This is the easiest BEST Easy Vegan Vanilla Cake you will ever make! It is only 7 ingredients and takes just 10 minutes prep time. It is incredibly light, fluffy, moist and amazingly, delicious! Oil-free, no oil or vegan butter!
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 zero out in between each ingredient. My recipes are 100% tested specifically using my exact weights and your results will turn out as mine are pictured this way. SEE NOTES at bottom if you don't have a scale.
Instructions
Make sure the milk and yogurt are not cold and are room temperature! This is very important because if they are cold from the fridge, your batter will be hard to mix up, making the batter overly thick and cause overmixing to happen, which results in a tough/dense cake. Lighter cakes are the result of room temperature ingredients.
Preheat the oven to 350° (177°C) and spray a 9x13 glass pyrex dish with nonstick spray. Wipe off excess oil if too much is sitting on the bottom or in the corners, but be careful not to wipe too much off, otherwise the cake will stick.
To a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt and whisk very well.
To a separate bowl, add the coconut milk, yogurt, hot water, vanilla and vinegar. Whisk until smooth.
Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and use a large spoon to gently stir together the batter until moistened and just mixed, making sure to scrape from the bottom. Do not use a whisk, as this will overmix the batter. You want to stir until just mixed and moistened, do not overmix, as this can result in a tough/chewy cake. The batter will be quite thick, this is normal, do not add more liquid. It is okay for the batter to look thick and lumpy, as long as it’s mixed.
Pour the batter into the dish and spread out the top evenly into the pan and in the corners. Don’t worry about the top looking perfect, it will magically bake up perfectly and smooth on top.Bake for 20-25 minutes. I baked 2 separate cakes and each was exactly perfect at 23 minutes. It is done when a toothpick is clean from the center.
Cool completely before frosting. Cover the cake with foil tightly so it stays moist and store the cake at room temperature. I used my classic Vanilla Buttercream for the true classic vanilla cake perfect for parties and guests, but if you want to avoid oil or butter, this Cream Cheese Glaze (likely have to double for the full cake) would also be delicious.
Notes
Nutrition is for cake only, not including frosting.
Measuring Flour: As you know, I always recommend a scale for the best results, following my weights listed. Baking is very scientific and especially with oil-free cakes, precision is super important. You can find a scale linked to the one I buy above or at pretty much any store these days and are very inexpensive. But if you don't have a scale or really do not want to get one, make sure to measure your flour this way: Place the cup on the counter and spoon the flour from the bag into the cup, filling it all up, overflowing a bit and then take a butter knife and level it off. Measure the 1 cup this way and the 1/2 cup tablespoons (for the 2 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp total) but if you aren't using a scale and measuring this way, you will need 1 1/2 additional tablespoons of flour to equal the 336 grams. As you can see though, it's very easy to measure off this way, so using a scale is better.
Coconut Milk: I highly recommend the Thai kitchen brand, it’s super creamy and high quality. Do not use the Polar brand, it is mostly fillers and will ruin the texture.
Yogurt: The yogurt is key here, it aids in a rich vanilla flavor and overall flavor because of the tang that yogurt provides, yet, do not worry, because the cake itself does not taste like yogurt at all. Also, the yogurt is acidic, therefore giving the cake rise, fluff and makes it super moist. Vanilla yogurts I am able to find at pretty much any grocery store. I used the So Delicious coconut yogurt. I would advise against soy yogurt, as it’s very high protein and will make the cake rather chewy. This is important in this case because the cake is on the low-fat side and adding soy will make it more tough.
Classic Cake: You do not want to sub these ingredients, as I found it very finicky and this recipe posted works perfectly. This cake is designed for those who want a very simple cake with very basic ingredients like white flour and sugar. It is not meant to be one of my standard healthier flours and sweeteners I usually use in recipes. This isn't the cake to change all the ingredients. If you want a gluten-free refined sugar-free vanilla cake, make my Vegan Gluten-free Vanilla Cake instead!