A Lemon Drizzle Cake, vegan and gluten-free adaptable, with rustic texture and vibrant lemon flavor. Made with lemon syrup and lemon icing, garnish with rosemary flowers and mint. So easy!
This Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake is so much fun to make and such a beautiful centerpiece for any spring or summer party (Easter, Mother's Day, baby or bridal showers)! I always make this cake when I need a little dose of sunshine in my week to lift the spirits. It is bright, with vibrant lemon flavor, rustic texture, and the perfect amount of sweetness and tartness.
Why You'll Love This Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake!
- So easy to make. This cake has a simple method of combining wet and dry ingredients with a 2-ingredient syrup and 2-ingredient icing. Even non-bakers will love this!
- Beautiful on the table. This is the perfect dessert to bring to any spring or summer party. It makes an impressive centerpiece that guests will adore!
- Made with simple ingredients. You'll likely already have most of these pantry staples on hand.
- Full of bright, summer flavor. With sweet, tart flavor, this Lemon Drizzle Cake is so summery! And lovely in spring too!
- Vegan, and gluten-free adaptable! Naturally dairy- and egg-free, and you can swap the all purpose flour for a gluten-free flour (with xanthan gum).
Ingredients
- Lemons: I would have about 4-5 lemons on hand, just to be safe! You'll need both juice and lemon zest.
- All purpose flour: Or sub a gluten-free all purpose flour. Just make sure it has xanthan gum in it.
- Raw cane sugar
- Cornmeal: Gives the cake a rustic texture and contributes to its beautiful yellow color.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Non-dairy milk: Unsweetened. I used soy milk.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Coconut yogurt: Plain and unsweetened. I love Cocojune.
- Vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar
- Garnish: Fresh herbs (rosemary, mint) and flowers (rosemary flowers, lavender).
How to Make Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
1. Preheat and prep. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a loaf pan and line with parchment.
2. Mix dry ingredients. Add all of the dry ingredients to a large bowl and whisk.
3. Add wet ingredients. Add all of the wet ingredients to the bowl and gently mix in, being careful not to over-work it.
4. Bake. Pour the dough into the loaf pan and bake 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Keep the oven light on and watch it as the cake nears the end of bake time. All ovens are different, so you may need to remove yours closer to 50 minutes. When done, remove and let cool for 10 minutes.
Make the Lemon Syrup
5. Prepare the lemon syrup. While the cake is baking, warm sugar and lemon juice over low heat in a skillet until sugar dissolves and a syrup forms. Turn off the heat.
6. Drizzle syrup on the cake. Poke holes in the surface of the cake and pour the syrup over top, getting into the edges. Lift the cake out of the pan using the parchment paper.
Make the Lemon Icing
7. Prepare the lemon icing. Combine the powdered sugar and lemon juice. Drizzle over top of the cake.
How to Serve Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
This cake is delicious and beautiful without any garnishes, but decorating the cake with herbs and flowers makes it so much more fun!
Garnish the cake with fresh herbs and flowers, like rosemary, mint, rosemary flowers, and lavender. You can also decorate the cake with additional lemon zest!
Chef Tips
- Zest the lemons first. It is much easier to zest the lemons before juicing them!
- Fold in the wet ingredients. Gently fold in the wet ingredients with the dry, only mixing until the flour is broken up and mixed in. Be careful not to over-work the batter!
- Let the cake cool before icing. If you don't let the cake cool, the icing will melt right off the cake and leave a mess! If you want to create that beautiful drizzle with the icing, be sure to let the cake cool for at least 10 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
About 4-5 lemons. It never hurts to have extras just to be sure! You will need to zest some of the lemons first.
I recommend King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten-free flour. It is best for substituting!
I have not tried it, but you could give it a try! Oranges are not as tart, so you may want to swap some of the milk for extra orange juice to achieve the tartness in the cake.
Storage
Store the Lemon Drizzle Cake in an airtight container for 1 day at room temperature, or store in the refrigerator for 4 days.
If you wish to freeze the cake, you can store in the freezer for 1 month without the icing.
If you love this, then you will also LOVE my 15-minute Creamy Lemon Pasta!
Let me know how this cake turned out for you! 🙂 Can't wait to hear your thoughts!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
Equipment
- Loaf pan
Ingredients
Lemon Cake
- 2 ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup raw cane sugar
- ½ cup cornmeal
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest from about 2 lemons
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup non-dairy milk unsweetened (I used soy milk)
- ½ cup olive oil extra virgin
- ⅓ cup lemon juice from about 1 ½ lemons
- ¼ cup coconut yogurt plain, unsweetened (I love Cocojune!)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lemon Syrup
- â…“ cup + 1 tablespoon raw cane sugar
- ¼ cup lemon juice from about 1 lemon
Lemon Icing
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup lemon juice from about 1 lemon
Garnish
- Lemon zest
- Fresh herbs and herb flowers like rosemary flowers, sliced mint
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a loaf pan and line with parchment paper.
- Add all of the dry ingredients (flour through salt) to a large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients (milk through vanilla) to the bowl and whisk gently to fold the wet ingredients in. Be careful not to over-mix. Whisk enough to mix the flour in, but don't over-work it!
- Pour into the prepared loaf pan. Bake 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Feel free to check after 50 minutes, as all ovens cook differently. Keep the oven light on and watch it as it nears baking.
- While baking, prepare the lemon syrup by warming the sugar and lemon juice over low heat in a skillet until the sugar dissolves to create a syrup. Turn off the heat.
- Remove lemon cake from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Poke holes in the cake and pour the lemon syrup over top, getting into the edges too. Lift the cake out of the pan by pulling up on the parchment paper.
- Prepare the lemon icing by combining the powdered sugar and lemon juice. Drizzle over top of the cake.
- Decorate the cake with minced herbs like rosemary or mint. Garnish with rosemary flowers or lavender. You can add lemon zest to the cake too if you'd like!
LoveLifeHappiness&More💙💙 says
Looks yum 😋
Chef Kate F says
Thank you, enjoy!