Vegan Lemon Cream Cake
This is an absolutely delicious, moist and citrusy vegan lemon cake. A lot of the lemon flavor comes from this amazing, velvety lemon cream that you spread between the layers and all over the cake.
Servings: 10
Equipment
- 2 6" cake pans
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch or tapioca starch
- 1/3 cup sugar use 2 tablespoon more for sweeter
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup non-dairy milk
- 1 1/2 tablespoons non-dairy yogurt or applesauce
- 1 tablespoons lemon juice or use 1 tablespoon more non-dairy milk. Lemon juice will cause the edges of the cake to brown, so this is really a choice about looks.
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- 1/4 cup oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- a few drops of almond extract , optional
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
For the Frosting
- 1 cup raw cashews soaked in warm water for at least 15 minutes
- 1 cup coconut cream ( white part from a can of full-fat coconut milk.)
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/3 cup sugar use 2 tablespoons more for sweeter
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric for color, optional
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
First, make the cake.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F (177° C).
- In a bowl, add all of the dry ingredients, and mix really well.
- Then, add the wet ingredients and mix to make a batter. If the batter is too thin and flowy, add another 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour and mix in to make pancake like batter
- Once the batter is mixed and ready, line your baking pans. This batter will make 2 6” or one tall 6" or 8” cake.
- Pour the batter into the lined baking pan(s), and then bake. The two 6” cakes will bake in about 20 to 22 minutes. The tall 6" or 8" will bake in about 28 to 30 minutes. Check with a toothpick in the center to see if it's done, otherwise continue to bake for another 5 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the lemon frosting.
- Drain your soaked cashews and add to the blender along with the rest of the frosting ingredients, and blend for a minute. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes for the cashews to absorb some more of the moisture, then blend again for 30 seconds. Let it sit for another minute, then blend again for 30 seconds. Now, open the blender, taste the frosting, and adjust the flavor. For sweeter, add another 1 or 2 tablespoons of sugar, and if you want more tang, add some more lemon zest. The lemon will get stronger as it sits, so you don't want it to be extra lemony at this point. Then, blend again, and move it to the fridge so that it starts to thicken up
Cool and frost the cakes.
- Meanwhile, remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove from the pan and move them to the fridge to cool down for 20 minutes.
- Remove the cooled cakes from the fridge, and a sharp, serrated knife to cut the domes off of the cakes. Then line a tall 6” or 8” cake pan with parchment paper, then place one of the cakes into the pan. (I use thick parchment strips that hang over the edge to easily remove the cake later). See Notes for easier alternate cake assembly.
- Take your frosting out of the fridge, and scoop or pour some of the frosting on top of this cake and spread it evenly.
- Place the other cake on top. If the frosting hasn't thickened up enough to support the top cake, you can keep the bottom cake with frosting on it in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes before using, then put the second cake layer on top, and then put some more of the frosting layer, reserving some of the frosting to frost the edges later. Put the cake pan back in the fridge for 2 to 3 hours, or in the freezer for about 1/2 hour, so that the frosting sets really nicely.
- Once the edges of the frosting are pretty set, remove the pan from the fridge or freezer. Add some hot water to a large bowl, and put the cake pan in it so that the cake will release easily from the pan, then use your parchment to remove the cake from the cake pan, and also peel off the parchment from the cake.
- Place the cake on your cake stand, and use the rest of the frosting to frost the edges. If the frosting is melting too much on the edges, put the cake back in the freezer for 10 minutes, and then continue to frost it. Frost all of the sides of the cake. If you have any more of the frosting left, you can top the cake with any fancy designs you like, or put some sliced lemons or lemon zest or edible flowers on top to make it pretty. Refrigerate until ready to serve
Video
Notes
Storage: keep refrigerated for upto 4 days. Freeze slices for months.
Alternate assembly: bake the batter in an 8 or 9 inch cake pan. Let the cake cool for half an hour then pour all the frosting on the cake in the pan. Refrigerate for an hour for the frosting to set, then slice and serve.
Use lemon cream as frosting; If you let the lemon cream chill for a bit, it starts thickens to a frosting consistency and you can use it like one! This cake is soy-free as long as you use soy-free non-dairy milk and use non-dairy yogurt or the applesauce option. To make this lemon cake nut-free, you can use another cup of coconut cream instead of the cashews in the frosting layer and omit the almond extract. Also make sure that your non-dairy milk and yogurt are nut-free. To make this gluten-free, use 3/4 cup almond flour, 3/4 cup oat flour, and 1/2 cup potato starch. Mix well, pressing to break up any almond flour lumps, and use 1 3/4 cup of this mixture instead of the all-purpose flour. You might need to add more of the gluten-free flour mix to the batter, use 3/4 cup non dairy milk and 1/4 cup club soda. Use leftover coconut milk in my curries or Dals. Make this lentil coconut curry.
Use lemon cream as frosting; If you let the lemon cream chill for a bit, it starts thickens to a frosting consistency and you can use it like one! This cake is soy-free as long as you use soy-free non-dairy milk and use non-dairy yogurt or the applesauce option. To make this lemon cake nut-free, you can use another cup of coconut cream instead of the cashews in the frosting layer and omit the almond extract. Also make sure that your non-dairy milk and yogurt are nut-free. To make this gluten-free, use 3/4 cup almond flour, 3/4 cup oat flour, and 1/2 cup potato starch. Mix well, pressing to break up any almond flour lumps, and use 1 3/4 cup of this mixture instead of the all-purpose flour. You might need to add more of the gluten-free flour mix to the batter, use 3/4 cup non dairy milk and 1/4 cup club soda. Use leftover coconut milk in my curries or Dals. Make this lentil coconut curry.
Nutrition
Calories: 394kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 223mg | Potassium: 200mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 2mg