Trapped in a winter wonderland yesterday, with the snow piling up outside, I channeled whatever little spare time I had after my work-at-home day into making this divine Vegan Lemon Yogurt Bundt Cake.
Jay, who loves anything lemony, had been after me to make a lemon cake, and I picked a bag of meyer lemons to do just that because, honestly, lemon cake? Who needs any motivation for that, or even a nine-year-old going please, mom?
One of the problems with lemon desserts is that no matter how much lemon juice you add to the batter, the flavor tends to dissipate during baking. So in this dessert, I packed the lemons in at three stages. There's lemon juice and zest in the batter, then a lemony syrup goes over the cake after baking, and finally, there's an absolutely scrumptious lemon glaze that gets drizzled over the cake. It not only looks pretty, it really is the icing on this cake.
This is a spectacular-looking cake as well, with a dark red-gold crust. The crumb is tender and soft, thanks to the yogurt, and melts in the mouth. If you want to make a smaller cake, halve the recipe and bake in a loaf pan or an 8-inch cake pan.
Make sure you reserve some of the glaze to drizzle over the individual slices when you serve the cake, for the most flavor. And if you make this cake, be sure to come back and tell me if you liked it.
More vegan dessert recipes:
Vegan Lemon Yogurt Bundt Cake recipe:
Vegan Lemon Yogurt Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice and zest of two lemons (I used meyer lemons, but regular lemons would work too)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup vegetable oil (I used avocado oil, which is flavorless. You can use olive, but I find the olive oil sometimes tends to overpower the lemons)
- 2 cups vegan yogurt (I used my homemade cultured cashew yogurt, but use any unsweetened storebought yogurt. Cashew yogurt would be ideal)
For the lemon syrup:
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ¼ cup sugar
For the lemon glaze:
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, and salt.
- In a larger bowl, mix the oil, sugar, yogurt, vanilla extract, and lemon juice and zest until combined.
- Add the flour to the wet mixture in three batches, mixing thoroughly with a spatula after each addition. Make sure you scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl after each addition.
- Prepare a bundt pan by spraying with cooking spray. Pour the batter evenly into the bundt pan. Place it in the oven and bake 50-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Place the bundt pan on a rack and unmold the cake after 10 minutes. It should come out very easily, but if you need help, run a knife gently along the edges.
- Prepare the syrup by melting the sugar with the lemon juice. Poke some holes into the bundt cake with a toothpick, and drizzle on the syrup. Let the cake cool thoroughly.
- Once the cake has cooled, prepare the glaze by mixing the confectioners' sugar with the lemon juice. Drizzle it over the bundt cake, and reserve some glaze to drizzle over individual slices.
Michelle
This turned out really good! I used 1/2 maple syrup and 1/2 coconut sugar in place of the sugar, plus I added a bit of coconut flakes. And for the syrup I used a bit of honey and lemon juice. It was very lovely. Thanks for the recipe !
Vaishali
Sounds lovely!
Sheila
Can I sub the vegan yogurt with 450ml soy milk+30ml acv
Vaishali
I think that should be fine. Yogurt does add a nice tenderness to the cake so you might lose some of that by using just milk and acv.
Deb Vlahakis
This cake is absolutely gorgeous. I needed this lemony lift after such a winter. Wish I could attach a picture
Vaishali
So happy you loved it!
Melanie
I love this recipe I have returned to it 3 or 4 times. Everytime it unmoulds perfectly as well. Thank you!
Tyra
What kind unbleached flour did you use
Vaishali
Any brand of unbleached all purpose flour that's on sale! 🙂
Marianne
Totally delicious! Next time I make it and there definitely will be a next time could you use 1/2 cup applesauce and 1/2 cup oil instead of 1 cup of oil. It might change the flavour a bit, but I try to limit my oil?
Love your recipes, samosas are excellent.
Vaishali
Hi Marianne, so happy you tried it! You could try subbing half the oil with applesauce but the cake might get a bit tender which could make it harder to unmold. Otherwise it shouldn't affect it much.
Felicia
How long Will it stay good for? I have Made it before and love it. I wanna make one for school ideally 1-2 days in advance is that still as tasty?
Vaishali
You can freeze it for longer periods, but for 1-2 days just store it in the refrigerator. It will be tasty!
Tara
Hi I would love to try this recipe.
Would you know the ingredients in grams please.
Melanie
Just made this to test out my new cast iron budnt pan! Worked great thank you
Jen
Delicious recipe. I made it with gluten free flour and it worked perfectly. Thank you.
Suee33
Oh and if it helps anyone I did use So Delicious Dairy Free, unsweetened CoconutMilk yogurt alternative.
Suee33
I made this Yummy BEAUTIFUL Bundt Cake for our All Vegan after church Munchy table last week, it was a huge hit. It really looked nice too.
I am wondering can I make it GF an will it be as beautiful as your regular recipe... has anyone tried it?
ID
Hi Vaishali , I dont have cashew yoghurt .... can i use plain yoghurt.... i know its a vegan recipe !
Vaishali
Yes!