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gingerbread cake on a cutting board with a slice cut out
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4.95 from 19 votes

Vegan Gingerbread Cake

Love ginger? Then you will love this vegan gingerbread cake! It has an amazing, fluffy texture and is topped with this sweet-and-spicy ginger glaze that gives it an incredible, festive flavor. It’s a must-make during the holidays! 1 bowl; gluten-free, nut-free, and soy-free options
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Cooling Time25 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Holiday
Keyword: vegan gingerbread cake
Servings: 8
Author: Vegan Richa

Equipment

  • 9x5" loaf pan

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

Spices

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground clove
  • 1/8 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Wet Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 3/4 cup non-dairy milk warmed
  • 3 tablespoons molasses
  • 2 tablespoons non-dairy yogurt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Optional Additions to the Cake

  • 2 tablespoons or more of either or combination of chopped candied ginger, chopped walnuts/pecans, raisins or chocolate chips

For the Ginger Glaze

  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 ” piece fresh ginger sliced into thin slices
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons chopped candied ginger
  • 2 tablespoons chopped pecans
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the gingerbread cake.

  • Preheat the oven to 375° F (190° C) and line a 9x5” loaf pan with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, and all of the spices, and press and mix really well.
  • Warm up the non-dairy milk, if you haven't already. Then, make a hole in the middle of the dry ingredients, and add the milk. Then add in the oil and the molasses and mix in. Mix in the hole first, so that the molasses mixes into the warm milk a little bit, and then start to mix it into the flour a little bit. Then, add in vanilla extract and non-dairy yogurt, and continue to mix until you get a smooth batter.
  • If the batter is too thick (this depends on how you measured the flour, the consistency of the molasses, and etc.) you can add in another tablespoon of milk to help it become a smooth batter. You don't want it to be too thin, but you also don't want it to be too lumpy and stiff.
  • Once you have the batter, add in your additions of choice, and fold them into the batter.
  • Then, transfer the batter to the lined loaf pan. Even it out with a spatula, and then bake it for 35 minutes.
  • At this point, check with toothpick to see whether the cake is already done. If not, reduce the heat to 350° F (177° C), cover the the pan with parchment paper, and continue to bake for around 10 to 15 more minutes or until the toothpick from the center comes out completely clean.
  • Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then carefully remove it using the parchment paper, and let it continue to cool, covered lightly with a towel, for another 10 to 15 minutes.

Make the ginger glaze while the cake cools.

  • In a skillet, add the brown sugar, water, ginger slices, and lemon juice, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Mix really well until the sugar mixes in, simmer for another minute, and then switch off the heat. Fish out the fresh ginger slices
  • Fold in the candied ginger and pecans.
  • Let this cool for 5 minutes or so, so that the glaze thickens slightly. Then, drizzle this all over the cake. Spread the candied ginger and pecans all over and then drizzle on the rest of the sauce, if there is any left, all over the cake.
  • Let the gingerbread cake sit for 10 to 15 minutes for the glaze to soak in a little bit, then slice, serve, and enjoy. You can also serve this with some coconut cream or ice cream.

Video

Notes

Nutritional information doesn't include the mix-ins, since they're optional.
If you don't want to make the glaze on the stovetop, you can make a simple glaze with just sugar and non-dairy milk. Or you can make a cream cheese frosting with some non-dairy cream cheese, maple syrup, a pinch of ground spices like ginger, cinnamon, and cloves, and then spread that all over the cake as well.
Storage:, slice and keep the cake in a closed container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze sliced it in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Microwave or thaw and serve. 
To make this gluten-free, make a mix of 1 cup almond flour, 1/2 cup oat flour, and 1/2 cup potato starch and use 1 3/4 cup of that mixture in the cake. Also, instead of the 3/4 cup of milk, use 1/3 cup of non-dairy milk and 1/3 cup of club soda. Once you mix the batter, you want to bake the gluten-free cake immediately, because otherwise it will lose the airiness that it would have gotten from the club soda. If you don't want to use club soda, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of citric acid in with the dry ingredients. You do want to add some kind of leavening into the batter before baking for the best results. This is very important for gluten-free baking, otherwise it kind of becomes too flat or too dry.
This recipe is soy-free as long as you use a soy-free non-dairy milk and yogurt.
Nut-free:  use seeds instead of the walnuts/pecans, or omit. and make sure your non-dairy milk and yogurt are nut-free.

Nutrition

Calories: 273kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 148mg | Potassium: 285mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 3IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 116mg | Iron: 2mg