The best vegan cake, gluten free or not! This recipe is quick and easy to make, completely oil free but still moist, fluffy and undetectably vegan and gluten free! This funfetti cake is perfect for a birthday party or just for fun.
I’m a vanilla cake with vanilla frosting kind of gal, but have to admit I was a bit nervous about taking on the task of a vegan gluten free cake.
It definitely wasn’t easy and required over 8 trials, but ohmygosh!! This vegan vanilla cake is incredibly moist, fluffy, full of fresh vanilla flavor and undetectably gluten free.
It’s oil free but still incredibly moist thanks to full fat coconut milk and almond flour which give the cake lots of fat to prevent it from drying out.
I played around with lots of different flour blends, but ultimately settled on a mix of almond, white rice and potato starch. These three yield a fluffy sponge that you will truly never know is gluten free or vegan!
How to make this recipe
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two 8 inch round cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, but leave the sprinkles out for now.
In a second bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Be sure to shake the can of coconut milk really well before measuring so the cream and watery part are well combined.
If your regular milk was in the fridge, measure it out and then add it to the microwave for about 30 seconds to warm it up a bit. If it’s cold, it will harden the coconut milk which will make mixing a bit difficult!
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk to combine until smooth. Add the sprinkles and stir until well incorporated.
Finally, add the batter to the prepared pans, trying to keep them as even as possible. Let the batter sit in the pans for 5 minutes. This is not typical when making a cake, but it really helps with this recipe!
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the center of each cake has a few cracks on the top.
Sometimes a toothpick comes out clean before the center is really done, so try to base it off how the top looks rather than the toothpick test. The color should be uniform and should not look wet at all in the center.
Let cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then flip onto a cooling rack. Peel off the parchment paper and let cool completely.
If you’re frosting the same day, I suggest sticking the cakes in the fridge for about an hour to really ensure they’re fully cool.
If you’re frosting the next day, let cool completely at room temperature (a few hours) then wrap tightly but gently in plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge.
Frosting and decorating
To make the buttercream, add the room temperature butter to a bowl or bowl of a stand mixer and beat until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and beat until well combined.
Beat in the milk and vanilla until well combined. If you want a thicker frosting, just add a bit more sugar until it reaches your desired consistency.
Add about 1 cup of frosting to the bottom layer, add a handful of sprinkles, top with the second layer, then frost the sides and top of the cake.
To add the sprinkles to the side of the cake, take a handful and carefully throw them add the sides of the cake while the frosting is still wet. If you let it dry, they won’t stick, so act quickly.
I like to do this over a baking sheet to make clean up easier. It can get messy, but it’s worth it!
Frequently asked questions
Can I use 9 inch cake pans? Yes, but your layers will be a bit thinner and the bake time will be shorter. You can use two 9 inch pans rather than two 8 inch pans, but lower the bake time by about 5 minutes.
Can I make cupcakes? My suggestion would be to make my vegan and gluten free funfetti cupcakes instead!
Can I make it refined sugar free? You can use a different granulated sweetener in place of the cane sugar, but using something like coconut sugar will change the color and make the cake dark. I do not recommend a liquid sweetener like maple syrup.
Why did the center sink? This could be due to a couple of things. Vegan gluten free cakes are tricky, but the center of this cake should not sink! If it does, it is likely because it was undercooked and the center wasn’t able to support itself.
The second reason could be because too much air was forced into the batter while mixing. Baking this cake is a real goldilocks kind of thing, where overcooking and undercooking are both problematic, so keep a very close eye!
Does it keep? This vegan gluten free cake is definitely best fresh, but it will keep for up to 3-5 days. Once sliced, the cake will start to dry out a bit so it’s best to keep it in an air tight container to keep it moist!
The butter from the frosting does seep into the cake a bit, which will keep it very moist.
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Vegan Vanilla Funfetti Cake
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Dry:
- 2 ⅔ cup fine blanched almond flour
- 1 ⅔ cup white rice flour
- ¾ cup potato starch NOT potato flour
- 2 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup sprinkles
Wet:
- 1 ½ cups granulated cane sugar
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk from a can
- 2 cups non-dairy milk at room temperature
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup dairy free butter at room temperature
- 3-4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp non-dairy milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line two 8 inch round cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, but leave the sprinkles out for now. Be sure to spoon and level the dry ingredients into your measuring cups. Do not pack them in or the cake will be very dry!
- In a second bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Be sure to shake the can of coconut milk really well before measuring so the cream and watery part are well combined. If your regular milk was in the fridge, measure it out and then add it to the microwave for about 30 seconds to warm it up a bit.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk to combine until smooth.
- Add the sprinkles and stir until well incorporated.
- Add the batter to the prepared pans, trying to keep them as even as possible. Let the batter sit in the pans for 5 minutes. This is not typical when making a cake, but it really helps with this recipe!
- Bake for 35-42 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the center of each cake has a few cracks on the top. Sometimes a toothpick comes out clean before the center is really done, so try to base it off how the top looks rather than the toothpick test. The color should be uniform and should not look wet at all in the center. All ovens are different, but check at 35 minutes and add just a couple of minutes at a time as needed.
- Let cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then flip onto a cooling rack. Peel off the parchment paper and let cool completely. If you're frosting the same day, I suggest sticking the cakes in the fridge for about an hour to really ensure they're fully cool. If you're frosting the next day, let cool completely at room temperature (a few hours) then wrap tightly but gently in plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge.
- To make the buttercream, add the room temperature butter to a bowl or bowl of a stand mixer and beat until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and beat until well combined. Beat in the milk and vanilla until well combined. If you want a thicker frosting, just add a bit more sugar until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Add about 1 cup of frosting to the bottom layer, add a handful of sprinkles, top with the second layer, then frost the sides and top of the cake. To add the sprinkles to the sides, take a handful and carefully throw them add the sides of the cake while the frosting is still wet. If you let it dry, they won't stick, so act quickly. I like to do this over a baking sheet to make clean up easier. It can get messy, but worth it!
Majora says
Idk if you’ll see this but thought it was worth a shot lol. Is there a reason for having a different base for the cakes versus your cupcake recipe?
Claire Cary says
When you have a smaller sized thing like a cupcake, the texture is very different than a cake, especially with gluten free and vegan recipes, so the cupcake recipe wouldn’t work as a cake. Hope that helps!
Assunta says
This sounds so delicious, thank you for sharing! Just wondering what you would recommend to swap the coconut milk with? (I’m intolerant to it) thank you so much 🙏🏼
Claire Cary says
Your best bet is to just use another 1/2 cup of regular non-dairy milk instead! This will change the texture of the cake a bit because of the high fat content of coconut, but should be ok!
Tanica says
Hi Claire! Do you notice any coconut flavor coming through with the coconut milk? I’d love to try this but am looking for a purely vanilla cake.
Claire Cary says
I don’t! It’s such a small amount relative to the other ingredients that I don’t notice it at all and we use a generous amount of vanilla to mask any potential flavor that could linger through!
Cursti B Aguilar says
If i used 6 inch pans should i cook for longer? Have you tried using coconut flour instead of almond?
Claire Cary says
You cannot sub almond and coconut flour interchangeably as coconut flour is much more absorbent than almond. You can bake in 6 inch pans, but you will need four pans, not two. You can halve the recipe and bake in two 6 inch pans instead. In that case, you will actually need to bake for a shorter time, probably about 5-8 minutes less, but I can’t say exactly.
Olivia says
This is the best cake ever!!!!!!!!!!This had so many great flavors and so fluffy!!!!!!!!!I love it 🥰!