This incredibly elegant and delicious vegan pumpkin roll cake is as amazing as it is easy! With a super moist and soft pumpkin cake rolled between layers of vegan cream cheese frosting, this pumpkin roll cake only needs 6 ingredients and won’t crack- it’s so easy! The perfect Thanksgiving dessert or holiday cake for your table!

sliced vegan pumpkin roll cake

Why you need to try this easy vegan pumpkin roll cake

If you’re like me, and love everything that is pumpkin and cinnamon and cozy and delicious, then you’re going to absolutely love this super easy vegan pumpkin roll cake.

Like my unbelievably moist pumpkin spice cake and pumpkin bread, absolutely no one will be able to tell that this pumpkin roll is vegan and dairy free; they’ll think this pumpkin roll cake is just the best fall Swiss roll they’ve ever had!

With a super moist pumpkin cake that’s full of fresh pumpkin, pumpkin spice, and sweetness, and the fluffiest, best tasting vegan cream cheese around, this fall cake is sure to impress.

But not only does this vegan cake taste amazing, it’s actually (and shockingly) easy to make and only requires 6 main ingredients! How cool is that?!

eaten slice of pumpkin roll cake
pumpkin roll slices

Vegan pumpkin roll cake ingredients

  • Pumpkin puree: an absolute must, of course! Be careful that you’re not using “pumpkin pie filling.” You’ll get very different results!
  • Dairy free yogurt: this will replace both the eggs (my favorite vegan egg substitute for cakes) and actually the oil in this cake. I found this cake was much easier to roll when it was oil free. Yet it still came out super fluffy and light- not gummy!
  • Dairy free milk
  • Flour: you can use all-purpose flour or gluten-free 1:1 baking flour, such as King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour. I cannot verify if this will work with a homemade gluten free flour mix, as there is so much variation with that.
  • Sugar: to keep this pumpkin roll cake refined sugar free, you can use coconut sugar! Otherwise, be sure that your granulated sugar is truly vegan.
  • Spices: we’ll be using a pumpkin spice blend and a bit more cinnamon to really bring this pumpkin roll cake to life.
  • Leavening agents: this is your baking soda and baking powder!
plates of pumpkin roll cake

How simple are those ingredients?! Now for the vegan cream cheese frosting, you’ll use simply vegan cream cheese (I recommend Violife for the best tasting!), vegan butter (Flora Plant Butter or Miyoko’s is great here) and powdered sugar (again be careful that it’s truly vegan! Some Domino lot numbers are not, and I know that’s the most popular choice for powdered sugar).

Overview: Step by Step how to make a pumpkin roll cake:

For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.

bowl of pumpkin roll cake batter
We’ll start with the batter. It takes all of 5 minutes to prep! Simply whisk together the wet ingredients, then add in the dry and whisk again.
pumpkin roll before baking
Spread the batter onto your prepared sheet pan, and bake for just 14-16 minutes.
baked pumpkin roll
After baking, remove the cake from the oven. You’ll want to work quickly here, so have a clean dish towel and cooling rack ready!
pumpkin roll cake before rolling
Dust the pumpkin roll with powdered sugar. This prevents sticking to the cloth.
dishtowel over Swiss roll
Place a dishtowel down on the powdered sugar side, covering the cake. Then place the cooling rack on top, like above. We’ll flip the cake in one fell swoop!
flipped pumpkin roll cake
Carefully flip the cake pan using oven mitts, now having the pumpkin sheet cake on top of the dishtowel, and the cooling rack on the bottom. Peel the parchment paper off the sheet cake carefully.
rolled pumpkin roll cake
Carefully roll the pumpkin roll with the dishtowel in between (so the dish towel rolls with the cake). Roll the cake width wise (so that the cake is only 9″ long). Then we’ll cool the cake for 1 hour in the fridge
unrolled pumpkin roll
Once cooled, make the cream cheese frosting, and carefully unroll the cake. Spread the frosting on top of the cake.
frosted pumpkin roll
You’ll want to frost to the very edges of the cake.
frolled pumpkin roll
Once frosted, carefully re-roll your pumpkin roll cake with the frosting this time, and no dish towel in between. Chill the pumpkin roll for at least 1 hour in the fridge.

Tips for rolling a Swiss roll cake

  • Add a bit of olive oil to the parchment paper. This will help prevent the cake from sticking to the parchment paper, which would result in the cake tearing! I just rub about 1 tsp over the front side of the parchment paper, where the cake batter will be poured.
  • To invert the pumpkin roll cake: When you’re ready to roll the cake, I place a cooling rack on top of the dish towel that’s lying over the cake. That way, when I flip the cake, it will be securely in place. Just be sure to use oven mitts and hold the cooling rack and baking sheet as close together as possible without squishing the cake. Then flip it in one smooth movement!
  • Be generous with the powdered sugar. No one wants pumpkin cake stuck to their dish towel!
  • You can use a baking sheet that has walls or a jelly roll sheet. All of my baking sheets have tall enough walls that I didn’t need to get a jelly roll sheet. However, you definitely need something that has walls on it to prevent the cake from pouring over the edges!
  • DO NOT OVER MIX THE BATTER! This goes for all vegan cakes, but it’s super crucial! Over mixing the batter will cause the gluten to activate, and will ultimately result in a gummy cake.
slices of vegan pumpkin roll cake
sliced vegan pumpkin roll
slice of vegan pumpkin roll cake

I just know you’re going to absolutely love this super fun and delicious vegan pumpkin roll cake! Be sure to leave a comment down below about how it went for you!

