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    Home > Vegan Dessert Recipes > Vegan Cake Recipes

    Vegan Orange Cake

    Posted: Jun 20, 2019 ยท Updated: Aug 12, 2021

    Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe
    Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting
    This decadent and delicious Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting is soy-free, nut-free and it can be made with wholegrain flour. An easy, one-bowl, 10-ingredient recipe.
    Photo of Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting on a cake stand with a slice in front on a white plate.


    Citrus is a marvelous flavor for cakes, and one I never can get enough of. This vegan Orange Cake is a dessert I've baked over and over for many years, after first finding the recipe in the Joy of Cooking. Over the years I've made some tweaks and, most importantly, I've multiplied its deliciousness by doubling the recipe and slathering it with a fluffy, decadent orange marmalade buttercream frosting.

    This is a delicious cake, full of orange flavor in every bite. It has a tender crumb that's perfectly but not cloyingly sweet, and the marmalade buttercream is soft and fluffy and to die for.

    It is also a rather easy cake to make: it should take you no more than 10 minutes to throw the ingredients together and perhaps another 10 to whip up the frosting, if that. It's also a one-bowl recipe because you can throw all your ingredients for the cake in one by one, and then rinse out the bowl and use it to whip up your frosting. And best of all, you can even make your cake a tad boozy, as I sometimes do (but not this time), by subbing a couple of tablespoons of the orange juice with an orange liqueur.

    Closeup of a slice of vegan orange cake with orange marmalade buttercream frosting.

    10 ingredients for Vegan Orange Cake

    • Flour. I sometimes use unbleached all purpose but when I'm feeling a little extra-healthy, I've used whole wheat pastry flour. Both give great results that are quite comparable. You can also use half and half if you're undecided.
    • Orange. You need both the juice and the zest here. I use the pulpy juice, so if you want to just toss your oranges in a blender and juice them up (sans the skin, of course), go ahead. Or just buy the juice off the shelf at your grocer's. You will need a whole orange to zest, though.
    • Orange marmalade. This is for the frosting, and it's wonderful.
    • Vegetable oil. In vegan cakes, oil not only subs for butter, I think it makes the cake more moist, which is a win-win, isn't it?
    • Baking soda
    • Apple cider vinegar (use regular vinegar if that's what you have)
    • Pure vanilla extract
    • Sugar. I use turbinado, which makes the crumb darker, but any kind will work.
    • Powdered sugar or confectioner's sugar, for the frosting.
    • Vegan butter for the frosting.

    How to make the best Vegan Orange Cake

    • This is a one-bowl recipe, like I already said, so you don't have to worry about mixing the dry ingredients, then the wet ingredients, then merging them. You can start out by throwing in your wet ingredients -- the orange juice, zest, oil, vinegar, vanilla and sugar -- beat it all until combined, and then throw in the dry ingredients and mix until they come together.
    • Scrape your batter into two 8- or 9-inch cake pans lined at the bottom with parchment paper and with the sides oiled. Bake for 30-35 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.
    • Cool the cakes in the pan, then unmold and continue cooling them on racks before frosting.
    Overhead photo of Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting

    How to make the Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting

    • Make sure your butter is at room temperature -- not hard nor melted, but soft.
    • Start out by combining the orange marmalade in the bowl with the butter and whisk, then begin to add the powdered sugar, half a cup at a time.
    • Beat in the sugar after each addition and taste as you go to adjust the amount of sugar up or down to your liking. I find that most frosting recipes use too much sugar for my taste. For this cake I used two cups of powdered sugar and it was perfect. More sugar will make your buttercream stiffer, so keep that in mind as well.
    • If your powdered sugar has been standing around for some time and is clumping together, run it through a sieve before adding it to the frosting to make sure the buttercream is perfectly smooth and fluffy, the way you want it to be.
    • Use an offset spatula or a butter knife to frost your cake. Dump half of the frosting on the first cake, spread it around evenly, then carefully place the second cake, bottom side up on the first cake and frost the top and sides with remaining frosting. This recipe doesn't make enough frosting to get a liberal layer of buttercream around the sides of the cake, but if you want to do that, add another stick of butter to your frosting and increase the other ingredients proportionately.

    I hope you'll try and enjoy this amazing Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting as much as we did. If you make it, be sure to let me know in the comments below or take a photo and tag me @holycowvegan on Instagram!

