This easy Vegan Gluten-Free Lemon Cake is so simple to make, only 8 ingredients plus a light, fresh and bright lemony glaze to go on top! The cake is really fast, fluffy and tender and is also oil-free!
VEGAN GLUTEN FREE LEMON CAKE
I love lemon cake, which I think is apparent after making this Easy Vegan Lemon Cake and also this Healthy Vegan Lemon Cake, but today I’m sharing yet another version of lemon cake, a vegan gluten-free lemon cake! It is of course, also oil-free. After posting the super fluffy easy lemon cake, of course all the gluten-free requests were coming in. I already had this one testing in the works. It was a challenge though, because I tried to get it fluffy and light, but still really moist. That is always more of a challenge when it comes to vegan cakes, so they not only keep their structure, have moisture, but not be gummy. It is much easier with cookies and muffins, but this cake took me at least 7 trials to get the way I wanted it flavor and texture-wise!
But seriously, check out how fluffy the gluten-free one still is!
This cake is super easy to make, soft and fluffy and requires only 8 ingredients to make. The glaze is the same as my main vegan lemon cake.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
(full recipe card with exact measurements below)
- Superfine blanched almond flour: If it’s not fine, it will leave the cake gritty and dense. Superfine almond flour makes cakes much fluffier.
- Superfine oat flour: Same thing here, I always buy store-bought oat flour because it is so fine and makes for thicker batters and fluffier cakes. I love Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free.
- Tapioca starch or cornstarch: I tested this recipe using all tapioca and also a version with all cornstarch. I found the cornstarch made it a tad drier and a tad more crumbly and the tapioca made it a bit more chewy than I like, so I did a final test using half of each and loved the result. Moist but also held its structure perfectly! But if you only have one, it is fine to use it, just keeping in mind my notes on the slight variance in texture.
- Fine granulated white sugar
- Baking powder
- Full-fat coconut milk: I use this milk here for yet again, fluffiness. Because of the fat content, it is very important for this gluten-free cake to be fluffy. Another milk will not have the same fat content and will make the cake denser and more chewy.
- Lemon juice and zest
- Vanilla extract
- Plus the glaze ingredients: You’ll need powdered sugar
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE LEMON CAKE
Step 1: First, you will need to mix the coconut milk from the can, since the cream separates from the water. It must be smooth and room temperature before measuring for the cake.
Step 2: Add all of the dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk well to break up any lumps that can form from the almond flour or starches.
Step 3: Add the coconut milk, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla to a separate bowl. Pour the liquids over the dry and whisk very well until mixed and a smooth batter forms. The batter will be quite runny, not thick.
Step 4: Pour the batter into the baking dish. It will be kind of low, but the cake will really fluff up a lot in the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Mine was perfect at 23 minutes. The cake will bake up perfectly flat on top.
Step 5: Let the cake cool 45 minutes or so before adding the glaze. Whisk the glaze ingredients in a small bowl until very smooth. Pour over the center of the cake and spread out evenly with the back of a spoon. Zest some lemon over the top for presentation. Let the glaze firm up a bit before slicing and serving.
HOW TO STORE THIS CAKE
This cake is so delicious even the next day, if not even better! This vegan lemon cake is best stored at room temperature covered with foil. I keep the cake in the dish. You could put it into the fridge though if you will not eat it within a couple of days. It will stay fresh and moist for 2-3 days.
MORE VEGAN CAKE RECIPES
- Vegan Gluten-free Funfetti Birthday Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Mug Cake
- Vegan White Wedding Cake
- Vegan Gluten-free and Grain-free Vanilla Cake
- Vegan Almond Butter Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Cake
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If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Vegan Gluten Free Lemon Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (56g) superfine blanched almond flour
- 1 cup (128g) superfine oat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill gluten-free)
- 2 tablespoons (16g) tapioca starch (SEE NOTES at bottom)
- 2 tablespoons (16g) cornstarch
- 3/4 cup (144g) fine granulated white sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (150g) ROOM TEMPERATURE full-fat coconut milk (THIS cannot be subbed, it replaces all oil/butter and is what makes the cake light and moist, it leaves NO coconut taste) I like Thai Kitchen and Taste of Thai brands, both work great here. DO NOT use the Polar brand, it is all stabilizers and additives and not pure coconut milk.
