Soft and fluffy vegan coffee cake with a thick layer of cinnamon sugar and a crunchy streusel topping. This cake is easy to make and uses simple pantry ingredients. It’s the perfect treat with a cup of coffee!

Close up of a slice of coffee cake that has a bite taken out of it. The cake has a light golden sponge, thick layer of cinnamon sugar and crumb topping.

Why you’ll love this cake

ACCESSIBLE INGREDIENTS: Even though this is an eggless cake, you don’t need any special egg replacers! We’re using a specially crafted ratio of ingredients to create a fluffy cake that doesn’t fall apart.

VERSATILE: This coffee cake is the perfect breakfast cake or treat with your daily coffee. It’s special enough for dessert, just like my coffee cake cookies!

This cake isn’t meant to contain coffee, but is best enjoyed with a cup of coffee. Some people may call it a tea cake! If you want a cake with fresh coffee, see my vegan espresso cake.

Simple ingredients you’ll need

Flat-lay of ingredients for coffee cake, including crumb topping.

The full list of ingredient quantities and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Oil for moisture and helps create a fluffier vegan coffee cake. You can substitute half of the oil with melted vegan butter for more depth of flavor (but I think it’s perfect as is).

Non-dairy milk. I recommend using a creamy milk such as soy milk as it makes the cake more tender. However, any milk will work for example oat milk or almond milk.

Granulated sugar for the vanilla cake. If you’re in the US, use organic sugar or cane sugar to ensure it’s vegan.

Brown sugar for the topping. Alternatively, coconut sugar will work wonderfully!

Melted vegan butter for the cinnamon streusel topping. I used a vegan block butter but coconut oil or a spreadable butter will also work (you may need to add a little more flour for the right consistency).

Cut up coffee cake squares with some squares on their side revealing the different layers.

Making the crumb topping and cinnamon layer

Before making the vanilla cake, I recommend preparing the topping and cinnamon sugar filling. They’re very easy to make as you just mix all the ingredients in a bowl!

The topping should have the consistency of crumbly wet sand. However, this can vary a little depending on how you measure your ingredients and the temperature of your home! If your mixture is too dry or too sticky, feel free to mix in an extra teaspoon of melted butter. A little goes a long way!

Two image collage showing final crumb topping and cinnamon sugar in separate bowls.

Making the eggless vanilla cake

The vanilla cake is easy to make as you just mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, add the wet ingredients and stir until combined. For the most fluffy cake, here are my top tips:

  • Measure the ingredients (especially the flour) using a kitchen scale for the best results. It’s very easy to under or overmeasure the flour using measuring cups, and this can impact the texture of your final cake. If you use measuring cups, use the ‘spoon & level’ method where you use a spoon to add the flour to your measuring cup.
  • Don’t overmix your batter. Some lumps in your batter are fine, as long as they aren’t lumps of flour.

Your final batter should be runnier than a typical muffin batter but still hold shape for a few seconds after mixing it. If you let your batter sit for a few minutes, it’ll get a little runnier as the sugar will dissolve. So, don’t worry if your batter doesn’t look exactly like below.

Four image collage showing how to make the vanilla cake batter for the recipe.

Assembling the vegan coffee cake

The layers for this coffee cake are:

  1. Half of the vanilla cake
  2. Cinnamon sugar
  3. Second half of the vanilla cake
  4. Crumble topping.

It’s easy to assemble the cake, but here are my top tips:

  • Use an offset spatula to spread the cake batter. The first layer of cake spreads mostly on its own but you’ll need to spread the second layer of batter.
  • Initially, the second layer of batter will refuse to stick to the cinnamon sugar. To minimize this, try to lift your spatula or spoon as little as possible when you spread the cake batter. Don’t overthink this step and just do what you can :).
Overhead image of coffee cake cut into squares. The middle one is on the side showing its light fluffy texture and cinnamon sugar layer.

Customizing this vegan coffee cake recipe

Can I make this cake gluten-free?

Yes, I recommend using a combination of almond flour and gluten-free all-purpose flour for the best texture (see the notes of the recipe card for quantities). You may use all gluten-free flour, as long as it’s designed for 1:1 baking (not all gluten-free blends are created equal).

Can I replace the oil with something else?

