Author: This is the vegan vanilla cake you've been searching for. Fluffy, moist, tender, and perfectly vanilla-infused. It tastes just like classic bakery-style vanilla cake, but it's totally egg-free and dairy-free. No one will ever guess.
FEATURED COMMENT:
Made this cake for my mom's birthday and we loved it. It was absolutely delicious, the texture was perfect, and it was so easy to make! Legit tastes like a gourmet recipe. - Clyde ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Why You'll Love This Cake
- Fluffy, soft, and tender (never dense or gummy!)
- Uses simple pantry ingredients, no aquafaba, no weird binders
- Perfectly sweet with rich vanilla flavor
- Reliable and foolproof - great for beginners
- So delicious, no one can tell it's vegan!!
This is my go-to celebration cake for birthdays, dinner parties, showers, and "just because it's Tuesday."
Ingredients for Vegan Vanilla Cake:
For the Cake:
- All-purpose flour - creates that perfect soft and tender crumb. Use a 1:1 gluten-free blend with xanthan gum for GF.
- White sugar - classic vanilla cake sweetness and moisture.
- Baking soda + lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar) - react together to make the cake rise. No, you can't taste the vinegar.
- Salt - balances the sweetness and enhances vanilla flavor.
- Plant-based milk - soy gives the best structure, but oat, almond, or cashew also work. Make sure it's unflavored.
- Light oil - keeps the cake super moist and fluffy. Use a neutral oil like canola or vegetable.
- Vanilla extract - the star flavor, so use pure vanilla if possible.
For the Frosting:
- Firm vegan butter (not tub-style spread!) - frosting needs structure so it pipes and swirls beautifully. My go-to is Earth Balance.
- Powdered sugar, vanilla, and a splash of plant milk - mix until fluffy and spreadable
- Decorations: vegan food coloring if you want to color your frosting. Sprinkles, nuts, berries, candies, cookies, shaved chocolate, or any fun decoration ideas you may have!
How to Make Vegan Vanilla Cake
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and line two 9-inch cake pans with parchment.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the plant-based milk, oil, lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar), and vanilla.
- Combine: Pour the wet mixture into the dry and stir until just combined. A few small lumps are totally fine - don't overmix.
- Bake: Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 22-28 minutes, or until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool completely in the pans.
- Frost: Beat the vegan butter until fluffy, then mix in powdered sugar and vanilla. Add plant-based milk as needed until smooth and spreadable. Frost, decorate, swoon.
More Vegan Cake Recipes You Might Like:
- Easy Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes
- Vegan Red Velvet Cake
- Vegan Confetti Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Spice Cake
- Vegan Lemon Loaf
- Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake
Storage & Make Ahead
Store this cake the same way you would a traditional vanilla cake:
- Room temperature: Store the frosted or unfrosted cake in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
- Refrigerator: Keeps well for up to 5 days.Tip: Bring to room temperature before serving for the best soft, fluffy texture.
- Freezer: Freeze unfrosted cake layers or the fully frosted cake (well wrapped) for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
FAQs
Can I make this gluten-free?
Yep! Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend that contains xanthan gum, such as Bob's Red Mill 1:1. Texture will be slightly more delicate and dense, but still delicious.
Can I use almond/oat/cashew milk?
Yes. Soy is my go-to because its protein helps the cake rise and gives the best texture, but any plant milk works.
Can I use margarine for the frosting?
No, the frosting needs firm vegan butter made for baking or it will melt. If your vegan butter is on the softer side, you can swap ½ cup of the vegan butter for ½ cup vegetable shortening for more structure.
Can I make this as cupcakes?
Yes! Here is my vegan vanilla cupcake recipe. (The same recipe, just tweaked slightly for the best cupcake results).
If you try this recipe, let us know by leaving a comment, rating it, and don't forget to tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram.
Bon appetegan!
Sam Turnbull.
(click stars to vote)
Vegan Vanilla Cake (Fluffy, Moist, & Foolproof!)
This vegan vanilla cake is fluffy, tender, and bursting with pure vanilla flavor. It uses simple pantry ingredients, and bakes into a beautiful two-layer celebration cake. No one will guess it's dairy-free and egg-free. Perfect for birthdays and special occasions. Looking for cupcakes instead? Get my Easy Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes recipe here.
