Super moist, fragrant and delicate Vegan Almond Cake with a pop of lemon flavor. Made with almond flour it is naturally gluten-free and vegan, and quite possibly the easiest cake you'll ever make. Excellent served on its own but also great dressed up for dessert with fresh berries, fruit compote or poached pears, and some dairy-free cream, custard or whipped vegan ricotta!
Hello, cake! And this Vegan Almond Cake is such a favorite of mine for many reasons. First, it's fragrant and vibrant and amazing in a cake meets dessert kind of way. We're talking packed with almond and lemon flavor and light and delicate, yet moist and almost syrupy in texture. You know like a drizzle cake you drench with syrup after baking? Only you don't have to with this recipe.
And did I mention it's easy? Like ridiculously easy to make. And even better, it doesn't taste easy. Everyone will be so impressed with your baking skills when you present this delicate, golden deliciousness. Convenient too because it keeps well for ages. You can easily make it a few days ahead if you need to and the flavor just gets better and better.
Ingredient & equipment notes
(For detailed measurements and instructions, see the printable recipe card).
No mixer or special equipment is required to make vegan almond cake but you will need a 9-inch cake tin and some parchment paper or a silicone liner to line it. This is a sticky cake and no matter how good your pan is, you won't get the cake out in one piece if you don't line the pan.
I purchased a couple of these Silpat liners a while ago now and they are so handy. No having to cut rounds of paper anymore and you can reuse them for years.
Important: The pan you use to bake this cake must be metal. Do not use a silicone pan. This cake needs good structure as it is delicate.
Here's what we've got going on in this eggless almond cake recipe:
And some notes on each of them:
- Almond flour– This is a naturally gluten-free vegan almond cake. Because it is made entirely from almond flour which is a completely gluten-free flour, and contains no wheat flour at all, the light, soft and fine texture of the almond flour is crucial to the structure and texture of the cake. This means that to make this vegan almond flour cake you must use blanched superfine almond flour. Almond meal will not work well. Bob's Red Mill is a commonly found brand to look for while shopping. Amazon also carry many varieties. I get mine from Costco. They sell a great big bag that's great value for money. If you are in the UK you can pick it up from Holland & Barrett. The flour should look pale yellow and very, very fine like flour. Not coarse with brown bits of skin in it, like almond meal which is made from unblanched almonds. Looking for more ways to use almond flour? Check out my other vegan almond flour recipes.
- Olive oil - I like to use extra virgin olive oil for it's deep flavor, but regular olive oil is fine too. The olive oil is used as the fat in the cake, but also for its moisture and flavor which complements the almond and lemon. It is the best choice for this recipe and I don't recommend using any other type of oil.
- Sugar - Cane sugar or white sugar for their mellow flavor and light colour. Don't use any other type as it will affect the look and taste of the cake.
- Lemons - For flavor, acidity and moisture. You could use orange, grapefruit or lime instead. Use the lemon juice and the lemon zest too if you want even more lemon flavor.
- Cornstarch - For binding. Without this additional starch your cake will fall apart. It is essential in this recipe.
- Plant milk - Any variety such as almond milk, cashew milk, soy milk or oat milk. I recommend using plain unsweetened and unflavored milk.
- Baking powder - For fluffiness and rise.
- Baking soda and apple cider vinegar - Because this is an eggless almond cake recipe, a blend of both are used to replace the leavening that would otherwise be provided by eggs.
- Almond extract - For concentrated almond flavor. You could use vanilla extract instead. I highly recommend you use "extract" and not flavoring. It gives far superior results. I love Nielsen-Massey almond extract.
+ (OPTIONAL) Powdered sugar - For dusting over the cake once it is baked and cooled. I use it sometimes. Other times, like in my photos here, I just leave the cake naked.
How to make Vegan Almond Cake
Wondering how to make almond cake without eggs? Here's how it's done:
- Whisk up the dry ingredients.
- Whisk up the wet ingredients.
