Vegan White Cake

4.98 from 105 votes

This vegan white cake is light, fluffy and perfect! Topped with a simple white buttercream frosting it's a super pretty cake that's perfect for a special occasion.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Cakes, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegan

Servings:

Calories: 528kcal

Author: Alison Andrews

Ingredients

Vegan White Cake:

2 ⅔ cups All Purpose Flour (330g)
1 ½ cups White Granulated Sugar (300g)
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
¾ teaspoon Salt
1 ½ cups Almond Milk (360ml)
½ cup Canola Oil (120ml) or Vegetable Oil
2 teaspoons Clear Vanilla Extract

White Buttercream Frosting:

4 ½ cups Powdered Sugar (540g)
½ cup Vegan Butter (112g)
3 ½ Tablespoons Almond Milk
2 teaspoons Clear Vanilla Extract

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and spray two 8-inch cake pins with non-stick spray and line the bottoms with circles of parchment paper. Set aside.
Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the white sugar, baking powder and salt and mix together.
Add the almond milk, oil and clear vanilla extract and whisk in with a hand whisk until just combined. Don't overmix.
Divide the cake batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans and place into the oven to bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.
Allow the cakes to cool for a few minutes and then transfer them to a wire cooling rack and let them cool completely before frosting.
Prepare your frosting by adding the powdered sugar, vegan butter, almond milk and clear vanilla extract to the bowl of your electric mixer and start off at slow speed, gradually increasing speed until your frosting is thick and smooth.

Notes

Measure your flour correctly. Either use the spoon and level method: spoon it into a measuring cup and then level off the top with a knife, don't scoop it and don't pack it into the cup, or weigh it on a food scale for the most accurate results.
Almond Milk. We liked almond milk best for this cake as it's very white in color so works well in that respect. Of course you can use a different non-dairy milk such as soy milk if you prefer.
Canola Oil. We used canola oil in this cake and either canola oil or vegetable oil work great. Melted coconut oil also works.
Clear Vanilla Extract. It's ideal to use a clear vanilla so that it doesn't darken the cake. Some white cakes also use a few drops of almond extract. We opted not to in this recipe but if you do want to, then just make sure it's a very small amount as when it comes to almond extract a little goes a long way.
Cupcakes: This recipe will make 18-24 cupcakes. Baking time will be around 20 minutes.
Gluten-Free: If you'd like this cake to be gluten-free then be sure to use a gluten-free all purpose baking blend in the same quantity as the regular flour.
Storing: Keep the cake covered at room temperature where it will stay good for a few (3-4) days. Alternatively store it covered in the fridge for up to a week. It's ideal to let it come to room temperature before serving. It's also freezer friendly up to 3 months if you want to freeze it.
This recipe was first published in July 2018. We have updated it with new photos and a few small changes to the recipe. The original recipe used baking soda (1 ½ tsp baking soda + 1 Tbsp white vinegar) and melted coconut oil. We re-tested the recipe and found baking powder to work best for the color and preferred canola oil for the texture, though melted coconut oil does work just fine if you prefer to use that.

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