An easy Keto Pumpkin Spice Cake with cream cheese frosting for when you want low carb pumpkin cake but aren’t worried about making it fancy!
If you aren’t interested in the birth story of this keto pumpkin spice cake, feel free to jump to recipe and please don’t DM me. 😂
(Also be sure to watch the keto pumpkin cake recipe video below if you want to see the steps before you start!)
Sheet cakes were popular when I was growing up – especially if you were bringing dessert to a gathering. It’s a no muss, no fuss way to have cake and frosting, and you don’t have the anxiety of it breaking while getting out of the pan, or the frosting getting smushed on your way over.
You just slap that stuff on with a butter knife, cover it with foil (maybe some toothpicks to hold the foil up) and go.
It was awesome – and I knew this keto pumpkin sheet cake would be the low carb version we all needed…
But I haven’t made a sheet cake in years – mostly because there is so much pressure when blogging to make everything look pretty. In fact it’s gotten a little over the top with bloggers one-upping each other to see who can make the most extreme, or the most beautiful desserts.
It’s a lot of pressure guys!
While it’s true that we all love looking at those masterpieces on Pinterest, what we all really need at home is to get keto pumpkin cake and frosting into our face (or family, or friends faces) as quickly and easily as possible.
Who’s with me? I know you are.
So I put aside my own blogger tendencies to try and make this keto pumpkin cake gorgeous, and focused on flavor and texture instead.
Friends this Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake is the bomb.
I’m not even kidding. I’m not going to start raving about how it’s the BEST keto pumpkin cake out there because I think that’s an annoying trend that bloggers need to stop embracing, but I can tell you that it’s straight up amazing.
I posted this Keto Cream Cheese Frosting recipe the other day, and it’s so creamy and delicious that it perfectly complements the homey and comforting flavor of the pumpkin and spices in this low carb pumpkin cake.
I’m not going to lie, I started piping rosettes on this Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake to make it more interesting, but got halfway through and forced myself to spread it all out with a knife.
Because that’s what you do to a pumpkin sheet cake – no need to put lipstick on this pig, it really doesn’t need it. (Though if you made this as a layer cake and then piped rosettes it would be gorgeous.)
I did throw some chopped pecans on there (not just for looks, Ok?) because I love the texture, but you certainly don’t have to. Or if you don’t have pecans, walnuts would also work.
Whether you make it for home or to take to a gathering, this Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake will get you through pumpkin season without wrecking your low carb diet – and you won’t even miss all those other pumpkin desserts on the table.
Pinky promise.
Print
Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake – Low Carb
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
Description
This Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting will get you through pumpkin season without blowing your low carb diet! Â Gluten free and Atkins friendly.
Ingredients
For the Keto Pumpkin Spice Sheet Cake:
- 1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) butter, melted
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (no sugar added)
- 1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
- 2 cups superfine blanched almond flour**
- 1/2 cup coconut flour**
- 2/3 cup granulated erythritol sweetener**
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum**
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
To frost the cake:
- 1 batch Keto Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 tablespoons chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a 9 by 13 sheet pan with butter or coconut oil.
- Place the melted butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and pumpkin in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Combine the almond flour, coconut flour, sweetener, xanthan gum, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves in a large bowl and whisk together until blended.
- Pour the blended wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, using a rubber spatula to scrape it all out of the blender.
- Stir until the batter is mostly smooth.
- Transfer the batter to the sheet pan and spread out evenly.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and cool for at least one hour before frosting.
- Spread the cream cheese frosting evenly over the cake and sprinkle with nuts if using.
- Cut and serve.
- Store any leftover cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
**For more information on specific products I use and recommend for best results in my recipes check out the IBIH Pantry Page!
Nutrition info for 1/12th of the cake without frosting is: 264 calories, 23g fat, 4.5g net carbs, 7g protein
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Keto Desserts
- Method: Baking
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/12th cake w/ frosting
- Calories: 397
- Fat: 37g
- Carbohydrates: 5g net
- Protein: 9g
Looking for more Keto Pumpkin Dessert Recipes? Check out this great collection of the 125 Best Low Carb and Keto Pumpkin Recipes that I gathered from some of the best bloggers out there!
Sandra Marlow says
Great pumpkin flavor! My only problem is it’s a sheet cake, and no idea what I was thinking when I made it last year at Thanksgiving – I’m the only low-carb/keto person in the house. LOL so you guessed it, there was way too much for just me to eat! Lesson learned, that I enjoyed every bite I took.
★★★★
Shona says
I live in Australia and we don’t have canned pumpkin puree available as readily as in the US (seems like that is what you get in the US). Can you use cooked fresh pumpkin? If not, any suggestions on what could be used? Thanks
Mike says
Cooked fresh pureed works fine, I made it once using that. Puree it down til as smooth as possible
Elaine says
I prefer using fresh pumpkin purée for my pies. I’m sure you can use that for this cake recipe just make sure you drain the purée really well, because it won’t be as dry as the canned pumpkin. Maybe cut back a bit on the liquid, too, in this recipe.
