I count September 1st as the start of fall. It is my favorite season and I like to savor it as long as possible. This vegan pumpkin gooey butter cake is like fall in your mouth! The bottom layer is a thick cake batter that turns into an almost cookie cake like crust. The top is a super gooey pumpkin situation, and my gosh is it good! The entire thing is only 10 ingredients. It takes no time to whip up and is would be incredibly hard to mess up. I had like, everyone I know try this gooey butter cake and literally every single person texted me to tell me how amazing it was. It will feed a crowd and since it is easy to cut into squares and serve, this is a great cake to bring to a party!
What You Need For All That Gooey Goodness:
- Vegan Cake Mix: The base of the recipe starts with cake mix and there are some good brands you can get. A lot of Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker cake mixes are accidentally vegan and then there are some certified vegan cake mixes if you prefer that.
- Vegan Butter: I used Earth Balance.
- Canned Pumpkin Puree: This goes in the bottom and top layer.
- Cinnamon and Nutmeg: For that ultra fall flavor.
- Vegan Cream Cheese: Whatever your favorite brand is. I like Trader Joe’s, Miyoko’s Kitchen, Violife and Kite Hill.
- Vanilla: Because everything is better with a little vanilla.
- Corn Starch: To thicken the gooey layer a bit.
- Powdered Sugar: To sweeten up the gooey layer and make it thick.
This vegan pumpkin gooey butter cake is so good and so easy, you may find yourself making it constantly all season long. It is perfect for a Halloween party and even for Thanksgiving. I am not a huge fan of pumpkin pie, and will definitely be switching up my Thanksgiving dessert this year and wowing everyone with the insane cake!
Why Should You Make This Cake?
- It is the easiest cake of all time.
- It is a fall essential.
- It is firm and almost crunchy on the bottom, gooey and decadent on top.
- Pumpkin everything!
- It is probably the most delicious thing ever!
If you love pumpkin desserts, try my Vegan Pumpkin Mousse Pie and my Vegan Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cheesecake!
Vegan Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
Ingredients
For the Bottom
- 1 Box(15oz) Vegan vanilla or white box cake mix, I used Duncan Hines*
- 6 Tablespoons Vegan butter, I used Earth Balance, melted
- 1/4 Cup Canned pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
For the Top
- 8 Ounces Vegan cream cheese, I used Kite Hill
- 1/2 Cup Vegan butter, melted
- 1/2 Cup Pumpkin puree
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
- Pinch of Salt
- 3 Tablespoon Corn starch
- 3 1/2 Cups Vegan powdered sugar + more for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees(F).
- In a large mixing bowl, add the cake mix. Then pour in the melted butter, pumpkin and cinnamon. Stir to fully combine. It will be pretty thick, almost more like cookie dough.
- Line a 11x7 inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Then press the batter evenly into the baking dish and set aside.
- Now, make the topping. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, add the vegan cream cheese. Using a hand mixer or the paddle attachment for the stand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth.
- Add the melted butter and continue to beat together until fully combined, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Then add the pumpkin and vanilla. Continue to mix together until combined.
- Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and corn starch. Mix together.
- Next, add the powdered sugar a little at a time, until completely incorporated. Scrape down the sides and make sure everything is fully combined.
- It will be very liquidy, so just pour it on top of the cake batter already in the pan. Smooth out evenly.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes the sides of the top should look like they are getting a little firm, but the center will still look very jiggly and almost liquidy. Don't worry, it will firm as it chills.
- Cool completely, then put in the fridge for at least 6-8 hours, but overnight is better. Keep chilled until ready to serve. Cut into squares and serve with vegan whipped cream or extra powdered sugar.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe is delicious and super easy!!
This is absolutely delicious!!
It’s too delicious!!
THIS WAS AMAZING!!! I found Kite Hill Pumpkin Cream Cheese so I used that and then just did 1.5 cups of powdered sugar since the cream cheese was already sweetened.
Awesome dessert! Thank you, Lauren!
Absolutely loved this. Your recipes are the best!
Excellent! Way too much for just the two of us to eat. How long will it keep? Can it be frozen?
I made this cake over the weekend for a family pumpkin carving afternoon and it was a huge hit! My husband and I were the only vegans there but everyone loved it. It’s very easy to make and is very rich.