- Mix the two together and because this is a gluten-free vegan almond cake made only with almond flour, you don't need to worry about over-mixing like you would with a standard wheat flour cake.
- Pour the batter mixture into a pan and bake in the oven. Check it with a toothpick/skewer/sharp knife and you're done.
That's it. Then leave it to cool in the pan on a wire rack and you have perfect cake. No buttercream, frosting, or glaze is required. It's more than good enough just as it is. Additions like that would detract unnecessarily from the beautifully moist and flavorful vegan cake.
For decoration purposes I like to either brush the cake with a little maple syrup to give it a really nice shine, or dust it with some powdered sugar.
Success Tips
For the very best results when making this recipe follow these tips:
- I highly recommend using a digital scale. Cups are an extremely inaccurate way to measure flour-like substances. A scale will give you the best and most consistent results every single time. Pop the bowl right on the scale and weigh your ingredients as you add them. Not only is it more accurate it also cuts down on washing up!
- Whisking the wet and the dry ingredients separately helps to ensure that the leavening agents and flavors are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Be quick to get the cake in the oven once you've mixed the wet and the dry ingredients together. We want to take full advantage of the baking soda/acid reaction for the best textured cake.
- The pan you use to bake this cake must be a metal one. Do not use a silicone cake pan. The cake needs structure as it bakes and silicone does not provide that.
- You must use blanched almond flour. Its soft, light texture is essential. Almond meal will not give good results in this cake.
- Grease and line your pan really well. This is a delicate, sticky cake.
- Don't over-bake. This cake is supposed to be damp/very moist.
- Wait until the cake is completely cool before removing it from the tin or it will break.
- I don't recommend using this recipe for a layer cake because it is too moist and delicate to stack.
Storage and freezing
The great thing about this cake is that it doesn't dry out over time like most cakes do.
- To store: Leftover cake can be covered well and stored at room temperature for 5 to 6 days. If you want to keep it any longer store covered very well in the fridge where it will be fine for up to 10 days.
- To freeze: Allow to cool completely in the tin. The best way is to freeze the cake in the tin. Just be sure to wrap the whole thing really, really well. Or once turned out, place the cake very gently in a shallow and airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge. Take note before attempting to freeze, that this cake is very moist and delicate and doesn't transfer easily, so once turned out onto a plate or cake stand, it will be next to impossible to remove it and place it on something else, unless you're doing it by the slice.
Serving suggestions
This fragrant vegan almond flour cake is amazing served by the slice just as it is, but can also be transformed into an amazing dessert. Try it served with:
- vegan whipped cream or coconut cream
- summer berries (it's particularly good with fresh raspberries)
- roasted strawberries
- poached pears
- vegan lemon curd
- roasted figs
- vegan ricotta
- fruit compote
- vegan custard
- ice cream
Recipe FAQs
No. this recipe requires almond flour. Because it is made entirely from almond flour with no wheat flour, the light and fine texture is crucial.
Almond flour is made from blanched, skinless almonds which are ground very finely until flour-like, while almond meal is made from unblanched skin-on almonds which are ground more coarsely.
I don't recommend making a layer cake with this recipe. The sponge is very moist and delicate and not sturdy enough to stack.
More recipes that use almond flour
Put your leftover almond flour to good use with my:
Recipe Video
Recipe
Vegan Almond Cake
Author:Ingredients
- 3¾ packed cups (420 grams) almond flour , blanched almond flour not almond meal
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour in the UK)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda in the UK)
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt , not table salt
- ¾ cup (180 mls) plant milk , unsweetened & unflavored
- ¾ cup (180 mls) olive oil , extra virgin olive oil if you enjoy the deep flavor, regular olive oil if you don't
- 6 tablespoons (90 mls) freshly squeezed lemon juice , add the very finely grated zest of 1 lemon too for a more pronounced lemon flavor
- ¾ cup (150 grams) white or cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon almond extract , or vanilla extract
OPTIONAL
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar , for dusting the cake once cool
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place a shelf in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 ° F (175 °C).