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37g) fresh lemon juice + zest of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon (5g) vanilla extract
LEMON GLAZE (Use all to glaze the whole cake or half of the recipe to just drizzle over the cake. Delicious either way!)
- 1 cup (152g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15g) fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (15g) thick non-dairy yogurt, plain or vanilla. This gives a nice tang, but if you don't have it, add 1/2 tablespoon of any creamy milk instead.
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
NOTE
- I always recommend to use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed, since we all measure differently. This greatly improves your chance for success and lessons room for error. You never need cups or to compare them to the weights, just use the scale and bowl and make sure to hit zero before adding each ingredient. My recipes are 100% tested specifically using my exact weights and your results will turn out as mine this way.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Now this step is VERY important to the cake end result. Make sure you are using a fresh can of room temperature, NOT COLD, full-fat coconut milk. With full-fat coconut milk, the coconut cream tends to separate from the water in the can. Scrape out all of the water and cream from the can into a blender or another bowl and either blend it until smooth or whisk very well until completely smooth and mixed. If you do not do this first, you run the high risk of either getting too much cream or too much water and not the right mixed combo of each, will be really affect the cake’s texture. After it’s mixed and smooth, then measure the correct amount of milk needed for the cake.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and lightly grease an 8x8 square stone baking dish. Wipe off any excess runny oil. Stone is best for a soft cake around the edges, but if you don't have one, use glass or metal. The edges will cook a bit more in these types of pans.
- Add the oat flour, almond flour, starch, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large bowl and whisk well to break up any lumps that can form from the almond flour or starches.
- Add the coconut milk, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla to a separate bowl. Pour the liquids over the dry and whisk very well until mixed and a smooth batter forms. The batter is always quite runny, not thick. However, many readers have told me their batter is quite thick, so this can be due to quite different brands of almond flour and environments or cold weather, moist air, etc. I'm in humid Houston, TX so my batters are always more on the runny side. If you weighed accurately with a scale, you should still get a great result.
- Pour the batter into the baking dish. It will be kind of low, but the cake will really rise and fluff up while baking. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out completely clean. Mine was perfect at 23 minutes. The cake will bake up perfectly flat on top.
- Cool the cake 45 minutes or so until completely cooled before glazing.
- To make the glaze, add the ingredients to a small bowl and whisk for a few minutes until it's completely smooth and no lumps remain.
- Pour all of the glaze over the center of the cooled cake. Use the back of a spoon or an offset spatula and spread it out evenly all over the cake. Zest some more lemon over the top for presentation and extra zing of flavor. Let the glaze firm up a bit (15 minutes or so) and then slice and serve. This cake is fantastic even the next day, if not even better! Store it at room temperature in the same dish covered with a lid or foil. It will stay fresh 2-3 days.
Notes
- FLOURS: As noted, superfine flours work best. Homemade almond flour or oat flour tends to never be as fine as store-bought, and a bit more gritty, which will result in a more dense cake that is not very fluffy. Superfine almond flour is necessary so there are not bits of almond throughout or a wet/dense cake. I like the King Arthur flour, Wellbee's, Honeyville, Nature's Eats and Nut's.com brands best. They all work well.
- STARCH: I tested this recipe using all tapioca and also a version with all cornstarch. I found the cornstarch made it a tad drier and a tad more crumbly and the tapioca made it a bit more chewy than I like, so I did a final test using half of each and loved the result. Moist but also held its structure perfectly! But if you only have one, it is fine to use it, just keeping in mind my notes on the slight variance in texture.
