGTO, Check out these Fan Favorites:

Orange Blossom Fig Olive Oil Cake

Funfetti Layer Cake

Vegan Matcha Cupcakes

Blood Orange Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

Grapefruit Olive Oil Cake

Earl Grey Cupcakes with Lemon Blueberry Frosting

Continue to Content

Vegan Pumpkin Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

Yield: 14-16 slices

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

A moist delicious vegan pumpkin cake topped with salted caramel frosting and extra vegan salted caramel on top.

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Ingredients

Vegan Pumpkin Cake:

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 3 flax eggs (3 Tbsp ground flax with 9 Tbsp water, left to sit for 5 minutes)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup nut milk
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste/extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda

Vegan Salted Caramel Frosting:

• 1 cup vegan butter
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1/2-3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 6-8 Tbsp cold salted caramel (plus 1/4-1/2 cup more to top the cake)

Vegan Salted Caramel:

• 13.5 oz can full-fat coconut milk
• 1 cup turbinado sugar (coconut sugar also works)
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste/extract
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. First make the Vegan Salted Caramel. Add the coconut milk, sugar, and vanilla bean paste to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a summer and cook for 35-40 minutes until the caramel is amber in color and thicker. Remove the caramel from the heat and place in a closed container in the fridge to "set" for at least one hour.
2. While the caramel is in the fridge, make the vegan pumpkin cake. Preheat the oven to 350F and line a 9*13 inch pan with parchment paper to start.
3. Next, add the pumpkin puree, flax eggs, sugar, brown sugar, nut milk, melted coconut oil, and vanilla to a large bowl and whisking together.
4. In a separate bowl, sift together the all purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Once sifted, gradually add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl of wet ingredients and whisk together until a smooth batter forms.
5. Pour the batter to the 9*13 inch pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cake is cooked through.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool. While the cake is cooling, make the salted caramel frosting.
7. Add the vegan butter and shortening to a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until cream.. Next, slowly add in the powdered sugar and 6-8 Tbsp of salted caramel and continue to mix together until a smooth frosting forms.
8. Once the cake has completed cooled, top with the vegan salted caramel frosting. As a final step, drizzle 1/4-1/2 cup of additional salted caramel on top. Enjoy!

Notes

I prefer to make the vegan salted caramel the day before I cook the cake and make the frosting, but all of it can be made on the same day

Cake can be stored in a closed container in the freezer up to 1 month

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 14 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 428Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 54mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 2gSugar: 26gProtein: 4g

ShortGirlTallOrder occasionally offers nutritional information for recipes contained on this site. This information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although shortgirltallorder.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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