- Grease a 9 inch cake pan with olive oil then line with parchment paper. The grease helps the paper to stay in place. Sit your cake pan on the parchment paper and draw around the outside of the pan then cut out the circle. Place that in the bottom of the pan. If you have a great cake pan that never sticks you can probably get away without lining the sides as well, but if you have any doubts at all, cut a rectangular strip of parchment paper and line the sides. Trim it so it's the same height as the sides of the pan. With this cake (because it's really sticky and delicate) I then like to lightly grease the parchment paper too. Use a pastry brush to carefully brush a light layer of oil over it. Set the pan aside while you prepare the cake batter.
- To a large bowl add the almond flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk them together well.
- To another medium sized bowl add the plant milk, olive oil, lemon juice (and zest if using), sugar, apple cider vinegar and almond extract. Stir together really well.
- Now make sure everything is ready. i.e The oven is preheated to temperature and the cake pan is lined and ready. You need to be as quick as you can to get the cake in the oven once the batter is mixed together.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and fold together until you can't see any dry flour. Be sure to scrape right into the bottom of the bowl so you don't miss any.
- Spoon the cake batter into the prepared pan, give the pan a little shake to level the top then get it right in the oven on the middle shelf.
- Bake for 50 minutes, or until golden, starting to come away from the edges of the pan, and a skewer, toothpick or thin knife inserted into the middle comes out clean. It's important to not open the oven door while the cake is cooking (until at least 40 minutes into the cook time) and it's also important to not overcook it. This cake is supposed to be damp/very moist inside.
- Place the cake, still in its pan (don't remove it) on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
- When fully cooled remove from the pan. If the sides of the pan aren't lined, first loosen the edges with a thin spatula or knife. If it's a springform pan removing it is easy. If not, place a large plate upside down over the cake pan and very carefully invert the cake onto the plate. To get the cake the right way up, gently place another plate on top of the cake then flip it over.
- Dust the cake with powdered sugar before serving. Alternatively you can brush it very gently all over with maple syrup to get a shiny appearance like the cake on my photos. Or just serve it as it is.
NOTES
- To store: Leftover cake can be covered well and stored at room temperature for 5 to 6 days. If you want to keep it any longer store covered very well in the fridge where it will be fine for up to 10 days.
- To freeze: Allow to cool completely in the tin. The best way is to freeze the cake in the tin. Just be sure to wrap the whole thing really, really well. Or once turned out, place the cake very gently in a shallow and airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge. Take note before attempting to freeze, that this cake is very moist and delicate and doesn't transfer easily, so once turned out onto a plate or cake stand, it will be next to impossible to remove it and place it on something else, unless you're doing it by the slice.
Nutritional information does not include the optional powdered sugar
NUTRITION
Nutritional information is provided for convenience. The data is a computer generated estimate and should be used as a guide only.
This recipe was very loosely inspired by Nigella Lawson's Clementine Cake as featured in her book How To Eat. Although the ingredients I've used are different, the texture and appearance of the finished cake are very similar.
Marta says
Hi! Thanks for all your recipes. Much appreciated!
Any chance I can use maple syrup instead of sugar? If so, how much? Thanks!
Melanie McDonald says
I've never tried it so don't know how the cake would turn out. Maple syrup can lead to a significantly different texture and taste than regular sugar would though. Sugar not only sweetens, but it also helps with structure. Maple syrup doesn't always provide as much structure. In this recipe where there's no gluten the structure the sugar gives is quite important. Maple syrup would also change the dry-to-liquid ratio of the ingredients so if you try it you'll need to adjust the amount of milk added. Hope that helps!
Nicola says
Followed the recipe exactly as written using a springform pan. The cake sort of fell apart. Seemed to be too dense in the middle. Toothpick came out clean but maybe it needed to cook longer. It’s very tasty but didn’t really stay together very well when it was cut.
Zara says
This cake is probably the BEST vegan almond flour cake I've stumbled across. SO fluffy and moist. I baked it for around 30 minutes and it was golden brown on top, so did not need the full 50. I substituted cornstarch for tapioca flour and that worked out well.
