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.
I made this cake today and something did not go well for me. The cake is very dense and wet… I cooked in 6″ pan and for 25min. I measured all the ingredients and used acv for acid and Bob’s Red MIll 1:1 GF flour. I did let the batter sit for 20 min before cooking. What can I do to get a rise on the cake.?
Hi Chantale. Sorry to hear about that. We strongly recommend to bake the cake batter as soon as it’s mixed to ensure a perfect rise.
Great recipe! Made this Vanilla Vegan Cake 2 layers then Filled it with Homemade Strawberry Preserves then Topped with Vegan Chocolate Ganache! For my father’s 70th birthday! It was a hit! Everyone enjoyed it! Thank you 😊
That sounds amazing Angela! Thanks so much for sharing and for your lovely review!
Greatest cake, vegan or not of all time! I am a professional baker and this is my biggest seller! You rock!
Yay! So happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Lindsay! Thanks so much for your lovely review!
How could I turn this into a half sheet cake? Triple the recipe? How about the baking time and temperature?
Thank you!
Hi Edith. We have a recipe for vegan vanilla sheet cake recipe that will work for you. Let us know if you try it!
I made this into 12 cupcakes and they turned out perfect! I added chocolate almond milk so I called them chocolate milk cupcakes! This was made because my brother in law has recently turned vegan and I want to include him in all of the original sweets so he doesn’t miss out!
Oeh yum! We will definitely try that! Thanks for sharing Sadie!
I made this, minus the icing but plus the strawberries, and the batter came together so quick and easy I was shocked!! Cake came out perfectly too! Love, love, LOVE this recipe!! This will be my new go-to yellow cake recipe, PERIOD!! Thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU. 100 🌟
So happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Kendra. Thanks so much for your great review!
I have made this recipe 14 million times and everyone LOVES it. I even make it with zero frosting many times and it’s still delicious. I was wondering if could sub the vanilla extract with coconut extract (maybe reduce the amount??) for a coconut flavored cake. I see you have a coconut cake recipe as well, but I was curious if this is a logical sub since I have this recipe memorized. 🙂
So happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Sara! Yes that would work too!
This cake is so good! If doubled the original recipe so 440g flour, and baked it in a single 10 inch tin, do you have recommendations for the baking temperature and time?
Hi Jo.! The baking time should stay the same and you need to bake for longer than recommended. Try for 35min and do the toothpick test in the center of the cake. If the toothpick does not come out clean, bake for another 5 minutes or until the cake is baked through. Keep checking every 5 minutes as to not overbake your cake.
first time vegan cake. didn’t rise as much but ordinary cakes don’t either. great taste even without the topping . now in freezer as quite delicious
Thanks Denise!
I’ve tried a few vegan cake recipes. This is by far my Favorite!!! I used it first with your Pinnapple upside down cake!! Now, I’m making an Italian dump cake! Can’t wait! Thank you! <3
Yummy! Happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Casey! Thanks for your review!
Hi there! If I use regular buttermilk is that okay?? I know it won’t be vegan anymore but it’s what I have right now lol
Love all your recipes!!!!
Thank you !
Yes, that will work too Christin. 🙂
Hello! I was wondering if I can freeze this cake? And if so, how long can it be frozen for? Let me know, thank you!
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).
Can you use organic cane sugar instead of white granulated sugar? Is there a difference?
I’m not sure what the difference is, but I think you can use it.
Will this fit into an 8×8 inch square cake pan? Also can I make this GF with Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 flour?
Hi Lily. Yes you can make it gluten free with Bob’s Red Mill. We haven’t tested the recipe in that size pan before, so I can’t say for sure.
Can you use caster sugar or is granulated better?
Yes, you can use caster sugar instead Laura.
This looks delicious and I want to make cupcakes for my daughter’s birthday. Should I adjust the temperature or just cook them until a skewer comes clean? I’m not much of a baker, I’m afraid, but hoping this recipe is a success!
Hi Sheryl, we have a vegan vanilla cupcakes recipe adapted from this one that you can try!