Light fluffy and delicious vegan vanilla cake! Two layers of vanilla sponge, topped with a velvety vegan vanilla frosting and fresh strawberries.
This vegan vanilla cake is light fluffy and dreamy! But what you’re going to like most about it is how EASY it is.
I’m going to admit, I had to play around with this recipe for quite a bit before I got it right.
The first time it was delicious, but I used a flax egg and while a flax egg is GREAT for most cakes, in the case of a vanilla cake when you want it to have the glorious light color, well….it didn’t work out so well.
I ended up with a delicious cake that looked like a seed cake and nothing at all like a vanilla cake.
The next time I tried it, it ended up way too dry, so I knew I needed to adjust the flour ratio.
I’m happy to report that the recipe you see below delivers the ideal level of moistness and as you can see, the color is totally gorgeous!
The vanilla flavor comes through perfectly, and by pairing it with vanilla frosting, you get yourself a whole lot of vanilla heaven going on!
Strawberries on top add a dash of gorgeous color and offset the vanilla flavor just right. However, feel free to use whatever cake decorations you please.
The strawberry dilemma…
I love the fresh fruit, but of course it doesn’t keep. You also have the small problem of the strawberries running and making the cake soggy.
So it really only works if you’re going to serve it within minutes of placing those strawberries on top.
So if you’re going to keep the cake around for a few days, then choose a different decoration OR just add some sliced strawberries to the individual slices as you serve them.
Even kids can do it…
I made this with my niece when she came for a sleepover at her aunt and uncle’s house. Since vanilla is her favorite flavor for everything, she loved this cake.
So seriously – this cake is easy enough that a kid can do it (with supervision, of course).
It’s really quite petite.
Just a little note that this cake is quite a small petite cake!
I used cake pans which are 7 inches round. The layers on this cake are not very tall, but I think it’s a perfect size and you get 10 nice sized slices out of it. You can also make this cake as a three layer 6-inch cake, or a single layer 9-inch cake.
To adapt this cake to different size cake pans, see our notes on how to do that below.
Vegan Vanilla Cake Q&A
You can try simply swapping the regular all purpose flour for a gluten free all purpose flour blend.
Yes, this recipe makes a perfect three layer 6-inch cake cake. Bake for 20 minutes.
Yes, but the layers are just a little thinner. You can also take a look at our vegan Victoria sponge cake recipe which is this recipe, adapted for 8-inch cake pans. You can also take a look at our vegan white cake which is made for 8″ cake pans. That recipe was adapted from this one and is basically a perfect vanilla cake, just adapted to be a little more ‘white’ in color (to fit the ‘white cake’ description) and to be 8-inches.
This exact recipe will make a single layer 9″ cake. So if you want to make a single layer cake, you can make this vegan vanilla cake recipe exactly as is, but just have a single layer instead of a 2-layer cake. We did this for our vegan pineapple upside down cake. Alternatively, you can double this recipe for a 9″ cake with two layers. I have included the exact measures for doubling this recipe in the notes section of the recipe card below.
Some have done it, if you read the comments below, it has been done. I don’t have a bundt cake pan so I haven’t got personal experience with that (yet!).
Yes you can! We have already done it, check out our recipe for vegan vanilla cupcakes, which is adapted from this recipe.
Storing and Freezing
Keep it covered at room temperature where it will stay perfectly fresh for a 2-3 days or keep it covered in the fridge to stay good for up to a week.
The cake is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. You can freeze it either frosted or unfrosted (but definitely don’t add strawberries if you plan to freeze it).
More Vegan Cakes
- Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Vegan Lemon Cake
- Vegan Carrot Cake
- Vegan Red Velvet Cake
- Vegan Banana Cake
- Vegan Strawberry Cake
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Vanilla Cake
Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cake:
- 1 ¾ cups All Purpose Flour (220g)
- 1 cup White Granulated Sugar (200g)
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 cup Soy Milk (240ml) or Other non-dairy milk
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ⅓ cup Canola Oil (80ml) or Vegetable Oil
- 1 Tbsp Distilled White Vinegar or Apple Cider Vinegar
For The Vanilla Frosting:
- 3 ¾ cups Powdered Sugar (450g)
- 3 Tbsp Vegan Butter (45g)
- 4 Tbsp Soy Milk or Other non-dairy milk*
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
For Decoration:
- Fresh Strawberries Optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray two 7-inch round cake pans (*see notes) with non-stick spray and cut parchment paper into circles to fit the bottoms.
- Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the sugar, baking soda and salt. Mix together.
- Add the soy milk, vanilla, oil and vinegar and give it a quick whisk with a hand whisk until just combined.
- Divide the batter evenly between your two prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Prepare your frosting. Add the powdered sugar, vegan butter, vanilla and half of the soy milk.
- Beginning on low speed, mix with an electric mixer, slowly increasing speed. Add the rest of the soy milk, only as much as needed until it is smooth and creamy. If your vegan butter has a higher water content, you may not need to use all of the soy milk.
- If your frosting is still a little thin, add more powdered sugar, if it’s a little thick, add more soy milk (a drop at a time). The consistency must be thick enough that it doesn’t slide off the cake, but thin enough to be spreadable.
- When your cake is completely cool, add frosting to the top of one of the layers.
- Add the second layer on top and frost it completely, using a knife to carefully frost the sides of the cake.
- Decorate with fresh strawberries and serve right away.
- If you’re not serving right away, then omit the strawberries or serve them on a plate alongside the cake, so it doesn’t get soggy.
Video
Notes
- I highly recommend you weigh the flour for the best results. Flour measures can be tricky, so weighing it on a food scale is the best way to ensure accuracy.
