This Best Vegan Vanilla Cake recipe is easy to make and so delicious! It’s a soft and moist vanilla layer cake with homemade buttercream frosting. Perfect for birthday parties, weddings, and for any occasion!
Best Vegan Vanilla Cake
You can never go wrong with a classic vanilla cake, can you? Or is it possible that there are people who don’t like vanilla flavor?! Well, I think not! Since my friend asked me if I could make a wedding cake for their wedding, one that doesn’t just look pretty, but is also delicious for everyone, I thought vanilla would be just perfect! So I wanted to practice my layer cake skills and I came up with the idea of taking pictures of it to share my favorite basic vegan vanilla cake recipe with you!
Versatile Vanilla Cake Recipe
I have always loved vanilla cake and honestly, it’s like an obsession. You can make so many things out of the basic recipe, for example creating a classic layer cake, or one with fruity filling, or even just making a simple loaf, pound cake or sponge cake. Another great idea is to make a bundt cake or easy cupcakes or muffins which are ready super quick! Because of all these possibilities, I wanted to have a classic vegan vanilla cake recipe here on my blog which you can make anytime!
One of the first Vegan Vanilla Cake recipes I posted here on my blog was my Cranberry Vanilla Cake. It’s a super soft cake, has a nice fluffy texture and is layered with fruits and whipped cream frosting. But since then, I have changed a couple of things, figured out that it gets even fluffier when adding Aquafaba!
What is Aquafaba?
Actually, Aquafaba is just the leftover liquid from cooked chickpeas. It can be whipped up into stiff peaks similar to real egg whites which you can use to make vegan chocolate mousse for example. But it can be also added to recipes un-whipped as an egg binder, such as in this vegan chocolate cake roll. And when you whip it up just until foamy, it’s a great egg white substitute that makes your cakes fluffier in texture such as today’s Vegan Vanilla Cake. And don’t worry, you won’t taste it. Even if the chickpea brine is a little salty, that is totally ok. Anyway, you can also just add more non-dairy milk if you don’t want to use Aquafaba.
Easy Vegan Vanilla Cake Recipe
What I also love about this vanilla cake is not only the delicious flavor and texture but also the simplicity. The batter is made with only a few basic ingredients and comes together super quick in one bowl. You don’t need special kitchen utensils – Just a bowl, hand mixer, spatula and a cake pan (or three pans for a layer cake). Simply mix everything together, fill it into your pan and bake! Sounds very easy, right?
Vegan Buttercream Frosting
When you decide to make a layer cake with frosting as I did, there are some options for making the buttercream. I prefer to lighten the buttercream with vegan cream cheese. So I use two parts of vegan butter and one part of vegan cream cheese. Anyway, you can also make the frosting by using only vegan butter. Alternatively, you could also frost your layer cake with whipped cream. But take note that the cake will then probably not keep its shape very well since whipped non-dairy cream is super light and often melts quickly.
Vegan Vanilla Naked Cake – How to assemble a Layer Cake
Please don’t stress trying to create a layer cake that looks perfect. Just have fun assembling and decorating it and don’t worry too much about how it looks. It may take a little time if this is the first time you’re building a layer cake, however, it is really not complicated since we have just two layers – the vanilla cake layers and the buttercream frosting. All you have to do is to spread the buttercream over your cake layers and stack them. Finally, spread the remaining frosting all over the cake, including the top and sides, creating a naked cake. I am very sure, in the end, your layer cake will be beautiful and very delicious too! So please don’t be afraid, and give it a try!
Cake Decoration Suggestions
To decorate your naked cake, you can just pick up some fresh flowers from the garden as they’re so beautiful and organic too. Or use fresh fruits, such as berries, if you have any. Since cherries are currently in season here in Germany, I wanted to use these for today’s recipe. And if you want to bring this cake to a party, you could also create a fancy birthday cake style decor using colorful sprinkles, or making pipes or crazy marble effects by adding food colors or powders into the frosting. Just be creative!
Why you will love this Recipe!
As I mentioned before, this Vegan Vanilla Cake is actually fairly easy to make, very versatile and you can create it pretty too. There are no special ingredients required, nothing extraordinary. You just need simple ingredients you may already have in your pantry, and – don’t forget – vanilla bean or vanilla extract for the flavor!
