Vegan Apple Bread
This incredibly soft, fluffy and moist vegan apple bread is made with only 8 ingredients and comes together in one bowl! It’s delicious enjoyed by itself or with a soft dairy-free cream cheese frosting and caramelized apples. This bread can easily be made gluten-free and refined sugar-free too.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
CAKE-LIKE TEXTURE. This bread uses grated apples rather than chopped apples to give it a beautiful ‘melt-in-your-mouth’ texture.
EASY TO MAKE. You probably already have all the ingredients in your pantry to make this bread! Or, if pumpkin is more your thing, check out my vegan pumpkin bread.
VERSATILE. Enjoy a slice of this apple bread by itself for breakfast. Or top it with cream cheese frosting and caramelized apples to share for afternoon tea or any gathering!
This vegan apple bread has been adapted from reader favorite recipes on Rainbow Nourishments: my Apple Crumble Cake and Vegan Apple Muffins.
Simple Ingredients You’ll Need
The full list of ingredient quantities and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Notes About the Ingredients
All-purpose flour for the fluffiest vegan apple bread! This bread works well with some gluten-free flour blends – check out the notes in the recipe card for details.
Brown sugar for a cozy depth of flavor. If you prefer a less sweet bread, I recommend coconut sugar. Alternatively, you can use a granulated sugar replacer such as erythritol!
Apple, coarsely grated or finely chopped. Similar to zucchini in zucchini bread, grated apple ‘melts’ away and makes this bread very moist! I recommend using a sweet snacking apple such as a Fuji, Gala or Honey Crisp as they also add natural sweetness the bread. If you prefer a less sweet bread, use a tart apple like Granny Smith.
Baking powder and soda. This recipe uses double baking agents to ensure the bread bakes through and has a fluffy texture. You don’t need eggs to make fluffy quick breads!
Apple cider vinegar (optional) helps break down the gluten to create a more tender crumb. Alternatively, you can use lemon juice or white vinegar or simply omit it.
How to Make Vegan Apple Bread
One of the best things about this recipe is that the batter comes together in one bowl. You don’t even need a mixer! To make the batter, mix the dry ingredients in a bowl until well combined. Stir in the dry ingredients and you’re done!
While this recipe is easy to make, here are some tips for the best results:
- Measure the ingredients accurately using a kitchen scale. Too much flour will create a dry and dense bread and too much apple will make this bread too moist. If you’re in a pinch and only have measuring cups, please use the spoon and level method to measure the flour.
- If your apple is extra juicy, add a little extra flour to the batter. Because no two apples are identical, their moisture levels can vary quite a bit and this can affect how your bread bakes. If your grated apple seems extra juicy, add a tad more flour to ensure your bread bakes up soft rather than heavy and soggy. Check the notes in the recipe card for details.
- Don’t overmix the batter as this will make your bread tough and dense. Try folding your cake batter! It’s ok if your batter has a few lumps, as long as they aren’t lumps of dry flour.
Tips for Baking Apple Bread
This vegan apple bread takes around 50 minutes to 1 hour to bake.
Every oven bakes a bit differently and, with so much dispersed fruit in this bread, sometimes the top can brown quickly. Check your loaf at the 30 to 40 minute mark and if the top is already golden brown, cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil until the bread is ready.
Optional: Making a Caramelized Apple Topping
While this bread is wonderful by itself, topping it with caramelized apples adds even more apple flavor and makes this everyday loaf a showstopper.
Here are my top tips for caramelizing the apples:
- The longer you cook the apple pieces, the softer and more caramelized they will be.
- Once you add the sugar, don’t walk away from the stove, as sugar burns easily!
More Decoration Ideas
Before baking, you can top the bread with:
- Rolled oats
- Pumpkin seeds, just like my vegan pumpkin bread
- Crumble topping, either a regular cinnamon crumble or pecan crumble. This will add another 5-10 minutes to the bake time.