I have successfully replaced half of the oil with vegan yogurt without any huge differences. I haven’t tested applesauce or mashed banana but I suspect that it will make the cake sweeter.

Can I add other ingredients to the cake?

Yes! The following ingredients would be delicious additions in the streusel:
– chopped pecans
– chopped walnuts
– sliced almonds

If you’d like some coffee flavor throughout the cake, infuse the milk with instant coffee and use it in the recipe. Alternatively, I have several other coffee cakes including my pumpkin coffee cake, apple crumble cake, blueberry coffee cake and strawberry crumb cake.

More coffee crumble cake recipes

Close up of a slice of apple coffee cake on its side amongst other slices.

Apple Coffee Cake (vegan)
Close up of two slices of blueberry cake stacked on top of each other.

Vegan Blueberry Coffee Cake
Close of of vegan coffee cake cookie with drizzle of runny white icing, on parchment paper.

Vegan Coffee Cake Cookies
Vegan pumpkin coffee cake with two slices taken out revealing the cinnamon sugar layer in the middle of the cake.

Vegan Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Follow Rainbow Nourishments on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Pinterest, and subscribe via email to receive all of our latest recipes!

Close up of a slice of coffee cake that has a bite taken out of it. The cake has a light golden sponge, thick layer of cinnamon sugar and crumb topping.
5 from 14 reviews

Vegan Coffee Cake

Yield: 16 slices
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Author: Anthea
Soft and fluffy vegan coffee cake with a thick layer of cinnamon sugar and a crunchy streusel topping. This cake is easy to make, uses very common pantry ingredients and is perfect with a cup of coffee!
Print Leave a Review Pin Recipe

Ingredients

Streusel topping

Cinnamon Swirl

Vegan Vanilla Cake

Instructions 

  • Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F). Line an 8-inch (20 cm) square tin with parchment paper.

Make the streusel topping:

  • Add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix until it resembles a fine crumbly mixture. Set aside.

Make the cinnamon swirl mixture:

  • In a separate bowl, add the sugar and cinnamon and mix until combined. Set aside.

Make the vanilla cake:

  • Add all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder and salt) to a large mixing bowl. Whisk until the mixture is well combined. Add all the wet ingredients (dairy-free milk, oil, vinegar and vanilla) and whisk until smooth.

Assemble the vegan coffee cake:

  • Pour around half of the cake batter into your prepared pan. If needed, flatten the surface with an offset spatula or spoon. Sprinkle all of the cinnamon sugar evenly on top of the cake batter.
  • Pour the remaining half of the batter on top. Use an offset spatula or spoon to spread out the batter so you can't see any more of the cinnamon sugar. Sprinkle the streusel topping on top.
  • Bake the coffee cake for 50-55 minutes. If the top is browning too quickly, tent the cake pan with aluminum foil. The cake is ready when you can insert a toothpick in the center and there's no wet batter on it (some moist crumbs on the toothpick are fine).
  • Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 20 minutes then transfer to a wire rack.
  • Serve the cake as is, with a light dusting of powdered sugar or a thin drizzle of icing (note 3). Use a serrated knife to cut the cake into slices. Store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days, in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Notes

  1. To make this vegan coffee cake gluten-free, substitute the plain flour for 1 1/2 cups (150g) almond flour / blanched almond meal and 1 cup (160g) gluten-free all-purpose flour and reduce the oil to 1/2 cup (85g). For the topping, you can use just gluten-free all-purpose flour.
  2. Alternatively, you can use 1 tablespoon lemon juice. The acid reacts with the dairy-free milk to make vegan buttermilk which gives a cake a more tender crumb. You don’t need to mix the ingredients separately as it has the same chemical reaction in the bowl!
  3. I made a simple icing by mixing 3/4 cup (75g) of powdered sugar and 3-4 teaspoons of dairy-free milk. Add more sugar for a thicker icing or more liquid for a thinner icing and drizzle it over the cooled cake.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1 square, Calories: 269kcal, Carbohydrates: 37g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 13g, Sodium: 118mg, Potassium: 38mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 20g, Vitamin A: 2IU, Vitamin C: 0.02mg, Calcium: 79mg, Iron: 1mg
Did you Make this Recipe?Rate it & leave your feedback in the comments section below, or tag @rainbownourishments on Instagram and hashtag #rainbownourishments!

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.