- SUBS: This was heavily tested to make a delicious gluten-free version of my original Easy Vegan Lemon Cake that is divine and so fluffy, so please follow this for the best results. I tested 7 or 8 different versions with different flours and truly none of them were as good as this one. Baking is very scientific and adding gluten-free to that becomes every more scientific, so switching out flours just doesn't work well in most cases. This is because EVERY single flour performs differently in baking. This version is not quite as fluffy and light as the one with white flour of course, but still soft and fluffy and really delicious.
- BAKING AT HIGHER ALTITUDES: There are a few people saying their cake didn't rise, or sunk and live at higher altitudes. Please understand all my recipes are tested living at around 100 feet above sea level (Houston, TX) so I can only share what and how my batter, looks, how recipes bake, etc. for how they perform here. I am a perfectionist at testing multiple times before I post a recipe, so I guarantee the recipe works when followed correctly and in the right environment. Sadly, I can't give advice on higher altitudes since I don't live in them or have experience with them. Since baking is so scientific, meaning, for things to turn out as the recipe is shared and shown, every single detail is important for baked goods to work. The air pressure, moisture everything come into play. Even during colder weather or hot weather, batters will vary, and affect how they bake up. Here is a guide on higher altitude baking that may help. Again, since this recipe is oil-free and gluten-free, I don't know how well the guide will work, but hopefully it can help! Lastly, different brands of almond flour will vary in their texture, as well as coconut milk brands. This also can affect the texture of batters and the end result, which is why I always note and recommend which brands I use, if possible!
Hi Brandi, I would like to try this recipe but is it possible to replace the fine granulated white sugar with monk fruit sweetener (granulated white). Thank you
Hi Beatriz! I’ve never tried monk fruit, so I’m not sure of the comparison, but I know some bakers use them with no problem, so I’d say give it a try and let me know how it turns out!
I’ve made so many of your recipes — they’re all incredible. About to try this one. Is it possible to slice and freeze this lemon cake?
So wonderful to hear that!! I’ve actually never tried freezing this, so I’m really not sure, but it’s a moist cake, so you can always try!
I have frozen this amazing cake and it’s great!
Yay!!
Have you ever thought about how much you miss lemon bars as a vegan? Well. Miss them no more. This lemon cake will bring you right back to that glorious moment you first bit into a lemon bar. And your eyes will tear up and your jar will sting with the anticipation of swallowing this incredibly moist, flavorful, lemony, perfectly-textured cake. And you will never crave a lemon bar again. Make it now. You’re welcome.
Haha, you are the best Jenny, thank you for this wonderfully expressive and detailed feedback!!
Hi Brandi, thank you so much for this recipe. I followed the recipe to a T and it came out perfectly. I was initially a bit worried cos I don’t get that particular brand of coconut milk here and am glad that it still turned out well. Can’t wait to try out more recipes of yours. 🙂
So wonderful to hear it turned out perfect, thank you Shoba!
Hi Brandi, I find it interesting that you are already warning about substituting ingredients. I also bake by weight and I followed your measurement and my batter was very very thick. I changed the size of my loaf, instead I used smaller ones and still I got a dense result. I’m not new in GF baking nor plant base baking. This recipe was not a success for me.
Hi Eva! Sorry you had trouble, but this recipe isn’t meant to be baked as a loaf, but as a square 8×8 inch cake as listed. Baking in a loaf and additionally, in a smaller pan, will HUGELY affect how light and fluffy a recipe bakes through the center and turns out (much more deep and not shallow and spacious like a square pan), unless the recipe is written in the first place to be a loaf. This is especially true with gluten-free/vegan baking, which is very finicky. As far as your batter being thick, please see the notes section where I’ve addressed this specifically. Different brands of almond flour vary GREATLY, which will affect the thickness of your batter. I can only share the results of how my recipes are tested in my own kitchen and environment and brands I use. Almond flour baked goods are quite tricky. But I would stick to the size of pan as listed, it will make a big difference. I cannot accept low ratings for recipes that are not followed accurately, whether by using completely different sized pans or ingredients, as it DOES make a difference.
