Easy Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake
One bowl vegan lemon blueberry cake which uses only 7 ingredients! This cake is soft and moist, has the perfect crumb, and isn’t too sweet.
This cake is perfect for Spring or Summer, just like my Lemon Olive Oil Cake and Vegan Lemon Cake (layered) and Vegan Blueberry Muffins!
What to expect from this cake
This lemon blueberry cake is:
- Delicious, fluffy, moist and golden (all of the good things)!
- Incredibly easy to make
- Not too sweet because the lemon balances out the sugar (and there’s no frosting)
- Stackable for a layer cake
- Naturally eggless and can be made gluten free
- Designed so the blueberries don’t sink to the bottom!
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
Granulated sugar is the best sweetener for a light and fluffy cake. See the FAQ section below for alternatives.
Fresh lemon juice and zest for the best flavor. Alternatively, bottled lemon juice is fine. If you don’t want the lemon flavor, you can omit the zest and replace the lemon juice with dairy-free milk.
Neutral-flavored oil, such as sunflower, avocado or olive oil. Olive oil imparts a slightly fruity flavor, such as in my lemon olive oil cake.
Fresh or frozen blueberries. If using frozen, you don’t need to thaw them but will need to bake the cake for 5 minutes longer.
How to make this cake
Simply add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl and mix until combined. Add all the wet ingredients except the blueberries and mix until just before it’s combined (there should still be some pockets of flour).
At this stage, we aren’t fully mixing the cake batter because we’re still mixing it later. We don’t want to overmix the cake batter!
Then add the blueberries and fold them through the batter! This recipe makes a thick batter which helps prevent all the blueberries from sinking when we bake the cake.
The cake batter will have a scoopable consistency but it isn’t so thick that you will need to flatten the top. Once you pour the batter into your cake pan, scatter the remaining blueberries on top and press some of them into the cake.
The cake is ready when the surface is golden brown and you can insert a toothpick in the center and there’s no wet batter on it (a few moist crumbs are fine).
Customizing this cake
This vegan lemon blueberry cake will work with coconut sugar, however it will change the flavor profile. Imagine eating a caramel cake with a hint of lemon!
Yes! Check out the notes in the recipe card at the bottom of this post for details.
Yes, though keep in mind that it’ll make the cake denser.
This cake will bake well in a larger cake pan or bundt pan. As the cake is quite tall, I don’t recommend baking it in a smaller pan unless you’re dividing the cake between two pans.
To make a 2-layered 8-inch cake, scale up the recipe by 150% and divide the batter between the 2 pans. You’ll need 1 1/2 batches of my blueberry buttercream frosting. Or check out my vegan lemon cake recipe.
For a 3-layered 6-inch cake, make the batter as written, divide the batter in the 3 cake pans and bake them for 35-40 minutes. You’ll need 1 1/4 batches of my blueberry buttercream frosting.
You can also make this cake in a loaf pan, but it will take 70 minutes to bake through. Alternatively, check my vegan blueberry bread or vegan lemon loaf that are designed for loaf pans.
For muffins or cupcakes, I suggest baking my vegan blueberry muffins and adding extra lemon zest, or using my lemon blueberry cupcakes recipe.
This cake would be lovely with my:
– Blueberry frosting or strawberry frosting (use half the recipe)
– Simple lemon icing used in my olive oil cake
– Vegan cream cheese frosting used in my carrot cake recipe (use half the recipe)
– Whipped dairy-free cream
More easy vegan cakes
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Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake
Ingredients
Vegan Lemon Blueberry Cake
- 2 ½ cups (315g) all-purpose plain flour, spoon and leveled (note 1 for gluten free)
- 1 ¼ cups (250g) granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt, optional
- ¾ cup (190g) dairy-free milk
- ½ cup (125g) neutral flavored oil
- ⅓ cup (80g) lemon juice, and zest of those lemons (overall, you'll need about 2 large lemons or 3 medium lemons, note 2)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
- 1 ¼ cups (190g) blueberries, fresh or frozen
To serve (optional, note 3)
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F). Line or grease a 20 cm (8-inch) round cake pan.
- Add all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder and salt) to a large mixing bowl and mix until there are no lumps. Add all the wet ingredients (milk, oil, lemon juice/zest and vanilla) and mix until just before it's combined. Initially, the batter will be thick but it will loosen up after a few minutes.
- Add half of the blueberries and gently fold them through. Pour the batter into your prepared cake pan. Scatter the remaining blueberries on top and gently press some of them into the cake.
- Bake the cake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until you can insert a toothpick in the middle and there's no wet batter on it. This is a moist cake so some crumbs on your toothpick are fine.
- Allow the cake to cool in the cake tin for 10 minutes then cool on a wire rack.
To serve the cake:
- Just before serving, dust the cake with powdered sugar (optional) and serve! The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day, in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. If you freeze the cake, the texture of the blueberries will change.
Notes
- To make this vegan blueberry cake gluten-free, substitute the flour for 1 2/3 cups (165g) almond flour (blanched almond meal in UK/Aus) and 1 cup (160g) gluten free all-purpose flour. This cake also works well with King Arthur’s measure for measure flour as a 1:1 replacement for regular flour. Other gluten-free flour blends may produce different results. If you’re making the gluten-free version, it’s best to bake it for around 60 minutes.
- Don’t be tempted to add more lemon juice. If you add too much lemon juice, it will make the cake gooey, and it won’t bake through. If you want extra lemon flavor, add more lemon zest.
- Alternatively, you can enjoy the cake plain or topped with fresh berries.
