Dairy Free Birthday Cake
This fluffy gluten free dairy free cake is moist, tender and so easy to make. It’s made in just one bowl and has a rich vanilla flavor. Top it off with my favorite dairy free vanilla or chocolate buttercream frosting!
I’ve gotten a lot of requests for dairy free (but not vegan) recipes, so next up on the list is this dairy free cake!
It’s made with coconut milk and oil instead of regular milk and butter, but still has that same rich flavor and fluffy texture. I promise you will never know it’s both dairy free and gluten free.
It’s finished off with my homemade buttercream. I opted for chocolate, but vanilla works well too. For that recipe, just use vegan butter instead of regular butter.
A lot of cake mixes, like Betty Crocker, are already dairy free so you just need to use dairy free milk, but it’s so much more fun to make from scratch! If you love this recipe, try my dairy free cupcakes, gluten free donuts or red velvet marble cake next!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Easy to make
- Gluten free & dairy free
- Perfect for birthdays and parties
- Moist & tender
Key ingredients
COCONUT MILK. Since this cake is completely dairy free, we’ll use canned coconut milk to add some richness that you can miss out on when you eliminate dairy.
I suggest full fat coconut milk, but you can use light if that’s what you have. Be sure to use from a can, not carton!
NON-DAIRY MILK. In addition to the canned coconut milk, you will need some regular (from a carton) non-dairy milk. I usually use almond, but oat, soy etc. all work.
OIL. I used refined avocado oil, but any neutral flavored oil will be fine.
EGGS. The eggs are key to help the cake rise and get that nice fluffy texture.
SUGAR. I suggest using all white sugar to keep the color of the cake light. I do not recommend subbing for a liquid sweetener such as maple syrup or honey.
FLOUR. I used gluten free all purpose baking flour, but you can use regular all purpose flour instead.
How to make dairy free cake
Shake up the can of coconut milk so the white part and liquid are completely combined, making a smooth milk. I usually add it to a blender to ensure everything is completely smooth.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together all wet ingredients with an electric mixer until well combined.
Beat in the dry ingredients, aside from the sprinkles, just until a batter forms. Fold in the sprinkles, if using.
Transfer to your prepared cake pans, trying to keep each as even as possible. For 8 inch cakes, bake for 40-50 minutes, for 9 inch cakes, bake for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then carefully flip onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
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Once completely cooled, frost with my buttercream (just swap for dairy free butter) and enjoy!
How to store and freeze
To keep this cake nice and moist, once it is frosted and decorated, I recommend keeping it covered. I like using a cake stand and cover, but you can also slice it up and store it in a container or on a plate tightly covered with foil.
You can also freeze this dairy free cake! Once it is baked, let it cool completely, then wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and place in a freeze safe bag.
Freeze for up to 2 weeks, then defrost and decorate as usual.
This vanilla cake is made very moist thanks to the oil, eggs and milk. Be sure to keep it covered, either with a cake stand, in a container or covered with foil to ensure it stays moist once it is sliced.
Decoration ideas
FUNFETTI/BIRTHDAY CAKE. Add sprinkles into the cake like the recipe calls for, and decorate the frosting with lots of additional sprinkles!
BERRIES. You can take a similar approach that I look with my almond flour vanilla cake. Use either a vanilla or chocolate frosting, then top with fresh berries!
DIFFERENT FROSTING. To mix up the flavors, you can try my strawberry frosting instead of chocolate or vanilla. Or, if you’re feeling up for it. Use a mix of chocolate and vanilla!
Can I make it vegan?
Since this recipe calls for 4 eggs, I do not recommend any substitutions as that will completely change the texture. Instead, try my vegan funfetti cake which is completely gluten and dairy free.
Can I make this into chocolate cake?
Unfortunately, no. This cake was written specifically to be a vanilla cake. However, you can try my gluten free chocolate cake or gluten free snack cake and just use non-dairy milk.
Can I use different cake pans?
I used two 8 inch cake pans. You can use two 9 inch cake pans, three 6 inch cake pans, or one 9×13 sheet cake.
If you use three 6 inch cake pans, the bake time will be a bit longer, closer to 50 minutes, and for the sheet cake it will be about 40-50 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness!
More dairy free desserts!
- Vegan Brownies
- Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Dairy Free Brownies
- Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Gluten Free Carrot Cake
If you want more recipes straight to your inbox, be sure to subscribe to my email list. As always, tag me on instagram if you make this recipe so I can see your creation!
Dairy Free Birthday Cake
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet
- 4 large eggs
- 1 ¾ cup white sugar
- ⅔ cup plain oil
- ⅔ cup full fat coconut milk
- ½ cup non-dairy milk
- 4 teaspoons vanilla
Dry
- 3 ½ cups gluten free all purpose baking flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line two 8 or 9 inch cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
- Shake up the can of coconut milk so the white part and liquid are completely combined, making a smooth milk. I usually add it to a blender to ensure everything is completely smooth.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together all wet ingredients with an electric mixer until well combined.