Here are a few other vegan pumpkin recipes you might like below!

If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!

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sliced vegan pumpkin roll cake

Easy Vegan Pumpkin Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 4 reviews
  • Author: BRITT BERLIN
  • Prep Time: 10
  • 1 hour set time: 3 hours cooling time
  • Cook Time: 15
  • Total Time: 0 hours
  • Yield: 10 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

This incredibly elegant and delicious vegan pumpkin roll cake is as amazing as it is easy! With a super moist and soft pumpkin cake rolled between layers of vegan cream cheese frosting, this pumpkin roll cake only needs 6 ingredients and is naturally eggless, dairy free, oil free, and easily gluten free! The perfect Thanksgiving dessert or holiday cake for your table!

Ingredients

Scale

Vegan Pumpkin Roll Cake:

  • 1 1/4 cups (156 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour
  • 3/4 cup (150 g) organic granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp pumpkin spice blend
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 2/3 cup (160 g) pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 cup (120 mL) dairy free milk (such as soy milk, oat milk, or almond milk)
  • 2 tbsp dairy free yogurt or unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp powdered sugar, for sprinkling over the baked cake
  • 1 batch vegan cream cheese frosting

Instructions

  1. Please read through all instructions before beginning.
  2. Prep: Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a 10×15″ sheet pan with edges (or jelly roll pan) with parchment paper. Lightly oil on top of the parchment paper to ensure that the pumpkin roll cake will peel off easily (it’s an oil-free cake, so it needs a bit of help with the peeling). Measure out all ingredients for the pumpkin roll cake. 
  3. Make the batter:  In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, pumpkin puree, dairy free milk, dairy free yogurt, and vanilla extract. Add in the pumpkin spice, baking powder, and sea salt, and whisk to combine. Then add in the flour, and gently whisk until just combined and there are no more flour clumps. 
  4. Bake the pumpkin cake: Pour the batter onto the prepared pan, and spread the batter until it reaches the edges of the prepared pan. Place the pan into the oven to bake for 14-16 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven.
  5. Roll the cake while it’s still hot: Immediately dust the top of the pumpkin cake in powdered sugar. Then carefully place a clean kitchen towel, followed by a cooling rack top-side down over the pumpkin cake. Use your oven mitts to carefully flip the pumpkin cake onto the cooling rack, the parchment paper facing up and the top of the cake facing down. Carefully remove the parchment paper from the pumpkin cake. Use the kitchen towel to roll the cake with the towel, much like how you roll a Buche de Noel cake. You can view the video tutorial here starting at minute 2:20. Keep the rolled pumpkin cake on a cooling rack and allow the cake to fully cool before making the frosting. This will take about 2-3 hours to fully cool.
  6. When ready to frost, make the cream cheese frosting: Add vegan butter and vegan cream cheese to a large bowl and beat together with a hand mixer. Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time, continuing the beat the mixture until it’s a thick buttercream. Add in vanilla and continue to cream until fluffy. Store the frosting in the refrigerator for a few minutes while you unroll the cake.
  7. Unroll and frost the cake: When the cake is cool, carefully unroll the cake , leaving it still laying on the kitchen towel. Spread the cream cheese frosting evenly over the pumpkin roll cake, leaving about 1/2″ space on both length sides of the cake for easy rolling. Begin to re-roll the cake as it was, this time without the kitchen towel. Once rolled, carefully place the cake onto a plate (you can leave the kitchen towel underneath if easier, like I did), and place the cake into the fridge to chill for 1 hour. 
  8. Slice and serve! When ready to serve, dust the cake with extra powdered sugar if desired, slice and serve! Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days or in the freezer sliced for up to 2 months.

Notes

Gluten free: Use gluten free 1:1 baking flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill.

Vegan Cream cheese: My preferred brand of vegan cream cheese is Kite Hill or Tofutti. You can also make your own vegan cream cheese!

Using homemade pumpkin puree: I have not personally tried this, but have heard that this method of making homemade pumpkin puree may work. You really have to make sure you’re getting the same consistency as canned, however. I cannot guarantee results, as I have not personally tried this.

Sugar: not all granulated sugars are vegan. Be sure that the brand that you’re using is truly vegan and doesn’t use bone char.