This tender vegan apple cake has a sticky caramel sauce glaze that makes it twice as delicious! If you love caramel apples in Fall, you will go head over heels for this amazing vegan cake.
Fall is all about baking delicious, red and gold desserts with apples, like this vegan French apple tart, vegan apple pull apart bread and vegan tarte tatin. Another favorite for me this time of year is this yummy vegan apple cake topped with a sticky, buttery caramel sauce.
This is an incredibly easy dessert to make, and the caramel sauce, although scrumptious and easy too, is optional. The cake itself is a revelation: the apples melt down into juicy little pockets that dot the moist, tender crumb with walnuts adding nutty crunch.
If you are looking to make this dessert healthier, you can easily substitute the flour for whole wheat pastry flour, with amazing results. The cake is relatively lower in fat and it's loaded with one of the healthiest fruits you can eat!
Why you will love this recipe
- Delicious and healthy-ish! The cake has a moist, tender crumb, thanks to the apples, and the sticky caramel makes it incredibly yummy. If you are a health fiend you can make this apple cake with whole wheat pastry flour, which gives a perfect result.
- Easy recipe. The cake is a one-bowl recipe and you can bake it in any cake pan you have. I used a bundt pan to make it pretty, but if you have a regular round cake tin or a square brownie pan you can use those as well!
- Make-ahead friendly. This vegan apple cake can be stored in the fridge for up to a week, or it can be frozen for up to three months.
- Soy-free and vegan. You can skip the nuts if you are nut-free.
Ingredients
- Apples. You can use any apple in this cake recipe, with the exception of powdery apples like red delicious. See FAQs below for more on this.
- Flour. Unbleached all purpose flour is what I used but whole wheat pastry flour works beautifully too. You can also use a half-and-half mix of whole wheat flour and all purpose flour.
- Leavening: Baking soda and baking powder
- Corn starch or tapioca starch. You can use either. The starch works as an egg replacement and helps build the cake's structure.
- Ground cinnamon. Apples and cinnamon are a match made in tastebud heaven. You can also add ground cloves, ground nutmeg or ground ginger for more complexity.
- Sugar. I like using an unrefined granulated sugar like turbinado sugar in this recipe. You can also use coconut sugar, brown sugar or vegan cane sugar.
- Oil. I used avocado oil. Use any unflavored oil of your choice.
- Non-dairy milk. I used oat milk. Use any non-dairy milk of your choice, including almond milk, cashew milk or soy milk.
- Pure vanilla extract. This adds more sweetness and yum to the apple cake.
- Walnuts or pecans. I use either depending on what I have on hand. They add a lovely crunch. You can skip the nuts if you are nut-free.
For optional caramel glaze
- Sugar. Use any granulated sugar, I used turbinado sugar.
- Nondairy milk. This helps make the caramel glaze creamier. Use oat milk, soy milk, almond milk or any non-dairy milk of your choice.
- Vegan butter. This gives that amazing buttery flavor to the glaze.
How to make vegan apple cake
Place the flour in a bowl along with the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, corn starch and salt.
Use a whisk to mix all the ingredients.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in the bowl: sugar, dairy-free milk, oil and pure vanilla extract.
Use a spatula to mix the cake batter. Make sure there is no dry flour at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be very thick, but that's okay.
Add the finely chopped apples to the batter.
Mix them in. Set the batter aside for 15 minutes. This will give the apples some time to express moisture into the batter.
Fold in the chopped nuts, if using, into the batter.
Scoop the cake batter into an oiled and floured bundt cake pan or another cake pan. Smooth the top.
Bake in a preheated 350-degree Fahrenheit/180-degree Celsius oven for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Let the cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then invert it onto a plate. To do this, place the plate over the bundt pan and flip it quickly. Drizzle the glaze over the cake with a spoon. (See recipe card below for glaze ingredients and recipe).
Recipe FAQs
Most apples will work with this recipe, including granny smith, golden delicious, honeycrisp, braeburn, jonagold, pink lady apples are all fine. Don't use a powdery apple like red delicious.
No, you can leave the skin on. Apples are included in the "dirty dozen" of fruits and vegetables, meaning they contain a large amount of pesticide residues, so use organic apples, especially if you want to leave the skin on.