Loved your recipe!
I have just made the cake, replacing oat flour by rice flour.
It came out perfect: moist and with a delicious lemon taste. Will definitely try more recipes from you.
Thanks for sharing them!
SO glad you loved it!!
Hi Brandi, I come from Sweden and we do not have Bob Red Mill here. Hence I used the oat flour we have here which has a different composition of protein etc and I believe this was why my batter ended up being very very thick and it was so dense after I baked. Do you recommend any substitute to the flour?
It was so dense but the flavor was so good! However, I would like a fluffier cake. I think the issue lies with the flour.
Hi Cassandra, yes, other flour brands in other countries can perform completely different! What I would suggest is to just grind up oats into very fine flour and try that instead of buying the premade flour and that should yield much better results and just make sure to weigh.
I made this today. It’s super easy to make, and turned out really good, soft, and fluffy. Just a lil’ bit too sweet after adding the glaze. Maybe i need to reduce the sugar on the glaze for next batch.
Thank you so much Brandi ❤️
Hi Brandi- this is amazing My daughter made this for an anniversary cake – 32 years. With the quarantine the “kids” have come home to roost. We have a mixed household with celiac, non celiac gluten sensitivity, dairy sensitivity, and egg sensitivity. Cooking, and especially baking, can be a challenge. So after sampling this cake I just ordered your cookbook. Looking forward to trying more recipes. Thanks!!! Barbara
Yay, so happy to hear you loved this cake so much!!
This cake is so easy to make, and so amazing! The taste is on point! I love a very lemony lemon cake; and like your daughter, hate too sweet frosting. Mine always comes off and thrown into the garbage too lol. I really LOVE this cake so much, and so did everyone else in the family. Next, a key lime version! I also can’t wait for a carrot cake! Love your book and all your blog recipes I have tried!
That is so amazing to hear Janessa, thank you so much for the wonderful review!!
Hi! I am beyond excited to bake this today! Thank you for this delicious, gluten free version 👏🏼 I was wondering though, could cane sugar be substituted?
Hi Bri! You would need to grind the cane sugar so that it’s finer, since the granules are kind of big compared to the finer white sugar, so that the texture of the cake turns out correctly and fluffy.
I made this for Easter and it was incredible. My whole family loved it and asked for more. I tend to not read all the instructions when baking but I followed these carefully because vegan gluten free baked goods are so tricky. I was so glad I took the extra time to follow them closely. So worth it! Thanks for making our Easter extra special!
Hi Marianne! I’m so happy to hear it was incredible and loved by your whole family! And thank you for following the recipe closely, I’m always very detailed, especially with baking, to be helpful so you all have success!
I couldn’t get oat flour because of the quarantine & substituted Bobs Red Mill 1:1. It was still amazing & fluffy. It tastes like a lighter, fresher, fluffier version of Starbucks lemon cake. Really the best gluten free, vegan cake ever!
That is wonderful to hear it worked so well, thank you Cara for making it!
Wow, the lemon flavor is perfect. I used only a 1/2 of sugar and did not bother with the glaze, no need to.
Another great recipe
Awesome Sherri! Yes, I agree, this cake is so moist and sweet enough that a drizzle of the glaze is plenty!
Brandi, d o you think I could sub out maple syrup or honey? I have a friend who does not eat sugar for health reasons who would love this
Hi Sherri, no, unfortunately a liquid sweeter won’t work well here in this recipe, as that would be adding a lot of extra liquid to the batter and throwing the liquid to dry ratio off and would end up being a very dense/wet cake. The batter is already really runny. You are welcome to try using a coconut sugar if you like, but coconut sugar is very strong in flavor, not neutral like white sugar, and also dark in color, so it will change the delicate lemon flavor and make the cake much darker.