Jessica says
Hi there, I tried baking this cake and the outside came out wonderfully. However the instead isn’t cooking… I even let it bake for an extra 30 minutes. Am I doing something wrong? Thank you!
Melanie McDonald says
That’s strange. Sorry that happened. Unfortunately though it’s impossible to say what might have gone wrong without having been there. It could be that your oven runs a bit cool (most ovens aren’t accurate unless you calibrate them), did you perhaps bake in glass or silicone and not metal? Did you weigh the almond flour and measure the liquids accurately? As much as everyone loves measuring cups they are not an accurate way of measuring for flour-like substances. Did you substitute/change any ingredients?
My best guess if the middle of the cake was still liquid after all of that time though was something ( probably the liquids) was mis-measured because the recipe has been thoroughly tested and generally gets great feedback.
I hope that helps a bit!
Gail Holm says
Made this for the first time today to bring to a friend's house. Everybody loved it. Nobody knew that it was vegan and they were oohing and aahing.
You are right - it is very crumbly but I followed what you said about serving it and it worked perfectly.
Chris says
Wow this was delicious. I only had oranges on hand so I used orange zest and orange juice instead of lemon. I also added a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg just because I love the combination of orange + almond + cinnamon. First slice after it cooled to room temp was good but I let the whole cake sit in the fridge for a few hours and I personally love it even more when it's chilled. Thank you for this recipe!
Juliana says
I’m so grateful for this recipe! It saved me on my husband’s birthday after a failure when I tried to veganize a keto box recipe! This cake looked beautiful and everyone loved it, especially hubby! It did sink a little but it could be because I wasn’t fast enough getting it into the oven. Not sure. I’m not complaining. The box cake was flat as a pancake! 🤣 I definitely agree that it is very fragile. When I moved it off parchment to serving plate it cracked but I pushed it back together and you could barely tell. Thank you!!! I will be baking this again!
Karen says
Excellent! I used almond meal cause that's what I had. Still it is quite light. Love the flavor. I subbed applesauce for 1/2 cup of the oil. I added some cardamom and rose water. The lemony flavor mixes well with those flavors. I'd definitely make this again! But really - does it have to be almost 400 calories per slice? Darn!
Kim says
I typically measure internal temp of my bakes for oneness. What temperature should this cake be baked to?
Sam says
I'm excited to try this. For fluffy wheat-based cakes, I typically adjust for high altitude (I live at 5000ft). I usually dont have to adjust denser bakes like banana bread. Would I need to adjust this cake for altitude?
Melanie McDonald says
I have absolutely no experience of baking at high altitudes so I can't advise on that. Sorry!
Laura says
If you were to use aquafaba how would this change the recipe, would I cut out the apple cider vinegar, raising agents, and cornflour, or would this mess with the recipe too much?
Melanie McDonald says
For the recipe to turn out at its best I recommend following it as written. If you use aquafaba instead of all of those ingredients you will end up with a totally different recipe.
Maria @ Maria Runs says
It sounds amazing- I love almond cake.
In the UK we have ground almonds- is this the same as almond flour or is that something different? Thanks.
Melanie McDonald says
The ground almonds that Tesco/Sainsbury etc sell aren't blanched so they aren't almond flour. Almond flour is made with blanched almonds. However, if I remember correctly there is no almond skin in it and it is very, very fine? It's been a long time since I used it though so I might be remembering wrong. If that's right, and if it's fine and dusty like flour then I'm sure it will be fine. Holland and Barrett do sell proepr almond flour though. I link to it in the post where I talk about the ingredients. Hope that helps!
Yt says
Hi there do u think I can make this into small cupcake. If yes what’s the baking time here? Many thanks
Melanie McDonald says
I've only tested this recipe at it's current size so I can't say how long it will take made in differnt sizes. Sorry!
Candice Smithson says
Incredible recipe. It disappeared very quickly and I’ll be making this regularly form now on.