Easy ginger cake - this one bowl sticky vegan ginger cake is so quick and easy to make and tastes amazing; it is the best ginger cake (vegan or otherwise) I have ever eaten! Egg and dairy free.
This easy vegan ginger traybake cake is one of my absolute favourite cakes of all time. It also happens to be one of the easiest cakes I have ever made! You would never know that it is vegan and egg and dairy free.
It is very moist and sticky with a good hit of ginger, and although it is great fresh from the oven, it keeps well too and just gets stickier and better with time. It reminds me of the McVities Jamaican Ginger Cake that I grew up eating (though this one is much nicer and more flavourful!).
It is also made using entirely non-perishable store cupboard ingredients so it can be whipped up any time without needing to pop to the shops - perfect for cake emergencies!
This is the same cake recipe that I used for my Christmas Woodland Animal Ginger Cake, but this time I baked it as a sheet cake rather than a layer cake. It is a very versatile and forgiving recipe!
It is such a delicious, sticky cake that it doesn't really need any kind of adornment, but a drizzle of zingy lemon glaze does provide a nice contrast to the sweetness and warmth from the ginger.
This recipe makes a fairly large cake - about 24 small squares; so it is perfect for feeding a crowd. It also keeps really well in an airtight container if you do have leftovers and is perfect for snacking on; or warmed up for dessert with custard!
How To Make Easy Ginger Cake:
(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)
*For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.*
This is a really quick and easy one bowl recipe. Start by preheating the oven. Grease a traybake tin and line with a strip of baking parchment.
Tip the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, ground ginger, mixed spice, caster sugar and salt in to a large bowl and whisk with a balloon whisk until well combined.
Add golden syrup, treacle, sunflower oil and boiling water and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Take care not to over-mix however as this can make vegan cakes tough. The heat from the water will melt the golden syrup and treacle so that they mix in easily.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for about 25 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The cake is quite delicate when warm so leave it to cool in the tin for about 20 minutes before you carefully flip it out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
To make the lemon glaze, gradually stir fresh lemon juice into sifted icing sugar until it reaches a drizzling consistency then drizzle it over the cooled cake and serve.
Can Easy Vegan Ginger Cake Be Frozen?:
Yes. Once the cake is cooled it can be wrapped and frozen; either whole or in individual slices.
Variations:
- For an extra kick of ginger, stir a large handful of chopped candied or stem ginger into the batter before you bake the cake.
- Mix in a couple of handfuls of chocolate chips or chopped dried dates, figs or cranberries.
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Easy Ginger Cake (Vegan)
Ingredients
Easy Ginger Cake:
- 450 g (3 + ¾ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour sifted
- 1 ¼ tsp baking powder
- 1 ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 4 ½ tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp mixed spice (pumpkin spice)
- 160 g (¾ cup) caster (superfine) sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 160 ml (⅔ cup) sunflower oil (or another neutral oil)
- 200 g (7oz) golden syrup
- 200 g (7oz) treacle (molasses)
- 360 ml (1 ½ cups) boiling water
Lemon Glaze:
- 75 g icing (powdered) sugar sifted
- juice of ½ a lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 23x33cm / 9x13inch rectangular cake tin and line with a strip of baking parchment.
- Whisk together the sifted plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, ginger, mixed spice, caster sugar and salt in a large bowl.
- Add the golden syrup, treacle, sunflower oil and boiling water to the bowl and whisk until no lumps of flour remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for about 25 -35 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 20-30 minutes then carefully flip the cake out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- To make the lemon glaze, place the sifted icing sugar in a bowl and gradually stir in enough lemon juice to reach a drizzling consistency. Drizzle the glaze over the cake, cut into squares and serve.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- For an extra ginger kick you can add a couple of handfuls of chopped stem or candied ginger to the batter.
- If you like your cake extra spicy feel free to add more! I like to add ½ tsp allspice. ¼ tsp ground anise would work really well too.
Shruti Bhagrath
Hey, If I wanted to make this into a birthday cake - will 2 8" pans work? Thank you
Hannah
Hi Shruti, they would need to be quite deep pans but yes it will work.
Debra
Made this for the first time today and its incredible, the best ginger cake I've tasted and so easy to make.
Fm
Hi could I use extra molasses instead of golden syrup.thanks
Hannah
Yes but the cake will be darker in colour and have a strong molasses flavour.
Ambika
Just want to say , this cake is gorgeous. I find a lot of vegan cakes don’t hit the spot but this one is so delicious. All my family and Friends love it. Thank you for sharing !
Sue
First time I have ever made a vegan cake, as I had a vegan staying with me. This cake is amazing! I didn't have the right sized tin, so I decanted the excess into cupcake cases and it worked really well as individual cakes, too. I put icing and candied ginger on top. Will definitely make this again. Soon.
Sally Shenton
Can I use vegan block instead of oil for this cake?
If so how do I make conversion Ratio oil to Vegan baking block?
Normally use this in your recipes and they all work so well! ☺️
Cheers
Hannah
Hi Sally, I think it is best made with oil but you could try 170g melted butter; it will affect the texture however.