- The cake tins used in this recipe are 7 inches round. This cake recipe as is will also make a three layer 6-inch round cake (bake for 20 minutes) or a single layer 9-inch round cake (bake for 30 minutes). It can also be made as a 9×9 square sheet cake (bake for 20-25 minutes). If you want to make this cake for 8-inch cake pans, see our vegan white cake recipe which is an 8-inch cake or the cake recipe for our vegan Victoria sponge. If you want to adapt this recipe to fit two 9-inch round cake pans see our full instructions below.
- If you want to double this recipe for a 9-inch round two layer cake, then the ingredients list will be as follows: 3 and ½ cups (438g) All Purpose Flour, 2 cups (400g) White Sugar, 2 tsp Baking Soda, 1 tsp Salt, 2 cups (480ml) Soy Milk, 4 tsp Vanilla Extract, ⅔ cup (160ml) Canola Oil, 2 Tbsp White Vinegar. Everything else including baking times (30 minutes), remains the same. The frosting as listed in the recipe above will be enough to spread generously onto the top and middle of a 9-inch layer cake but not enough to frost the sides as well. Take a look at our vegan buttercream frosting recipe which is enough to frost this whole cake when made as a two layer 9-inch cake.
- Only add fresh strawberries to this cake if you’re going to be eating it right away. The strawberries are a fabulous addition to the flavor of this cake, BUT they run and can cause sogginess. So if you are keeping this cake for a few days, then either don’t use strawberries at all or just add some strawberry slices directly to the individual cake slices when served.
- Nutrition information is based on 1 serve of 10 with a very generous amount of vanilla frosting.
- Vanilla Frosting is from this recipe.
hi, using the same recipe how can I make glutenfree? Could you please list the ingredients? Thanks
Hi Ranjit. Only need to substitute the all purpose flour, cup for cup, with an gluten free all purpose flour.
Hi! I love this recipe so much and just spent the last few hours testing out gluten free versions, using a gluten free flour like bobs red mill works great but you have to add 1/2 tsp xantham gum for every cup of flour!
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for the yummy recipe. Made it for the first time and everyone loved it. I trippled the recipe to make 3x 9inch round cakes
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Eleni! Thanks so much for your great review!
This is such a great recipe when my son was in high school he asked me to make him a cake shaped like an apple so I made him an apple caramel cake. It was amazing! Well now he is 31 and a vegan so I searched and found this recipe! I only added 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 cut up golden opal apple. Then topped with vegan caramel. It was perfect! Thank you!!!!
That sounds delicious Kerry! Thanks for sharing and for your great review!
I use this as a base recipe for many different combinations, like a Bakewell (strawberry fruit puree, ground and toasted flaked almonds with almond extract); Dried pear, walnut and cinnamon; Lemon; Coconut. It’s worked with all combinations. Thank you so much for sharing, it’s delicious 🌞
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Emma! Thanks so much for your great review!
The best vegan cake recipe- tried it out and it was delicious and a hit. Going to make this on repeat 😊
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Sunitha!
Surprisingly easy to make and Moist and delicious! Used an 11 x 8 rectangular glass pan in oven for 30 minutes and half the frosting- the whole family loved it! I think I’ll use a little less sugar next time though since I used vanilla flavored almond milk. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe with us!
That’s great Regina! Thanks so much for sharing and for your wonderful review!
I used the basic recipe but used vegan butter to grease the cake pan eliminating the need for parchment paper and cooking spray which is full of unhealthy chemicals. I did use avocado oil and reduce the sugar by half a cup and it came out perfect at 27 minutes in the oven.
Thanks for sharing and for your review Kalyn!
So yummy. Used what I had on hand which was almond milk and coconut oil. Everything else was the same as the recipe. The cake is so good, not just for vegan cake, for any kind of cake.
Yay! Glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe and thanks so much for your great review Courtnie!
How do I make this cake for 6layers.? I’m making a rainbow cake for my daughters 1st birthday and I can’t figure out what size pans to use.please Help!
Hi Rebecca. It depends on the size of cake you want to make. If you want to make a 7inch cake (like we did) for 6 Layers, then you would need to triple the ingredients. If you want to make a 6 inch cake, you will have to double the recipe.
HI!
I was wondering if water instead of milk would work??
Sure!
This is by far the best vegan cake recipe I’ve ever tried!!! Been making this one for years, as both cupcakes and cake, and everyone I know loves it! especially even the non-vegans I know! Thank you for making this delicious recipe :)!
Thanks so much for your lovely review Evelyn!
Hello 🙂
would pastry flour work here?
Thank you!
Love this recipe, I sub the oil for vegan butter 🙂
Awesome! Thanks for sharing Eva!
I cannot say THANK YOU enough for this recipe and clear directions. I made this cake for my own birthday and I can without a doubt say it’s the best vegan cake I’ve ever had. Only thing I changed is that I made my own chocolate fudge frosting for it. Seriously though, my family isn’t even vegan and they were raving about it! This will be my go-to cake now.
Yay! So happy to hear you and your family enjoyed the recipe Dimitra! Thanks for the great revie and Happy Birthday! 🙂
I’ve made this in the past and it turned out amazing. Can it be frozen in advance?
Hi Annabel. Thanks for the awesome review. Yes, you can bake this cake in advance. Wrap the cakes individually in plastic wrap and freeze them for up to 3 months.
Best vegan cake I have ever tasted, and it was one I made! Still can’t believe it. Everyone was so impressed and most of them weren’t even vegan.
Amazing! Thanks so much for your great review Dee!