Servings: - 16 slices (2-layer 9" round cake)
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Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients:
- 1 ⅓ cup plant-based milk, (such as oat or soy)
- ⅔ cup light oil, (such as canola or vegetable)
- ¼ cup lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, (for rise, you can't taste it)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Frosting:
- 1 cup firm vegan butter, (or ½ cup vegan butter + ½ cup vegetable shortening, see notes)
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 - 4 tablespoons plant-based milk, (such as soy or almond)
- Vegan food coloring, optional
- Vegan sprinkles, chopped nuts, shaved chocolate, or vegan candies, optional, for decorating
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly grease two 9-inch (or 8-inch) round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment for easy release.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk the plant-based milk, oil, lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar), and vanilla.
- Combine: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir until just combined. Don't overmix, some lumps are fine. Overmixing can lead to dense or flat cake layers. A light hand = fluffy cake!
- Bake: Divide batter evenly between the pans. Bake for 22-28 minutes, or until the tops are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool completely in the pans on a wire rack.
- Make the frosting: In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the vegan butter until light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and food coloring (if using), and continue mixing until smooth. If the frosting is too thick, beat in plant-based milk 1 tablespoon at a time until it's perfectly fluffy and spreadable.
- Frost & decorate. Ensure your cakes are cooled completely so the frosting doesn't melt. Spread frosting between the layers and over the sides and top. Add sprinkles or other decorations if desired.
Notes
Firm Vegan Butter: Some vegan butters/margarines are soft and spreadable, which is great for toast but not ideal for frosting as they can make it loose or melty. Use a firm vegan butter made for baking (it should say so on the package). If yours is on the softer side, you can swap ½ cup of the butter for ½ cup vegetable shortening to give the frosting more structure for piping and spreading.
Gluten-Free Option: Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend that includes xanthan gum (such as Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1:1 Baking Flour). If your blend doesn’t include xanthan gum, add ¼ teaspoon for better structure. Texture may be slightly more delicate and dense, but still delicious.
Lemon Juice / Apple Cider Vinegar: The lemon juice or vinegar reacts with the baking soda and acts as the egg replacer, helping the cake rise and become fluffy. The flavor disappears once baked.
Cooling Tip: You can cool the cake completely in the pans, no need to transfer to a wire rack while warm. This keeps the layers moist and makes them easier to handle.
Storage / Make Ahead:
- Room temp: Store frosted or unfrosted cake in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
- Fridge: Up to 5 days (bring to room temp before serving for best texture).
- Freeze: Cake layers or frosted cake freeze beautifully for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temp.
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice with frosting (recipe makes 16 slices) | Calories: 419kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 2g | Sodium: 380mg | Potassium: 57mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 81IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 1mg
shari eisenberg says
I used this recipe to create a lemon version of this cake. It was the most delicious lemon cake I have ever eaten. I also used your lemon curd recipe to fill in between the layers, which made it even more moist and lemony. I added lemon to the frosting as well. Its citrus season here in Arizona so I am making good use of all the plentiful citrus!
Sam Turnbull says
Amazing!!
R says
Absolutely delicious and this will now be my go-to cake. My mum who is an amazing cook really loved it and was so surprised it was vegan. Thanks Sam and again your recipies are the first I look at when I want to try something new.
Nancy says
Can I substitute coconut oil instead of vegetable shortening for the frosting?
Fiorela says
Followed this recipe exactly and I have since made these recipes MANY TIMES since! It is PERFECT and delicious and easy to customize and play around with as well. Thanks so much for sharing this brilliant recipe.
Sam Turnbull says
Amazing!! SO happy you love it, Fiorela 🙂
Someone says
Can I use more butter instead of vegetable shortening?
Marji says
I just made this cake and it came out really nicely! I taste-tested a small piece but the rest is going into the vegan tiramisu.
I have a question about the batter. This is the second time I've made a cake that the batter came out much too dry and I had to add water to make it pourable. It came out more like a pie crust almost at first. This means upping the baking time by another 15-20 minutes. The cake always comes out all right but this bothers me. Is there something I could do differently? I am trying to measure the ingredients carefully each time but I am not weighing. I usually spoon/pour dry ingredients into measuring cups.