Yes, you can use any cake pan on hand to bake this vegan apple cake. Just be sure to oil and flour the pan, or line it with parchment paper, for easy unmolding.
Yes. Use an all-purpose gluten-free flour baking mix.
Pro tip
- This apple cake contains a cup of sugar, but if the apples you have are very sweet, you can use less. You can use ¾ of a cup of sugar and add ¼ cup of unsweetened applesauce or vegan yogurt to add some moisture back in. This is a useful tip for anyone who wants to cut down on sugar in a recipe. Sugar acts as a "wet" ingredient in baked goods, because when it melts it becomes liquid. When you remove sugar from a recipe, you remove moisture and your baked good can turn out dry. Don't overdo it, though. Replacing one-fourth of the sugar with applesauce is fine, but adding more could make your cake so tender, it could fall apart.
Storage suggestions
- Refrigerate: The apple cake can be stored in the fridge for up to a week.
- Freeze: Wrap the cake in two layers of freezer wrap or store it in a freezer-safe container.
- Thaw completely to room temperature before serving.
More vegan cake recipes
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and a star rating below. Or tag us on Instagram #HolyCowVegan.
Vegan Apple Cake Recipe
Equipment
- Bundt cake pan or a square or round cake tin
- Small saucepan (for optional glaze)
Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon corn starch (or tapioca starch)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar (if you want to cut down on this, substitute a quarter of the sugar with an equal amount of applesauce)
- ½ cup non-dairy milk (oat milk, almond milk, soy milk are all fine).
- ½ cup avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup pecans (or walnuts. Toast the nuts lightly and chop them).
- 2 ½ cups apples (finely chopped. Measure the apples after chopping. You will need roughly two medium-sized apples).
For optional glaze
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter
- ¼ cup non-dairy milk
Instructions
Make the apple cake
- Oil and liberally flour a bundt cake pan or any cake pan you are using. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius.
- Place the flour in a bowl along with the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, corn starch and salt. Whisk to mix all ingredients.
- Add the wet ingredients: sugar, non-dairy milk, oil and pure vanilla extract. Mix with a spatula. Scrape the sides and bottom to make sure there is no dry flour in the bowl. The batter will be stiff.
- Add the finely chopped apples to the batter and mix them in. Set the batter aside for 15 minutes. This will give the apples some time to express moisture into the batter.
- Stir the chopped nuts, if using, into the batter. Scoop the prepared batter into an oiled and floured bundt cake pan or another cake pan. Smooth the top.
- Bake in a preheated 350-degree Fahrenheit/180-degree Celsius oven for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then invert it onto a plate. To do this, place the plate over the bundt pan and flip it quickly. Continue to cool on the rack.
Make the caramel glaze
- Place the sugar in a saucepan with the vegan butter and non-dairy milk over medium-low heat. Once the sugar has melted, continue to cook 7-8 minutes over low heat, stirring frequently. Turn off the heat.
- Glaze the cake while the glaze is still hot or warm because the glaze will harden up as it cools. You can drizzle the glaze over the cake with a spoon.
Recipe notes
- Without the glaze, each slice of the apple cake has 228 calories and 12 grams of fat.
- Refrigerate: The apple cake can be stored in the fridge for up to a week.
- Freeze: Wrap the cake in two layers of freezer wrap or store it in a freezer-safe container.
- Thaw completely to room temperature before serving.
patti
I love this vegan apple cake. Minor modifications to recipe ie., less sugar (no apple sauce). It smelled so good I did not make the icing before me and another elf did a taste test. hahaha! Yum! even sans icing!
Ashley
I’m so excited to make this. My partner is allergic to cinnamon so that and allspice are out. Would you recommend 1:1 replacing with nutmeg or a blend of nutmeg and maybe cardamom?
Thank you!!
Vaishali
Hi Ashley, a 1 to 1 replacement with nutmeg alone could be too strong. I suggest adding half a teaspoon of nutmeg and a teaspoon or two of cardamom. Hope you love it!
Vinee
This cake was DELICIOUS!! I love everything about your blog. This was the first recipe I tried. It came out great! I can’t wait to try other recipes from here.
