This is the easiest Best Vegan Vanilla Cake you will ever make! It is only 7 ingredients and takes just 10 minutes prep time. It is incredibly light, fluffy, moist and amazingly, delicious! Oil-free, no oil or vegan butter! It is the perfect vegan vanilla sheet cake perfect for birthday parties or events.
EASY VEGAN VANILLA CAKE
You won’t even believe how incredible and delicious this Simple Vegan Vanilla Cake is! I’m not kidding when I say my daughter loved it so much, that she ate it plain with zero frosting on it.
And the fact that it is only 7 main ingredients is seriously mind-blowing. It is so easy and quick to make. It is also much healthier than most vanilla cakes, as this one is much lower in fat, is oil-free and has no butter! But I promise you won’t miss any of that!
This oil-free vegan vanilla cake couldn’t be any easier. There is not a long list of ingredients, no creaming of sugar, electric beaters, none of that! Just mix the batter and bake. SO easy.
My secret to an amazing fluffy, soft and tender, but moist and amazing simple vegan vanilla cake is the combo of dairy-free vanilla yogurt and canned lite coconut milk.
After the popularity of my Easy Vegan Lemon Cake took off and has become my most popular cake recipe ever, I had many requests for just a vanilla version. I also wanted to try and make it without using the full-fat coconut milk, like that cake, since many like to avoid the extra fat. Also, using lite coconut milk and only half the amount, there is guaranteed to have no taste of any coconut.
I already know people will ask if this can be made gluten-free. If you need gluten-free, make this Vegan Gluten-free Vanilla Cake!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
(Only 7 main ingredients needed, plus salt/water. Full details and measurements on the recipe card below.)
- Regular white all-purpose flour
- Fine regular granulated white sugar: Do not sub this with another sweetener or coconut sugar, it will not taste like a traditional, true vanilla cake or have the same light texture. I reserve only using white sugar when it’s completely necessary to the best flavor in my opinion. If it’s super important to you, make sure the sugar you buy a certified vegan sugar. Wholesome sweeteners is a vegan brand.
- Baking powder
- Dairy-free Vanilla flavored yogurt: I used So Delicious coconut yogurt vanilla. It worked fantastic here! The yogurt gives an extra depth of flavor here that you have to taste to see. It also gives a major boost of moisture where oil or butter would normally do that.
- Canned lite coconut milk: Using lite leaves zero coconut taste here. It also provides a lot of moisture and some fat, so the cake is moist, super fluffy and not dry, as it would be if using a lite milk like almond or rice, for example.
- Vanilla extract
- Apple cider vinegar: This adds a depth of flavor to the cake, bringing out the flavor of vanilla just a bit more, as well as aiding in the tenderness of the cake. If you do not have this, you can actually leave it out and the cake still works amazing, it just adds that extra touch of flavor.
- Frosting of choice: I used this Vegan Vanilla Buttercream Frosting for the true traditional vanilla cake flavor and taste, but you can sub with this whipped coconut cream one if you like. Or use a simple glaze if you like, like this Cream Cheese Glaze. Or simply use a frosting of your choice.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN VANILLA CAKE
Step 1: Whisk the dry ingredients until well mixed.
Step 2: Mix the wet ingredients into a separate bowl and then pour over the dry ingredients. Stir until smooth and moistened, but be very careful about overmixing. Mix just until no flour is visible. The batter will be very thick as pictured.
Step 3: Spread the batter into a 9×13 pyrex glass baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Each batch I did was perfect at 23 minutes. Do not overbake or the cake will turn dry.
Step 4: Cool completely before frosting.
HOW TO STORE THIS CAKE
This vegan vanilla sheet cake is best stored at room temperature covered with foil. I just keep the cake in the baking dish. It stays fresh and moist for the first 2 days (although best the day made), but by the 3rd day, it does start to become dry.
MORE VEGAN CAKE RECIPES
- Vegan Gluten-free Lemon Cake
- Vegan Gluten-free Funfetti Birthday Cake
- Vegan White Wedding Cake
- Vegan Gluten-free and Grain-free Vanilla Cake
- Vegan Almond Butter Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Cake
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Easy Vegan Vanilla Cake (7 Ingredients!)
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons (336g) regular all-purpose flour (SEE NOTES at bottom)
- 1 cup + 5 tablespoons (252g) fine granulated white sugar (I used organic cane sugar by Florida Crystals)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (195g) room temperature canned "lite" coconut milk (Highly recommend Thai Kitchen brand, see Notes at bottom)
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (150g) room temperature dairy-free sweetened vanilla yogurt (I used the So Delicious coconut, see Notes at bottom)
- 3 tablespoons (45g) HOT water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (8g) vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon (5g) apple cider vinegar
- I used this Vanilla Buttercream frosting as it gives that classic vanilla cake flavor, which was my goal.
- I use this 9x13 glass Pyrex dish
- I use this scale.
NOTE
- I always recommend to use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed, since we all measure differently. This greatly improves your chance for success and lessons room for error. You never need cups or to compare them to the weights, just use the scale and bowl and make sure to zero out in between each ingredient. My recipes are 100% tested specifically using my exact weights and your results will turn out as mine are pictured this way. SEE NOTES at bottom if you don't have a scale.
Instructions
- Make sure the milk and yogurt are not cold and are room temperature! This is very important because if they are cold from the fridge, your batter will be hard to mix up, making the batter overly thick and cause overmixing to happen, which results in a tough/dense cake. Lighter cakes are the result of room temperature ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 350° (177°C) and spray a 9x13 glass pyrex dish with nonstick spray. Wipe off excess oil if too much is sitting on the bottom or in the corners, but be careful not to wipe too much off, otherwise the cake will stick.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt and whisk very well.
