Vegan Gingerbread Cake is a soft and fluffy holiday dessert made with molasses, ginger and cloves topped with vegan whipped cream and Gingersnap Cookie Sprinkles!
This INCREDIBLE cake is about to become your new favorite holiday dessert!
What is Gingerbread Cake?
It’s basically everything you love about classic gingerbread cookies, but in cake form! The texture is fluffy, moist and super tender and the festive combo of cinnamon, ginger and cloves make this completely vegan cake taste like it was made in Santa’s very own bakeshop🎄
How to Make the Perfect Vegan Gingerbread Cake
I start by preheating my oven to 350 degrees and lining a 9×13 baking pan with parchment.
Next I prepare a flax egg by mixing ground flax seeds with orange juice and leaving it to thicken for 5-10 minutes.
In the meantime, I mix the dry ingredients which are simply flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt. Then I whisk to combine.
Next comes the wet ingredients. I start by beating the sugar and melted coconut oil until fluffy. This takes about one minute.
Then I add the pumpkin, molasses, flax egg and vanilla extract and I mix again until very light and fluffy. THIS is the time to mix well, because we want this mixture to be light and fluffy so we have a tender, fluffy cake in the end.
Once you start adding the flour though, it’s time to cool it with the mixing. At this stage, just mix to combine and be careful not to over-mix or the cake can be tough.
To prevent this, I only add half of the flour to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Then I mix until no more flour is visible and then I add half of the hot water. I mix until the water is absorbed and then add in the remaining flour and finish with the remaining water. This half-and-half technique creates a really nice texture in the finished cake!
Transfer to the prepared 9×13 baking pan and smooth the top. This batter is supposed to be thick so don’t be alarmed.
Bake for 30 minutes and allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack before slicing.
How to Serve Vegan Gingerbread Cake
I LOVE serving this warm and spicy cake with a dollop of vegan whipped cream, some crumbled gingersnap cookies, and maybe a few vegan friendly sprinkles like these if I’m feeling fancy!
It’s also great with ice cream on top and the cream cheese glaze I used in this Danishes recipe is another great option.
How to make a vegan cake that’s not dry…
Let’s just say there’s a big learning curve for me when I first went vegan…and baking was definitely the hardest. There were lots of failed attempts at cookies that more closely resembled hockey pucks and cakes that never seemed done in the middle.
After a bit of trial error, I got the hang of vegan baking and now my recipes are enjoyed by both my vegan and non-vegan friends which really feels like a win after maaaaany failed attempts.
The thing is, vegan baking isn’t hard. It’s just about understanding what certain ingredients do. For example, this cake uses two vegan egg substitutes. One is a flax egg, which is usually ground flax seeds mixed with water but here I opted for orange juice to compliment the spices in the cake. Flax eggs are a great alternative to chicken’s eggs because they have a similar fat-protein-water ratio so they function similarly as a binder in baked goods.
And the other egg substitute is canned pumpkin puree. Which may seem strange in a vegan gingerbread cake recipe like this one but it’s actually kind of game changer!
What does the pumpkin puree do in this recipe?
Don’t worry, it doesn’t taste like pumpkin or pumpkin bread. This is definitely a Gingerbread Cake all the way. But here the starch in the pumpkin acts a binder, which eliminates the need to use a chicken’s egg and it also holds on to moisture nicely, which means we can use a little less oil in the recipe and still end up with a tender, decadent cake.
RECIPE FAQs
Can I use Blackstrap Molasses for Gingerbread?
Nope! Opt for unsulphured molasses like this one from Wholesome.
Can I use gluten-free flour instead of all purpose?
This cake recipe was tested using all purpose flour so that’s what I recommend if possible, but to make it gluten-free I would sub a 1:1 flour like Bob’s Red Mill for best results. Avoid using almond or coconut flour.
Why refined vs virgin coconut oil?
Virgin coconut oil is unfiltered so it has a more pronounced coconut flavor. Refined is a neural tasting oil, meaning it won’t add a coconut flavor to the recipe allowing all of those holiday gingerbread flavors to shine!