Looking for more Vegan Cake Recipes? Then you may also like my
- Strawberry Lemon Cake
- Chocolate Raspberry Cake
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Snickers Cake
- Blueberry Lemon Cake
- Vegan Black Forest Cake
- Best Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Strawberry Cream Cake
- Cranberry Vanilla Cake
- Poppy Seed Lemon Cake
- Vegan Zebra Marble Cake
If you try this Best Vegan Vanilla Cake Recipe or maybe another of my Recipes, please leave me a comment below sharing how it turned out for you! And if you take a picture of your recreation and share it on Instagram, please do not forget to tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka to make sure I will not miss your post! Happy baking! 😊
Vegan Vanilla Cake
Author:You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
Vegan Vanilla cake
- 2 cups (480 ml) non-dairy milk
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
- 4 ½ cups (560 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup (120 g) aquafaba liquid from 1 x 14 oz can chickpeas, or sub more non-dairy milk
- ¾ cup (170 g) vegan butter softened
- ¾ cup (165 g) oil
- 1 ¾ cups (350 g) sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp lemon zest optional
Vegan Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup (225 g) vegan butter softened
- 4 oz (115 g) vegan cream cheese softened, or sub more vegan butter
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
Vegan Vanilla Cake
- Combine the non-dairy milk and the vinegar and set aside until to curdle into vegan buttermilk.
- Preheat oven to 356°F (180°C). Grease three 8-inch (20cm) cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Pour the liquid from a can of chickpeas into a mixing bowl and beat with a hand mixer for a minute just until foamy. (It is similar to real eggwhites and makes the cake fluffier but you can skip it and just add more non-dairy milk instead).
- In another bowl, beat the softened vegan butter, oil and sugar until creamy and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low, add the whipped aquafaba and the vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
- Now alternate adding the flour mixture and vegan buttermilk in 4 batches, mixing until just combined after each batch. (Please do not overmix or your cakes will get dense).
- Divide the batter evenly between your prepared cake pans and bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean. (Please do not skip the test as the baking time may vary, depending on your oven.)
- Let cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then carefully invert them onto a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting. (If making the cakes ahead, you can wrap each cake in foil and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days).
Buttercream Frosting
- Beat the soft vegan butter with a hand mixer until creamy and fluffy. Then add the softened cream cheese and mix until combined. Gradually, add the powdered sugar, and a squeeze of lemon juice and mix until creamy and well combined. (If the frosting is too firm and not spreadable, add a little more lemon juice. Or if it is too soft, add more powdered sugar).*
Assembling the Cake:
- Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread ¼ of the buttercream over. Top with the next layer, and repeat this process for the second and third layers. Finally, spread the remaining buttercream frosting all over your cake and sides creating a naked cake style.
- Chill 3-4 hours in the fridge before decorating and serving.
- Enjoy! 😊
Notes
- To make this cake gluten-free, I recommend using a gluten-free flour blend 1:1.
- Make sure that the vegan butter is softened, but please do not melt in the pot or microwave! Simply remove from the fridge approx. 1/2 hour before you start, cut into small cubes and set aside until soft.
- You can store the buttercream frosting in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks. It will firm up when it cools, and it softens at room temperature.
- If you want to make a fruit layer, you can check out my recipes for strawberry lemon cake, blueberry lemon cake, raspberry chocolate cake or strawberry cream cake.
- Please read the text for further information about this recipe.
- The nutritional information is calculated for 1 piece of 16.
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Hello,
I am making your recipe as a wedding cake and making 2 9inch cakes with 4 layers and 1 7inch cake with 4 layers.
For the 9 inch – would you suggest doubling the recipe and baking in 2 9 inch pans? I can then cut these in half to make 4 layers and of course bake for longer?
Thank you for your help 🙂
Hi Rachel!
If you want to know how much of each ingredient you need for making the cake in another pan, please use my calculator: https://biancazapatka.com/en/cake-pan-conversion-calculator/ . To bake it in two pans is not a good idea. 🙂
I would stick to the given baking time and check if the cake is ready with a tooth pick. If it’s not done yet, bake it for another 5 minutes and check again.
This one was a complete fail for me 🙁 it has been in the oven for an hour and is still not cooked. Not sure where I have gone wrong!
Batter was very aerated is that normal?
Hi Carley!
Did you exchange any ingredient? I can’t imagine what would lead to a batter that won’t bake through in the given time. 🙁 What kind of flour did you use?
