Squash Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
A fabulous Fall Squash Cake with Orange Spiked Cream Cheese Frosting. A totally delicious autumn cake, that's super easy to make and totally delicious to eat!
PERFECT FALL CAKE RECIPE
Autumn is the most delicious time of year! We've been busy in the kitchen cooking up a storm with the gorgeous seasonal squash that are available now.
This moist fruity squash cake is made using Harlequin squash (although you could make this as a butternut squash cake instead if you like) It's topped generously with a delicious orange cream cheese frosting.
Cream cheese frosting with orange zest is just the perfect topping for our squash cake, it's a match made in heaven.
Butternut squash cake is ideal for baking as a Halloween or Bonfire Night treat. The smell of the squash cake whilst cooking is amazing, lovely warm wafts of sweet cinnamon - it's just so beautifully autumnal!
This is one of my favourite cakes to make and eat! The flavor is just oh so perfect especially with a pumpkin spice latte!
ARE BUTTERNUT SQUASH IN SEASON NOW?
Butternut squash season in the UK is from autumn through to winter, although you can buy them in the supermarket all year around.
When picking a butternut squash I tend to go for the ones with a small bulbous end and a thick fat neck, that way there's more squash and less seeds. You could also make this cake with summer squash or zucchini if you preferred.
DO I NEED TO PEEL SQUASH BEFORE BAKING IT IN A CAKE?
Our squash cake recipe is super easy to make and takes very little time. I don't even peel the squash, I just grate it straight into the batter! Although if you prefer to peel it go ahead, this is your cake.
I love a robust rustic cake - so much easier to make! And I think in Autumn particularly, rustic is the way to go.
SQUASH CAKE RECIPE
- Serves – 6 people
- Prep Time – 15 minutes
- Cook Time – around 40 minutes
- Total Time – around 55 minutes
- Our Most Popular Alternative – Toffee Apple Crumble
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
- 2lb loaf pan
- Mixing bowl or other large bowl
- Wooden spoon
- Whisk
- Kitchen Scales
- Teaspoons
- Small bowl
- Fork
- Grater
- Food Processor - or electric hand whisk for mixing the frosting
- Wire rack for cooling
SQUASH CAKE INGREDIENTS
FOR THE SQUASH CAKE
- Sunflower oil (you can use vegetable oil if you prefer)
- Large eggs
- Light brown sugar
- Self raising flour (use self rising, not all purpose flour)
- Ground Cinnamon
- Baking powder
- Sultanas
- Grated squash - just weigh and grate - you don't need to peel the squash you can eat the peel if you like, it'll just cook into the batter. However if you prefer to peel it then do so.
FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- Cream cheese
- Double cream (heavy cream)
- Icing sugar (powdered sugar)
- zest of an orange
HOW TO MAKE SQUASH CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
Step One - preheat the oven and line the cake tin
- Preheat the oven to 180C / 350F / Gas Mark 4 - grab our super handy printable oven temperature conversion chart here
- Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin, no need to be super neat here.
Step Two - make the squash cake batter
- Add the sunflower oil and eggs to a large mixing bowl and mix well with a whisk.
- Tip in the dry ingredients - sugar, flour, 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, baking powder and mix with wooden spoon.
- Add the grated squash and sultanas, stir well.
Step Three - bake the squash cake
- Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 40 - 50 minutes or until a skewer (or toothpick) comes out clean when you test the cake centre.
- Cool the cake in the tin completely with it stood on a wire rack. Then remove and top with the cream cheese frosting - make sure the cake is totally cool before covering in frosting.
Step Four - add the cream cheese frosting
- To make the frosting simply add the Philadelphia, double cream and icing sugar to a food processor and whizz on medium speed using the paddle attachment, until stiff and spreadable.
- Top the squash cake with the frosting in a rustic way then scatter with orange zest. Again, no need to be neat, just slap it on.
RECIPE TIPS AND INGREDIENT SWAPS
You can add your own twists and flavour changes with this cake - try any of the following and let us know how they turn out!
- No squash? Then use carrots or sweet potato. You can also use different squash like yellow squash or courgette. If using courgette, be sure to grate the flesh and skin, then ring it out tightly in a clean kitchen towel as courgette can be a lot more watery than a butternut squash.
- Skip the frosting and just dust with a little icing sugar or make an orange glaze or orange flavoured icing.
- Make a vanilla cream cheese frosting instead of orange.
- You could make this a spiced butternut squash cake and add a teaspoon of mixed spice (the one with cinnamon, cloves and ground nutmeg)
- Add in some chopped walnuts for extra taste.
CAN YOU EAT BUTTERNUT SQUASH SEEDS
Yes, you can eat the butternut squash seeds, in fact they're super tasty roasted or sizzled in a frying pan and then seasoned with salt and spices. They're also delicious scattered onto Thai curries, or in salads.
Get our squash seed recipe here.
MORE EASY CAKE RECIPES
If you love our squash cake recipe - try these easy and delicious cakes too!
- Lemon and Poppy Seed Drizzle Cake - a tasty lemon drizzle loaf cake with added poppy seeds. Totally lovely afternoon tea cake.
- Cheat's Chocolate Cake - cheat your way to a delicious, big fluffy chocolate cake, smothered in frosting.
- Victoria Sandwich Cake with Raspberries and Cream - one of my favourite summery cakes - classic Victoria sandwich with fresh cream, raspberry jam and fresh, juicy, plump raspberries.
Get more delicious autumn recipes here
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Squash Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
A moist and utterly delicious autumn squash cake with cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
For the squash cake
- 150ml (5fl oz) sunflower oil
- 2 eggs
- 140g (5 oz) light brown sugar
- 180g (6oz) self raising flour
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 50g (2 oz) sultanas or currants
- 150g (5 oz) grated squash
For the cream cheese frosting
- 200g (7 oz) Philadelphia cream cheese
- 80ml (3 fl oz) double cream (heavy or whipping cream)
- 100g (4 oz) icing sugar (powdered sugar)
- zest of an orange
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C.
- Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.
- Add the sunflower oil and eggs to a large mixing bowl and mix well with a whisk.
- Tip in the sugar, flour, cinnamon, baking powder and mix with wooden spoon.
- Add the grated squash and sultanas, mix well.
- Tip cake batter into the loaf tin and bake for 40 - 50 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool the cake in the tin then remove and top with the cream cheese frosting
- To make the frosting simply add the Philadelphia, double cream and icing sugar to a food processor and whizz until stiff and spreadable.
- Top the squash cake with the frosting in a rustic way then scatter with orange zest.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 248Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 72mgSodium: 125mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 3gSugar: 21gProtein: 6g
Nutritional content will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use and how careful you are with measuring - this nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate - you should always calculate your own nutritional information especially if you have specific dietary requirements.
Save our super tasty butternut squash cake with cream cheese frosting to Pinterest for later!
Get more delicious meal ideas and easy recipes here
Wendy is the creator of Daisies & Pie, a UK food blog sharing easy meals and home lifestyle tips since 2012