    More vegan cake recipes

    • Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake with a Lemon Glaze
    • Vegan Lemon Yogurt Bundt Cake
    • Vegan Zucchini Cake with Orange Marmalade Glaze
    • Vegan Mango Cheesecake
    • Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake
    Front photo of Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting with a slice of the cake in front on a plate.
    Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting

    Vegan Orange Cake (with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting)

    This decadent and delicious Vegan Orange Cake with Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting is soy-free, nut-free and it can be made with wholegrain flour. An easy, one-bowl, 10-ingredient recipe.
    5 from 28 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Review Recipe
    Course: Cake/Dessert
    Cuisine: nut-free, Soy-free
    Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian
    Keyword: Vegan Orange Cake
    Prep Time: 15 mins
    Cook Time: 35 mins
    Total Time: 50 mins
    Servings: 20 slices
    Calories: 354kcal
    Author: Vaishali ยท Holy Cow! Vegan Recipes

    Ingredients 

    For the vegan Orange Cake:

    • 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour (can use whole wheat pastry flour or half all purpose and half whole wheat)
    • 2 teaspoon baking soda
    • ยฝ teaspoon salt
    • 2 cups orange juice (sub two tablespoon of the orange juice with an orange liqueur if you like)
    • Zest of an orange
    • 2 cups sugar
    • โ…” cup vegetable oil
    • 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
    • 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

    For the vegan Orange Marmalade Buttercream Frosting:

    • 1 cup vegan butter (2 sticks)
    • ยฝ cup orange marmalade
    • 2 cups powdered sugar
    • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
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    Instructions

    Make the cake:

    • Place the orange juice, zest, sugar, oil, vinegar and vanilla in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer. Use a whisk or the whisk attachment of the stand mixer to mix for one minute or until everything appears to be well-mixed.
    • Add the baking soda, salt and flour to the bowl and mix. Scrape down the sides of the pan after 20 seconds of mixing and mix for 20 seconds more, but no longer.
    • Spray two 8- or 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray or oil. Preferably line the bottom with parchment paper, or, if you don't have this, flour the pans. Divide the batter equally between the two pans.
    • Bake the cakes in a 350-degree oven for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
    • Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then slide a thin knife around the edges of each cake
    • Gently flip each cake onto a plate, slide onto a rack, and continue cooling before you frost.

    Make the frosting:

    • Place the orange marmalade, vanilla and butter in a bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until combined, around 30 seconds.
    • Add the powdered sugar, half a cup at a time, incorporating well into the butter mixture after each addition. Your frosting should be smooth, creamy and fluffy.

    Assemble the cake:

    • Place one of the cakes, on a plate or cake stand. Dump half of the frosting on the cake, use an offset spatula or knife to spread it evenly, then place the second cake on top, taking care to ensure they line up evenly. Spread the remaining frosting evenly over the top of the cake, using anything that remains for the sides.
    • Slice and serve.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1slice | Calories: 354kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Sodium: 263mg | Potassium: 76mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 485IU | Vitamin C: 12.8mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 0.9mg
    Tried this recipe?Please leave a comment and recipe rating below!
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    About Vaishali


    Hi! I am so happy you're here. I'm Vaishali, and I've been sharing recipes for delicious vegan food at Holy Cow Vegan since 2007. Every one of the more than 1,000 recipes on this blog has been tried and tested -- and loved -- by my family and I. I hope you will find something here to share with your loved ones. Thanks for stopping by!
    Read more about me here.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Nancy

      June 12, 2021 at 3:20 pm

      5 stars
      Best cake EVER

      Reply
    2. Maria

      March 02, 2021 at 1:51 am

      Hi Vaishali,
      Can I cut down on the 2 c sugar and 2/3 c oil in this recipe? If so, how much?
      Thanks!
      Maria

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        March 02, 2021 at 9:25 am

        You can--replace up to half a cup of the sugar or a fourth of a cup of oil with apple sauce. I wouldn't cut down on it too much though. Better to eat it as it is meant to be, but eat less. ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    3. Kadi

      December 22, 2020 at 7:27 pm

      Hi! Can I bake and frost this 1 day ahead? Or will the frosting go ugly? ? Sorry if it's been answered, I couldn't find. Thank you! ?

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        December 22, 2020 at 8:29 pm

        Yes 1 day ahead is just fine!