- Chopped apple. I recommend covering your loaf pan with aluminum foil after 30-40 minutes of baking, as the apples may burn.
After baking, the bread will also be wonderful with:
- Cinnamon cream cheese frosting, such as from my sweet potato bread
- Simple sugar glaze, like my lemon olive oil cake. Feel free to replace the lemon juice with milk and add a touch of cinnamon
- Vegan buttercream, from my ginger cake (minus the coconut)
- Coconut yogurt (like below)
Customizing This Recipe
This bread will work if you replace the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour or spelt flour and using coconut sugar instead of brown sugar. These healthier alternatives are drier than the original ingredients, so you may need to add an extra dash of milk to the batter.
Some readers have successfully substituted the oil with unsweetened applesauce, however I haven’t tested it myself so I can’t vouch for results.
I don’t recommend using a liquid sweetener as it’ll throw off the ingredient ratios and make the bread too heavy and wet. Alternatively, my maple banana bread was designed to be baked with maple syrup.
For a round cake, I recommend using my apple crumb cake recipe. For muffins, check out my vegan apple muffins recipe.
Yes, to the batter, you can also add:
– Raisins
– Cranberries
– Walnuts or pecans, just like carrot cake
– Vegan chocolate chips
This bread will also be wonderful with a cinnamon swirl! Use the swirl from my cinnamon bread recipe and layer it into this apple bread.
More Vegan Apple Recipes
Follow Rainbow Nourishments on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Pinterest, and subscribe via email to receive all of our latest recipes!
Vegan Apple Bread
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups (315g) all-purpose plain flour, (note 1 for gluten free)
- 1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar, coconut sugar or granulated sugar (note 2)
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 x (~180g) medium-sized apple, grated very coarsely OR chopped finely (note 3)
- 1 cup (240g) dairy-free milk, room temperature
- ½ cup (110g) neutral flavored oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, optional
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
Cream Cheese Icing (optional, see note 5 for alternatives)
- ¼ cup (60g) vegan cream cheese, room temperature
- ½ cup (60g) powdered sugar / icing sugar, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons (20g) vegan butter, room temperature
Caramelized Apples (optional)
- 1 x (~180g) medium-sized apple, cubed
- 1 tablespoon (15g) vegan butter, or water
- 2 tablespoons (25g) packed brown sugar, or coconut sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease or line an 8-inch (20 cm) loaf pan with parchment paper.
Make the Vegan Apple Bread:
- Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Mix until there are no lumps. Add all of the wet ingredients to the bowl and mix until just combined. Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan and smooth the top.
- Bake the apple bread for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until done. Check the bread at the 35 minute mark and if it's browning quickly on top, loosely cover it with aluminum foil. The bread is ready when you can insert a toothpick in the center and there's no wet batter on it, though some moist crumbs are fine. (note 4)
- Let the apple bread rest in the pan for at least 10 minutes the transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Cream Cheese Icing (optional):
- Add all the icing ingredients to a small bowl and mix until smooth. This icing is quite soft at room temperature so if you'd like a firmer icing, double the amount of butter and add more sugar, to taste.
Make the Caramelized Apples (optional):
- Add the apples and butter to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Saute until the apples are almost tender and slightly golden brown.
- Add the sugar to the saucepan and gently mix the apples while they caramelize. If the apples stick to the saucepan, add a dash of water. The longer you cook the apples, the more caramelized they will be.
Serving the Apple Bread:
- When the apple bread has cooled down, dollop the cream cheese frosting (or desired frosting) on top and top with caramelized apples. Slice and serve!
- Store the apple bread in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day or in the fridge for 4 days. Or store individual slices of the undecorated apple bread in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Notes
- Gluten-free apple bread: Substitute the flour with 1 1/2 cups (150g) almond flour and 1 cup (160g) gluten-free all-purpose flour (or fine white rice flour). Alternatively, this bread works well with King Arthur’s gluten-free measure for measure flour by itself. Your batter will be thicker and I recommend baking the bread for 65-70 minutes. I don’t recommend using Bob’s Red Mills 1:1 gluten-free flour.
