Pumpkin Spice Olive Oil Cake with Brown Butter Frosting

Don’t come at me, but I think most pumpkin pies are bland... Thats the reason half of us drown it in a pile of whipped cream and I can almost guarantee a slice of pie has never gotten this reaction 

Now I’m not anti pie, or even anti pumpkin pie for that matter. The Milk Bar’s Hilly’s Pumpkin Pie had me in a chokehold in 2022 until I realized it took 2 business days to make and has over 650g of sugar.. which is gross. 

So instead of a bland or 20 step pie, I’m proposing you make this Pumpkin Spice Olive Oil Cake with Brown butter frosting instead. The sponge is gluten, dairy, and refined sugar free — but not in the this tastes healthy way. Your uncle tim who swears only real sugar and crisco tastes good will go back for seconds. 

Its indulgent without being heavy. Its the kind of dessert people remember, not the ones they politely pretend to enjoy. Save this for Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, Christmas… honestly any time you want a pumpkin dessert that people actually get excited about!!

For the Cake:

Wet: 

• ½ cup olive oil

• 1 cup pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)

• ½ cup pure maple syrup

• ¼ cup coconut sugar

• 3 large eggs

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Dry: 

• 1 ½ cups almond flour

• 1 cup oat flour

• 1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• ½ tsp sea salt
  

1. Preheat oven to 350°F, grease and line a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper

2. Whisk your wet ingredients until smooth & glassy 

3. Whisk you dry ingredients in a separate bowl 

4. Fold your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients until no crumbs remain, don’t overmix

5. Transfer to your prepared pan and smooth the top

6. Bake 45–55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden.

7. Cool completely before frosting or slicing.

Optional: Brown Butter Frosting

You can totally skip this if you want to keep it dairy free / refined sugar free!! 

• 1 stick unsalted butter (to be browned) 

• ¾ - 1 cup powdered sugar (or monk fruit sweetener) 

• 1–2 tbsp milk or cream

• Pinch of sea salt (skip if you have salted butter) 

• ½ tsp vanilla paste 

1. Brown your butter and then let it cool for at least 20 minutes

2. Whip your butter in a stand mixer for 2 minutes. Slowly add in your powdered sugar (add it while mixing to prevent clumps, I messed this up on my first round!). Add in your vanilla and milk and whip for another 3 minutes

3. Frost the top layer of the cooled cake, cut and enjoy!! 

Notes

• If your frosting becomes clumpy, likely because you added in the powdered sugar too quickly, you can use a mesh strainer to get out any clumps 

• If you want extra depth, add 1–2 tsp orange zest — it brightens the pumpkin beautifully

• Keeps for 3–4 days at room temp (covered) or up to a week in the fridge :)