If you're looking for an easy (and delicious) way to use up oranges this citrus season, this orange vegan cake is the orange version of my popular lemon loaf.
It comes together in just a few easy steps and uses 10 simple ingredients, without the need for an egg replacement.
Serve it with a cup of tea or coffee or with a generous smothering of homemade vegan orange curd.
🧾 Ingredients Needed
Here are all the simple ingredients you need to make this vegan orange cake recipe from scratch:
Ingredient Notes
Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Oranges: If possible, organic oranges are best since we're using both the juice and the zest. Otherwise, wash them very well first. If you decide to use blood oranges, your vegan orange loaf will have a deeper orange color. Also, always use fresh orange juice (not the bottled stuff) for the best orange flavor.
- Olive Oil: I purposely made this orange cake without butter (vegan butter of course), as oil makes for a fluffier crumb. The oil keeps the cake moist, tender, and fluffy for days. You can use light olive oil, or another neutral oil such as canola oil, or sunflower oil if you're not a fan of its flavor.
- Non-Dairy Milk: My go-to for most vegan cakes is soy milk as it comes very close to dairy in terms of protein content. Together with apple cider vinegar, it forms vegan "buttermilk". This will help the cake to become super fluffy and light. Feel free to use almond milk or oat milk if you need to.
- Light Brown Sugar: I use light muscovado (not to be confused with dark muscovado) in baked goods as it is less refined than most other sugars and gives a subtle caramel flavor. You can use cane sugar, coconut sugar, or soft brown sugar in its place.
- Vanilla: You can either scrape out a vanilla bean or use vanilla bean paste. This adds another layer of flavor to the orange loaf.
- Organic Powdered Sugar: This forms the base of the standard icing which is flavored with freshly squeezed orange juice and orange zest. You can use blood oranges to give the glaze a wonderful peachy-pink hue.
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🥣 Instructions
Here are step-by-step images showing how to make this eggless orange cake. Please refer to the detailed printable recipe card at the bottom of this page for full measurements and written instructions:
In a large mixing bowl, rub together the zest and sugar. This is a tip I picked up from The Loopy Whisk. Essentially, this allows lots of the natural oils from the oranges to be released and flavor the sugar. If you're using a vanilla pod, rub it into the sugar here also!
Next, whisk the olive oil into the orange sugar mixture. Don't worry if it appears split at this stage, it will come together when the other wet ingredients are added.
Add the "vegan buttermilk" (dairy-free milk with apple cider vinegar) and freshly squeezed orange juice.
Carefully fold in the dry ingredients (all purpose flour, baking powder, and sea salt) until "just combined". Don't be tempted to over-mix the batter!
Pour the cake batter into a cake pan lined with parchment paper and add a thin strip of vegan butter on top. You can also dip a knife in olive oil and run it down the middle of the cake (this helps it crack beautifully down the center!). Bake in a preheated oven for 45-55 minutes until a toothpick comes out almost clean with a few crumbs but without any raw cake batter.
Whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth and set aside. It only takes a couple of minutes to prepare the glaze. If it's sitting on the counter before your loaf is baked, cover the bowl with a plate or plastic wrap to prevent a crust from forming on top of the icing.
Let the cake sit in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
Pour the orange glaze on top of the cake, letting it drizzle over the edges. You can use as little or as much as you like, then decorate with orange slices or segments.
💭 Recipe Tips
Use unwaxed oranges: Organic if possible. Waxed fruits are generally not vegan due to their coating. It's also a good idea to go for organic if you can as you'll be using the orange peel.
Use a microplane grater to get the most out of the zest of the orange, and use only the orange zest, not the bitter white pith underneath.
Measure in grams: With any baking, accuracy is key, and measuring in grams will always be more accurate.
Declump the sugar: Light muscovado sugar can sometimes "clump" together. Get your hands into the dry ingredients and work out any lumps of sugar as these can create spots when baking.
Use a parchment paper sling: A parchment sling covers the bottom and sides of the loaf pan, making it so much easier to lift out your vegan loaf cake once baked. King Arthur Baking shows detailed images of how to create a parchment sling.
Use a serrated knife to slice your cake. I like to carefully mark out the cuts first, before cutting through for the perfect slices!
💬 FAQs
Place the cake in an airtight container or wrap well in plastic wrap. Store it at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Yes, you can freeze this cake in an airtight container and defrost it a couple of hours before serving. I usually slice it into servings and separate them with pieces of parchment. This way, there's no need to defrost the entire loaf when you're craving a slice!
If you want to frost this cake instead of glazing it you can also use vegan cream cheese frosting for some orange creamsicle flavor vibes!
🍰 More Vegan Cake Recipes
📖 Recipe
Vegan Orange Loaf Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 180 ml (¾ cup) soy milk *note 1
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 200 g (1 cup) light muscovado sugar *note 2
- 3 tablespoons orange zest 3 large oranges *note 3
- 1 vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 120 ml (½ cup) olive oil or neutral oil such as rapeseed or sunflower oil
- 60 ml (¼ cup) orange juice freshly squeezed
- 300 g (2 ½ cups) all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 tablespoon baking powder sifted
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Orange Glaze *note 4
- 90 g (¾ cup) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vegan yogurt or orange juice
- 1 tablespoon orange zest 1 orange
Instructions
- Prepare: Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Lightly grease an 8" loaf tin and place a sling of parchment paper into it to help lift out the cake once baked. To make the vegan "buttermilk" add the soy milk and apple cider vinegar to a small bowl, stir, and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
- Flavor the sugar: Add the sugar and orange zest to a large mixing bowl. If you're using a vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and add them to the bowl as well. Use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar.
- Wet ingredients: Add the olive oil and whisk to combine. Then add the vegan buttermilk mixture and the freshly squeezed orange juice, and whisk again.
- Dry ingredients: Add the sifted flour, baking powder, and salt to the bowl with the wet ingredients in 2 parts, and whisk until just combined and there aren't any visible pockets of flour - be careful not to overmix the batter.
- Bake: Transfer the cake batter to the prepared loaf pan. Place thin strips of vegan butter or a knife dipped in olive oil down the center of the loaf, this will help the loaf to crack in the center once it bakes (*note 6). Bake for 45-55 mins. Check the cake is ready by inserting a knife or toothpick into it, which should come out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack.
- Make the glaze: Meanwhile, add the powdered sugar, yogurt or orange juice, and orange zest to a bowl and whisk until smooth.Once the cake has cooled, place a sheet of parchment paper under the cooling rack to catch any icing. Pour the glaze on top of the cake, you can add more or less depending on your taste.
Notes
- Soy Milk: Swap for almond milk or oat milk.
- Light Muscovado Sugar: Swap for coconut sugar, cane sugar, or soft brown sugar.
- Oranges: Use organic if possible, or wash them very well before use.
- Orange Glaze: You can double the glaze recipe for a thick glaze.
- Use a parchment paper sling: A parchment sling covers the bottom and sides of the loaf tin, making it so much easier to lift out your vegan loaf cake once baked.
- Adding a thin line of butter slices down the middle of the batter helps to create a lovely crack in the center of the cake. Thanks to CloudyKitchen for the idea.
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