Easy Vegan Lemon Cake
This is the easiest Vegan Lemon Cake you will ever make! It is only 6 ingredients and takes just 10 minutes prep time. It is incredibly light, fluffy, moist and amazingly, delicious!
Servings: 16 slices
Calories: 163kcal
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups (224g) regular white all-purpose flour (GF below)
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (170g) fine white sugar (SEE NOTES)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (210g) ROOM TEMPERATURE full-fat coconut milk (THIS cannot be subbed, it replaces all oil/butter. SEE NOTES AT BOTTOM!
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37g) fresh lemon juice PLUS the zest
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
LEMON GLAZE
- 1 cup (152g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15g) fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (15g) 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 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.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- This step is VERY important to the cake end result. Make sure you are using can of room temperature, NOT COLD, full-fat coconut milk. With full-fat coconut milk, the coconut cream will separate from the water in the can. You need to 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. It must be blended before measuring..
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and lightly grease an 8x8 square stone baking dish. Stone is best, but if you don't have one, use glass or metal, just keep an eye, as the edges will cook a bit more in these types of pans.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and whisk well until mixed. Set aside.
- After you have premixed the coconut milk (from step 1), add the 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (210 grams) to a separate bowl (weighing for best results), then add the lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla extract. Whisk to mix and pour over the dry ingredients.
- Mix the batter with a large spoon and fold in the flour, gently, from the edges of the bowl into the batter. DON'T OVERMIX. Overmixing can result in a dense cake and a sunken center. Mix until just moistened and no flour is visible. The batter will be THICK. It will seem too dry at first, but as you mix and it gets moistened, it will loosen up a bit into more of a soft batter. DO NOT be tempted to add more liquid or you will not get the light and fluffy texture.
- Scrape all of the cake batter into the greased dish and spread out evenly and flat with the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The edges should be golden and pulled away from the edges. Cool for 45 minutes before glazing.
- This cake is SO good on it's own, but the glaze improves the lemon flavor A LOT. 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.
Notes
- COCONUT MILK: I cannot stress this enough the importance of the brand of coconut milk. DO not use a brand that has additives or gums, it will ruin the texture and make the cake dense and gummy. DO NOT use the Polar brand, it is all stabilizers and additives and not pure coconut milk. The only ingredients should be coconut and water. I like Trader Joes and the Sprouts grocery store brands. They all work well.
- MEASURING FLOUR: As you know, I always recommend a scale for the best results, following my weights listed, 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 and 1/4 cup (for the 1 3/4 cup total) but since you won't be using a scale, by measuring with this spoon method, you will need 1 additional tablespoon of flour to equal the 224 grams. I tested this spooning method myself and this was exactly how I arrived to 224 grams that you need for the recipe.
- Keep in mind, that even with measuring cups, they themselves can vary. This is also why some readers will have variances in weights when they try to compare, so just follow my weights listed.
- SIMPLE CAKE: This cake is for those who just want a very simple cake with very basic, regular ingredients. 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. I have plenty of other healthy recipes on the blog if you want a healthier cake! Try this Healthy Vegan Lemon Cake if you don't want to use white flour or sugar. It is low-fat and whole grain.
- SUGAR: This amount was JUST enough of the perfect sweetness to counteract sourness, it is lightly sweetened. I advise against subbing this with coconut sugar or another sugar, it will overpower the lemon flavor that way and change the cake.
- GLUTEN-FREE: Here is the gluten-free version of this cake!
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice | Calories: 163kcal | Carbohydrates: 32.2g | Protein: 1.8g | Fat: 3.3g | Saturated Fat: 2.8g | Sodium: 78mg | Potassium: 150mg | Fiber: 0.7g | Sugar: 20.4g | Calcium: 46mg