Catherine
My daughter is dairy free and I tend to bake something to take along to her home ed group, as many are vegan I thought I might as well try recipes that meant she could share with more of her friends. This recipe was so simple follow, I love that there are no random replacers just stuff in my cupboard. It came out so well that one of the mums asked for the link and made it the following week for her family.. thanks
Pamela
I've made this several times, it's delicious but wonder if it could be baked in a 2lb loaf tin?
Hannah
Hi Pamela, I think there would be a bit too much mixture. I would try either halving the recipe or baking two loaves.
Mokey Yates
I have made this cake several times, and it is great! Allergy friendly (no egg, dairy, or nuts) so it works for my grandson. I often add a few chunks of finely chopped crystallised ginger for extra ginger. Also, the crystallised ginger pieces look pretty 'jewelled' on top.
Maria arklow
Could I use gluten free flour , or coconut flour,.
Hannah
Hi Maria, definitely do not use coconut flour, it is much too absorbant. I don't see why a plain GF flour blend wouldn't work however.
Rupamanjari
Hi
Can this baked in a bundt pan? Will be trying this recipe in a few days.
Hannah
Hi Rupamanjari, I haven't tried baking it in a bundt pan but it is a pretty forgiving recipe so it should work fine. It will likely take a bit longer to bake though, about 45 minutes maybe. You should also let it cool in the tin for 45-60 minutes before you turn it out or you risk it cracking as it is a delicate cake when warm.
Annie
Just made this for the first time, and it’s delicious. I have a bar of dark ginger flavoured chocolate, so I’m just going to melt it with some milk and use that as a drizzle. Fingers crossed!
Hannah
Lovely ginger cake, and so easy to make, thank you for the recipe. We found that ours wasn’t sticky on top at first, but developed a lovely sticky top on about day 3 (if you can make it last that long).
Tracy Sutton
Can I freeze this cake for a few days?
Hannah
Hi Tracy, yes it freezes well, just make sure that it is wrapped to prevent freezer burn.
Clara
Could I make this with oat flour or buckwheat flour?
Hannah
I think that would make it overly dense, I would try using a gluten-free flour blend if you need it to be GF.
Judith
Highly recommend this divine cake! Absolutely delicious. Thank you!
Kat
Hi
How long do you think the cake would last for please without being frozen but sealed. Thanks
Hannah
Hi Kat, about 5 days.
Vijya
Delicious
Jane chloe
Absolutely fantastic recipe first attempt to vegan ginger cake awesome thank you for making my daughter smile x
Joey
Hi. Quick question before I start regarding the mixed spice. I’ve only been able to find mixed spice not pumpkin spice does that matter? The mixed has coriander and dill in it, so wondering if that will make the cake not taste as nice. If it needs to be pumpkin spice can I make that from cupboard spices rather than trying to find one. And if so how? Thanks so much 🙂
Hannah
Hi Joey, mixed spice is a blend of cinnamon, coriander seeds, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and may contain dill seeds (the one I've got does). If that is what you have got then yes, that is the right thing. Pumpkin spice is a differeent spice blend but will also work, you can make your own by mixing together 3 Tbsp ground cinnamon, 2 tsp ground ginger, 2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1 tsp ground cloves and 1 tsp ground allspice.
Jess
I have tried this recipe in a square pan before and it is delicious. My Mum loved it! I want to bake it into cupcakes for her birthday. How many cupcakes could this recipe make? I want to make 24. Thanks 🙂
Hannah
Hi Jess, I've not tried it as cupcakes so I'm not sure exactly how many it would make. I would try making 1/2 to 3/4 batch of the recipe, I think a full batch would make a lot of cupcakes! Or you could make a full batch of the recipe and bake any excess batter in a small tin.
Abs
I *adore* this recipe and have made it many times now. It's simple and delicious. Thank you so much.
Mary
Thank you for your help in advance!
My partner prefers cake that is much less sweet, so I usually cut the sugar recipes call for in half. Will this alter the amount of wet ingredients I need for this cake? I am in Canada on an island and do not have access to caster sugar, so I will be processing some granulated sugar in a blender. Or I could use what we call icing sugar which is very fine. [I’ve been told caster sugar is not the same thing.]
Hannah
Hi Mary, for this cake you definitely cannot reduce the amount of golden syrup or treacle, they are what provide most of the structure and flavour. You can probably get away with reducing the amount of caster sugar by a third and you can just use granulated sugar instead.
Anna Brewer
What a delicious cake! It has a lovely warm flavour from the ginger, spices and molasses, and is gorgeously sticky and squidgy. I made this in advance and froze it; it defrosted perfectly and still looked/tasted amazing. This will definitely become a regular!
Alan Heaton
Thank you for an astonishingly good recipe. Easy to make and amazingly delicious.Do you have any similar traybake recipes please?
Hannah
Hey, this looks fab! Could I use coconut oil instead of the sunflower oil? Thank you!
Hannah
I would recommend using an oil that is liquid at room temperature such as avocado or olive.
Jo
What could I replace the golden syrup with I can’t get any ?
Hannah
Hi Jo, it is possible to make your own: https://www.internationaldessertsblog.com/make-golden-syrup/
There isn't really a good substitute for it as it is very unique, but if you aren't able to get hold of any and don't want to make your own then you can try swapping it for light molasses, vegan honey, agave or maple syrup instead.