Thanks brandi
Love this recipe!
I’m so glad Lisa, thank you!
I made this cake yesterday – OH MY GOODNESS, it is sooo delicious and yummy and THE best gluten free and vegan cake I ever made!🥰 thank you so much for the recipe!🎉 I made my own oat flour and used ground almonds, and it still turned out sooo good!😍 sending love from Germany!
So very wonderful to hear this Becky, thank you for the awesome review!
Hey Brandi,
Not sure what I did wrong. I followed the recipe and the batter was pretty thick. After it cooked, it didn’t rise much.
We decided to call it a big biscuit cookie for Easter dessert 🤪
What do you think happened?
I had all the right ingredients, so I must have done something wrong.
Hi Marie! Oh no, that is definitely not right if your batter was really thick because as I’ve mentioned, it is pretty runny! It’s hard for me to say what happened without being there, so all I can do is guess, but a measurement had to be off if your batter was thick. Or the milk was mismeasured because it’s a runny batter and it rising a lot and is really fluffy! Are you using a scale? Hitting zero before and after each ingredient addition? Did you use coconut milk and NOT coconut cream?
The only thing I can think of is that I printed off the directions before the 3/4 cup of sugar was listed.
The coconut milk was room temperature, but we never turn the heat up past 68 🥶
It was a solid, but I left it out to warm up after I stirred it. I’m going to try it again and pay attention to the measurements more closely. Thanks for responding.
My husband literally finished a slice and said it tasted really good despite it not rising.
Can potato starch be used?
Hi Christina! Potato starch will make the cake slightly drier and a tad more crumbly, but you can try it. Potato starch dries out baked goods faster, but with all the moisture from the almond flour and coconut milk, hopefully it won’t make too much of a difference, just use the same weight amount of 32 grams.
Could I sub arrowroot for cornstarch?
Arrowroot tends to make things more gummy so I wouldn’t recommend it!
The cake tasted great but my batter was super thick as well! I was meticulous about measurements,
I had made the other Lemon Cake (not gluten free) w/ a gf standard flour. That use more coconut milk and you said the consistency would be super thick. They were both identical! Yes I used fine almond & oat flour. But the batter looked almost like the other cake! I don’t know what I did wrong either- i had to fight with it to get it into the pan!
If anyone else had batter that was thicker and you have any advice- pls let me know. I’m going to try again tonight (Oh mine didn’t rise well either)
But it tasted yummy – I’ll try tweaking with it (I would say it was an altitude thing ,but that doesn’t affect mixing, only baking!
Hoping to hear from someone!
Hi Karen, baking at different/higher altitude will be completely different in how a cake/baked goods rise, so that is why yours didn’t rise well. Unfortunately, I do not have any experience baking at higher altitudes and can’t give advice on how to adjust, nor can my recipes be rated this way either. My recipes are tested 100% multiple times before posting and the pictures always reflect how they turn out, as well as the directions and notations on how the batter looks, bakes up, etc. This cake rises significantly and the batter is very low in the pan before baking. There are a couple of other people trying to bake this at higher altitudes, which would explain the difference of a few having trouble and most (all the reviews above and below) having 100% success. All I know, from what I’ve read online is that higher altitudes I can’t say why your batter was thicker without being there to see the difference, all I can vouch for is how I make it here in my kitchen in Texas. The batter is definitely runny! Just like in the photo. Humidity will affect batter being mildly different, as cookie batters are also more damp in the summer versus the winter, as well as different brands of almond flour can vary in thickness. Lastly, if you used a gluten-free all-purpose blend for the other cake, those blends are entirely different I’ve found than all-purpose white flour and can turn into stiff batters that are hard to work with! That is why I don’t like using store blends. Every single brand behaves differently and are not reliable to me. Baking is so scientific that locations, environments, brands, etc. can all play a role. Higher altitudes seem to be a common cause of cakes not rising well and require adjustment from recipes (like mine) that are written at about 100 feet above sea level. Very different! Here is a guide online that might help?! Not sure how well this guide works for a recipe like mine that is also gluten-free and oil-free, but feel free to check it out! https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking
Hi Brandi!
