This chocolate butternut cake by Natlicious Food brings a seasonal twist to a classic treat. It uses butternut squash purée to create a moist, tender crumb without added dairy or eggs. You don’t taste the squash, you just get a soft, rich texture and deep chocolate flavor. It feels festive for autumn and winter, but it’s simple enough to bake any time you want something sweet.

The cake uses everyday ingredients like flour, cacao, coconut sugar, soy milk, and chia seeds. The butternut adds natural moisture and helps bind the batter, making the cake feel indulgent with less oil. Chocolate chips mixed through and sprinkled on top melt into little pockets as it bakes, giving the cake a more chocolatey flavor.

Read more: Pumpkin And Bourbon Brulee Tart

This loaf serves 10–12 slices, so it’s ideal for sharing at weekend gatherings, cozy nights in, or seasonal celebrations. Enjoy a slice with tea or coffee, bring it to a fall potluck, or make it ahead for an easy dessert through the week.

Bake the chocolate butternut cake

This chocolate butternut cake delivers a moist, rich loaf with a subtle seasonal twist. It’s an easy bake that feels special without extra effort, great for autumn gatherings, weekend desserts, or enjoying with coffee during the week.

a chocolate butternut cake with butternut squash, vegan chocolate chips, and chia seeds

5 from 1 vote

Servings

Ingredients

Dry ingredients:

240 g plain flour
20 g cacao powder
1 teaspoon of baking powder
Pinch of salt
90 g chocolate chips

Wet ingredients:

1 tablespoon of chia seeds
325 g steamed butternut squash
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
80 ml vegetable oil
100 ml soy milk
140 g coconut sugar

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 180°C.
In a small bowl add the chia seeds with 3 tablespoons of water, mix and let aside until you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
In a bowl, sieve the flour, cacao and salt. Then mix in the chocolate chips (keep few pieces to add on the top) and set it aside.
In separate bowl, add the butternut squash and mash them with a fork or a potato masher.
Add the vanilla extract, vegetable oil, milk and sugar into the bowl with the squash and use a whisk to combine.
The texture of the chia seed mixture must be like jelly by now. Add this to the wet mixture and whisk to combine.
Add the dry ingredients in the wet, mix add them now on top on the flour mixture.
Combine as little as possible and add in a greased loaf tin (14x24cm).
Sprinkle on top the chocolate chips you kept.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a knife comes out from the middle clear.

To steam your squash, cut it in small cubes, then add it in a steamer on top of a pot with some water, cover and steam for 20-25 minutes or until the squash is cooked.

This recipe was republished with permission from Natlicious Food. You can view the original recipe here.