If you like this recipe please leave a comment and rate this post below! And if you’re on Instagram, tag me in a pic so I can see your recreation! @nikkivegan
For more free vegan recipes, don’t forget to check out my YouTube channel here.
Vegan Gingerbread Cake
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup cane sugar
- ½ cup melted refined coconut oil room temp
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ cup unsulphured molasses don't use blackstrap molasses
- ½ cup canned pumpkin puree
- ½ cup hot water
Flax Egg
- 2 tbsp ground flax seeds
- 4 tbsp orange juice
Toppings
- vegan whipped cream or ice cream
- storebought gingernsap cookies to make cookie sprinkles!
Instructions
Prep
- Start by mixing the ground flax seeds and orange juice in a bowl. Stir and set aside to thicken. Next, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepapre a 9×13 baking pan by greasing it with coconut oil and lining with parchment paper.
Mix the Dry Ingredients
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and sea salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix well and set aside.
Mix the Wet Ingredients
- In another large bowl, beat the sugar and melted coconut oil for 1 minute until smooth. Then add the molasses, pumpkin, vanilla and flax egg and beat for 1-2 minutes until fluffy.Don't add the water yet, that comes later 😊NOTE: If it's very cold in your kitchen, the coconut oil may re-harden and become difficult to mix. The hot water will remelt it when we add it later.
Combine and Bake
- Add half of the flour mixture into the bowl with the wet mixture and just mix until combined. Careful not to overmix at this point. Then add half of the hot water and mix until the water is mostly absorbed. Add the remaining flour, mix until no flour is visible and then add the remaining water. This technique creates a nice texture in the finished cake! Transfer the batter (which should be pretty thick) to your prepared baking pan and bake on the center rack for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (It takes almost exactly 30 minutes in my oven)
Cool
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a cooling rack so that air can circluate around the bottom. This is key for a good crumb scructure! Once cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar, slice and serve with vegan whipped cream. Then make sprinkles by crumbling a gingersnap cookie on top for a little crunch! I also love drizzling on cream cheese glaze (recipe in the notes below) for something different or it's nice when served warm with vegan ice cream on top too! Hope you enjoy! Happy Holidays ❤️
Notes
- 1/4 cup vegan cream cheese, softened to room temp
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
- 2-3 tbsp almond milk
- pinch of salt
Hey! I’m Nicole and I make practical vegan recipes for REAL life. I cook with simple, easy to find ingredients and I’m passionate about creating delicious plant-based meals that everyone will love!
I hope you enjoy my recipes and videos :) Happy Cooking!
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Can u also put grams instead of cups or with included
Author
Hey Denise! Thanks for letting me know you’d like to see that! I’m not sure how to accurately on my own but I think there’s a way I can upgrade my recipe card software to make it provide that option automatically. I’ll look into it and get that feature available to you as soon as possible 🙂
Hi! Just tried this cake and it was very tasty but not super gingery. Also, my cake did not turn out anywhere near as dark as yours. What kind of molasses did you use? You nailed the texture again!
Author
Thank you! I’m so glad you liked it! I think using a little more ground ginger or fresh ginger might punch up the flavor even more if you make it again. And I used the one from Wholesome ❤️
Can you replace the pumpkin puree with applesauce?
Author
In a pinch yes but the texture and flavor will be different!
This was amazing, Nikki! I followed the recipe exactly and it was a hit at Christmas. It’s so moist (a word I hate but have no other way to describe it) and decadent. I just had it cold for breakfast and am really struggling not to go back for seconds. Thank you for this excellent holiday treat to add to the yearly rotation. 🙂
This cake is ah-maze-ing! So fluffy and it tastes just like gingerbread cookies! I’m curious why you specifically note not to use blackstrap molasses? Is it just because it has a more bitter taste?
Hey there! I just made this and it turned out wonderful! Gingerbread is my favorite and this was a nice break from loaf cakes and cookies this! Is this okay to store on the counter? Or should it be refrigerated?
This recipe turned out so beautifully! Thank you for all the helpful vegan baking tips along the way. I feel like that really made the process go smoother.
This recipe is so delicious! The cake is so moist and perfectly spiced! I made the cream cheese glaze to top it off which was very tasty as well. I will definitely make this again – thank you!