- Beat in the dry ingredients, aside from the sprinkles, just until a batter forms.
- Fold in the sprinkles, if using.
- Transfer to your prepared cake pans, trying to keep each as even as possible.
- For 8 inch cakes, bake for 40-50 minutes, for 9 inch cakes, bake for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then carefully flip onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Once completely cooled, frost with my buttercream (just swap for dairy free butter) and enjoy!
Notes
Comments
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I loved this recipe, the cake came out great! I used coconut oil but I might sub for something else next time so the cake itself is more bouncy. I also made your buttercream and it was perfect. Silly question but is this okay to leave covered on the counter for a couple of days or should this be stored in the fridge?
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You can leave on the counter! You can try a vegetable oil to give it a bit more bounce.
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Hi I’m wanting to make this cake but I’ve no need to go gluten free. I’m in the UK so should I use plain flour and 1tbsp of baking powder or self raising and less baking powder? I don’t really want to add xanthan gum if I don’t have to
Thanks so much-
I would just use regular all purpose flour and then follow the rest of the recipe as usual.
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I made this for my partner’s birthday over the weekend, and it came out ok! I did think it was a bit dry, will try a touch more oil next time and maybe soak it in sweet condensed coconut milk, but am definitely keeping this recipe!
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Sorry it came out a bit dry! Definitely just keep an eye on the bake time!
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I’m going to try this for my (lactose intolerant) moms bday coming up. Recommendations on dairy free frosting? I know she’d love to have a chocolate frosting again!
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You can use my regular buttercream frosting recipe and just use a dairy free butter, I like Earth Balance!
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Are you using vanilla extract for the cake or the clear vanilla?
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You can use either but I used vanilla extract.
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I made a trial run of this cake and the sprinkles just melted and didn’t show so I made it again with a better brand of sprinkle and again just melted and not showing, I find the cake very crumbly but it’s tastes good got my dairy free son for his birthday. Just wish the sprinkles would be visible unsure what I’ve done wrong
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Are you using non-pareils? Those are the small ball type of sprinkles which will not work here. Normal sprinkles should not be melting! As for the crumbly, it shouldn’t be that way either! Make sure you are measuring the flour properly and not over baking!
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How many cupcakes would this recipe make? Would the volume be OK in a 9 by 12 inch pan? Thanks!
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Should make 2 dozen cupcakes! a 9×13 is best if you have it, but 9×12 should be ok you will just need to increase the bake time!
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Will making this with normal flour change the way it comes out at all?
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As in not gluten free? That should be ok but I haven’t tested it that way!
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Our little guy is severely lactose intolerant. It’s like, a couple weeks ago at a birthday party he ate regular cake and suffered for days. We made this cake using lactose free milk and it worked like a charm! Not only that the cake was completely decimated by the end of the birthday party! Wish I could send a picture, it turned out beautifully!
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You can always tag us in your pictures on instagram – we love to see them!
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Hi, I’m in the uk and don’t have all purpose baking flour just gluten free self raising flour. Do I need to add xantham gum and if so how much or will it work without? Many thanks
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I would suggest about 1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons of xanthan gum.
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What alterations, if any, would you recommend for high altitude? I made this in three 6 inch pans and two of them were just ok, dried out a little, and one fell in the middle and was dry on the outside but undercooked in that middle portion. Also, how in the world do you get square parchment paper in a round pan? Thanks so much!
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For the parchment – just cut it! Or buy parchment rounds. I don’t have much experience with high altitude baking, but you usually need to increase the temp by 15 or so degrees, and sometimes decrease the leavening agent. I’d try maybe 2 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder instead of 1 tablespoon. let me know if that helps!
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Hello, I am looking to make this recipe for a smash cake for a 1st birthday but want to do a 2 layer 6 inch cake. Would you happen to have a recipe for a smaller sized cake?
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Yes! I have this vanilla one and this chocolate one. The chocolate is already a 2 layer 6 inch and the vanilla is one layer 6 inch but you can always double.
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Very easy to follow recipe. Want to know if I prepare just one 8-inch pan cake , shall I just reduce the ingredients to half?
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Yes!
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My mother was just diagnosed with alpha gal so I’m making a dairy free birthday cake for her this week. I’m used to freezing my cake layers for a few days to keep them fresh before icing and decorating them in the same day. Have you frozen these layers? I can’t see why it wouldn’t work but I’m just curious if you’ve done it and had success. Thanks so much!
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You can definitely freeze! Just let them cool completely, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and then freeze for a few days. Then you can frost from frozen and let it thaw before serving, or thaw and then frost.
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Hi! Looks delicious! Can I use a bundt pan for this?
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Yes should be fine! I’d start with 45 minutes for the bake time and go from there.
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