This Vegan Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake is sweet, tangy and perfectly moist. It's also gluten-free and refined sugar free, comes together in one bowl and the recipe is easily customisable. A great dessert for any occasion!
Tips for baking with lemons
- 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.
- 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.
- For the cake batter, 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 make this recipe
Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.
- Mix together all the ingredients in a 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 one-pound loaf tin.
Tip: Make sure to line the loaf tin with greased baking paper - this will make removing the cake from the tin so much easier!
- Bake in the oven for 45 minutes.
- Transfer to a cooling rack.
How to make the syrup
- Whilst the cake it baking, mix together the lemon juice and maple syrup.
- Drizzle the syrup over the cake as soon as you’ve transferred it to the wire rack – it will soak into the cake better when it’s hot.
- Leave to cool and wait for the syrup to soak in completely before slicing.
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 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
- Yogurt 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 Drizzle Loaf Cake (Gluten-Free)
This Vegan Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake is sweet, tangy and perfectly moist. It's also gluten-free and refined sugar free, comes together in one bowl and the recipe is easily customisable.
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Servings: 10 slices
Calories: 273kcal
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 (2) 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 loaf tin lined with greased baking paper (I used a one-pound loaf tin).
- Bake in the oven for 45 minutes until risen and golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Once out the oven, transfer the cake from the baking tin onto a wire rack.
For the syrup:
- Whilst the cake it baking, mix together the lemon juice and maple syrup.
- Drizzle it over the cake as soon as you’ve transferred it to the wire rack – it will soak into the cake better when it’s hot.
- Leave to cool and wait for the syrup to soak in completely before slicing.
- Tastes best eaten on the day it’s made, but keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days.
Notes
*You can alternatively use almond flour.
- Make sure to 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.
Nutrition Facts
Vegan Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake (Gluten-Free)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 273
Calories from Fat 126
% Daily Value*
Fat 14g22%
Saturated Fat 5g25%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Sodium 55mg2%
Potassium 110mg3%
Carbohydrates 36g12%
Fiber 3g12%
Sugar 21g23%
Protein 5g10%
Vitamin A 2IU0%
Vitamin C 7mg8%
Calcium 109mg11%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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