Gluten-free pumpkin skull cakes with a hidden cream cheese filling that are so moist and delicious. A from scratch Halloween bake in a skull pan that’s warmly, spiced and easier than they look. Some Halloween bakes are all looks. These gluten-free pumpkin skull cakes earn their place at the table. A moist, spiced pumpkin cake with a hidden cream cheese filling, baked in a skull pan and finished with a dusting of icing and bright red eyes. This gluten free pumpkin skull cake recipe is made completely from scratch, with a whole-grain flour blend and no gums.
Why These Flours For The Pumpkin Skull Cakes
The blend here is millet and sorghum flour with almond flour and tapioca starch. Millet and sorghum keep the crumb tender and give the cake a deeper flavour than a starch-heavy blend would, the almond flour adds richness, and the tapioca starch keeps everything light. The small amount of psyllium husk powder is the binder. It’s what holds a gluten-free batter together in a detailed mould and stops the cakes crumbling when they come out of the pan. Maple syrup stands in for corn syrup and adds a warm sweetness that suits the pumpkin pie spice.
Tips for skull pan success
Grease the cake pan very well. Skull pans have a lot of detail, and every ridge needs butter and a dusting of flour or the faces won’t release cleanly. Freezing the cream cheese filling for 10–15 minutes is the other non-negotiable! Chilled dollops stay in the centre of the cake instead of melting into the batter. Let the cakes rest in the pan for a full 15–20 minutes before flipping them out; they’re delicate while hot and firm up as they cool. Brushing the icing on thin keeps the skull details visible instead of burying them. Here’s the skull pan I used.
Store the finished cakes at room temperature for 2–3 days … if they last that long.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Skull Cakes
Ingredients
For the cream cheese filling
- 100 g cream cheese
- 25 g icing sugar
For the cake batter
- 85 g pumpkin purée
- 70 g brown sugar
- 30 g white sugar
- 90 g soft butter
- 50 g maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 3 g psyllium husk powder
- 40 g almond flour
- 100 g millet flour
- 60 g sorghum flour
- 75 g tapioca starch
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
For the icing
- 30 g cream cheese softened
- 15 g butter softened
- 20 g icing sugar
- 1 tsp milk for a thinner consistency, for brushing
- 1-2 drops Red food colouring
Instructions
- Beat together the cream cheese and icing sugar until smooth.
- Freeze 6 dollops of the cream cheese filling (about 2 tsp each) for 15-20 minutes.
- Brush butter then sprinkle flour into the skull cavities, ensuring a good coating.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients and psyllium husk powder.
- Beat the sugars and butter until creamy, then add the pumpkin and egg. Add a third of the flour mixture, followed by the maple syrup, then fold in the remaining flour.
- Spoon half the batter into the bottom of each cavity in the pan, add the chilled cream cheese filling, and top with the rest of the batter. Smooth the surface.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes, then let the cakes cool in the pan for 15–20 minutes before flipping them out.
- To make the Icing, whisk the cream cheese and butter until smooth, then add the icing sugar. Thin the icing with milk if needed.
- Remove about a teaspoon of the icing and add a few drops of red food colouring.
- Lightly brush the white icing over half of the skulls, then add the red icing to the eyes.
- Storage: 2–3 days at room temperature.
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