Vegan Apple Cake

This simple and very delicious Vegan Apple Cake is light and fluffy, loaded with fresh apples, and has a super crunchy, sugar and flaked almond top. No mixer required! 

We're all about the apples right now with Apple Baked Oatmeal and now Vegan Apple Cake ....And let's just take a moment to talk about and drink in those delicious baking smells before I begin. We're talking the ultimate freshly baked cake smell with wafts of sweet apple and fragrant cinnamon. This my friends is a cake that feels and smells like fall!

The cake itself is perfectly tender, nicely spiced, heavy on the meltingly soft apple, sweet but not too sweet .. except for the crunchy, optionally nutty, sugar sprinkled topping which is my favourite part.

Jump to:

• Ingredient & equipment notes
• Best apples for apple cake
• How to make vegan apple cake
• Success tips
• Storage & freezing
• Variations
• Serving suggestions
• Hungry for more?
• 📖 Recipe

Ingredient & equipment notes

For detailed measurements and instructions, see the printable recipe card.

The pan - To make this eggless apple cake you will need either a round 9inch cake pan that is at least 3 inches deep or a 9 x 13inch pan/dish. I recommend a springform cake pan if you can because it's best not to invert the cake when removing it because of the sugary topping. Alternatively, just bake it in a pan or dish that it can stay in for serving like a 9 x 13inch casserole dish.

Here is the rundown on the ingredients you need to make Vegan Apple Cake and why you need them:

1. All purpose flour - Gives the perfect texture and the flavour doesn't compete with the subtle apples and spices like other flours would. If you are in the UK use plain flour.
2. Baking powder,baking soda & vinegar – Baking powder as per usual in a cake, and also baking soda and vinegar which create a chemical reaction, creating bubbles and fizz. This is important in an eggless apple cake because it replaces the leavening which would otherwise be provided by eggs, helping the cake to rise well and be fluffier.
3. Vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg & salt – For amazing flavour. Cinnamon and nutmeg work so well with the apple. If you aren't a fan of nutmeg you can omit it but I don't recommend you skip the cinnamon or the vanilla.
4. Sugar - Sugar is important for flavour, structure, leavening and sweetness in a cake. I used organic cane sugar but white granulated will be fine, as would brown sugar. Bear in mind though that using brown sugar will change the colour and flavour of the cake. A really course sugar like turbinado is great to sprinkle on the top for texture. I see people reducing the sugar in baked goods a lot but know that if you do it will affect the flavour, crumb and appearance of the cake and you won't get the best result.
5. Vegan yogurt - For moisture, tenderness and a slightly tighter crumb than more delicate cakes so that it can hold those apple chunks tight. Any plain or vanilla store bought vegan yogurt is fine or use my vegan yogurt recipe.
6. Plant Milk: Any will do although I recommend using unsweetened. Don’t be tempted to use water instead of milk. It doesn't work as well.
7. Oil - Some fat is necessary. It is what produces a soft, cake-y crumb. It also acts as a preservative. If you eat/bake oil-free you can replace the oil with the same amount of drippy nut-butter. Cashew butter gives the least nutty and most buttery flavour. Be sure to blend it with the milk before adding though so that it incorporates fully. The texture won't be quite as good as it is with oil but you will still get a good result.
8. Apples - And lots of them! See under the heading "Best apples for apple cake" for more info on choosing the best apples.
9. Flaked Almonds - Totally optional and only for sprinkling on the top prior to baking. They add lovely texture and nuttiness and makes it look really pretty too. You can omit them if you need the cake to be nut-free.

Best apples for apple cake

You can use whatever your favourite variety is or you can go for optimum flavour and texture by using a couple of different varieties. Play around with sweet, tart, firm and soft varieties to give your cake more interest.

I usually use a blend of crunchy, tart Granny Smith and sweet Gala or Fuji apples. If I were in England I'd be using at least 50% Bramley apples. They are so good for baking, but sadly we don't get them here.

How to make vegan apple cake

Ok, let's get down to how to make this beauty of a cake:

Step 1 - Mix the flour and spices together in a large bowl.
Step 2 - In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients and the sugar together really well. Partially dissolving the sugar in the liquid before adding it to the flour helps inhibit gluten formation which will make your cake more tender and soft.
Step 3 - Mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients to form a thick batter.
Step 4 - Add the apple to the bowl and fold it through the batter.

Step 6 - Spoon into the prepared pan, sprinkle with coarse sugar (LOTS of it!) and flaked almonds then bake.

Success tips

1. Follow the recipe closely and as always with recipes involving flour, I highly recommend that you use a kitchen scale. Cup measurements are not accurate enough to get the best and consistent results. If you do need to use cups, spoon the flour into the cup then level off the top with a knife without compacting it or shaking it down. Do not scoop the flour up into the cup as you will end up with much more than intended and it will affect the outcome of the recipe.
2. Don't over mix the batter. As with all cakes, the more you mix, the more you activate the gluten in the flour which really affects the texture and rise of the finished cake.
3. Mix the wet and dry ingredients separately as instructed, before adding them all together. This helps avoid over-mixing.
4. I recommend the use of a springform cake pan for this recipe as inverting it could damage it. Or use a 9 x 13inch pan that the cake can stay in for serving.
5. Don’t turn the cake out of the pan too soon. With all of the apple chunks, it will be fragile and fall apart easily while it's hot.

Storage & freezing

Once baked and cooled completely this cake will keep well for 3 to 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature. I don't recommend refrigeration for unfrosted cakes because it changes the texture of the sponge and dries them out. The cake will also freeze well. Wrap thoroughly and freeze for up to 3 months.

Variations

Baking is a science so I don't recommend making any changes to the main cake batter recipe as you may not get the best results. However, you can make minor changes to toppings or add-ins. Here are some ideas for making the cake your own:

• Omit the flaked almonds on top to make the recipe nut-free.
• Add a generous amount of vegan streusel to the top of the cake before baking instead of the sugary almond topping.
• Omit the almond and sugar topping and once cool add a layer of very decadent vegan cream cheese frosting.
• Add a big handful of golden raisins or chopped nuts to the batter at the same time as adding the chopped apple
• Add a couple tablespoons of dark rum to the batter but reduce the amount of milk you use to compensate. Stir it into the other liquids before mixing them with the dry ingredients.
• Add some stem ginger or ground ginger with the other spices.

Serving suggestions

This Vegan Apple Cake is really easy to make and perfect for feeding a crowd. It's one of those cakes that you can eat for brunch, snacks, potlucks, afternoon tea or dessert and it's great served warm from the oven or at room temperature.

Individual slices of cake can be gently warmed in a microwave for 30 seconds or so (the time will vary depending on the size of your slice and the power of your microwave).

Enjoy your cake just as it is or serve with a dollop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream, vegan whipped cream or tart vegan yogurt, or a drizzle of date caramel or custard.

Hungry for more?

Want more vegan cake recipes? You might enjoy:

• Vegan Gingerbread Cake
• Vegan Hummingbird Cake
• Vegan Banana Cake
• Vegan Carrot Cake

Did you make this recipe?
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📖 Recipe

This recipe was originally published on September 27th, 2019. I've since rewritten the post and now I am republishing it for you. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for following A Virtual Vegan!