Pumpkin Fruit Loaf Cake [vegan]

Our Pumpkin Fruit Loaf Cake has all the warm spice flavours and vibes of a wholesome fall or autumnal cosy day. Each slice is packed with juicy dried fruit, pumpkin puree, and homely pumpkin spices, making this cake so irresistibly moist and soft. It also features an optional but really easy two ingredient cream cheese frosting which can be sprinkled with crisp walnuts or pecans.

This pumpkin fruit cake is perfect for vegans and plant-based diets, but it is also great for vegetarians, omnivores, and anyone who just appreciates a good old-fashioned fruit cake. No-one will guess that this cake is prepared with everyday store-cupboard vegan-friendly ingredients! Absolutely no-eggs and no-butter required!

Whether you're celebrating the fall or autumnal season, Thanksgiving, Halloween, All-Hallows Day, or even Samhain, or perhaps you're simply craving a classic fruit cake, our vegan pumpkin spice fruit cake is the perfect home-baked treat.

Jump to:

• ❓ What is a pumpkin fruit cake?
• 🌎 Origins of pumpkin fruit cake
• 🍇 More fruit cake recipes
• 🥘 Ingredients
• Frosting ingredients
• 🥣 How To Prepare
• 📋 Recipe notes
• Storing
• Freezing
• 🧾 FAQ'S
• ⭐ More vegan old-fashioned cakes and bakes
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

❓ What is a pumpkin fruit cake?

A pumpkin fruit cake is a delicious, moist cake that combines the earthy sweetness of pumpkin, and the warming spiciness of the individual spices, with the rich, chewy texture and sweetness of dried fruits. Whether enjoyed as a dessert, at a party, or simply with friends and family with a nice cup of tea or coffee, a slice of pumpkin fruit cake has all the flavours of a cosy fall or autumnal day.

🌎 Origins of pumpkin fruit cake

The history of pumpkin fruit cake brings together cooking traditions from various corners of the world. Fruit cakes themselves date back to Roman times, and they gained popularity in Britain especially during the Victorian era for the festive season as well as for Afternoon Tea.

Pumpkin, on the other hand, originates in North America, as the Native Americans had been cultivating pumpkins and squash for thousands of years, long before the settlers arrived. When the settlers came, they quickly adopted the pumpkin into their own home cooking.

A pumpkin fruit cake is a combination of these two traditions: the European custom of fruit cakes and the American fondness for pumpkin, particularly spiced pumpkin recipes. Over time, as people moved and culinary traditions blended, ingredients like pumpkin began appearing in more global recipes, especially during Thanksgiving, fall, and Halloween season, as well as festive cooking.

Adding spices to pumpkin recipes became popular in America in recent centuries. The "pumpkin spice" blend that's popular in the US today usually includes cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves or allspice. These spices were often included in preserved foods as well as sweet foods, not just for flavour, but also because spices like cinnamon and cloves have natural preservative properties.

🍇 More fruit cake recipes

We love fruit cakes here as they are just the epitome of homely traditional home-baking so we have quite a few family recipes to share.

Our Vegan Fruit Loaf Cake is the ultimate favourite with visitors for afternoon tea, and for a free-from fruit cake that is vegan, but also refined sugar-free and fat-free then you've got to try this Gluten-Free Fruit Cake recipe.

And for the perfect fruit cake to enjoy at New Years celebrations do try this tasty Scottish Smiddy Dumpling. For another classic fruit cake our All Bran Cinnamon Loaf Cake is the best for morning tea breaks or homely tea time treats.

All our bakes are prepared with everyday pantry ingredients and are ideal for everyone who loves traditional bakes.

🥘 Ingredients

As we are a plant-based family recipe blog all the ingredients we use are vegan so we will recommend using plant-based butter or vegan margarine, and plant-based milk. However, feel free to use whatever milk, butter, or margarine that you normally use as those will be fine for our recipes.

The ingredients that you will need for this pumpkin fruit cake recipe are - dried fruit mix [either a ready-made package such as those intended for festive fruit cakes, puddings, and pies, or a mix of individual dried fruits such as raisins, sultanas and currants], vegan margarine or butter, brown sugar, plant-based milk, self-raising flour, and pumpkin puree or mash.

The ground spices that we use are ground mace, ground cloves, ground allspice, and ground ginger. However, you can instead use a pumpkin spice blend, apple pie spice blend, mixed spice powder, or even a mixture of cinnamon powder, ginger powder, and nutmeg powder.

