This Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake is easy to make, elegantly simple and incredibly delicious. It's moist and fluffy, perfectly tangy and refined sugar free too. It comes together in one bowl, and the recipe is easily customisable.
How to make this recipe
Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.
- Mix together all the ingredients in a glass mixing bowl.
Tip: Make sure to use a measuring jug to measure out the exact amount of plant-based milk!
- Transfer the batter into a 18cm / 7 inch springform baking tin lined with greased baking paper.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
How to make the lemon syrup
As delicious as the sponge is, the main highlight (as with any other Lemon Drizzle Cake situation) is the syrup! I used a simple 2-ingredient mixture of lemon juice and maple syrup, which works really well to lock in the moisture, and works to add extra sweetness and citrus aroma.
The trick to getting the full potential out of the drizzle is to pour it over the cake as soon as it's out of the oven. The heat will help the sponge soak up all the flavour and keeps it extra moist. It may seem like a lot of liquid at the time, but it will all be absorbed into the sponge.
Tips for making this recipe
- 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.
- 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.
Substitutions you can make
- 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 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.
How long does this keep for?
I found that this cake tastes best eaten on the day or day after it was made - just be sure to wait for it to cool completely before cutting, though! Any longer than that, it tasted best reheated in a dry frying pan or the microwave.
More gluten-free vegan cakes
- Red Velvet Cake
- Tropical Carrot Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Orange Cake
- Strawberry Cake
- Vanilla Cake
- Coconut Cake
- Almond Cake
- Olive Oil Cake
- Ginger 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.
Watch how to make it
Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
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
- 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)
For the syrup:
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
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 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 into a greased baking tin lined with baking paper (I used a 7inch/18cm springform baking tin).
- Bake in oven for around 30 minutes until risen and golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
For the syrup:
- Whilst the cake it baking, mix together the lemon juice and maple syrup.
- Drizzle it over the cake as soon as it's out of the oven - it will soak into the cake better when it's hot.
- Be sure to wait for the cake to cool completely and for the syrup to have soaked in completely before slicing.
- This cake tasted best eaten on the day it was made, and leftovers taste best reheated in a dry frying pan or the microwave.
Video
Notes
- 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).
- Pour the syrup over the cake as soon as it's out of the oven. The heat will help the sponge soak up all the flavour and keeps it extra moist. It may seem like a lot of liquid at the time, but it will all be absorbed into the sponge.
- 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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Laura H.
Tempting recipe! May I ask if the notes on nut-free version are correct (see below)? Will 30g of coconut flour really replace 150g of almond flour? Thank-you
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.
Rhian Williams
Yes that's correct - the much smaller quantity is because coconut flour absorbs a lot more moisture than almond flour!
Vasu
Hi, could I use shortening instead of the oil? Also, to use shortening, should I melt it or use it as is? Thanks! 😊
Rhian Williams
Yes I think so! And yes I'd recommend melting it first!
Mairéad k
Wonderful recipe. I added 3 tablespoons of poppyseeds
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much, so happy to hear that!
Jackie Hogan
Very delcicious! Thank you.
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much!
Maria
I've made this twice. it's very good, not too sweet.
that said, the first time I made it, using a 7" pan as suggested, it overflowed the pan onto the bottom of the over and then center never cooked through. The second time I used a 9" pan and it worked very well, although I had to cook the cake for 45 minutes to get the center done.
Also, I'd like to point out that 8 tablespoons is a half a cup. 12 tablespoons is 3/4 of a cup. Much easier to measure that way.
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much for sharing your feedback, that's really helpful to know!