Vegan Lemon Almond Cake

Apr 13, 2019 (Last updated Sep 12, 2021) by Hannah Sunderani

Vegan Lemon Almond Cake

Say hello to this gorgeous Vegan Lemon Almond Cake. It’s moist, lemony, nutty, and light. The perfect blend of sweet and citrus. Topped with a classic lemon buttercream frosting. Needless to say it’s the perfect cake for a celebration, don’t you think?

And that’s exactly what this cake is for! To celebrate 75K followers on Instagram woohoo! It makes me so happy to have so many of you enjoying my recipes and creations, and so I thought I’d share this celebratory cake to mark the occasion?

Vegan Lemon Almond Cake vs. Non-Vegan

So what’s inside this Vegan Lemon Almond Cake? Exactly what you’d imagine. A vegan cake really isn’t that different from a non-vegan cake. The ingredients only vary slightly to give the same delicious taste and results. If you’re suprised about this know that you’re not alone, I too couldn’t believe just how simple it is to bake vegan cakes until I tried it.

In a nutshell this cake blends together coconut oil, cane sugar, lemon juice and zest, flour, almond milk, almond meal, and coconut yogurt. Nothing sneaky or surprising about these ingredients to say the least. See what I mean? In a nutshell it’s not that different from a normal cake mix.

It always surprises my friends and family, that are in awe when they taste one of my vegan cakes for the first time. Dairy free AND vegan with this light and pillowy texture?! Who would have thunk!

Suffice to say the simple substitutions in this recipe for a vegan cake are easy changes that anyone can make, whether you’re vegan or not. Subbing milk for almond milk and yogurt for coconut yogurt (or soy). Which is why I love this recipe! I can give it to my mum or grandma and know they won’t run into any problems that only a vegan baker would know how to solve.

So if you’re new to vegan baking – don’t fret. This Lemon Almond Cake is just like making a traditional cake, and yields that same delicious results for all eaters to enjoy.

How to make Vegan Lemon Almond Cake

Just as you’d make a regular cake! Are you seeing a trend here? For this recipe I began by combining the liquids together – melted coconut oil, plantbased milk, lemon juice and zest and then adding in the sugar.

I whisked my flour overtop of the liquid mixture and stirred gently to combine. Then I folded in the almond butter and coconut yogurt.

For this recipe I choose to divide the batter into two round cake-tins (10 inches in diameter) to make a tiered cake. I love the impressive look it gives. However, you could also bake the cake in a budnt pan with the same ratios, or make two cake loaves with the batter.

For the vegan lemon buttercream frosting:

To continue with my fuss-free and classic theme, I went for a classic lemon buttercream frosting. Combining vegan butter (I used coconut butter by Vitaquell called Vita ‘Coco) with powdered sugar and lemon juice.

Using my hand mixer I combined 1 cup vegan butter to 3 cups icing sugar. Then added in lemon juice 1 tsp at a time. The amount of lemon juice you add depends on how thick you want your icing. For me I only needed two teaspoons worth of lemon juice for it to form into a thick and spreadable icing, but if you want it more like a glaze than add more lemon juice for a thinner pour.

This is a classic buttercream frosting recipe made vegan. However, you can always opt in for an icing alternative that, like whipped coconut cream or coconut yogurt.

A few notes about the recipe:

It’s nice to know that this recipe freezes very well! In fact, I froze half the cake and served it a few days later when we had family visiting. Keep it in the fridge and remove 3-4 hours before serving.

In addition, I’d recommend storing any leftovers in the fridge if you plan to keep the cake for longer than 24 hours. I tend to think with the mylk and yogurt it’s better to keep it refrigerated.

I have recommended to bake this cake for 45 minutes, as this is as long it took me for a perfect cake consistency. But, depending on your oven it could be more or less. To ensure the cake is cooked through insert a toothpick into the deepest part of the cake. If it comes out clean you know it’s cooked throughout.

A cake of this size will feed a party! I would say around 10-15 people. If you’re having a smaller group feel free to halve the recipe, or freeze half of the cake.

Other recipes like this Vegan Lemon Almond Cake:

If you’re a fan of lemon flavoured recipes you might also like to try out these:

• Lemon Cheesecake Tartlets
• Lemon Chia Pancakes

Or, try out these cake recipes for other similar, classic style cakes:

• Vegan Chocolate Cake with Berries and Whipped Cream
• Holiday Spice Cake

So there we have it, a delicious and classic Vegan Lemon Almond Cake for any celebration. Vegan or not, this is a cake for all eaters to enjoy – especially for those who love lemons! I do hope you’ll give this recipe a try.

And, if you do make this recipe please let me know in the comments below what you think! I love hearing from you. And of course, tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #twospoons. Nothing makes me happier than to see your recreations.

Vegan Lemon Almond Cake

5 from 2 votes

By Hannah Sunderani

Vegan Lemon Almond Cake. It's moist, lemony nutty, and light. The perfect blend of sweet and citrus. Topped with a classic lemon buttercream frosting. Needless to say it's the perfect cake for a celebration, don't you think?

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Serves 15 people

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 1 cup coconut oil melted
• 1 1/4 cup cane sugar
• 2 cups almond milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup lemon juice + the zest of 4 lemons
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt , finely ground
• 2 cups almond flour (ground blanched almonds)
• 1/2 cup coconut yogurt

For the lemon butter cream frosting

• 1 cup vegan butter (or margarine)
• 3 cups icing sugar
• 2 tsp lemon juice (plus more if needed)

US CustomaryMetric

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350F/176C. Wipe two round cake pans lightly with coconut oil. (I used two 10-inch/25 cm non-stick cake tins). Dust with flour, shake out the excess, and set aside.
• Whisk together coconut oil and cane sugar with electric mixer in a large bowl. Pour in almond milk, vanilla, lemon juice and the zest of four lemons. Mix to combine.
• Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt into mixture. Mix gently until just combined, then fold in almond meal and coconut yogurt.
• Divide batter evenly between your two cake tins. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let cool completely before removing from cake tins or frosting.
• For the Lemon Buttercream frosting: Add vegan butter to a mixing bowl. Sift icing sugar into bowl bit-by-bit while mixing together with an electric mixer. Add lemon juice 1 tsp at a time until you've reached desired icing thickness (I used 2 tsp lemon juice in total).
• When cake has cooled. Lather each cake generously with icing sugar and stack on on top of the other for a tiered cake.

Notes

Cake will keep in fridge for up to one week, but best served fresh.

This cake also freezes very well! Wrap tightly or store in an air-tight container. Let thaw fully (1-2 hours) before serving. (You can store as a whole cake, or in individual cut slices).

Nutritional information is a rough estimate. 

Approvals

Nutrition

Calories: 447kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 308mg | Potassium: 107mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 575IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 114mg | Iron: 2mg

DID YOU

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and hashtag it #twospoons

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