We include an easy method of preparing your own pumpkin puree, using Halloween pumpkins, in the recipe notes below, but you can always use canned pumpkin if its available. Alternatively, you can use sweet potato or butternut squash puree or mash.

Although we state self-raising flour this can be replaced with plain or all-purpose flour which has two teaspoons of baking powder, and a few pinches of salt, mixed through.

Frosting ingredients

For Halloween or for a special dessert to go along with a pumpkin latte or Chai tea we like to add a frosting to our pumpkin fruit cake as it just makes it extra special as well as tastier. Its a two ingredient frosting so the only ingredients you'll need are - vegan cream cheese and icing sugar [powdered sugar]. Of course you can always use your preferred frosting recipe.

🥣 How To Prepare

There are a few steps to this easy fruit cake but they are pretty easy and worth it as the initial stewing of the dried fruits results in a deliciously moist fruit cake.

First prepare the dried fruits:

Step 1: Add the dried fruit mixture to a saucepan, along with brown sugar, margarine and milk, and give it a good mix.

Step 2: Over a medium heat melt the margarine, and bring the mix to a gentle boil.

Step 3: Turn the heat to low and cook the mixture for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Step 4: Remove the pan from the heat, scoop the mix into a bowl, and allow to cool before using for the cake.

Once the dried fruits are cool the cake can be quickly mixed and baked:

Step 1: Preheat the oven and prepare a baking pan by lining it with baking paper.

Step 2: Sift the self-raising flour into a mixing bowl.

Step 3: Add the spices and give it a good mix.

Step 4: Mix the pumpkin puree or mash through the dried fruit mixture.

Step 5: Pour the dried fruits into the mixing bowl with the flour mixture, and stir until everything is just combined.

Step 6: Scoop into the baking pan and level out the cake surface.

Step 7: Place the pan onto the middle oven shelf.

Step 8: Bake for 50-60 minutes until golden, firm, and the cake is beginning to come away from the sides, a skewer popped in the middle will come out clean.

Step 9: Place onto a cooling rack to cool in the pan for about 15-20 minutes before carefully removing the cake from the pan and leaving to cool completely.

Once cool the pumpkin fruit cake can be sliced and enjoyed as it is or add an easy cream cheese frosting.

To prepare a vegan cream cheese frosting:

Step 1: Add the cream cheese to a mixing bowl and sift in the icing or powdered sugar.

Step 2: Either with a mixing spoon or a cake whisk mix the ingredients until the frosting is at a good spreading consistency. You may need to add a little extra icing sugar if the frosting needs thickened up some more. If the frosting is too thick you can incorporate a little more cream cheese.

Step 3: Spread the cream cheese over the fruit cake and if liked sprinkle a few chopped walnuts or pecans over the frosting.

Step 4: Allow the icing to set, which may take a few hours, you can always speed the setting up by popping the cake into the refrigerator for an hour or so just until the frosting firms up.

📋 Recipe notes

Storing

Pumpkin spice cake can be stored in a cool, dry area within an airtight container for at least 1 week, possibly longer if well wrapped. Wrap in a layer of greaseproof paper, and a second layer of kitchen foil.

If a vegan cream cheese topping has been added the cake can be stored in the refrigerator if it needs to be stored for longer than a few days, and especially if you kitchen is quite warm. Loosely wrap the frosted cake before storing in the refrigerator, and it should be fine for up to a week.

Freezing

Unfrosted baked pumpkin fruit cakes can be wrapped tightly in food wrap and a second layer of kitchen foil, and frozen for 3-4 months.

Or wrap individual slices and freeze those. This makes it very easy to pull out a few slices of cake at a time. To thaw remove the wrappings and thaw to room temperature.

If you freeze a whole fruit cake it can be frosted once the cake has reached room temperature.

🧾 FAQ'S

⭐ More vegan old-fashioned cakes and bakes

For even more vintage bakes made vegan do have a look at our Vegan Baking Recipes collection.

Our recipes are loved by everyone not just vegans as no one will ever guess that your delicious bakes contains no eggs or butter!

***please note: for US measurements click the 'US customary button' within the recipe and the measurements will switch to tablespoons, cups, and ounces.***

📖 Recipe

💬 Comments

Prepared our Vegan Pumpkin Fruit Cake? We would love to know how you got on with the recipe so do pop back and drop us as comment below and click the star ratings. Its very much appreciated. Thanks so much, Love Jacq x