This butternut squash cake is moist, fluffy and filled with warm spice. It’s also gluten-free, dairy free and a super easy recipe. A cake recipe with vegetables is a perfect way to add something special to a cake.
Butternut Squash Puree
This cake is super easy if you can find canned butternut squash puree. Trader Joe’s (seasonally) and Whole Foods Market (year round) carry it. You can buy it online too at Vitacost.com – a great resource for natural and gluten-free products.
If you are feeling overly motivated, you can make your own butternut squash puree. Steaming works best to retain the moisture in the squash. Roasting will dry it too much. Here’s how to do it:
Use a y-shaped peeler Peel strips from top to bottom 
Remove a few layers to
reveal bright orange
- Peel the squash using a y-shaped vegetable peeler. Remove a few layers to reveal the bright orange flesh.
- Trim the stem and the bottom.
- Cut in half from top to bottom and scoop out the seeds.
- Cut into 1″ cubes.
- Cook in a steamer for 15 minutes or until the squash is tender.
- Puree in the food processor or with an immersion blender until smooth. Cool before using.
Cake Ingredients
I tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour. Several other gluten-free flours for baking will work. Cup4Cup, which contains milk powder (best price usually at Target) and Pamela’s Artisan Flour Blend are similar to King Arthur’s and will work well. If you use a flour blend that does not contain xanthan gum, guar gum or inulin (binders) add 3/4 tsp xanthan gum to the recipe.
Dried maple sugar is a wonderful flavor along with the squash and cinnamon. If you don’t have it, just replace it with 1/4 c granulated sugar.
The rest of the ingredients are eggs, baking powder, oil, vanilla and salt – just the basics.
Cake Frosting
This cake is perfect frosted with maple buttercream frosting (recipe in the card below). For something new and different and to keep the vegetable theme going, try my creamy sweet potato frosting without powdered sugar (no cane sugar at all). Or for traditional frostings try my pipeable cream cheese frosting or vanilla buttercream frosting.
I also topped this cake with a caramel drizzle and chopped pecans. Another topping to add a crunchy, spicy kick is my candied pecans which cook in a pan in just five minutes.
More Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Cake Recipes
Do you love cinnamon and pumpkin spice? Try my gluten-free, dairy-free ginger cupcakes, gluten-free dairy-free carrot cake cupcakes that will knock your socks off, gluten-free cinnamon crumb cake, and my gluten-free dairy-free pumpkin bread recipe!
Butternut Squash Cake
This butternut squash cake is moist, fluffy and filled with warm spices. It's also gluten-free, dairy free and a super easy recipe.
Ingredients
Butternut Squash Cake
- 2 1/2 c gluten-free flour blend*
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 c sugar
- 1/4 c maple sugar (optional, replace with 1/4 c sugar if not using)
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/2 c butternut squash puree (canned or fresh, steamed)
- 1 c oil (avocado, sunflower, canola etc)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or bean paste
Maple Buttercream Frostin
- 3 sticks butter, room temperature
- 2 1/2 c powdered sugar
- 6 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1/8 tsp salt
Instructions
Make the cake
If making your own butternut squash puree, see above for instructions on steaming. Canned butternut squash is a great option and can be found online and at Trader Joe's.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two 8 or 9 inch cakepans with parchment (optional) and grease with oil spray.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together in a medium sized mixing bowl
- Beat the maple sugar, sugar, eggs, oil, squash puree and vanilla together in a large bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir with a whisk until smooth. Do not beat or over mix.
- Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans.
- Bake 35-38 minutes for 8" pans or 28-32 minutes for 9" pans or until the top is set and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Maple Buttercream Frosting
This recipe makes enough to generously frost between the layers and on top and very lightly on the sides (as pictured)
- Beat the butter with an electric mixer for 1 minute. Add half of the powdered sugar and salt and mix on low until the sugar is incorporated.
- Add the remaining sugar and beat on low until incorporated.
- Add the maple syrup and beat until smooth - around 10 seconds. Beating too long will create air bubbles.
Notes
*This recipe was tested with King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour (follow the link for an excellent price). Cupc4Cup and Pamela's All Purpose Artisan Blend are similar and will work too,
*If you use a flour blend without xanthan gum, inulin or guar gum, add 1 tsp xanthan gum to the dry ingredients.
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