- To a separate bowl, add the coconut milk, yogurt, hot water, vanilla and vinegar. Whisk until smooth.
- Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and use a large spoon to gently stir together the batter until moistened and just mixed, making sure to scrape from the bottom. Do not use a whisk, as this will overmix the batter. You want to stir until just mixed and moistened, do not overmix, as this can result in a tough/chewy cake. The batter will be quite thick, this is normal, do not add more liquid. It is okay for the batter to look thick and lumpy, as long as it’s mixed.
- Pour the batter into the dish and spread out the top evenly into the pan and in the corners. Don’t worry about the top looking perfect, it will magically bake up perfectly and smooth on top.Bake for 20-25 minutes. I baked 2 separate cakes and each was exactly perfect at 23 minutes. It is done when a toothpick is clean from the center.
- Cool completely before frosting. Cover the cake with foil tightly so it stays moist and store the cake at room temperature. I used my classic Vanilla Buttercream for the true classic vanilla cake perfect for parties and guests, but if you want to avoid oil or butter, this Cream Cheese Glaze (likely have to double for the full cake) would also be delicious.
Notes
- Nutrition is for cake only, not including frosting.
- Measuring Flour: As you know, I always recommend a scale for the best results, following my weights listed. Baking is very scientific and especially with oil-free cakes, precision is super important. You can find a scale linked to the one I buy above or at pretty much any store these days and are very inexpensive. But if you don't have a scale or really do not want to get one, make sure to measure your flour this way: Place the cup on the counter and spoon the flour from the bag into the cup, filling it all up, overflowing a bit and then take a butter knife and level it off. Measure the 1 cup this way and the 1/2 cup tablespoons (for the 2 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp total) but if you aren't using a scale and measuring this way, you will need 1 1/2 additional tablespoons of flour to equal the 336 grams. As you can see though, it's very easy to measure off this way, so using a scale is better.
- Coconut Milk: I highly recommend the Thai kitchen brand, it’s super creamy and high quality. Do not use the Polar brand, it is mostly fillers and will ruin the texture.
- Yogurt: The yogurt is key here, it aids in a rich vanilla flavor and overall flavor because of the tang that yogurt provides, yet, do not worry, because the cake itself does not taste like yogurt at all. Also, the yogurt is acidic, therefore giving the cake rise, fluff and makes it super moist. Vanilla yogurts I am able to find at pretty much any grocery store. I used the So Delicious coconut yogurt. I would advise against soy yogurt, as it’s very high protein and will make the cake rather chewy. This is important in this case because the cake is on the low-fat side and adding soy will make it more tough.
- Classic Cake: You do not want to sub these ingredients, as I found it very finicky and this recipe posted works perfectly. This cake is designed for those who want a very simple cake with very basic ingredients like white flour and sugar. It is not meant to be one of my standard healthier flours and sweeteners I usually use in recipes. This isn't the cake to change all the ingredients. If you want a gluten-free refined sugar-free vanilla cake, make my Vegan Gluten-free Vanilla Cake instead!
Nutrition
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This recipe is INCREDIBLY easy and INCREDIBLY delicious!!! If you’re looking for a basic vanilla cake, look no further. This will definitely be one of my go-to vegan cakes from now on! Great texture & excellent flavor!
So very happy you loved the cake!!
My 3rd time making this cake for one of my daughters birthday! It’s delicious and everyone always loves it!
I love your recipes!!!!! No other blogger actually takes the time to ensure the desserts they post are top notch, you are a genius ans a true dessert scientist!
Ok, so full disclosure I may have been tipsy making this cake… it was a party and we wanted a cake LOL. I made no subs, but cut all the measurements in half (with your same scale) and added chocolate chips. It tasted fantastic but it was dense and not light and fluffy. And my ingredients were room temperature! My question is could that be from cutting the ingredients in 1/2? I baked in an 8 x 8. Thanks!!
Thank you so much Tiff for the kind words, you are so sweet! Hmm, that is odd! But there are a couple of reasons why that could happen. First, dividing it in half would still make the cake to be a lot more batter in an 8×8 size, because a 9×13 isn’t double of an 8×8 if that makes sense. So, that could account for it being more dense, since I created it to be a flatter style of sheet cake. So you may have not baked it long enough to account for the different size of pan. Also, with lower fat batter and cakes using white flour (gluten), you have to be very careful to not overmix them, or it can result in a dense cake. What brand of milk and yogurts did you use?
hi. can I use organic cane sugar for this recipe? Will that allow this cake to taste like a traditional, true vanilla cake and have the same light texture? Thank you.
Yes that should be fine! Just make sure to follow the recipe and weigh for accurate results!
Making this cake for my awesome wife . It’s in the oven now and will rate and re comment abt the finished cake . Batter was so good I have 7 children fighting to get the bowl as I type!!
Hello. ^_^ Would it turn out very horrible if I used almond milk and almond yogurt? 🙁 I am making for someone with sensitivity to coconut. But this recipe looks very good.
Thank you very much.
The cake is already low-fat, so using almond milk will make it very gummy and dense, I wouldn’t suggest it! Can you make homemade cashew cream?
Can i use metal cake pan?
Yes just spray! And know the edges will get more cooked.
Hello! Planning to make this cake soon but can I use oatmilk or almond milk for this recipe instead of coconut milk? Thank you!
Hi! The cake is already pretty low fat so I’m not sure how it would work. Definitely don’t do almond milk, it’ll be dry and dense. I’d suggest oat milk if it’s the high fat oatley brand only!
This recipe is a life saver, I’ve done sheet cakes and cupcakes and they always turn out wonderful. Thank you so much!!
So glad you loved the cake Jen!
Will this work using parchment paper in the 9×13 pan rather than spraying oil?
Yes! Just cut the pieces to fit to lay flat going in both directions!