I want to make this cake this weekend and went to the store today. I am confused on the type of coconut milk to purchase. Is there a brand you like the best? I bought the Pacific Foods Coconut in the carton but it says Plant-Based Beverage. The first ingredient is water, then coconut cream then coconut water. I’m thinking I got the wrong type.
Thank You!
Kelly
Hi Kelly! It needs to be the full-fat kind that comes in a can. The carton kind is not typically fatty enough and may not work correctly. I use either the Thai Kitchen brand or Taste of Thai. Both will work well. There is also a brand called Polar that you can use if you can’t find the 2 preferred ones I mention. You’ll know it’s the full-fat kind by the amount of fat noted on the label under the serving, it should say 12 to 14 grams of fat. The light kind says light, lite or low-fat, which you DON’T want. Hope that helps!
Loved this cake! It was quick and easy to make with my kids and turned out super fluffy, lemony and delicious!! We all loved it!!
So wonderful to hear that Salima!! Thank you for the amazing review!!
Happy birthday to me! 😉 For the second year in a row you happened to publish a dessert recipe just in time for my birthday and I feel immensely lucky and incredibly thankful, Brandi! Serendipitous and Oh So Delicious! The texture of this cake alone is perfection, but knowing it’s gluten-free blows me away! Add to that the sunny tart twang of lemon perfectly complimenting the richness of the cake-oh my. My lemon-loving daughter kept saying, “Super Yummy! Seriously, SUPER YUMMY!” Thank you thank you Brandi! 💛🍋
Awww happy birthday Colleen! I’m so thrilled to hear you loved this cake so much!! It was a labor of love testing-wise, haha, but I’m so happy with the results of it and glad to hear you were too! Thanks for making it and as always, taking the time to leave such a kind review!!
I made this recipe today. The glaze was delicious ! My daughters loved it ! This recipe is super easy to make and with affordable and easy to find ingredients. Enjoy !
That is so wonderful to hear Diana, thank you so much for leaving a review!
Hi Brandi, thank you for a wonderful recipe. My child cannot have oats in his diet, and his almond intake has to be limited too. Is there another flour combination that I can use to get similar results?
Hi Su! No, this recipe is completely based off of both oat flour and almond flour for the texture, as I tested it with numerous flours before arriving on this fluffy result. It just won’t turn out the same with other flours. Especially since almonds are high in fat and provide a lot of the moisture and soft texture. I would make my original lemon cake recipe or the healthy lemon cake version linked at the top of the post if he can’t have nuts or oats! I have 3 different lemon cakes to choose from, so hopefully one works!
This looks so good!!! I love a fresh citrus dessert to cut the chocolate from time to time. I love how easy it is to put together too! The boys will love it!
Thanks Sophia! Haha, yes, after all the lemon cake I’ve been testing and eating for the past week though, I’m now ready for chocolate again!
This cake is indescribably delicious! I haven’t been satisfied with a vegan cake until now and will definitely check out her other cake recipes. Thank you for sharing your incredible recipes!
Yay Laura! That is fantastic to hear, thank you so much for the amazing review!!
Hi Brandy! In the middle of making this cake and don’t see the amount of sugar for the cake. Is it 168 g just like your other cake recipe? Thanks! Can’t wait to try this!
*Brandi!
Stupid spellcheck!
Hi Colleen, refresh your browser, I added it a bit ago after I realized, but it’s there now, it’s 3/4 cup (144g)! It is a bit less since almond flour adds sweetness. Thank you Colleen!!
I didnt know oat flour is gluten free?
I buy bobs red mill certified gluten-free. You just have to make sure your buying gluten-free if you need it to be.