Vegan lemon layer cake - moist, tender vegan lemon cakes with a light, fluffy lemon buttercream and eggless lemon curd filling.
This delicious cake is packed with fresh lemon zest and juice and is perfect for any occasion!
This vegan lemon layer cake is super lemony and all naturally flavoured with fresh lemons, no need for flavourings or extracts!
The cake layers are soft and tender, I brush them with a lemon syrup to help keep them moist and add even more flavour, and the cake is then filled with my tangy vegan lemon curd and a light, fluffy lemon buttercream.
This is a lovely cake for any occasion, but especially Spring and Summertime. It would be perfect for Easter or Mother's Day!
Ingredient Details:
Lemon curd: You will need a ½ batch of my vegan lemon curd to fill the cake.
It adds so much sharp, lemony flavour, I really recommend not skipping it!
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. Between the cake, buttercream and lemon curd you will need around 8 lemons.
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 a thick, Greek style one. I haven't tested any substitutes for the yogurt I'm afraid but you could probably get away with just using more milk instead.
Oil + vegan butter: Using a mixture of oil and butter in the cake gives you the best of both worlds - both flavour and moisture. Any neutral oil will work, I use olive. For the butter you will need to use a block variety rather than the spreadable kind in a tub, especially for the buttercream; I like Flora plant butter.
Sugar: Caster or granulated sugar is best. Do not use sweeteners or liquid sugars instead.
Baking powder and soda: Using both baking powder and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) will give you the best rise and texture. Don't swap one for the other, you will not get the same result.
Vanilla: Extract is better than essence and you can also use vanilla bean paste.
Plain flour and cornflour: Regular plain (all-purpose) flour with a bit of cornflour (cornstarch) added gives the crumb a nice texture. You can swap the cornflour for an equal weight of plain flour if you don't have any, but I do recommend using it if you can.
How To Make Vegan Lemon Layer Cake:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
- Step 1: Whisk together the lemon juice and zest, melted butter, oil, yogurt, milk, caster sugar and vanilla extract in a large bowl.
- Step 2: Whisk in the cornflour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt followed by the plain flour.
- Step 3: Divide the batter between two lined 20 cm cake tins and bake for 30 minutes.
- Step 4: Once the cakes are cooled, trim the tops to level them if necessary and brush with lemon syrup.
- Step 5: To make the buttercream, whisk the butter and icing sugar together until very light and fluffy then whisk in the lemon zest and juice and vanilla extract.
- Step 6: Spread a little buttercream over one of the cakes and pipe a thick border. Fill with lemon curd and place the other cake on top. Cover the top and sides with buttercream and top with lemon curd.
Top Tips:
USE SCALES. As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scales 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!
Tablespoon and teaspoon measurements are for proper measuring spoons, NOT regular kitchen spoons. A Tablespoon is 15ml and a teaspoon is 5ml and they should be level, not heaped.
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.
Make sure that you buy unwaxed lemons as the wax used is not usually vegan and probably isn't good to eat anyway!
To keep the cakes moist and add more lemon flavour, I brush them with a lemon simple syrup. This step is optional but recommended!
FAQ's:
The cake will be fine at room temperature for a day. If you are keeping it for longer than that or it is very hot out then place it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days
This vegan lemon layer cake is best served at room temperature. Cold cake and buttercream are unpleasantly dense so please make sure that you remove the cake from the fridge 1-2 hours before serving to allow it to come up to room temperature.
I do not recommend freezing the decorated cake but the plain cake layers can be frozen. Make sure that they have cooled completely then wrap them well to avoid freezer burn and freeze for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost at room temperature.
I really wouldn't recommend it, you may find that the cake sinks or has a dense texture rather than light and fluffy. Please use two 20 cm round tins.
More Vegan Lemon Cakes:
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Vegan Lemon Layer Cake
Ingredients
Cakes:
- finely grated zest of 3 large lemons
- 80 g (⅓ cup) fresh lemon juice
- 90 g (6 Tablespoons) vegan block butter melted
- 110 g (½ cup) neutral oil (not coconut)
- 160 g (⅔ cup) vegan Greek style yogurt
- 160 g (⅔ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- 280 g (1 cup + 6 Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 20 g (2 packed Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 380 g (3 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
Lemon Syrup:
- 30 g (2 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 30 g (2 Tablespoons) fresh lemon juice
Buttercream:
- 225 g (1 cup) vegan block butter softened
- 350 g (3 cups) icing (powdered) sugar
- finely grated zest of 1 large lemon
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ batch vegan lemon curd to fill chilled
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180℃/160℃ fan/350℉/gas mark 4. Line two 20 cm/8 in round cake tins with baking paper.
- Whisk together the lemon juice and zest, melted butter, oil, yogurt, milk, caster sugar and vanilla extract with a balloon whisk in a large bowl.finely grated zest of 3 large lemons, 80 g (⅓ cup) fresh lemon juice, 90 g (6 Tablespoons) vegan block butter, 110 g (½ cup) neutral oil (not coconut), 160 g (⅔ cup) vegan Greek style yogurt, 160 g (⅔ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy), 280 g (1 cup + 6 Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Whisk in the cornflour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt followed by the plain flour. Be careful not to over-beat the batter, stop mixing as soon as it is fully combined.20 g (2 packed Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch), 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), ¼ teaspoon salt, 380 g (3 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared cake tins and spread it level (use a scale for accuracy). Bake for about 30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave the cakes to cool in the tins for 15 minutes then carefully turn them out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- Once the cakes have cooled make the syrup. Place the lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan and bring up to a simmer then remove from the heat.30 g (2 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, 30 g (2 Tablespoons) fresh lemon juice
- Trim the tops of the cakes to level them then gently brush them with the lemon syrup.
- To make the buttercream, whisk the butter and icing sugar together with an electric mixer until very light and fluffy.225 g (1 cup) vegan block butter, 350 g (3 cups) icing (powdered) sugar
- Add the lemon zest and juice and the vanilla extract and continue to whisk for a couple of minutes.finely grated zest of 1 large lemon, 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Place one of the cake layers on a serving plate and spread over a thin layer of the buttercream using a palette knife. Transfer some of the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle and pipe a ring around the edge of the cake to create a dam for the lemon curd.
- Give the lemon curd a good stir until it becomes smooth then spoon about half of it inside the buttercream dam and spread it level.½ batch vegan lemon curd to fill
- Spread a thin layer of buttercream over the top of the other cake layer and place it on top of the lemon curd topped cake, buttercream side down.
- Coat the top and sides of the cake with buttercream, use a cake scraper to smooth it out. Place any remaining buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle and pipe swirls around the top edge of the cake. Spoon the rest of the lemon curd in the middle and spread it level.
Notes
- Make the vegan lemon curd first as it will need time to chill and set.
- See post above for tips, details, storage instructions and step-by-step photos.
- USE SCALES. As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scales 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!
MCS
Because I had to leave the lemon curd to settle overnight, it actually took me an entire day to make this cake. It was worth every moment. Delicious! And beautiful.