Keto Chocolate Pumpkin Bundt Cake
Published October 14, 2022 • Updated March 1, 2026
This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.
Two batters, one pan. I swirl a warmly spiced pumpkin layer with a dense chocolate layer into a keto pumpkin bundt cake that my family requests every fall, then drizzle cream cheese frosting over the top.
I started making this marble cake because I wanted one fall dessert that could sit on the table and look like I’d spent half the day baking. Two separate batters layered in a bundt pan, baked once, frosted, done. The pumpkin half is spongy and full of warm spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice from the pumpkin pie spice blend). The chocolate half is dense, almost brownie-like in the center. When you slice through, you get those defined swirls that make it look way more complicated than it is.
The trick that took me a few batches to figure out: layering order controls everything. Half the pumpkin batter goes in first, then all the chocolate, then the remaining pumpkin on top. I tried the classic marble method of alternating thin scoops, and the result was a uniform brown with no visible swirl. The half-all-half method locks in clean ribbons of each flavor. If you weigh your bowl before and after mixing the shared wet base, you can divide by two and get perfectly even layers. Not required, but it helps if you’re particular like I am.
The cream cheese frosting on top gets thinned with a splash of nut milk until it drips down the ridges. If you’ve made my keto spice cake, the frosting technique is similar, though here I keep it slightly thicker so it clings to the curves. Crushed pecans pressed into the frosting while it’s still wet add crunch and make the whole thing look like it came from a bakery.
This is what I bring to Thanksgiving, Halloween parties, any fall gathering where regular desserts will be everywhere. Nobody identifies it as keto. I’ve watched people go back for seconds before even asking about ingredients, which tells me the texture and sweetness are dialed in. If you’re building a pumpkin dessert spread, a keto pumpkin cheesecake or a batch of pumpkin cupcakes round things out without repeating the same flavor.
For the chocolate lovers at your table, reader Danielle added Lily’s dark chocolate chips to the chocolate layer and said they melted into ‘little pockets all through the cake.’ I’m trying that next batch. And if you want a simpler single-layer chocolate option, my chocolate cake is a low-carb version that comes together in about half the time.
How to make pumpkin bundt cake
This is a marble cake, so you’re managing two batters at once. I make the shared wet base first (butter, sweetener, eggs, vanilla), then divide it by weight into two bowls. One gets the pumpkin spice dry mix plus canned pumpkin. The other gets the chocolate dry mix. The layering order matters: half the pumpkin batter, all the chocolate, then the remaining pumpkin on top. I tried alternating thin layers and the colors bled together into brown. The half-all-half method keeps the swirls distinct.
Prep the bundt pan with butter in every groove, then dust with oat fiber through a mesh strainer. This is what gives you a clean release. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes, let it cool 5-10 minutes, then flip onto a wire rack. Frosting goes on once it’s fully cool.
Explore 684+ keto recipe videos with step-by-step instructions, tips, and tricks to make keto easy.
Keto Pumpkin Bundt Cake Ingredients
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened -
1 1/2 cups sugar free sweetener
-
4 eggs
-
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
3 cups almond flour, divided
-
1/2 cup oat fiber, divided
-
2 teaspoons baking powder, divided
-
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
-
1 teaspoon salt, divided
-
1 cup pumpkin puree
-
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
-
bundt cake pan
Sugar Free Cream Cheese Glaze Ingredients
-
4 oz cream cheese, softened
-
2 tablespoons butter, softened
-
1/3 cup powdered sugar free sweetener
-
2-3 tablespoons nut milk or heavy cream
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Prepare bundt cake pan
To a 9-inch bundt cake pan, coat the inside with a thin layer of butter. Using a mesh strainer, dust a small amount of oat fiber over the butter to coat. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bundt Pan
- Butter
- Oat fiber
Combine wet ingredients for bundt cake
To a large bowl, cream together softened butter and sweetener. Mix with an electric mixer until fluffy and smooth (2-3 minutes). Add eggs one at a time. Then stir in vanilla. Set aside.
- Unsalted butter (softened)
- Sugar free sweetener
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
Pumpkin layer: dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, add 2 cups almond flour, 1/4 cup oat fiber, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pumpkin pie spice. Mix until combined.
- Almond flour
- Oat fiber
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Pumpkin spice
Pumpkin layer: wet ingredients
To the dry ingredients, add half of the wet ingredient batter from step 2 and pumpkin puree. Mix with electric mixer until combined. Set aside.
- Half of wet ingredients (step 2)
- Pumpkin puree
Chocolate layer: dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, add remaining almond flour, oat fiber, baking powder and salt. Along with cocoa powder. Mix until combined.
- Almond flour
- Oat fiber
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Cocoa powder
Chocolate layer: wet ingredients
To the dry ingredients for the chocolate layer, add remaining wet ingredient batter from step 2. Mix with electric mixer until combined. Set aside.
Marble cake layers
To the prepared bundt pan, add 1/2 pumpkin cake batter. Smooth out with a spatula. Top with all of the chocolate cake batter. Smooth out again with spatula. Add remaining pumpkin batter. Spread to an even layer with the spatula.
Bake
Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake. Loosen the edges with a knife. Let cool for several minutes (5-10). Then place a wire rack on top of the bundt cake and flip over to pop our the cake from the pan.
