Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
This vegan lemon drizzle cake is light, fluffy and has a refreshing flavor from real lemon juice. It is easy to prepare and uses only 8 common ingredients.
Why you’ll love this vegan lemon drizzle cake
LOTS OF LEMON FLAVOR: This recipe uses real lemon juice in the cake loaf, two-ingredient lemon syrup and simple lemon icing.
TEXTURE: The cake has a lighter texture than pound cake but is slightly denser than a regular vegan lemon cake.
Alternatively, for a lemon cake that doesn’t use syrup, see my vegan lemon olive oil cake, or lemon blueberry cake!
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
Lemon juice and zest from fresh lemons for the best flavor. You may use bottled lemon juice and omit the zest, but your vegan lemon drizzle cake won’t be as flavorful.
Granulated sugar for the fluffiest vegan lemon loaf. For a refined sugar-free cake, you can use coconut sugar, however, your cake will be brown in color and it will taste a little like caramel.
If you’d like to reduce the amount of refined sugar, in the lemon syrup, use a liquid sweetener instead of granulated sugar. I don’t recommend reducing the sugar in the cake itself.
Oil of choice. If you’d like your cake to have a subtle golden hue, I recommend using a light-flavored olive oil.
Even though this is an eggless lemon cake, you don’t need any special egg replacers!
How to make the lemon loaf
The lemon loaf comes together in one bowl! Simply add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl then mix until there are no lumps. Then add all the wet ingredients and mix until combined.
Be careful to not overmix the batter as it’ll make the cake denser. A few lumps in the batter are fine, as long as they aren’t lumps of flour!
Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan then it’s ready to bake in your preheated oven.
Preparing the lemon syrup
While the vegan lemon cake is baking, you can make the two-ingredient syrup.
Simply add the sugar and lemon juice to a small saucepan and whisk over medium heat through. Eventually, the lemon juice and heat of the stove will dissolve the sugar!
Your lemon syrup is ready when it’s translucent and you can feel or see any granules of sugar. No one wants a grainy vegan lemon drizzle cake!
While your lemon loaf is still warm, use a long skewer or toothpick to poke lots of holes in the cake. Be generous with the holes, as they will allow the syrup to reach all parts of the cake!
Then pour your warm syrup over your cake! As the cake is still contained the loaf tin, your syrup won’t run away.
How to make the lemon icing
The lemon icing adds extra lemon flavor, moisture and sweetness! It’s easy to make as you just need to mix the ingredients in a bowl until smooth.
For a thicker icing, add a little more sugar and mix. For a thinner icing, add a little more lemon juice or milk and mix. Try to add only 1 teaspoon of extra sugar or liquid at a time as a little goes a long way!
It’s best to pour the icing on the vegan lemon drizzle cake when it’s at room temperature or slightly cool. If your cake is warm, your icing will run down the sides of the cake and melt away.
How to serve the cake
The vegan lemon drizzle cake is delicious at room temperature with just the icing. However, you can also top your cake with:
- Fresh berries – make sure you arrange the fruit just before serving as the berry juices may leak onto your icing.
- Extra lemon zest
- Edible flowers
I also love serving slices of the cake with a dollop of yogurt or ice cream, to complement the lemon flavor.
Expert tips and customizations
For a round or layered lemon cake, check out my vegan lemon cake recipe. For muffins, check out my vegan lemon poppy seed muffin recipe which includes tips on achieving those bakery-style muffin tops.
Orange juice will work! However orange juice is less acidic than lemon juice (imagine tasting a spoon of orange juice compared to a spoon of lemon juice). I recommend replacing some of the milk with extra orange juice.
Or check out my vegan tres leches recipe where you soak a sponge cake in a three-milk mixture.
I haven’t tested it myself so can’t vouch for results. If you try it yourself, let me know!
Yes, but I recommend adding an extra dash of milk as those flours are more absorbent then all-purpose flour.
