Keto Pumpkin Earthquake Cake

Pumpkin Earthquake Cake: a deliciously twisted keto pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese, pecans, and chocolate chips. This post is sponsored by Pete and Gerry’s Eggs.

Every year, they say there will be a pumpkin shortage. Who “they” are is beyond me, but I have heard this almost every year I’ve been writing a food blog. And every year they are wrong.

Except this year. I decided to make a pumpkin spice version of my famous Keto Earthquake Cake, and I was confident that the so-called pumpkin shortage was yet again not real.

Alas I found myself haunting the baking aisles of my local grocery stores, with nary a can of pumpkin to be seen. There was plenty of the sugary pumpkin pie filling, but no plain, unsweetened pumpkin puree. I couldn’t believe I’d been so foolish as to not heed the warnings.

I did have one single can at home, bought a few months earlier, which I guarded jealously, trying to ascertain the best uses for it. So many delicious pumpkin possibilities, so little pumpkin.

The moral of the story is heed those pumpkin shortage warnings!

Top down photo of keto pumpkin earthquake cake in a white baking pan on a white wooden table. Two small pumpkins near the top of the pan.

Pumpkin Spice Earthquake Cake

If you aren’t familiar with keto earthquake cake, it’s a wonderfully mixed up, mashed up, swirled up concoction of a cake. It’s easy and fun to make, and the mixed up layers of cake, cream cheese, nuts, and chocolate chips are absolutely delicious.

When Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs asked me to develop a Thanksgiving recipe with their exceptional eggs, a pumpkin flavored version of this keto cake instantly came to mind.

I took my basic almond flour cake recipe and modified it for a pumpkin spice flavor. I added pecans and the cream cheese swirl, and topped the whole thing off with keto friendly chocolate chips. It was gooey and delicious, and definitely a worthy project for some of my scarce pumpkin puree!

I always recommend using high quality organic eggs like Pete and Gerry’s in your holiday baking. Not only will your recipes be healthier and more delicious, but you will feel good knowing that your eggs come from humanely raised chickens. Being truly free range, with plenty of freedom to roam, scratch, and roost means healthier hens, healthier eggs, and a healthier planet.

Close up shot of a piece of pumpkin earthquake cake on a white plate with a forkful taken out of it.

Tips for Keto Pumpkin Earthquake Cake

This cake is a fun project and perfect for your healthy Thanksgiving celebrations. Here are my best tips for getting it right:

I recommend using a glass or ceramic baking dish for this cake. You will be cutting the pieces right out of the pan and you don’t want to scratch up your non-stick bakeware!
Do be advised that if you have to use metal, the cake will bake more quickly, as metal heats up faster in the oven than glass or ceramic.
Depending on how thick your pumpkin puree is, you may need to add water to the cake batter. Keto batters should be thicker than their conventional counterparts, but you don’t want it so thick that you can’t spread it in the pan or swirl in the cream cheese.
Pre-mixed pumpkin pie spice is a great option, but you can always mix up your own if you prefer. Try using 1 teaspoon ground ginger, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, and ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg. I always like a touch of ground cloves too (about ⅛ teaspoon).
Dollop the cream cheese mixture over the batter and use a knife to swirl. I recommend trying to get some of the cream cheese right to the edges so every piece of the cake is a bit more gooey.
The cake won’t be totally firm when you remove it from the oven and you don’t want it to be. The center should have a bit of jiggle still when the pan is shaken. It will continue to set up as it sits and cools in the pan.
Store this delicious cake in the fridge! It’s far too moist to sit on the counter.

So if you were smart and stocked up on pumpkin before the shortage, this is definitely a keto cake worthy of using a little of it up!