Could you please clarify the serving size & nutrition information. Thank You.
Vaishali
Hi Vinee, happy you enjoyed the cake. Nutrition info per slice is at the bottom of the recipe card. There are 16 slices in each cake.
Susan
Absolutely delicious! My daughter is allergic to eggs, so I am always on the lookout for egg-free desserts. This was fantastic — rich and moist and sweet and oh-so-apple-y!
Vaishali
So happy to hear, Susan!
Aruna Mani
Hi. I had many apples left behind and stumbled upon this. Followed it to the T. Couldn't be happier for the way it turned out. I didn't top ig with applesauce because, despite reducing the sugar quantity to 3/4 cup I felt it was sweet for my palate. The home was smelling divine with cinnamon flavor and taste is fabulous. Thank you soo much for such a great recipe.
Vaishali
So great to hear, Aruna. So happy you tried the apple cake!
Katie
Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to make this cake! I really want to make it in a bundt pan, though. Would I have to add baking time or double the recipe (to fill the pan)? Thank you!
Vaishali
Hi Katie, double the recipe for a bundt pan. And add 10 minutes to baking time--check with a toothpick in the center and if it comes out with wet batter sticking to it, bake for a bit longer until the toothpick comes out clean.
Claudia
I also substituted coconut oil instead of vegetable oil to make it healthier.
Sylvester
Coconut oil is mostly saturated fat so it increases your LDL cholesterol and is not healthy for your heart. Claims that coconut oil is healthy are incorrect.
Canola (rapeseed oil) on the other hand has a healthy balance of omega 3 and omega 6, which is good for your heart.
Claudia
I made this with buckwheat instead of flour to make it gluten free. I used half the sugar and half apple sauce instead of a quarter and used half a lemon juice to help activate the baking soda. It came out great!
Vaishali
Claudia, so happy to hear you loved the cake. Thanks for sharing this awesome glutenfree tip.
Susan
When I was mixing ingredients it seemed too dry and crimbky. Should I have added more oil?
Vaishali
You shouldn't add more than the 1/3rd cup in the recipe. Keep in mind that the apples will express moisture as well.
Divya
Thank u so much for sharing this recipe...im a beginner and have tried 3 more cakes before this but this one came out to be perfect. I have 2 questions : can sugar b replaced by jaggery powder? If yes, how much? Can we use whole wheat flour solely ?
Donna
Made this two nights ago and it was excellent. Tasted even better the next day.
Thanks for the recipe
Ashwini M Shetty
I had baked this last year for my sisters birthday and it turned out awesome!! One of the best cakes I have ever baked. Thank you and please keep posting some more of such healthy bakes?
Lola
Can almond flour be used instead of wheat flower
Anonymous
I used almond flour and it turned out quite well
Anonymous
Hi...can I substitute flax meal with any other ingredient ? what is it used for ?
jayj
Flax meal is used a substitute for egg. You can google egg substitutes for other options. I've seen chia seed and water used also.
Blue Voiced Sobriquet
I'm baking this tomorrow to distribute out to the homeless, as part of the volunteer group for the Hare Krishnas, who deploy surplus food and donations to those living on the street.
It'll be well appreciated ?
Maia
Great recipe. I have made this twice now. I used a silicone baking pan with spray oil. No problem demolding. I tried substituting 1/4 cup stevia for 1/4 cup sugar to good effect. I also used 1/2 cup applesauce to substitute for more sugar and the water in the flaxseed mixture. It was plenty sweet.
I used vegan ice cream to top it instead of glaze. Yum! I used a mild olive oil once and avocado oil another time. I don’t know what to think about canola oil, not sure I trust it.
Maia
Great recipe. I have made this twice now. I used a silicone baking pan with spray oil. No problem demolding. I tried substituting 1/4 cup stevia for 1/4 cup sugar to good effect. I also used 1/2 cup applesauce to substitute for more sugar and the water in the flaxseed mixture. It was plenty sweet.
I used vegan ice cream to top it instead of glaze. Yum! I used a mild olive oil once and avocado oil another time. I don’t know what to think about canola oil, not sure I trust it.