More vegan lemon desserts
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Vegan Lemon Drizzle Cake
Ingredients
Vegan Lemon Loaf
- 2 ½ cups (315g) all-purpose plain flour, (note 1)
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- Pinch of salt, optional
- 1 cup (250g) dairy-free milk, room temperature
- ½ cup (125g) neutral flavored oil
- ¼ cup (60g) lemon juice, from approx 1-2 lemons
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, (optional)
Lemon Drizzle/Syrup
- ⅓ cup (65g) granulated sugar, or caster sugar (note 2)
- 2 tablespoons (30g) lemon juice
Lemon Icing
- 1 ½ cups (150g) powdered sugar / icing sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon melted vegan butter, margarine or coconut oil, for a firmer icing (optional)
- fresh berries, and extra lemon zest, to decorate (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F). Grease or line an 8 inch (20 cm) loaf pan with parchment paper.
Make the vegan lemon loaf:
- Add all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest and salt) to a large mixing bowl. Mix until combined. Add all the wet ingredients (milk, oil, lemon juice and vanilla) and mix until combined. Avoid overmixing the batter. Some lumps are fine as long as they aren't lumps of dry flour.
- Pour the lemon cake batter into your prepared loaf pan.
- Bake the cake for 55 minutes to 1 hour or until you can insert a toothpick in the middle and it comes out clean. Keep the cake in the loaf pan.
Make the lemon syrup (while the loaf is baking)
- Add the sugar and lemon juice to a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved. This should take 1-2 minutes. Set aside until your cake is ready.
- When the lemon cake is still warm from the oven, use a long skewer or toothpick to generously poke holes in the cake.
- Pour the lemon syrup over the warm cake. Allow the cake to cool in the loaf pan.
Make the lemon icing:
- Add all the ingredients to a medium bowl and mix until smooth. Add more lemon juice for a thinner icing or more sugar for a thicker icing.
- Remove the lemon cake from the loaf pan. Drizzle the icing over your cooled cake.
Serving the cake:
- If desired, just before serving, top the cake with fresh berries and lemon zest. Use a sharp to slice your cake and enjoy!
- Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or in the fridge for up to 3 days. The cake can be stored without the icing in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Video
Notes
- For a richer cake, you can replace 1⁄2 cup (65g) of the all-purpose flour with 2⁄3 cup (65g) almond flour. Also, to make this cake gluten-free, substitute the all-purpose flour for 1 2⁄3 cups (165g) almond flour and 1 cup (160g) gluten-free all-purpose flour.
- Alternatively, you can use 3 tablespoons of your liquid sweetener of choice. Instead of cooking the mixture on the stovetop, you can simply mix the sweetener with lemon juice in a small bowl.
This post and recipe was originally published in 2020 and updated in 2022 with more informative pictures and an improved recipe.
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.
This was my first loaf tin bake, I made it for my partner and he loved it! It was delicious, looked very nice, and was really easy to make! I will definitely make this again!
Oh that’s amazing to hear, especially as your first loaf tin bake!! I’m so happy that you and your partner enjoyed it. Thanks so much Chloe 🙂
Delicious! The lemon icing is zingy and fresh!
Aw, thanks for your feedback Filipa!
Would it work baking this lemon cake in a glass loaf pan?
Thank you!
Yes it should work! I haven’t tried it but a few online guides recommend reducing the oven temperature by just 5°C and baking it for 10 minutes longer. Hope that helps!
I followed this recipe exactly. It was the best cake, so moist and spongy.
I had friends over and they also loved the cake, i received so many compliments.
I used sunflower oil as the oil as I did not have any olive oil at home, it well nicely.
Thank you for such a wonderful recipe.
That’s so great to hear Baljinder! I’m glad that you and all your friends loved it!! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave your feedback here x
This is the most delicious lemon cake!!! I highly recommend cooking it! Now it’s my favorite sweet recipe! Also baked lemon cake with blueberries, also very very tasty! Thank you so much!
Aw, I’m so happy you loved this cake and the blueberry cake Julia! Made my day :). Thanks so much for your kind feedback x
So easy and so tasty! Thank you 🙂
The recipe will be good with orange?
I’m so glad that you enjoyed this cake! Orange juice will work but it’s not as strong as lemon juice so you may need to replace some of the milk with more orange juice. I hope that helps!
Je n’ai aucune raison de mettre 1 étoile mais j’ai raté le gâteau. Ce n’est pourtant pas mon 1er gâteau et j’ai respecté les quantités… je ne comprends pas !