        Reply
        • Kadi

          December 24, 2020 at 1:00 am

          Thank you! Also in the post part it says we'll need to use zest of one orange but in the recipe part it's not there. Should I add zest of one orange to the batter?

          Reply
          • Vaishali

            December 24, 2020 at 2:23 am

            Yes and added. ?

            Reply
    4. Adrienne

      August 25, 2020 at 4:08 pm

      can i sub sugar to a swerve or stevia?? i am an anti sugar person so i was wondering if there would be any good alternatives of the sugar...if honey or maple too works?? thanks for the recipe i am anxious to try this!

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        December 24, 2020 at 2:24 am

        I would go for maple syrupโ€” stevia would make the cake dry.

        Reply
    5. Susan

      November 20, 2019 at 10:51 pm

      5 stars
      Which vegetable oil? Olive oil work? Thx!

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        November 21, 2019 at 9:37 am

        Olive would add a strong flavor, so I'd recommend something like avocado, which is flavorless. At a pinch, virgin coconut oil would work better with the flavors here.

        Reply
    6. Keren

      August 20, 2019 at 6:50 pm

      5 stars
      HI, thanks for this great recipe! I made it today for my friends birthday. I only had one tin so did the whole batter in one go and didn't cook it for quite long enough so it was a little under but it would have been absolutely perfect and will be next time I do it! My butter cream icing split though - did anyone else find that? It was my own homemade marmalade which has quite a high liquid content so perhaps the citrus liquid was too much?? It didn't matter it was delicious and looked beautiful despite the splitting (i covered the top in toasted coconut flakes...) thank you. A real find.

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        August 21, 2019 at 8:30 pm

        So happy you tried! Not sure why the icing split, it could be the liquid. Happy you enjoyed the cake. ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    7. Jane

      June 20, 2019 at 12:44 pm

      5 stars
      Wonderful recipe, so fresh tasting. Because I am allergic to any form of margarine, Iโ€™ve been afraid to try vegan butter. I placed a thin layer of marmalade between the layers and dusted the top (through a pretty doily) with powdered sugar. It worked very well.

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        June 20, 2019 at 2:00 pm

        Hi Jane, marmalade only sounds great. I sometimes serve the cake without any frosting and it still works. So happy you tried it!

        Reply
    8. viyth

      October 29, 2016 at 9:55 pm

      5 stars
      I made this for diwali yesterday and it was a great hit! I didn't have any liqueur so used some orange zest instead and baked it in an 8inch round pan. Decided to add a glaze (1/4 cup breakfast marmalade + 1 tablespoon rum heated up for a bit) on top and it was perfect. Needless to say, no leftovers so thank you Vaishali!

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        October 31, 2016 at 11:53 am

        So glad you liked it. Happy Diwali! ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    9. Anonymous

      June 05, 2016 at 10:23 am

      5 stars
      This recipe is a family favorite. Family members have requested it for their birthdays, and my grandson is graduating high school today and requested it for his party!! I double the recipe and put it in a 13 x 9 in pan, otherwise there'd never be enough for seconds with my crowd!

      Reply
    10. Vivienne

      November 24, 2015 at 5:36 pm

      5 stars
      I made this cake the other day and it was SO delicious. I baked mine for 35 minutes and it probably still could've gone for another minute or two, but it was still awesome. I also made a small addition that worked surprisingly well (and might've been why it needed a few more minutes).

      I removed and discarded the membrane from the inside of 3 oranges (after I juiced them), cut the rind into a small dice, and boiled with about 3 cups of water for 10 minutes. I then drained the rind and put it into the completed cake batter and it gave the finished cake a nice texture. Would highly recommend! This cake also tastes very good with home-made cranberry sauce (any time of year!). Great recipe!

      Reply
    11. Lisa

      October 09, 2014 at 5:00 pm

      5 stars
      Another successful cake recipe from HCV! Thanks Vaishali! I really don't see the need for adding eggs to a cake batter anymore. Seems to me that eggs could be one of the ingredients that make cakes dry out anyway after baking the vegan way several times now. This orange cake is tender, moist, and full of orange flavor, particularly since I added the zest of an orange before blending the flesh to make fresh juice.

