Buttery Vegan Pound Cake

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This vegan pound cake is rich, buttery, and full of flavor! Perfect for serving on it’s own, or with your favorite toppings. The best part: this delicious vegan loaf cake is super easy to make, requiring only eight ingredients and one bowl!

Creating recipes for vegan baked goods is tricky! This vegan pound cake is a prime example of that. I thought an eggless and dairy-free pound cake would be so easy. I was so wrong!

Over the past few months I’ve made many, many attempts, and failed many times while trying to create a vegan pound cake recipe. I have a massive stash of failed cakes in my freezer at this point (because even the fails, while not ideal, were still delicious).

I FINALLY got it right and I’m seriously delighted to finally be sharing the recipe today. This cake is delicious, moist, and perfectly textured.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Vegan butter. You can find this near the regular butter at the supermarket. Look for brands like Miyoko’s and Earth Balance (I used Earth Balance to develop this recipe).
• Sugar. Use organic sugar to keep the recipe vegan.
• Vanilla extract.
• Vegan yogurt. Use any variety that’s unflavored and unsweetened.
• Flour. We’re using all-purpose wheat flour for this recipe. I can’t guarantee results if you use any other variety.
• Baking powder.
• Baking soda.
• Salt.

How It’s Made

The following is a brief summary of the process used to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!

• Use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar together. Make sure your butter has been brought up to room temperature before starting, and if you forget, use this quick hack to soften it up.
• Beat in the vanilla and yogurt. It’s a good idea to also bring your yogurt up to room temperature before starting. Just microwave it briefly if you forgot to set it out!
• Begin beating in the flour, in three or four increments. When you add the last of the flour, sprinkle the baking powder, soda and salt on top of it before beating it in.
• Transfer the cake batter to a lightly oiled 9-inch loaf pan and bake the vegan pound cake for 50 to 55 minutes. It should be golden on top and a knife or toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean when it’s done.
• Place your vegan loaf cake on a cooling rack and let it cool completely before removing it from the pan.

Tip: Be gentle when slicing your cake and use a very sharp knife. Because it’s made without eggs, vegan pound cake is a bit more delicate than traditional pound cake.

Variations

• Vegan berry pound cake. Fold a cup of your favorite berries into the batter before transferring it to the pan. Try blueberries, raspberries, or chopped strawberries.
• Chocolate chip pound cake. Fold a cup of vegan chocolate chips (try Enjoy Life Brand) into the batter before transferring it to the pan.
• Flavored vegan pound cake. Replace the vanilla extract with a teaspoon of lemon extract, coconut extract, or a half teaspoon of almond extract.
• Frosted pound cake. Top your cake with your favorite vegan frosting. Try my vegan chocolate frosting or vegan vanilla buttercream frosting.

Shelf-Life & Storage

To store this vegan pound cake, you can tightly cover it in plastic wrap in the original baking pan, or carefully remove it and place it in a sealed container or bag. It will keep at room temperature for about 4 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can this cake be made gluten-free?

I’m not sure! An all-purpose gluten-free flour blend might work, but I haven’t tried it myself, so no promises.

Why is my pound cake so dense?

Pound cake is supposed to be pretty dense, but if yours turned out overly dense it’s likely due to dated baking powder and/or soda. Test your powder by sprinkling a small amount in a glass of water. Do the same for the soda, but using vinegar. Both should fizz. If either doesn’t throw it out.

It’s also possible that you used too much flour. Make sure you’re measuring your flour properly. Check out this guide if you’re not sure what that means.

How is vegan pound cake served?

It’s delicious on it’s own, or topped with some vegan ice cream, fresh fruit, or powdered sugar.