Lori Olchowecki says
Absolutely excellent. No almond flour taste. Thank you so much for another wonderful recipe.
★★★★★
Barbara Keeler says
What size sheet pan are you using?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks for sharing your dairy free hacks Jill!
Jennifer says
My husband is dairy intolerant. Would butter flavored coconut oil work in place of the butter?
Mellissa Sevigny says
I don’t see why not!
Mary Jane says
This was amazing… I didn’t have much cream cheese to make icing so got creative with Swerve powdered, pumpkin purée , Pumpkin spice, sugar free vanilla pudding mix and whipping cream. It seemed to absorb into the cake which made it super moist. I love pumpkin everything so this awesome recipe is going to be a regular in our dessert rotation. Hopefully I can recreate the modified pumpkin spice icing
★★★★★
Deb says
Home Run! This one is a winner. Not only is it yummy, it is so easy and so foolproof. So many low carb pastries require multiple steps and fussy techniquest to approximate the full carb original. Not this one. The only hard part making it was getting every drop of wet ingredient mixture our of my bullet style blender. Would dare anyone to tell it was low carb and not a traditional cake. Such a great texture..
We are a family of only two so I cut the recipe in half. Being a math geek, I calculated what pan size would have the same surface area as half of a sheet pan….answer was an 8 inch round cake pan, in case anyone else wants to do this. The baking time was exactly the same….turned out great.
I made this to honor a request for a pumpkin spice cake made by my adult son for his birthday. He loved it. The only change I might make in the future is to make a 3/4 recipe and still use the 8 inch cake pan to get a “birthday cake” height versus the more casual sheet pan height (baking time ajusted of course).
★★★★★
Grandma T says
This is a wonderful cake! I added walnuts and Lily’s chocolate chips to the batter but otherwise followed the exact recipe. It was a huge hit with my husband too!
★★★★★
Julia says
This was incredible. Do you think it would do as well in a bundt pan?
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
I don’t see why not!
Kara says
Have you tried it without the xanthan gum? I’m trying to avoid a trip to the store (and $12) for 1/2 tsp :) But I’ll do it if it will throw off the recipe without it!
Mellissa Sevigny says
It may be a tad more crumbly without it, but it will still turn out!
Christine says
My son is a T1D so I’m always looking for snacks that he can have anytime. This cake is awesome. I don’t frost it, I just cut into pieces and wrap them individually. I pop some into the fridge and the rest into the freezer. He thinks this stuff is like the real thing. Thanks so much!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
What a great compliment Christine – I won’t tell him it’s good for him if you don’t! ?
Katie says
Could I make this in a non-sheet pan, like a bundt pan?
Mary Lester says
Loved this recipe it was delicious! How do I make the cake a tad bit sweeter? Add more granular or substitute powdered swerve? Thanks! And by the way I love your cookbook!!!
Linda says
Absolutely divine!
★★★★★
Loyce Clark says
First let me say that I do love your recipes! While making this one, I ran out of almond flour. I substituted 1/2 cup pecan flour to make up for the missing almond flour. OMG! I served it for my family a 2 non Keto folks. Everyone LOVED it. My only regret is that there were no leftovers!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
That sounds amazing – the pecan flour’s subtle sweetness must have worked so nicely with the maple flavoring too! Glad it was a hit and can’t wait to try it with some added pecan flour myself!
Nicole says
i’m late to this party, but can someone tell me if this turned out w/ regular old almond flour and not SUPAHFINE??
Mellissa Sevigny says
It will be dense and wet – not like real cake.
Lili says
Absolutely delicious! I baked this over the weekend and had family over who are not keto and they loved it! a bad side effect is that I didn’t have any leftovers but I will definitely make this again.
If anyone is wondering, I had to leave out the xantham gum because I didn’t had any at home and it turned out great.
★★★★★
Stacy says
Really great! Thank you!
★★★★★
elizabeth says
FANTASTIC!!! Not like some cakes that you’re kinda like “Ehhhh, it will satisfy my sweet tooth”. This is 100% perfect. It tastes like REAL cake and icing. I liked it even better after it sat overnight in the refridgerator. THANK YOU!!!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Yay! Best feedback ever! ?
Andrea says
Absolutely delicious!!!!! Better than I could imagine, and so easy to make!!!! Thanks for the great recipe!
★★★★★
Rhonda says
LOVE!!! This will be my go-to cake for all occasions, especially the holidays. Can tell no difference from the “real” thing, except this is better!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks so much Rhonda! I’m thrilled that you enjoyed it as much as we did!
Bev says
Best keto cake ever! I’ve made it twice this month! I did double the spices because- why not? The texture is perfect and the frosting is simple but amazing! I did use a little heavy cream to thin the frosting slightly. Thank you for the great fall treat!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
So happy it’s a hit Bev! I haven’t made it again yet this year but your comments made me want to go straight to the kitchen and make it ASAP!
Kelli says
How many cupcakes would this make
Lisa says
Could you use real pumpkin in this recipe?