- This amount of sugar creates a mildly sweet apple bread. To make the bread less sweet, use 3/4 cup (150g) of brown or coconut sugar.
- This bread will be too moist if you grate the apples too finely. Ideally, the grated apple shouldn’t leak any juice. If your apple is extra juicy, add an extra 3 tablespoons (25g) of flour to the batter.
- The baking time will hugely depend on your oven. If it takes longer than 1 hour to bake, that’s absolutely fine. If your oven has strong heating elements on top, tent your loaf pan with aluminum foil at the beginning of baking to prevent it from burning.
- The apple bread is wonderful by itself. Alternatively, you can top the bread with a simple buttercream, icing such as from my lemon olive oil cake recipe or coconut yogurt. See the post above for more suggestions.
This post was originally published in October 2019 and has been updated several times since then.
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
I baked last night. I used Amon’s flour & added some chocolate chips. Cooked it for an hour & a half. I think maybe should have cooked longer & it seems like too much oil. I’m reading everyone else’s comments who seem to have had no troubles. Any recommendations?? Thanks!
Hi Tiffany, unfortunately almond flour isn’t a good 1:1 substitute for all-purpose flour in eggless baking. It needs to be combined with a starch or another flour in order to work. This recipe works well with 50% almond flour and 50% gluten-free flour (quantities are in note 1 of the recipe box). I hope that helps!
Two questions:
1. Can you bake ahead of time and freeze?
2. Can the batter work for mini muffins?
Thanks!
Hi Sarah! Yes, I freeze this all the time! Just slice it before freezing as the slices will stick together. And yes, they’ll work well as muffins. I also have an apple muffin recipe on my site, but they use chopped rather than grated apples so have a slightly different texture. Hope that helps!
I can’t wait to try these 💖
Aw, I hope you enjoy it!
Super easy but super good! I Cant wait to try the pumpkin version of it! It’s ideal for breakfast or 5pm tea time!
Hi Enrico, I’m glad that you enjoyed this bread and I hope enjoy the pumpkin bread too! Thanks so much for your feedback 🙂
This bread is so delicious- incredibly fluffy and moist! I used part spelt and part all-purpose flour, coconut sugar, and coconut oil. I also added a dash of nutmeg and ginger. I didn’t do the topping, preferring to keep the bread on the healthier and simpler side for breakfast. Fantastic recipe!
Hi Coby, I’m thrilled that you enjoyed this apple bread and were able to customize it to your tastes! Thanks so much for your review!
Love the taste and the flavor! For some reason my bread fell apart when I was cutting it. It’s not dry so I’m confused as to how this might have happened. I appreciate feedback so this won’t happen when I make the recipe again 🙂
Hi Sarah, I’m so glad that you enjoyed this bread! So, I found that the bread was more delicate when it’s warm, or if your top was crusty. If it fell apart when it was at room temperature, it could be from longer strands of grated apple that sort of catch onto the knife. Other possible reasons are if there were air bubbles in the bread (try tapping the loaf on your kitchen counter before baking) or if the baking powder was unevenly dispersed. I hope that helps and thanks so much for your feedback!
This is by far the best recipe for any apple bread I’ve made. I’ve made this now 4 times. Each time I’ve tried something different. The best combination is coconut sugar for depth of caramel flavour, buckwheat flour for nutty flavour and an extra 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and oh don’t peel the apples! I used jazz apples but gave them slight squeeze as in your tips after I grated them. next I’m trying the oat and raisin cookies
Aww, that’s the best feedback Cameron! I love the sound of all of your different variations and now I want to try it with buckwheat flour! Thanks so much for letting me know, I appreciate it a lot!
Oooh keeping the skin on is a great idea! It really does hold so much of the flavour. Gonna try that next time!
Hiii, What kind of apple did you use?
