This Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Layer Cake is soft and fluffy, sweet and tangy and a little nutty! It's covered in a rich, lemony frosting that tastes like cream cheese. It's easy to make as it comes together in one bowl, and is easily customisable too. It's also refined sugar free. My Lemon Poppy Seed Cake recipe has been really popular, so I decided to make this layer-cake version, which is perfect for birthdays, Easter, Mother's Day, baby showers and everything in between!
How to make the cake
Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.
- Mix together the ingredients for the cake in a mixing bowl.
Tip: Use a measuring jug to measure out the plant-based milk.
- Transfer into two 18 cm / 7 inch sandwich baking tins.
Tip: Line the tins with greased baking paper to make the sponges easier to remove afterwards.
- Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Transfer onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely before applying the frosting.
How to make the frosting
- Place the coconut milk, lemon juice and maple syrup in a bowl.
- Use an electric whisk to whip until thick and fluffy.
Tips for making the frosting
- You'll need to keep your tin of coconut milk in the fridge overnight for the rich, creamy bit to separate from the watery bit at the bottom. Make sure it is full-fat coconut milk, otherwise this separation won't happen and you won't be able to make this frosting!
- Open the tin upside down - the coconut cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the watery liquid (save this for adding to soups, curries or smoothies).
- Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl.
- Use an electric whisk (or a manual one and a lot of elbow grease) to whip up the coconut cream until light and fluffy.
How to frost the cake
- Once the sponges have cooled completely, place one sponge on a large plate or cake stand.
- Cover with half of the frosting.
Tip: Apply the frosting to the cake using a palette knife for frosting.
- Place the other sponge on top and use the remaining frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake.
How to decorate
I decided to decorate this cake with lemon peel and poppy seeds, but you can use whatever you like!
How long does this Lemon Poppy Seed Cake keep for?
This Lemon Poppy Seed Cake tastes best eaten on the day it's made, but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days.
Substitutions you can make
- You can use any type of oil: coconut oil, vegetable oil, olive oil etc.
- You can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc.
- You can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, oat milk, soy milk, cashew milk, rice milk etc.
- If you don't need the cake to be gluten-free, you can replace the gluten-free flour with plain flour.
- The ground almonds can be replaced with ground walnuts.
- For a nut-free version, use ground sunflower seeds instead of ground almonds, use a nut-free plant-based milk and omit the frosting or make a different frosting.
Tips for baking with lemons
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you've had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice, as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you're using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
More vegan lemon cakes
- White Chocolate Lemon Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Mug Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Lemon Poppy Seed Bread
- Lemon Yogurt Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake
- Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
- Lemon Layer Cake
If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I'd really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.
Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Layer Cake (Gluten-Free)
This Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Layer Cake is moist and fluffy, sweet and tangy and a little nutty! It's covered in a rich, lemony frosting that tastes like cream cheese.
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Servings: 8
Calories: 444kcal
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
- 180 ml (¾ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or any other plant-based milk)
- 8 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (use unwaxed lemons)
- 12 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
- 2 heaped teaspoons baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
- ¼ teaspoon (¼ teaspoon) bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
For the frosting:
- 400 g (14 oz) tinned coconut milk (full-fat)**
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
To decorate (optional):
- Lemon peel
- Poppy seeds
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if using any other oil).
- Once melted, add the milk to the same bowl along with the lemon juice, lemon zest, maple syrup, vanilla, salt, poppy seeds and ground almonds.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.
- Mix well, adding a tiny splash more milk if it's looking too dry.
- Transfer mixture between two small greased baking tins lined with baking paper (I used two 7inch/18cm tins).
- Bake in oven for around 15 minutes until risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Once out the oven, immediately remove cakes from baking tins and transfer onto a wire rack to cool.
For the frosting:
- You'll need to keep your tin of coconut milk in the fridge overnight for the rich creamy bit to separate from the watery bit at the bottom. Make sure it is full-fat coconut milk, otherwise this separation won't happen and you won't be able to make this cream!
- Open the tin upside down - the coconut cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the watery liquid (save this for adding to soups, curries or smoothies).
- Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl.
- Add the maple syrup and lemon juice.
- Use an electric whisk (or a manual one and a lot of elbow grease) to whip up the coconut cream until light and fluffy.
To frost and decorate the cake:
- Once the sponges have cooled completely, place one sponge on a large plate or cake stand, and cover with half of the frosting - for best results, use a palette knife to do this.
- Place the other sponge on top and use the remaining frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake.
- Decorate with lemon peel and poppy seeds, if desired.
- This cake tasted best eaten on the day it was made, but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days.
Notes
*You can alternatively use almond flour.
**You can alternatively use a thick coconut yogurt.
Tips for baking with lemons:
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you've had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you're using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
Nutrition Facts
Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Layer Cake (Gluten-Free)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 444
Calories from Fat 270
% Daily Value*
Fat 30g46%
Saturated Fat 16g80%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Sodium 76mg3%
Potassium 261mg7%
Carbohydrates 44g15%
Fiber 5g20%
Sugar 23g26%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 2IU0%
Vitamin C 10mg12%
Calcium 189mg19%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Anonymous
Looks so nice!
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much!