This vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake turns your favorite fall drink into a cozy dessert! The fluffy and perfectly spiced cake is layered with espresso buttercream frosting to give you the cinnamon, pumpkin, vanilla, and coffee flavors you crave in the fall.
It’s fall, y’all! Celebrate with more vegan pumpkin desserts, like Vegan Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Coffee Cake, and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.
I don’t know about you, but I love pumpkin everything as soon as the weather gets cooler and the leaves change color. The sooner I can have a pumpkin spice latte in my hand, the better!
If you love this classic fall beverage as much as I do, then you’ll surely fall for this Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake, too. Just like a PSL, the soft and fluffy cake is spiced with cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice and infused with canned pumpkin puree. The creamy espresso buttercream frosting is the perfect finishing touch and makes this pumpkin dessert taste like it came from your favorite coffee shop.
Made without dairy or eggs and easy to make gluten-free, vegan fall desserts don’t get much better than this vegan pumpkin spice latte cake!
Why you’ll love this pumpkin spice latte cake
- The goodness of a PSL in cake form – Skip the line at Starbucks and indulge in a slice of this PSL cake instead. It has everything you love about the classic drink, from the pumpkin flavor to the caffeine boost from the espresso.
- Cozy, perfectly spiced, and sweet – Just like my frosted Vegan Pumpkin Cookies and Vegan Pumpkin Cupcakes, this sweet, fluffy, and moist cake is flavored with the goodness of pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice.
- Slathered in espresso buttercream frosting – It’s not a pumpkin latte without a shot of espresso. To make sure you don’t miss out, I infused my Vegan Buttercream Frosting with espresso for a touch of caffeine and a subtle coffee flavor.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can use this cake recipe to make vegan pumpkin spice latte cupcakes if you’d like. Pour the batter into a lined standard muffin tin and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Yes! Simply use a quality gluten-free flour mix, like Better Batter, instead of all-purpose flour.
Not if you don’t want to. Omit the espresso powder/brewed espresso from the buttercream or replace it with an equal amount of brewed decaf coffee if you’d rather skip the caffeine. Or replace the espresso powder with instant coffee or strong brewed coffee instead.
The frosted cake will keep for up to 5 days at room temperature or even longer in the fridge. Keep it in an airtight container or in a cake carrier to prevent it from drying out.
The baked and unfrosted cake layers freeze well, too. Wrap each layer in a layer of plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Let the cake thaw in the fridge overnight before decorating and serving.
Yes, you can make the frosting up to 2 days ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge until it’s time to decorate the cake. When ready to use, set the frosting on the kitchen counter to bring it to room temperature and mix well before decorating.
Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake Layers
- 15 ounce can pumpkin puree
- 1 cup canola oil
- 1 cup soy milk or oat, almond, coconut
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
Espresso Buttercream
- 1 cup vegan butter softened to room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1-2 teaspoons espresso powder or 1-2 tablespoons espresso, cooled
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons soy milk or other milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease two 8-inch round cake pans. Place a round of parchment paper on the bottom for easy removal.
- In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin puree, oil, milk, sugars and vanilla until smooth and well combined.
- Now add the flour on top of the wet ingredients. Sprinkle the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice on top of the flour and whisk or stir until just combined.
- Pour evenly into the prepared pans and bake for 35-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then carefully invert on to a cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting. If desired, slice the dome off each cake layer before frosting.
- Make the frosting – In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment (or using a handheld mixer), beat the butter until smooth. Now add the powdered sugar gradually, until it's mixed in. Add the espresso powder, vanilla and 2-3 tablespoons plant milk, as needed. Beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, smooth and well combined.
- Once the cake layers are completely cooled, frost, serve and enjoy!
Notes
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You can use another oil, such as avocado or even melted coconut oil.
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You can use a different milk, like oat, almond, coconut, etc.
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For gluten free, use a gluten free quality mix.
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If your frosting is too runny, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add more milk. Make sure your butter is NOT melted when you begin, or your frosting will be too runny.
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If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice mix, you can substitute 1 more teaspoon cinnamon (2 total), 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg and 1/8 teaspoon cloves in the cake.
Delicious. Made this last year but with just a traditional vanilla icing. Tonight I decided to try the espresso frosting which went to a whole new level! Just made all the flavors blend together.
Hi Cynthia. How awesome that you tried the espresso frosting, and that you loved it! Thank you for sharing your recipe experience and fantastic review! Happy cooking!
Heeeelp! I’ve attempted this twice and I just can’t seem to get it to rise properly and bake all the way through. It looks good, skewer comes out clean and it springs back to the touch but when I get it on the cooling rack it sinks and I find it’s not baked in the middle. What am I doing wrong? I’ve nailed your chocolate cake but I cannot get this one right!
Sorry you’re having trouble with this cake! Are you making any substitutions at all in the ingredients? Using the same cake pans? If it’s truly raw in the middle, then you probably are not baking it for long enough. What is your pumpkin puree like? Is it thick or really watery? Some of the cheaper brands tend to be really watery which could alter the recipe a bit.
Awesome recipe Nora! If we were to use store bought butter, which brands are recommended?
I use several brands depending on where I shop – Earth Balance sticks, Country Crock, Miyoko’s, Trader Joe’s brand and probably more. They all work well, but I think Earth Balance is still my favorite if I can find it.
Can you make this in a 9×13 pan instead of two round pans?
Yes, you can! It will need longer in the oven, probably more like 45 minutes.
This recipe turned out so amazing! My husband and kids gobbled it up, and I used it in a church cake walk–everyone loved it!
All of your dessert recipes are easy to follow and make, and they turn out so delicious! Thank you for always including instructions that make sense and show what to expect. You’re the best, Nora! I send your recipes to everyone 🙂
You are welcome, Kayla! I really appreciate you and your feedback, letting me know that my instructions are well written, and that you are really enjoying my recipes! Thank you for taking time to share your positive recipe experience! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I made this cake trading the 1 cup oil for 1/2 cup oil and 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce. I used cold coffee instead of espresso. Wow! Just! Wow! The cake turned out super moist, rose as normal, and had all around silky texture. The icing had just enough coffee taste to it — not overpowering. I’ve already shared with two friends, who have since made and raved over this cake. Thank you, Nora.
You are welcome, Damita! I loved reading about your recipe experience, and your cake sounds delicious! Thank you for taking time to share your stellar review and feedback! Wishing you and your friends lots of happy cooking!