Easy Vegan Lemon Cake

This one-bowl vegan lemon cake recipe is so easy! You only need 9 ingredients and 40 minutes for this light fluffy vegan cake. Follow my step by step tutorial and soon you’ll have a moist, fluffy, zingy layer cake to tuck into. It’s not only pretty but tastes so good that nobody would guess that it’s a dairy free and eggless vegan cake.

Ingredients:

• 300 ml (1 1/4 cups) dairy free milk (soy, almond etc...)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 275 g (2 1/4 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 150 g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
• 150 g (3/4 cup) dairy free margarine
• 3 tbsp golden syrup or use agave or maple syrup (maple will make a slightly less sweet cake)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

For the vegan lemon frosting (double to cover the sides as well)

• 150 g (3/4 cup) dairy free margarine
• 400 g (3 1/3 cups) powdered icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
• 3 tbsp lemon juice

Yellow drizzle (optional)

• 100 g (3/4 cup) powdered icing sugar
• 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
• Yellow food colouring

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 180° C/160° C fan (350F). Lightly grease 3 x 6" baking pans or 2 x 20cm/8" round baking pans.
• Stir the lemon juice into the milk and set aside.
• In a pan over a medium heat, melt the dairy free margarine and syrup together. Set aside to cool slightly.
• Sieve the flour, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) into a large mixing bowl.
• Pour the milk, melted margarine mixture and lemon zest over the flour mixture and stir well until it becomes a smooth batter.
• Divide the mixture between the two prepared pans and bake for 30-35 minutes (for 2 x 20cm/8") or 25-30 minutes (for 3 x 15cm/6") or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
• Allow the cakes to cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

For the lemon frosting

1. Beat together all the frosting ingredients until smooth.
2. When the cakes are completely cold, sandwich together with some icing. Spread the remaining icing over the top and sides of the cake.
3. For the drizzle
4. Mix the powdered sugar and 1 tbsp of lemon juice until smooth. If necessary add a little more lemon juice. Add a small amount of yellow food colouring until the desired colour is reached. Spoon into a piping bag with a small nozzle inserted. Pipe drizzles over the cake edge.

NOTES:

• Don’t over-mix the batter when adding the dry ingredients. Combine well, but don’t beat.
• Freezable: you can freeze the un-frosted cakes for up to 1 month.
• I used 3 x 6" baking pans that I found on Amazon (affiliate link). I like that I can make a cute little cake with three layers without it being huge.
• You can make this cake in two layers by using 2 x 20cm / 8 inch round baking pans and baking for 30 minutes.
• Increase the ingredients by 50% to make this cake in 3 x 20cm / 8 inch baking pans.