This delicious recipe for butternut squash cake is a great way to use up an autumn bumper crop of squash or pumpkin. Easily adapted to be vegan.
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If you can make a carrot cake then why not a cake made with butternut squash? Squash is naturally sweet and it works perfectly in a cake.
This butternut squash cake is a lovely autumn bake. Perfect to eat with a cup of tea after a walk in the woods.
Can you use pumpkin instead of butternut squash?
Yes, you can also use pumpkin to make this cake.
You can also use tinned pumpkin purée,* which is becoming increasingly easy to find here in the UK.
If you would like to make your own pumpkin puree check out this recipe by Charlotte's Lively Kitchen.
Do you have to use a bundt tin?
Absolutely not. I use a bundt tin because I have one and it makes the cake really pretty. I have a silicone bundt tin*, which is great because the cake never sticks to the inside.
However, if you don't have one this cake works perfectly in a 20cm round tin*.
More pumpkin or butternut squash bakes
You can use either pumpkin or butternut squash puree to make any of these recipes.
- Spiced pumpkin loaf
- Healthy pumpkin muffins with sweet potato frosting
- Baked pumpkin doughnuts
- Pumpkin pie bars
- Spiced pumpkin madeleines
Or you might like this spiced pear and blueberry semolina cake.
Pin butternut squash cake for later
If you like these you might also like my vegan vanilla fairy cakes.
How to make butternut squash cake
If you have made this recipe I would love it if you’d leave a comment and rating below. Thank you!
Butternut squash cake
Ingredients
- Half a medium-sized butternut squash or a 400g tin of pumpkin puree chopped into 2cm cubes
- 100 g caster sugar
- 100 g unsalted butter or dairy free spread
- 100 g ground almonds
- 100 g plain flour
- 2 large eggs or 2 flax eggs* beaten
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
To decorate
- 200 g icing sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1-2 tbsp cold water
- handful pecan nuts broken into pieces
Instructions
- Boil or steam the butternut squash until soft, then mash or purée until soft. Set aside and allow to cool.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C(fan)/200°C/gas mark 6. Grease and baseline a 20cm cake tin or a bundt tin.
- Cream together the 100g caster sugar and 100g butter or dairy free spread with a wooden spoon or an electric beater. Add 2 beaten eggs or flax eggs*, along with a spoonful of the ground almonds, 1 teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda. Beat well.
- Then add the squash or a 400g tin of pumpkin puree and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Stir well. Mix in the rest of the almonds (up to 100g) and 100g plain flour. If the mixture feels too thick add a little of the water you used for steaming the squash or a tablespoon milk.
- Put the cake mixture into a tin and bake for 45 minutes until a skewer or knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes then carefully turn out onto a wire rack. This cake is delicious warm but if you're adding icing leave it to cool first.
To decorate
- Sift 200g icing sugar and ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon together into a mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon cold water and stir. Gradually add the rest of the water until you have the right consistency - you are looking to drizzle it over the cake.
- Drizzle the icing over the cake and add crumbled pecan nuts if liked. Allow to set then serve.
Notes
Did you know that I also have a vegan food blog called Cook Veggielicious?
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?
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Alison
Delicious! Not too sweet, wonderful texture. It went in one sitting, none left for the next day!
I think I might make it with cinnamon into the cake mix with orange zest, and use orange juice in the icing next time....
Mandy Mazliah
So glad you enjoyed it - and your additions sound delicious
Sarah Jones
Mandy we made this tonight and it was delicious! I swapped the flour to Doves gluten free blend & I’m not sure if that’s why but it didn’t want to come out of my new silicone Bundt tin at all - first the bottom 2/3s came out & then we scraped out the top ribs & sort of draped them over the rest of it. But it didn’t matter, it was just for us and tasted great. My icing came out brown too from the cinnamon. Next time I might add cinnamon to the batter instead & make the icing plain. And I might try adding 20g or so of ground flax as well as eggs with 80g gluten free flour in the hopes it would hold together better. Gluten free is always a series of experiments!
I would never have thought of butternut squash in a cake and will definitely make it again. Great recipe, thank you!
Mandy Mazliah
Hi Sarah, Glad you enjoyed the cake although it sounds like it was a bit of mission! Gluten free flour can behave differently to wheat flour - might be worth trying some xanthum gum. Did you grease the bundt tin? I have heard that metal bundt tins are really tricky but I've always found my silicone one very easy to work with.