Vegan Lemon Cake
A light and delicious vegan lemon cake topped with strawberries. Perfect for spring, and featuring a lemon glaze.
Spring officially arrives today, though if you’re like me, you’ve been enjoying the later daylight hours for over a week already. But this is the day it all begins — warmer weather, daffodils and tulips, apple blossoms, and the return of beautiful new produce to the markets.
California in spring is beautiful. When I went up to Salt Point State Park a few weekends ago, the hills were muddy and green with new grass, and small irises clung to life alongside the trail. Fog drifted in and out, and except for a gaggle of abalone divers, the wind-blown rocks were deserted. The air was energetically whipping about the coast, and smelled wonderfully of wet, growing things, and water — of new.
Spring, the hopeful season, is finally here — even if some temperatures across the country are decidedly un-springlike at the moment (New York, I am looking at you), and here in San Francisco it is raining. Weather woes aside, what better way to celebrate winter’s conclusion than to bake a lovely, vegan lemon cake?
I think you’ll like this one: it’s light, in both fat and texture; simple; and rises beautifully. I made a quick blueberry compote (a cup of blueberries simmered in a splash of water, a tablespoon of sugar, and a tablespoon of cornstarch) to go alongside it for my vegan friends, but it really is begging prettily for a tall mound of whipped cream. Strawberries, another sign of the season’s turn, are more than appropriate here, and I snatched up a basket of on-sale organic beauties that I cut into thin slices and arranged on top. The lemon glaze may be omitted if you’re pressed for time, but I recommend taking the extra few minutes if you can; once brushed lightly across the vegan lemon cake’s surface, it seeps in and keeps it wonderfully moist.
Welcome, spring.
Vegan Lemon Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cake flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons vanilla
- ½ teaspoon lemon oil optional
- 2 tablespoons apple cider or white vinegar
Lemon Glaze
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup lemon juice
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly oil a springform cake or bundt pan and set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, place the water, lemon juice, oil, vanilla, and lemon oil (if using), and whisk well to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk well to combine. Drizzle the vinegar over the top of the batter and whisk quickly to thoroughly incorporate.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Glaze:
- Mix the lemon juice and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved. While the cake is still warm, poke tiny holes all over the surface and pour the glaze over it. Let cool to room temperature before eating.
- I covered the cake with sliced strawberries, but it would be fine plain, or served with a generous helping of whipped cream. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.