This recipe was originally published in 2019 and updated in 2021 for simplicity.
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.
Hi Anthea!
I’m planning on making this cake for Mother’s Day and I was wondering if this recipe would possibly make enough to split between two 8in round pans or would I need to just double the recipe?
Hi Jordan! Ooh lovely :). This recipe can be split between two pans but the layers will be a little thin. So, I’d recommend increasing the recipe by 50% and baking it in two 8-inch pans. I hope that helps!
Hello Anthea!
Thank you for the recipe! The cake turned out super well and was delicious! I used this recipe to make my birthday cake and will definitely be making it again! I’m about to look into your other recipes now (:
I’m so happy that you enjoyed this recipe, and for your birthday as well!! And happy belated birthday too :). I hope you enjoy browsing!
Hello Anthea! Thank you for the birthday wish (: I’m back to make the recipe/cake again ha and I definitely have enjoyed browsing!
Planning to make this over Easter but realised that my Mum has cleared out a lot of her baking tins. It looks a deep cake. Would a deep 7” x 10” baking tray work with these quantities?
Sorry for the late reply! Yes, a rectangle baking tray of that size should work similarly!
Such a delicious cake mmm moist and sweet and fresh. So nice!!
Aw that’s wonderful to hear! Thanks Chihiro!
This was absolutely delicious, thank you. I swapped in self raising flour instead of plain and added one tsp of bicarbonate of soda.
I’m so glad that you enjoyed this cake and that it worked with your substitutions!
For the 1/3 cup of lemon juice and zest, is that 1/3 cup of juice and zest combined? What should the ratio be?
Yes it’s 1/3 cup lemon juice and zest combined. The ratio is just whatever amount you can get from about 2-3 lemons, without scraping off the white part of the lemon.
This looks really good. Do you think it would double well?
Yes, I think so if you bake the cake in 2 x 8 inch cake pans or slightly larger cake pans. I don’t think it would work if you bake 2 of the cakes in 1 x 8 inch cake pan. Hope that helps!
This recipe is amazing! I used soy milk and regular flour. My friends said it was so good and fluffy that they even hesitated that it was vegan 😂.
Haha, I *love* that your friends couldn’t tell it was vegan! I’m so glad you all enjoyed this cake! Thanks Sandy 🙂
I made this cake last night. It was simple and delicious. In fact, my husband and I ate half when it was done. I used soy milk and classic flour. Thanks for sharing.
That’s great news Tricia! And we tend to do the same with cakes when they’re freshly baked too :). Thanks so much for your feedback!
I didn’t have blueberries and instead I made it with cherries and it was still amazingly delicious!! I took it to the school to share it with my co-teachers and they all loved it and are looking forward to me making it again :).
Oooh yum, I love that you made it with cherries! So glad you and everyone enjoyed this cake. Thanks so much for your feedback 🙂
This looks amazing! Quick question… Do you have to do anything special to prep the blueberries prior to putting them in the batter (ie. thaw them if frozen or soak them if fresh)?
Thank you! No you don’t have to do anything to the blueberries beforehand, whether you’re using fresh or frozen. Frozen berries don’t need to be thawed and fresh berries don’t need to be coated in flour or soaked. As it’s a thick batter, the berries don’t sink when the cake is cooked. I hope that helps!
I’ve made this cake a few times now – it is delicious! moist but crumbly on top. I’ve made it with blueberries like the original, then tried with raspberries (also excellent!) and I am currently trying a mix of blueberries/raspberries and blackberries! It’s so easy and comes out great every time! It is so popular with my family and doesn’t last long enough to freeze! Thank you so much!
Aw I’m so happy you’ve made and enjoyed this cake a few times! I love that you used raspberries once too. Thank you so much for leaving your feedback Beverley!
I made this for a dinner party over the week-end. I am no baker, and this cake made me look like I was a natural baker, thank you for not only an easy, good looking cake recipe but an incredibly moist and delicious one too. Our dinner guests all had an extra piece. Super yum! I am going to try your Zebra cake next.
Aw, that’s so amazing to hear Tracy! Go you! It’s great that everyone enjoyed this cake. Thanks so much for your lovely comment 🙂
Looks amazing! Will Meyer lemons work OK in this?
Thank you! Yes I think Meyer lemons would be great for this 🙂
Thanks Anthea! Just made it with Meyer lemons a neighbor gave us and it’s delicious! I intended to share some with my sweet neighbor. I now have to make another one tomorrow because we gobbled too much of it up to share. 😂
Hahaha, I know the feeling! I’m so glad you enjoyed this cake Christine! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Hello! I wanted to know if instead of using almond flour (which is a little expensive) I could use, in the same amount, rice flour ? I have been trying to use it for a while, and in the all amount that the recipe says, and the cakes are getting to dry! 😩
Hey! Yes rice flour works instead of almond flour (if you use 50% rice flour and 50% gluten free flour). The taste/texture is a little different to the almond flour version but it still works :).
This recipe is soooo good! Everyone in my household loved it and it was gone in 2 days. Super moist and not too sweet, the lemon and blueberry flavors are perfect. 🙂 Can’t wait to make it again!
Aw I’m so happy to hear that you and everyone enjoyed this cake! Thank you so much 🙂
This was such a delicious cake, thank you!
Aw so glad you enjoyed this cake, thanks Sara!
I’m excited to try this cake! Making it today, do you think it would work to replace the cup of oil with 1/2 cup oil and 1/2 cup applesauce? It’s a beautiful cake!
Hi Angela! I saw that you made and posted the cake on Instagram – glad that the substitution worked for you!