Christal says
SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!!!!!! This is the absolute BEST Keto dessert I have made that has EVER been just as good as the real deal stuff. My kiddo even loves it. BEST BEST BEST ever.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Woohoo! When it passes the kid test I know it good! Thanks Christal!
Danielle M says
So easy and delicious. I am not Keto, but Paleo so subbed out the cream cheese for the Kite Hill almond cream cheese. There’s no difference. I also used coconut palm (and a little more of it) in the cake and monk fruit in the icing to keep it light in color. Amazing and so quick to make also. A hit!!!
★★★★★
Rachel says
Really good. I ran out of baking powder so I used baking soda/cream of tartar which worked just fine. I did add a little lemon juice to help give enough acid for the soda to work.
★★★★★
Sarah says
Can I sub flax meal or something else for the xanthum gum? I’ve read flax, psyllium husks, or chia seeds could sub for xanthum? This sounds like a wonderful recipe but was hoping to use something other than xanthum gum to avoid possible GI distress
Alicia says
This cake is way too bomb for me to not comment. It was so moist. The other posters weren’t kidding. I’m a cheesecake fiend..but baybee this recipe trumps your cheese cake.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Alicia!
Trish says
hubbie loved this. wish I could try, but i’m allergic to almonds :(
★★★★★
terri says
I was craving cake and creamy frosting, and this recipe was amazing! Soft, moist, and decadent. The frosting was just gorgeous, too! I’ve missed cake so much, thank you!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I just finished the last of it in the freezer and it was still amazing! So glad you liked it too!!!
Inna says
Hi! When you freeze do you freeze it with the frosting applied? Or without? And also do you freeze uncovered and then pack in ziplocks? (Kind of new to freezing food) thank you!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I froze it frosted and in big squares in a flat plastic container!
lauren r docherty says
I was just wondering if the batter is supposed to be extremely thick? I tripe checked my steps and I didn’t miss anything but it cake out really thick. It’s in the oven now, I added more pumpkin..If it doesn’t turn out I’m going to try again but was wondering what I may have done wrong. Would old flout cause that? I love your blog and all your recipes. Thank you for all you do for us!
Carol Baker-Frett says
Made this for non keto friends at an all girls get together and got many compliments . So moist! Will be a go to for sure.
Kati says
OMG! I made this for Thanksgiving! My mother (who hates keto/low carb food most of the time) ate 3 pieces before she noticed I was eating it (I’m celiac and keto, so if I”m eating it, it’s not “normal”) When I told her there was no sugar, grain or many carbs she spent 30 minutes trying to explain how it couldn’t possibly be. It was fantastic! I love it! Will become a staple in this house when we have family get togethers!
k
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
That is awesome Kati! Anytime one of my recipes can get by a “hater” I consider it a huge win ha ha! Thanks for letting me know and glad everyone enjoyed it!
Dee Gee says
Another delish recipe! Thanks so much for your steady supply of wonderful tasty creations!
Ellen K Stehouwer says
Where do I start? Moist, tender, full of deliciousness! Thank you Melissa for the best LC cake I’ve made yet! You rocked it.
Liz says
Melissa, thank you so much for your recipes, they are so helpful!
All respect due to you but I’d like to lower the fat in the recipes as I count calories. Please tell me how I would replace some of the butter with more pumpkin? Thank you so much advice on how I might do this.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Lowering the fat and increasing the carbs in this cake is contrary to the keto diet, and the possible decrease in calories would be counter productive in that case. If that is still your aim, I’m afraid I can’t make a recommendation without testing it first, which I don’t have time to do. So I suggest that you either experiment on your own or search for a pumpkin sheet cake online that is low fat and low calorie – there must be tons of them out there at this time of year.
Liz says
I use 1 stick butter and replaced half stick with 1/4 cup of pumpkin purée. Dropped calories by 400 and upped net carbs by 4 for entire recipe. Made into cupcakes. They were very moist. I’ll make this several times this season. ?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Sounds like a good compromise Liz, glad you were able to make it work for you and thanks for sharing your results!!!
Becky says
Melissa – could this be made as cupcakes ? Just thinking that would make it easier to freeze and make more portable:)
Mellissa Sevigny says
Yes, I’ve done it both ways Becky and it freezes well too! The cupcakes I baked for 22 minutes at 350!
Kristi says
Mellissa, this cake is beautiful…no need for apologies here ! Can’t wait to try it!
Jen says
This is the first dessert I’ve made since on a keto diet. I am concerned about the number of carbs given that, with frosting, it uses 1 1/3 C of Swerve. That’s 64 tsp which comes out to 256 carbs. Divide that by 12 (1/12 of cake) and that’s 21 carbs per piece of cake, from the Swerve. Am I figuring this wrong?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Erythritol carbs have no impact on blood sugar and can be counted as zero by diabetics and those on a keto diet – that’s why I don’t include them in the nutrition info.
Jen says
Thank you for your response and your wonderful blog. It has been one of the most helpful and has great recipes, and I have sifted through quite a few! Thanks for all the hard work.
Chelsea @ Healthy Fabulous Life says
These look perfectly fluffy and that cream cheese frosting looks fabulous!