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 gray 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!
Check out the notes section in the gray recipe box at the bottom of this post
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 ½ 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 ¼ 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 single-layer 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
- Pinch of 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 lemon cake gluten free, substitute the plain flour for 1 ⅔ cups (165g) almond flour / blanched almond meal and 1 cup (160g) gluten free all-purpose flour.
- 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.
Nutrition
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.
Esti says
The cake really crumbles for me, do you know why?
Anthea says
Hi Esti, this can be from packing too much flour in your measuring cup. Try using the spoon and level method, or use a measuring scale. If your cake was just crumbly to cut into, it may be that your sugar wasn't dissolved enough or your oven runs a little hot. This can be fixed by letting the cake batter sit for a few minutes, or covering your cake pan with foil. I hope that helps!
Andreea Zaharia says
Absolutely delicious. We ate half of this before even cooling down properly. It's absolutely delicious. I think I added too much lemon juice because I forgot to measure it and the it turned out.a little gummy in the end but even though we absolutely loved it. Thank you for the recipe. I will definitely make it again ❤️
Anthea says
Hi Andreea, I'm so glad that you enjoyed this cake (I also love eating it warm). It's funny how lemon juice can do that to a cake, but it sounds like it still turned out well. Thanks so much for your lovely feedback 🙂
Rachel Formales says
I have finally found my go-to blueberry cake recipe 🙂 Thanks!
Anthea says
Aw, I'm thrilled that this recipe is a keeper for you! Thanks Rachel 🙂
Eleana says
Stop searching for blueberry cake recipes - this is the only one you need.
I made this last night - this recipe is absolutely fantastic. I didn't change one thing. The sweetness level is perfect, the texture is perfect, and the lemon/ zest taste lingering in your mouth makes you cut another piece to eat. Super light. I couldnt stop slicing pieces, I ended up eating half the cake! And so easy to make, unbelievable.
By accident I poured it in a loaf pan - cooked it for 75 minutes. Just perfect.
BY FAR, the best blueberry cake I have ever made. Bravo for the recipe and thank you for sharing.
Anthea says
So sorry for the late reply, but I'm over the moon that you loved this cake!! Reading your comment is making me hungry haha, and I'm honored with the way you have described it. Thanks so much for your thoughtful comment!!
Sylvie says
Not sure what i did wrong but it was still delicious. When foing the lemon blueberry cake, I was trying to mix it but it as too thick and i had to add a bit of milk (about half of a 1/4 cup) to be able to mix it. The center was gummy but the sides were well cooked.
Anthea says
Hi Sylvie, glad that you enjoyed the taste of the cake! The batter is meant to be a little thick and softens after a few minutes as the sugar dissolves. However, if it was so thick where you couldn't mix it, it's possible that your measuring cup was packed with too much flour. With the final cake, that can happen if you overmix the batter, if your oven runs a bit hot, and a few other things. I hope that helps but I'm glad that you enjoyed the taste of the cake!
Cindy says
I live in a high altitude location (northern Colorado, USA). I followed the recipe to the letter, except I used a 9-inch round cake pan. The cake was still raw in the center after 55 minutes, so I left it in for an additional 15 minutes. A knife in the center came out clean. It's cooling now and smells so good. I can't wait to try it!
Anthea says
Hi Cindy, thanks so much for the insight for baking this at a higher altititude! I hope the cake turned out well at the end 🙂
Jeanne Funk says
Delicious cake & very easy. I've made it several times & it's always a big hit. I just made it, by special request!
Anthea says
Hi Jeanne, I'm so glad that you enjoyed this cake and made it a few times! Thanks so much for letting me know 🙂
Medha says
Hi. Will this recipe work, if I use butter, instead of oil and whole milk instead of dairy-free milk? Also, if I use butter, should I cream it with sugar or just melt and use it?
Anthea says
Hi Medha, techically whole milk would work similarly, however I haven't tested it. With butter, it would work best just melted. However, it will make the cake denser and rise less. You can see the difference in this post by Handle The Heat (see the cupcakes picture).
Cristina Korzun says
It is really wondeful! Everybody loves it!
Anthea says
That's great to hear!! Thanks for your comment 🙂
Snehal Bhudia says
What a wonderful cake, a massive hit in my family
Anthea says
Aw, that's lovely feedback. Thank you!
Sharan says
Hi Anthea, I finally got around to making your lemon and blueberry cake. It turned out beautifully. The sponge was perfect. So light and fluffy. It was great the next day.
Thank you always for sharing these beautiful vegan recipes.
Anthea says
Hi Sharan, I'm so happy that you loved this cake and especially the texture! Thanks so much for your support and kind feedback 🙂
Tamara says
I made this for a dinner party last night and it was devoured! Everyone asked for the recipe. It was delicious!
Anthea says
Hi Tamara, aw that's great to know!!! So glad that everyone enjoyed the cake. Thank you for your comment!
Molly Mullins says
Do you think this would work in a Bundt pan?
Ty!
Anthea says
Hi Molly, yes it will! The cake will be a little shorter than most bundt cakes, so you can scale up the recipe (so the flour comes to around 3 to 3 1/2 cups) for a decently sized bundt cake. I used 3 1/2 cups flour in my chocolate/vanilla bundt cake. Hope that helps!
Huda says
Made this earlier as I was craving a berry cake - I swapped out the lemons for orange juice and zest, used frozen mixed berries with mainly redcurrants and added a crunchy streusel topping and WOW. The result was the most gorgeous, aromatic, tender crumb and flavour - somewhere between a hot cross bun and panettone - absolutely incredible! Adding to the baking rota for sure - thank you!
Olivia Lin says
Hi Anthea! I saw on your lemon poppyseed muffin recipe that you recommend this recipe if we wanted to a bake a cake, I'm wondering if you think this recipe would work scaled up for a sheet cake? I have a large number of people to cater and would love to make this recipe 🙂
Anthea says
Hi Olivia! Yes, this cake would definitely work as a sheet cake, if you scale it up! If you tap on the number next to 'Servings' you can scale up all the quantities. Depending on how thick you make it, it should take around 40-50 mins to bake. Hope that helps!
Claire says
Will this cake be okay to make a layer cake ?
Anthea says
Yes! The cake as is would make a small two-layer 6-inch cake or you can scale up the recipe for a two layer 8-inch cake. To scale up the recipe, tap on the number next to 'Servings' and drag to '12' for a two layer 8-inch. Hope that helps!
Claire says
Thank you! For the 6 inch cake, how long should I bake it for? And can you leave out the blueberries or would you advise to make your lemon cake then instead?
Anthea says
I've only baked the 6-inch with berries and it took about 45 minutes. Without berries, the cake will bake in less time. If you leave out the berries, it's best to use my lemon cake recipe and scale it down to around '9 servings' with 2 1/4 cups of flour.
N. Leanage says
Deeelish! Easy to make it turned out perfectly. I used thawed blueberries coated in flour as well as some small apple pieces. I didn’t have real lemon so used liquid and it still has a lovely lemon flavour. Needed 63 min to perfection and an hour to cool.
Anthea says
So glad that you enjoyed this cake and I love that you added apple too! Thanks so much for the extra tips too - I know other readers will find them really helpful!
Tatiana Martins says
Can you make this recipe in 9x13 cake pan?
Anthea says
Yes you can - I haven't tested it but I think it will at least 25 minutes to bake. Hope that helps!