Recipe worked quite well, but I have two little warnings: first, don’t be surprised if your aquafaba won’t foam properly, mine wouldn’t! Must be something to do with the brand, so perhaps find a brand that works and stick to it. Second, I used nuttelex as the butter – it seems to cream with the sugar quite well by itself, but with the oil it was just too liquid. So I missed out on two of the main leavening agents – but even so, the cake turned out quite well, just more dense than anticipated!
Hi Sven, I’m sorry to hear that you’ve had trouble with the aquafaba. Sometimes it takes forever to whip it to the right texture. It’s awesome that you’ve had a delicious cake at the end nevertheless. 🙂
Hey im wanting to fully ice the cake with butter cream gonna do two toned(yellow and pink) for my daughter first birthday.
Should I do a crumb crust inch first and is there enough icing in the recipe to allow for this?
Thank you 😀😀
Hi Tanya,
you don’t need to do a crumb crust first. The icing in this recipe won’t be enough because it is calculated for a naked cake (just like you see on the photos). 🙂
Can these layers be frozen or made in advance? Also, can it be made gluten free?
Yes, you can make the layers ahead, then wrap in cling film and refrigerate until ready to use or place in a freezer bag and freeze. You can also make it gluten-free by using a gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour. 🙂
Hi! This vanilla cake look amazing. I have a question, do you think it will bake to the right consistency if i make it in an 8inch really tall cake pan instead of the 3 pans you call for?
Yes, you can! However, be sure to increase the baking time as tall cakes take longer until baked through. You can test it by inserting a skewer into the center. When it comes out clean, it’s done baking!
I made this for my son’s engagement dinner last night ( his fiancé’s family is vegan). I used the shorter 1 1/2 inch pans & it worked fine.
I added fresh blackberries to the cake batter, brushed the cake layers with a gin simple syrup before layering with vegan buttercream ( I didn’t use the cream cheese) and a little homemade blackberry jam. It was AMAZING! Everyone loved it!
That’s so cool! Thank you for sharing this with me. I’m happy that you all enjoyed the cake. 🙂
Loved the cake! Novice baker here…so I have a few questions:
Mine was a very different colour (still delish though). I used coconut sugar. What type of sugar are you using? I also used coconut oil…is there a particular oil that I’m meant to be using?
My icing, whilst nice, wasn’t anywhere near the consistency of yours. I could still kind of see the sugar crystals. How long are you needing to blend it for?
Thanks x
Hi Lia,
coconut sugar has a darker color than regular white sugar or raw cane sugar so this will also make the cake darker. Therefore I recommend using white or raw cane sugar as I did.
When using powdered sugar for the frosting as written in the recipe, you won’t see any crystals and you’ll get a better consistency. I usually mix the butter around 3 minutes and another 1-2 minutes when adding the cream cheese and the powdered sugar.
Greetings,
Bianca
Hi – I’ve never made a vegan cake before, and this recipe sounds delish!
Just a couple questions, for the 8 inch pans, do they need to be 3 inch tall pans, or can they be shorter 1 1/2 inch pans? (I have 3 of the shorter, but only one 3 inch tall in the 8 inch size)
Also, I am planning on adding fresh blackberries to the batter and then brushing with a gin syrup before frosting. Have you tried adding fresh berries to the cake with success? I’m assuming I should just dust them with a little flour and gently fold them in….
Hi there,
I haven’t tested it yet with shorter 1 1/2 inch pans so I can’t guarantee if that fits. However, you can try it and then let me know! 😉
You can definitely add some berries tossed in flour or cornstarch!
Regards, Bianca
Very delicious cake recipe! I’ve made it three times now one plain vanilla, one caramel, and the third peppermint.
It holds up beautifully without getting dry and isn’t too sweet.
I like to pair it with my own ermine frosting recipe.
Thanks for sharing!
So glad you love it! 🙂
Many thanks,
Bianca ♡
I made this cake in two 8×3 inch pans. This was my trial wedding cake.. I had 3 people over to taste test…it was incredible. And my fiance said best cake he has EVER had..his mother wins awards for her baking and I got that compliment from him…wow…. all I can say is thank you so much!!!!
That’s great! So glad everyone was amazed! 🙂
Many thanks,
Bianca ♡
Goodmorning
Can the milk be substituted with water ? The person is allergic to nuts n dairy
You can also use rice, oat or coconut milk.
Does anyone know if I can use two 8inx3in pans with this recipe? Thank you
I’ve already replied to your previous comment! 🙂