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Marji, it's difficult to say without being in the kitchen with you but it sounds like a measurement is off somewhere. You can watch the video of me making the cake to see what each step should look like. ENjoY!
Jacey says
my mom is not a big fan of frosting so can I replace it with fruit??
Netra says
I want to give this a try.there is no need to add baking powder in this recipe?
Sam Turnbull says
The recipe is correct as written. ENjoy!
Netra says
I am sure it is correct as written 🙂 but was surprised when to add baking powder and when not.. or if we dont add baking powder why not?
anyway I made this last night for 6 cupcakes and oh my its the best I ever had!!! .. but since I had to make adjustment to the measurement for only 6 cupcakes the cupcakes fell apart a bit because they tured out super soft .. but nevertheless it was loved by family .. next time I am going to make the cake and more cupcakes .. thanks a bunch!
Caitlin Burth says
Hey Sam, I'm a huge fan of all your recipes! I made this vanilla cupcake recipe and it was delicious! One of my friends wanted peach and vanilla vegan cupcakes (12 of them), so I adapted this recipe by putting 3tbs of peach schnapps in a 2/3 measuring cup then filling the rest of it up with almond milk. Then I used 3 tbsp of of peach schnapps in the icing instead of thinning with non-dairy milk. Everyone who's tried them has absolutely loved them! I thought you might like to try that twist too!
Sam Turnbull says
Sounds fantastic!
Emma says
I love this recipe!! In the past I’ve made other vegan vanilla cake/ cupcakes but they always taste bland. I decided to try this recipe and it’s great! One thing I did do is half the white sugar and substituted in brown it helps give way more flavour you could probably even sub in coconut sugar. I also like to let them sit for a day as I find they have more flavour the next day!
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed, Emma!
Shelia King says
Can I freeze the cupcakes for at least a week and frost later?
Tatyana Ali says
We made these cupcakes twice now and they're a huge hit! We added mixed berry jam to 1/2 a recipe (cupcake and frosting) and it came out great as well. Highly recommend this recipe! By far the best cupcakes we've tried.
Sam Turnbull says
Aww that's wonderful! SO happy you love them 🙂
Joanne says
Hello 🙂
Can I substitute shortening with solid coconut oil ?
Thanks.
Sam Turnbull says
Yes, but it will be a bit meltier, so be careful to keep it cool
Kirsten says
I have made this recipe a number of times, both as a cake and as cupcakes and it has been incredible every time. Our whole family loves it (even the non-vegans) and I highly recommend.
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! THanks Kristen!
Ariana says
I had just tried a vegan cake mix hack and it did not turn out well at all. Fed it to our backyard possum. THIS recipe however gave me hope for my love for vegan baking- this cake came out beyond perfect and tastes 1000x better than any other cakes I used to make. Thank you!
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Wonderful! Thrilled you loved it so much, Ariana 🙂
Anne says
Could I make this with almond flour to make it gluten free?
Elizabeth says
Thank you so much for this recipe! It's delicious, and it has a good basic structure to work well with flavor alterations. I replaced vanilla with strawberry extract and then blended some fresh and freeze dried strawberries with the milk and it was sooooo delicious!
Sam Turnbull says
Oh sounds fantastic! So glad you enjoyed 🙂
Grace says
OMG!!! These vanilla cupcakes are sooo moist and delicious!!! I see why you couldn't help but to eat the whole slice in your video! You're awesome!! I've been looking for a really good vanilla cake recipe and this is definitely it! I plan on making your chocolate cake recipe tonight! Have you come up with a red velvet cupcake recipe? One of my students will graduate next month and I'd love to make her some vegan red velvet cupcakes that are as good as your other recipes! Oh and I absolutely love your personality! So cheerful and positive and fun!! Thank you for sharing your gift of baking absolutely yummy goodness!! 🙂
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Awesome!! So thrilled you love it so much, Grace. I haven't done red velvet yet, but I will add it to my list!!
Karen says
I didn't need 24 cupcakes or a large cake so I took a risk and cut everything exactly in half and baked in a square dish. Delish! Thank you so much for this easy and very good cake.
