Lemon And Ginger Drizzle Cake (vegan)

Published: Jan 28, 2025

Lemon and ginger drizzle cake - this incredible vegan cake is a fiery twist on a classic lemon drizzle.

The cake is soft, moist and tender with a lemony flavour and a hint of spicy ginger, soaked in tangy lemon syrup and dotted with chunks of stem ginger. This delicious cake is a real crowd pleaser and is sure to become a favourite!

Vegan lemon and ginger drizzle cake on a sheet of baking paper with a couple of slices cut.

As much as I love an impressive layer cake; for general every day cake eating you can't beat a simple lemon drizzle loaf cake. It is fairly plain, but gloriously so; damp and sticky yet light, with a sharp lemon tang and a slightly crunchy crust.

I added a bit of a ginger kick to mine - not too much, the lemon should be the predominant flavour, but enough to take it beyond the standard lemon drizzle and add a subtle warmth and depth of flavour.

I like my lemon cakes to be intensely lemony, so I used both zest and lemon juice in the batter, topped it with extra sugared zest and then gave it a generous drenching of lemon syrup; there may seem to be an awful lot of syrup, but it soaks it all up, leaving it beautifully moist and strongly flavoured.

This is a simple cake to make, but incredibly satisfying, best enjoyed with a cup of tea. Because it is so moist it keeps incredibly well, and actually even tastes better after it has had a couple of days to mature.

A labelled photo of the ingredients needed to make vegan lemon and ginger drizzle cake.

Ingredient Details:

Lemons: You will need both lemon zest and juice so make sure that you buy unwaxed lemons. Don't use bottled lemon juice instead, the flavour is not as good.

Stem ginger and ground ginger: Stem ginger is preserved ginger root in sugar syrup. Most supermarkets in the UK sell it and you can also make your own. If you are unable to get hold of any then you can use crystallised/candied ginger instead and just omit the ginger syrup from the drizzle.

Plant milk: You can use any kind you like but it should ideally be unsweetened and soy milk is best as it has the highest protein content.

Non-dairy yogurt: I love using plant yogurt in vegan cakes, it is a great egg replacer and keeps the cake moist as well as adding flavour.

Either soy or coconut yogurt will work, ideally unsweetened. I haven't tested any substitutes for the yogurt I'm afraid but you could probably get away with just using more milk instead.

Ground almonds: Adding some ground almonds (almond flour) helps to keep the cake moist and give it a lovely texture. You can use more flour instead if you don't want to use nuts.

Vegan butter: Either block or spreadable is fine but don’t use a ‘light’ variety. I used Flora plant butter.

Olive oil: I like to use olive oil but you can swap it for another neutral oil if you prefer.

Self-raising flour: I use self-raising (self-rising) flour as that is what I used in my old (non-vegan) recipe that I adapted this cake from. You could try using plain flour plus 3 teaspoons of baking powder if you don't have any self-raising.

Sugar: Caster or granulated sugar is best. Do not use sweeteners or liquid sugars instead.

Close up of a couple of slices of lemon and ginger drizzle cake.

How To Make Lemon And Ginger Drizzle Cake:

(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)

Step 1: Whisk together the melted butter, oil, sugar, lemon zest and juice, milk and yogurt in a large bowl.

Step 2: Add the flour, ground almonds, ground ginger and a pinch of salt and stir with a balloon whisk until fully combined, stir in the chopped stem ginger.

Step 2, the finished batter with the steam ginger.

Step 3: Pour the batter into a lined 2lb loaf tin and bake for 1 hour.

Step 3, a two image collage of the cake before and after baking.

Step 4: Rub the lemon zest and granulated sugar together in a small bowl and set aside.

Step 4, the lemon zest and sugar mixture.

Step 5: Put the lemon juice, stem ginger syrup and sugar into a small saucepan and bring up to a simmer, simmer for 30 seconds.

Step 6: Poke holes all over the top of the warm cake with a skewer. Sprinkle over the sugar and zest mixture, then drizzle over the syrup.

Top Tips:

As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!

Make sure that you buy unwaxed lemons as the wax used is not usually vegan and probably isn't good to eat anyway!

Be careful not to over-beat the batter as that can make the cake tough, just stir it by hand with a balloon whisk (not an electric mixer) until no dry lumps remain.

The cake is ready when it is firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter.

FAQ's:

How should I store lemon and ginger drizzle cake?

The cake will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days.

Can I freeze it?

Yes this lemon and ginger drizzle cake freezes really well, either whole or in slices. Make sure that it has cooled completely before freezing and wrap it well to prevent freezer burn. Allow to defrost at room temperature to serve.

Can I make a plain lemon drizzle cake?

Yes, simply omit both the ground and stem ginger to make a classic vegan lemon drizzle cake.

What can I use instead of stem ginger?

Stem ginger is a common baking ingredient in the UK but I am not sure about the rest of the world! You can use crystallised/candied ginger instead (which is dry sugared ginger rather than in syrup), and just omit the ginger syrup from the drizzle.

More Vegan Lemon Cakes:

Close up of the sliced lemon and ginger drizzle cake.

If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess

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5 from 2 votes