This Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake is so easy to make, super fruity, and is topped off with a delicious and healthy "cream cheese" frosting. It's made in one bowl, is easily customisable and refined sugar free too!
Substitutions you can make to this recipe:
- You can use any type of oil: coconut oil, olive oil or vegetable oil.
- You can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, cashew milk, oat milk etc.
- You can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc.
- You can replace the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground walnuts.
- For a nut-free version: replace the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground sunflower seeds or use 30g (¼ cup) coconut flour instead of 150g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds.
- You can use plain flour, wholemeal (whole wheat) flour or spelt flour instead of the gluten-free flour if you’re not gluten-free.
- If you're not into blueberries, you can replace them with raspberries, blackberries or cherries.
- If you can’t get hold of coconut milk for the frosting or are feeling lazy, you can use a thick coconut yogurt instead, which adds a lovely fermented flavour reminiscent of real cream cheese, as well as a ton of gut-friendly probiotics!
Can you use frozen blueberries?
- Yes, you can use either fresh or frozen blueberries.
- If using frozen blueberries, be careful when mixing them into the batter. Otherwise, the juice from the blueberries could bleed into the rest of the batter and spoil the colour of your cake.
Tips for making this Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Make sure to use the right amount of baking powder – 2 heaped teaspoons! Use too little baking powder and your sponge won’t be fluffy, too much and it’ll have a bitter taste.
- Adding the lemon juice is crucial as it’s acidic, which means it reacts with the alkali bicarbonate of soda to create a bubbly batter, and fluffy sponge. If you can't get hold of lemon juice, add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar instead.
- Make sure to use an all-purpose shop-bought gluten-free flour blend (or a homemade gluten-free flour blend), as opposed to just using any type of gluten-free flour you can find (such as almond flour, coconut flour, buckwheat flour etc).
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.
How-to and tIPS FOR MAKING the “CREAM CHEESE” FROSTING
- Keep your tin of coconut milk in the fridge overnight (or for at least 12 hours) for the rich creamy bit to separate from the watery bit at the bottom.
- Make sure you use full-fat coconut milk, otherwise this separation won’t happen and you won’t be able to whip it up.
- Open the tin upside down – the coconut cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the watery liquid.
- Save the watery liquid you pour off for adding to soups or smoothies.
- Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl along with the other ingredients (maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla extract).
- Use an electric whisk (or a manual one and a lot of elbow grease) to whip until light and fluffy.
- Make sure the cake has cooled completely before applying the frosting, otherwise the frosting will melt!
EQUIPMENT YOU NEED TO MAKE THIS GLUTEN-FREE VEGAN LEMON BLUEBERRY CAKE:
- glass mixing bowl – for mixing the cake batter.
- measuring jug – for measuring out the plant-based milk.
- 18cm / 7 inch springform baking tin – for baking the cake.
- baking paper – to line the baking tin.
- cooling rack – to leave the cake to cool on before applying the frosting.
- electric whisk – for whipping up the coconut cream to make the vegan “cream cheese” frosting.
- palette knife for frosting – to effortlessly apply the frosting.
HOW LONG does this LEMON Blueberry Cake KEEP FOR?
Although this cake does taste best when fresh, it does keep well covered in the fridge for up to a few days. For super fluffy frosting, you should make it fresh just before serving, but the frosting will retain its shape and texture for a good few days.
More Gluten-Free Vegan Cakes:
- Red Velvet Cake
- Tropical Carrot Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Orange Cake
- Strawberry Cake
- Vanilla Cake
- Coconut 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.
Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
- 200 ml (⅘ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or any other plant-based milk)
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice *
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (use unwaxed lemons)
- 8 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 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 bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 100 g (1 cup) blueberries (fresh or frozen) ***
For the frosting
- 400 g (14 oz) tin of full-fat coconut milk ****
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
To decorate:
- 150 g (1 ½ cups) fresh blueberries
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 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.
- Add the fresh blueberries and fold in gently - make sure you don’t crush them.
- Transfer mixture into a greased baking tin lined with baking paper (I used a 7inch springform baking tin).
- Bake in oven for around 30 minutes until risen and golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Once out the oven, leave to cool completely on a wire rack before applying the frosting.
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 or smoothies).
- Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl.
- Add the lemon juice, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
- 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 decorate:
- Carefully spread the frosting over the top of the cake.
- Top with fresh blueberries.
- Best when fresh but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days.
Notes
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.
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Polly
Rhian,
Thank you for the recipe. I increased the recipe by 1/2 so that I could make two small layers.
The icing is brilliant! Easy to make. I used Trader Joe organic coconut milk and also ground some of their freeze-dried blueberries to add on top of the icing for extra color and a punch of flavor. (well,plus a few raspberries - who can say no to raspberries?) It's not too sweet - just right.
It's the new family favorite.
Rhian Williams
Hi Polly, thank you so much for your comment! I'm so glad you and your family liked the cake. Such a good idea to add freeze-dried blueberries and raspberries - couldn't agree more about the irresistibility of raspberries! Thank you again!
Anonymous
Hello,
I am new to the gluten free baking approach.
Can I substitute almond flour for both the ground almonds and the gluten free flour?
Thank you !
Rhian Williams
No, sorry unfortunately that won't work. You can substitute the gluten-free flour with rice flour or buckwheat flour though. Hope that helps!
Kelly Brown
FANTASTIC! I have been gluten, dairy, and egg free for a couple years and basically suffered during dessert. I made this for my mom's birthday and it was so good, it's gone! I can't wait to make it again!! I've never been much of a baker, but the instructions were easy to understand and follow, even for a stupid American with the conversions. Thank you so much, can't wait to try more of your recipes!
Rhian Williams
Yay that's amazing, thank you so much! I'm so glad you liked this and found it easy to make. I completely feel your pain regarding dessert but glad you've been able to enjoy this recipe.
Sarah
If I wanted to add eggs, would I have to take out another ingredient? My friend is only gluten and lactose intolerant.
Rhian Williams
If you're adding eggs I would suggest adding 1 or 2 eggs, and using much less milk. You might not even need to add any milk at all. I haven't tested the recipe with eggs so can't guarantee anything, but would say you should just omit the milk, then add a little if necessary to combine the batter. Hope that helps and would love to hear how you get on!
Sarah
I used one egg and reduced the milk by a couple tbsp. The cake came out great- it fell in the center and was almost too moist (probably needed another 5 mins in oven). The birthday girl loved it anyway! I have a great photo but don’t know how to share. Thanks so much!
Rhian Williams
Yay thank you for letting me know, glad to hear it turned out well. Would love to see a photo - you can share it with me on Instagram? Thanks again!
Nats
Hi Rhian, can I sub the almond meal to coconut flour?
Rhian Williams
Yes, I would use a fifth of the amount of coconut flour, as it absorbs a lot more moisture so you need to use a lot less. Keep the other ingredient quantities the same. Hope that helps!