Well what do we have here? This Butterscotch Pumpkin Bourbon Cake with whipped frosting is not only for grown ups this Halloween, but for grown ups to indulge in anytime of the year! Can you believe its also dairy free?! Well you better believe it guys, I mean cake business.
Its almost Halloween! Who’s excited? I know I am because it’s that time of the year where I get to dress up and eat lots of chocolate. However, after attending a 3-day conference in Ottawa last weekend sponsored by the Food Bloggers of Canada, I have consumed more food and desserts than my tummy can allow. I mean, all the food!!! But also all the bloating and gas and feeling of guilt…. you get where I’m going with this.
I’m trying to be good again to my body. So instead I’m detoxing with a purely plant based diet and working out every other day to get my metabolism back on track. Also, hydrating constantly has been my saving grace. Anyways enough about my food rant. I will say though that all the feasting I did last weekend was so worth it!
I remember making a similar version of this cake last year for a friendsgiving potluck. At the time I made a pumpkin pecan cake with brown butter frosting which I adapted from one of Martha Stewarts recipes. Of course you can assume that it wasn’t the healthiest cake but they sure loved it. This year I decided to create a healthier cake reminiscent of the pumpkin pecan cake while giving it a cool spin. So now ladies and gents, I present to you my dairy free and sugar conscious butterscotch pumpkin bourbon cake.
Okay I have a slight confession. I actually didn’t use pumpkin puree for this recipe because I was all out of pumpkin and the grocery store across from me were all sold out! I was also way to lazy to make my own pumpkin puree from scratch. So I put my thinking cap on and thought “what do I have in my pantry that would be a good substitute for pumpkin puree?” yup, you guessed it, sweet potato! Ding ding ding! All I had to do was dice, boil, and puree in the blender. I also found that using sweet potato adds a natural sweetness to the cake, that way you can even cut the added sugar by ¼. Happy feasting!
- ½ cup coconut oil, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅔ cup cane sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup sweet potato puree, or pumpkin
- 1 ½ teaspoon pure butterscotch extract
- 2-3 tablespoons bourbon (see notes)
- ½ cup warm unsweetened almond milk
- 1⅔ cups light spelt flour
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Frosting:
- 1 stick Earth Balance vegan butter at room temperature
- 1 8 ounce Tofutti vegan cream cheese at room temperature
- ½ cup organic powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoons sweet potato or pumpkin puree
- A dash of pure butterscotch extract
- Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9/2 inch round cake can with coconut oil or spray. Line with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
- In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat sugar and coconut oil together until fluffy, then add eggs and beat until combined. Add sweet potato or pumpkin puree and milk and beat until combined. Slowly add in flour mixture and beat on slow speed until combined and smooth.
- Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and place in the oven. Bake for about 55 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean. Transfer cake to a wire rack to cool for about 20-30 minutes.
- Prepare your frosting. in the bowl of an electric mixer, add frosting ingredients and mix on medium speed until the frosting is smooth and there are no more lumps left. Once the cake has cooled, frost your cake and sprinkle frosting with a dash of cinnamon. Serve and enjoy.
Lovely, lovely AND with Bourbon AND dairy free !
Well done Valerie, Your Aunty F.
Thanks Aunty F!