Snif…
Le gâteau a bien gonflé mais la texture ressemble à celle d’un gâteau pas cuit…
Merci pour votre aide
Je retenterai l’expérience !
Merciiiii 🥰
Hello! That’s unfortunate that your cake had a strange texture. It’s difficult to know what happened to your cake without being there.
However, there could be many reasons! Sometimes our oven temperature is too low and doesn’t bake the cake properly (many ovens don’t have an accurate temperature). Or, if you measured the ingredients using cups and tablespoons, some of the ingredients could’ve been mismeasured. I always recommend using grams for the best cake. Or, did you use any different ingredients? Thank you!
So perfect and delicious!🍋 What about using this recipe into smaller loaf pans? How would I adjust? Any ideas?
I’m so happy you enjoyed this cake! It would bake wonderfully in smaller loaf pans. You wouldn’t need to change the cake or syrup recipe but may need a little more of the icing. They will also bake in a shorter amount of time, depending on the size of each loaf and how much you fill each one :).
Hi.. can I make the sponge using only Almond flour? Please let me know
Only almond flour won’t work unfortunately!
Hello Anthea,
I tried the recipe, but I used olive oil instead of the vegetable and it worked. It is yummy, fluffy and well risen.
That’s wonderful to hear, thanks so much for your feedback Ece!
I am allergic to almonds and gluten. Do you have a suggestion for flour substitutes? Would love to make this!
Hi Tracy, a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend will work for this recipe but I recommend using one that you already trust and have used in vegan cakes. I hope that helps!
I loved this cake! Gracias.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Cintia!
I tried this recipe and it was fantastic.
I did three small adjustments:
I used a lemon and a lime for a bit more tangyness.
Then I left the zest to rest in the sugar for a couple of hours before baking.
Lastly, my oven is a bit agressive so at 32mn in, I covered the cake with a sheet of tinfoil.
My friend said it was the best lemon drizzle she ever had.
Aw that’s great to hear Sophia! Love the addition of lime and combining the zest with the sugar. And that sounds like the perfect way to work around an aggressive oven. Thanks so much for your feedback!
Loved the cake! It was easy to make and the texture was perfect. I was wondering how I could adjust this to make it a vanilla cake? I considered replacing the lemon juice with more almond milk but wasn’t sure if the acid from the lemon juice helped with the rise and texture of the cake. Also, would I have to include a Tbs of ACV to the milk and add maybe a tsp of baking soda as well?
I really need a vanilla cake recipe with this texture 🙂 Any tips?
Thanks!
Hi Lish, I’m so glad you loved this cake! From experience, a small amount of acid makes a fluffy but a larger amount of acid (like lemon juice) makes a cake *slightly* more dense like this cake. Soo, if you omit the juice and replace it with almond milk and add a Tbsp of ACV, it will work! I don’t think a tsp of baking soda is absolutely needed but, just in case, you could try just 1/4 tsp baking soda (not too much as you’ll be able to taste it). I hope that helps!
Thanks so much!
I don’t usually bake so was a bit nervous about making a vegan cake with so little experience. However, this was so easy, and everyone thought it delicious. It was gone in minutes. The rise was amazing, great texture and perfect lemony taste. Will definitely make this again and all my guests wanted the recipe!
Aw, I’m so happy that you found this cake easy to make! That’s amazing feedback, thanks so much Jill 🙂
Another 10/10!! Made this for my nursing mates for international nurses day yesterday and it was gobbled up. I used water rather than milk & omitted the icing. Lovely and light and delicious.
Aw, what a lovely way to celebrate International Nurses Day! Glad it worked with water as well! Thanks so much Miriam x
made it. love it! thank youuuuu!
Aw, I’m so happy you enjoyed this Georgiana!
Great recipe! Each time I bake this cake, I’m impressed at how easy the recipe is, and how tasty the final product is! This is definitely one of my favourite recipes on Rainbow Nourishments. Perfect for afternoon tea during the summer months.
Aw that’s really lovely to hear Fedra! Thanks so much for your lovely feedback and your ongoing support xx