This vegan gingerbread loaf cake is incredibly moist and fluffy. Full of festive flavors with molasses and warming gingerbread spice. Glazed with non-dairy cream cheese icing, it's better than Starbucks and made entirely eggless and dairy-free!
Prepare: Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Lightly grease a 1-pound loaf pan with some oil or vegan butter and line it with a sling of parchment paper - leaving an overhang on the sides.To make vegan buttermilk, mix together the soy milk and apple cider vinegar and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
Combine the wet ingredients: Add the vegan buttermilk, applesauce, olive oil, molasses, vanilla, and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Make sure they're are no lumps of sugar left in the mixture.
Combine dry ingredients: To a large separate bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and salt, and whisk to combine.
Make the batter: Sift the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in 2 parts. Fold the ingredients into the batter between each increment until there are no pockets or streaks of flour. Do not be tempted to overmix!
Add the cake batter to the prepared loaf pan. Optionally, cut thin strips of vegan butter and place them down the center of the loaf, this will help the loaf to crack in the center once it bakes (*see note 3).
Bake: Bake for 45-55 mins. After 45 minutes, check the cake is ready by inserting a knife or toothpick into it, which should come out clean. If the toothpick has cake residue on it, bake for another 5-10 minutes as needed.Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack.
Make the glaze: Mix all the glaze ingredients together in a bowl until smooth.Once the cake has cooled, pour the icing on top. Allow the icing to dry for at least an hour to get nice clean cuts or enjoy it straight away for a gooey frosting consistency.
Storage: Wrap in tin foil or place it in an airtight container and store at room temperature for up to 3 days (with icing) or 5 days (without icing). You can also refrigerate it for up to a week, I recommend bringing the cake back to room temperature for an hour before serving.You can also freeze it in an airtight container for up to a month. To defrost, place it in the fridge overnight.
Notes
Light Muscovado Sugar - Sub for soft brown sugar, or use a combination of light and dark muscovado sugar for an even deeper molasses flavor. You can also use coconut sugar, but the loaf will not be quite as moist.
Icing - Vegan cream cheese will give a thick frosting (pictured) whereas lemon/orange juice will result in a runner consistency.
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.
You can add some dried cranberries, raisins, or sultanas to the gingerbread cake batter for an additional festive twist.