      Reply
      • Vaishali Honawar

        October 09, 2014 at 5:30 pm

        Hi Lisa, so happy you liked it! And can't agree more on the use of eggs in cake -- they do seem to dry the cake out. Besides that smell! Even when I was eating meat and eggs etc., and I did enjoy eggs, I couldn't stand the eggy smell in baked goods. ๐Ÿ™
        Thanks for your feedback, and the orange zest sounds like a great idea! ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    12. Vaishali Honawar

      September 18, 2014 at 1:26 pm

      Hi Lakshmi, it's hard to say what could have happened, since you used a convection oven-- I've only made this in my conventional gas oven where the heat comes from the top and bottom. In a convection oven, a fan blows the heat around which should allow for even cooking. Perhaps next time you might try reducing the temperature a little bit-- by about 25 degrees-- and see how it works.

      Reply
    13. Leslie Sanford

      August 28, 2014 at 5:21 pm

      5 stars
      I know this is kind of belated, but I want to thank you for taking a stand against Michael Vick. You are so right, and I feel his punishment was totally inadequate because of his fame. And now this animal torturer has a new dog - I fear for its life and am sure it will be trained to fight. A pit bull would be too obvious, so he got a Belgian Malinois - used frequently by military handlers and can be trained for aggressiveness and attack.

      Reply
    14. shani

      May 05, 2014 at 4:46 am

      5 stars
      this cake is so amazing!! made it twice now and it came out perfect each time ๐Ÿ™‚
      not to mention - easy! can whip it up in less than 10 minutes!
      a tip - before I put it in the oven I sprinkle it with poppy seeds for a orange and poppyseed cake ๐Ÿ™‚
      so delicious - you don't need frosting!

      Reply
      • Selvi

        June 15, 2014 at 2:14 am

        Hi Vaishali...I baked this cake twice using all the ingredients in the same proportion except for the liqueur part. I used one cup of fresh orange juice instead. I threw in some orange zest. I also used unbleached flour and substituted the oil with melted vegan butter. The final product was soft and moist and tasted delicious. However, the orange cake appeared more like a brownie as in the colour. When I took it out from the microwave convection oven, it was light in color but became brown over time. I used a dark colored baking tin. It took 15 minutes to bake at 150 degrees Celsius.How do I get the orange color as illustrated in your picture to live up to its name "orange cake"?Thank you.

        Reply
        • Vaishali

          June 15, 2014 at 6:36 pm

          Hi Selvi, it's strange about the color. A dark tin can indeed darken the final product, but the cake pan I use is also a pretty dark one. One possibility is the microwave convection oven which might brown differently than my gas oven does. Is it orange inside, or brown inside as well? Anyway, glad you liked the texture and taste.

          Reply
          • Selvi

            June 16, 2014 at 12:03 am

            Hi Vaishali...thank you for the reply. It's also brown inside...dark chocloate so to speak. The thing is it was lighter in colour when I took it out from the oven once baked and as it cooled down...it was browning all round. This has only happened to this recipe. I have tried other recipes and they turned out normal. Anyway, the cake is still good to go. Thank you.

            Reply
            • Vaishali

              June 16, 2014 at 4:38 pm

              Sorry I couldn't be more help, Selvi, but glad it at least tastes good. Happy baking! ๐Ÿ™‚

              Reply
    15. Jessica

      April 21, 2014 at 7:50 pm

      So, cupcakes were great. I also added fresh diced pineapple, used spiced rum in place of the Cointreau I did not have, decided that made it a kind of spiced cake so added fresh ground cinnamon and nutmeg, used carrot orange juice b/c that's what I had, threw in a handful of poppy seeds because why not, and used half and half canola oil and olive oil for the veg oil, again, what I had. I doubled the recipe and did one 8" cake and 12 cupcakes. RAVE reviews by all.

      Reply
      • Vaishali

        April 21, 2014 at 10:08 pm

        That's great to know, Jessica, so glad the recipe worked as cupcakes. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us.

        Reply
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    Hi, I'm Vaishali! I cook, eat and share easy, tasty and nutritious plant-based recipes from my Washington, D.C. kitchen, but I never fight a craving for samosas or French fries. 

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    Vaishali Honawar, Holy Cow Vegan author, profile photo

    Hi, I'm Vaishali! I cook, eat and share easy, tasty and nutritious plant-based recipes from my Washington, D.C. kitchen, but I never fight a craving for samosas or French fries. 

    More about me โ†’

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