Hi! I always use sweet red/pink snacking apples for this such as Pink Lady, Fuji or Gala. Hope that helps!
Very delicious bread! I followed the exact recipe but I think next time I’ll use only 3/4 cup of sugar. I also added some swirls inside by pouring a third of the batter into the baking pan, sprinkled some cinnamon on top, then another third of batter and so on until I was finished. It was delicious, maybe next time I’ll add a littler more cinnamon in between layers so it shows clearly when cut! The sautéed apples were a nice addition, thanks for the recipe!
Adding some cinnamon layers sounds so delicious, Catalina!! I want to try that next time! Thanks so much for sharing and for your feedback :).
Hi, great recipe! I like adding some cocoa and more spices, it’s delicious:)
Do you think I can make this cake in the bigger cake pan?
That’s great to hear San! Yes, this cake will work in a bigger round cake pan or a bigger loaf pan. My apple crumble cake is almost the same recipe in an 8-inch round cake pan so if you use an even larger one, it’ll just be thinner :).
Omg, this is seriously the best and easiest cake recipe I ever tried!!! The cake turned out sooo moist and fluffy, I already baked it twice and everyone who tried was super stoked! I used the Gramm measurements and topped it with an icing I made from apple juice, icing sugar and ground cinnamon- delicious!!! Thanks again for the recipe!
Aw what a compliment!!! I’m so so happy that you enjoyed this cake. I fell in love with your icing on Instagram and want to try it next time! Thanks so much for your feedback Lissi x
Made this vegan apple cake for a charity bake sale. Also made it gluten free. Used half gluten free flour and half ground almonds, also added a hand full of desiccated coconut. I didn’t try it by my colleagues loved it.
That’s great to hear Lesley, thank you so much for letting me know!
Excellent recipe. Struggled with other vegan cakes but this is fabulous. I used Spelt flour and 100g brown stevia granular sweetener instead of sugar – was spot on!
Thank you!
Aw, I’m glad that you had success with this recipe Sue! And it’s wonderful that you enjoyed it with brown stevia sweetener too. Thanks for your feedback :).
I made this today and it was very good. I added some fresh ginger and nutmeg because I love spices. I’ll add this recipe to my collection. Thank you for the recipe
I love the sound of the extra ginger and nutmeg, yum! Thanks so much for your comment Cassia!
It was easy to make and super Tasty. I used spelt flour as an alternative. Next Time i want to use less sugar. Thank you!
That’s wonderful that you enjoyed this with spelt flour Silvia :). Thanks so much for letting me know!
Thank you for this recipe, so easy, simple handy ingredients and smells amazing. Will definitely be making this my go-to apple loaf/cake.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Nikki! Thanks so much for your feedback 🙂
We have to be gluten-free. So just wondering….in many of your recipes you say to substitute with a gluten-free flour. Just which gluten free flour blend do you use? (I have most all of the !) Being gluten free and vegan both is a toughy with recipes. THANKS
Hi Patricia! The gluten-free flour blend I use includes maize, tapioca, rice flour and xantham gum. It’s a common (and cheap) one from my supermarket in Australia and works well when combined with almond flour. I hope that helps!
Hello!
I’ve made this one already and it was outstanding!!
I’m making another batch, but realized I’ve ran out of my DF milks. I have canned coconut milk. Have you ever used the white thick coconut milk in your recipes?
Also have you made this Recipe into muffins before? If so how much time did you bake for?
I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Yes, I’ve baked with the white thick coconut milk. It depends on the fat percentage but I usually use roughly 1-2 tbsp of the thick white cream to 1 cup (240g) water (and mix it before using it in a recipe). If I use the liquid canned coconut milk, I use 2-4 tbsp. It doesn’t sound like much but it shows how diluted drinkable coconut milk is!
And yes, I’m actually making this recipe into muffins right now haha! I made 10 muffins and baked it for around 30 minutes. But if you make the standard 12, you’ll probably only need to bake it for 20-25 minutes. Hope that helps!