Cream cheese glaze
While cake is cooling, prepare the cream cheese glaze. To a medium bowl, mix together softened cream cheese with butter. Once fluffy, add sugar free powdered sweetener. Mix to combine. Add 2-3 tablespoons of nut milk or heavy cream.
- Cream cheese (softened)
- Butter (softened)
- Sugar free sweetener (powdered)
- Nut milk or cream
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
Your Macros. Your Recipes. Calculated in 60 Seconds.
Get personalized keto macros and instantly see which recipes fit your targets. No more guessing what to eat.
Get My Macros + Recipes →Frequently Asked Questions
Is pumpkin keto friendly?
I use pumpkin in my baking all the time, and yes, it fits. Half a cup of pumpkin puree has about 7 grams of net carbs, and that half cup gets spread across the entire cake (12 servings), so per slice you're looking at less than a gram from the pumpkin itself. I always use 100% pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling, which has added sugar.
How long do I bake a half batch?
I've made the half batch in a smaller bundt pan and it takes 30-35 minutes at the same 350 degrees. Start checking at 28 minutes with a knife in the center. My smaller pan is a 6-cup, and it fits the halved recipe perfectly.
Is oat fiber gluten free?
Oat fiber is made from the outer hull of oats, not the grain itself, so it's naturally gluten free. I've been using it in my keto baking for years. The one thing to watch is cross-contamination during processing. If you need certified gluten free, look for brands that specifically state it on the label. The brand I use in this recipe doesn't carry the certification, but there are several that do.
Can I substitute coconut flour for almond flour?
I've tested coconut flour in this recipe and it works, but you need way less. My swap ratio is roughly 1/3 cup coconut flour for every 1 cup of almond flour, plus one extra egg per cup replaced to compensate for how much moisture coconut flour absorbs. The texture comes out slightly denser but still good. I'd start with replacing just one cup to see if you like the result before swapping all three.
What sweetener works best for this cake?
I've tested this with erythritol, allulose, and Swerve. Allulose gives the most natural sweetness and dissolves cleanly with no cooling aftertaste. Erythritol works but some people notice a slight chill on the tongue, especially in the frosting. Swerve (an erythritol blend) falls somewhere in between. My go-to for this particular recipe is allulose for the cake and Swerve confectioners for the frosting, since the powdered version whips up smoother.
Can I bake this as cupcakes or in a regular cake pan?
I've done cupcakes with this batter and they work well. Fill the liners about 2/3 full, alternating a spoonful of pumpkin and chocolate for a mini marble effect. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes. For a 9-inch round pan, I keep the same temperature and check at 35 minutes. The marble pattern won't be as dramatic in a flat pan, but the flavor is identical. If you want the single-serving version, my pumpkin mug cake is ready in under 5 minutes.
How do I keep the cake from sticking to the pan?
This is the step I never skip: coat every groove of the pan with softened butter using your fingers (a brush misses the crevices), then dust oat fiber through a mesh strainer over the entire surface. The oat fiber creates a barrier that regular flour can't match, and it keeps the carb count at zero. I've had exactly one stuck cake, and it was the time I got lazy about the butter coating. Do it right and the whole thing pops out in one piece.
I'd never tried anything with two separate batters before and kept second-guessing myself the whole time, like whether the layers would actually stay distinct or just turn into a muddy mess. They didn't. The pumpkin and chocolate stayed swirled when I cut into it and I stood there for a second just staring at it. The almond flour makes it denser than regular cake, which surprised me, but once it cooled it sliced clean. I used the cream cheese frosting from the recipe and drizzled it kind of aggressively (no regrets). Three days later I'm still having a slice with my morning coffee. Did not plan on that.
My son called dibs on the first slice just from seeing the cream cheese drizzle go over the swirl. He's not keto and normally ignores anything I describe as 'fall-flavored.' He came back to ask what the orange layer actually was, which is probably the best review I've gotten.
Didn't tell my husband there was pumpkin in it, and when he came back for a second piece and I pointed out the swirl he got very quiet. Said everything. The chocolate layer carries the whole thing.
I've made probably four or five different keto pumpkin cakes over the years and the issue is always the same: either the texture is off or the flavor is too one-note. The swirl here fixes both. The chocolate layer breaks up what can get heavy with a straight pumpkin batter, and the pumpkin half has enough spice to actually register against it. Cream cheese drizzle over the top was the right call.
The spice level took a few attempts. Too heavy and it drowns the chocolate layer out entirely. Current ratio is where I wanted it to land.
Made this for Sunday dinner and my daughter kept picking the chocolate swirls out first (thought she was being sneaky about it). Would have gone full 5 but the pumpkin layer came out a little drier than I expected.
Ha, the sneaky chocolate-first strategy. Dry pumpkin layer is almost always a couple extra minutes in the oven. It shows overbaking faster than the chocolate side does. Pull it when the toothpick still has a few crumbs.
Added a handful of Lily's dark chocolate chips into the chocolate layer and they melted into these little pockets all through the cake. So worth it. Also for anyone nervous about the bundt pan release like I was, the butter coating trick actually works, mine came out in one piece.
Lily's chips in the chocolate layer sounds way better than the plain swirl. Adding that next time. And yes, butter in every groove. I've had one stick before and it's not pretty.
Is there a gluten free alternative to the oat fiber? One article I read suggested quinoa flakes. Not sure how that would work, though.
Oat fiber is naturally gluten free since oats are not wheat. The brand I linked to doesn't state that it's gluten free but there are others that do state this on the package.