Sam Turnbull says
You're most welcome, Karen! Thrilled you loved it 🙂
Suzanne Amdur says
Is there a substitute for buttermilk? I am thinking of making orange-cranberry scones but one of the ingredients is buttermilk.
Sam Turnbull says
1 cup of non-dairy milk + 1 teaspoon of lemon juice = 1 cup of buttermilk. Enjoy!
Sue Amdur says
Thanks for the info above, now I need to know what to use for 1/2 cup of vegetable shortening for the vegan vanilla cake. I am going to make this today (1/3/20200, so looking forward to your reply! By the way, I bought two of your cookbooks and gave one to my granddaughter as a present. She is loving it and we are sharing the food we make with the recipes.
Sam Turnbull says
You can sub all vegan butter but the frosting will be a bit softer so you may need less non-dairy milk and keep the cake and frosting in a cool place. Glad you're enjoying my book!
Pau says
I have done this recipe as an ingredient for the vegan tiramisu, and I have to say that it is simply great! I am not an experienced baker, so I was afraid that I would screw it all, but resulted nicely and tasty. I used baking powder though, because I didn't have any baking soda... I just put double amount and it raised well (I needed to add also some soy drink because the mix was too thick, I am actually amazed that it turned out well!). Tomorrow I will see how is the final tiramisu!
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed, Pau!
Maraika says
Hi. I made the cupcakes but they didn't rise very well and I am wondering if the dry ingredient Baking Soda is Baking Soda (Bi-carbonate of Soda) or Baking Powder. Two totally different ingredients here in Australia as I notice that it is an American recipe. Might make all the difference. And would 1/4 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar taste the same as adding 1/4 cup of Lemon Juice please. It is certainly a very easy recipe otherwise.
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Maraika, it's actually a Canadian recipe, as I'm Canadian 😉 Baking soda and baking powder are two completely different things here too. It's difficult to know what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you but if you baking soda is very old it might not have as much rising power. Also, over mixing is also a common problem. The vinegar should be pretty tasteless and the lemon might have a slight lemon taste. ENjoy!
Clémentine says
What type of canola oil do you use? I used virgin, cold pressed colza oil thinking it was the same thing, but it tastes horrible. Please clarify! 🙁
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Clémentine, canola oil should be flavourless. If yours has a strong taste I recommend using another flavourless oil instead such as vegetable oil. Enjoy!
Clémentine says
Thanks for your reply. Turns out canola and colza are two different varieties of the same plant (rapeseed), and canola is harder to find in Europe. Hence the confusion...
I have to say though, that the texture of this cake is really nice and fluffy. I will probably make it again some day.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! And good to know the difference! Next time be sure to use a flavourless oil and you will have no problems. ENjoy!
Rita says
Hi Sam!
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe over the holiday season and wanted to ask:
1- When you say white sugar is the granulated or caster sugar?
2- would sunflower oil work just as well Instead of vegetable oil?
3- would cashew milk work just as well instead of soy or almond?
Thank you.
Sam Turnbull says
Granulated, yes, and yes 🙂
Rose says
Can this recipe be used to make a sheet cake?
Sam Turnbull says
Absolutely! Heres a guide on how to adapt to make it a sheet cake. Enjoy!
VeganSweta says
Like some other people, I had the pan sticking issue too. I increased the recipe by 1.5 to make 3 layers. I greased and floured each pan. I've never had an issue with this before. I was able to get each layer out without injuring the cake, it just took some time.
The cake itself was great; so light and fluffy. I'd totally make it again, but as cupcakes. I agree it's the best vegan cake! So good that I couldn't let myself deduct any stars for the sticking issue.
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed it so much!
Laura says
Followed the recipe exactly and it turned out beautifully. For those who's cakes turned out poorly, they were likely doing something wrong. People need to be mindful that even the way you measure out ingredients in baking can be the difference between a flop and a great finished product. I learned that you have to measure flour correctly after many failed loaves of bread.
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you loved the recipe and that it turned out for you perfectly, Laura! And yes, you're correct, measuring is KEY when baking 🙂
Donna roe says
Hi is the temperature for a fan oven or do I have to loser it please
Sam Turnbull says
The temperature is for an oven without the fan turned on. Enjoy!