Vegan Pound Cake

Today I’ve got a truly amazing Vegan Pound Cake recipe for you that you simply must try. I’m working to add to the amount of Southern food content on this site, as It’s so very near and dear to my heart. As such, pound cakes are never far from my thoughts, as I grew up with a Grandma and aunties who made them weekly. 

Read on to learn a little more about why and how this plant-based cake wonder works, or you can simply jump ahead to the recipe. We’ve got tons of fantastic baking adventures here on MKL, and you can find our complete list of baking recipes here.

This recipe is built on entirely plant-based ingredients – all of which are readily available in a typical American supermarket. NOTE: I would never bother sharing a recipe here on My Kitchen Little that was fussy or difficult to pull off in any way. I’m referring to both the amount of time and effort a recipe might ask of you, and also the availability of ingredients. 

If something requires a massive hunt and gather session, then I’m going to pass. I’ll spare you the effort. No, I like to keep it really real over here, and I try to stick to content that won’t complicate your daily lives, won’t add to any stress or busyness. This plant-based pound cake is the perfect example of that for three key reasons:

1. It is easy! So easy. It’s just a dump, whip, and pour it into the pan sort of baking affair – and it works like a charm every time. Little to no fussing and faffing around is required here. Hooray. 
2. It’s affordable. I was worried that the few plant-based ingredients I call for here would be expensive or tough to procure. Not the case! They were readily available at each of my go-to major supermarket chains here in Charleston. So, I’m confident the same will be true for you as well. 
3. It’s cake! Need I say more?

Vegan Pound Cake Tips and Tricks

Avoid the temptation to over-mix! This is why I say over and over again, “mix just until combined.” That mixing is necessary to combine and activate the ingredients, but doing too much will over-work the glutens and result in a tough cake in the end. 

How to make a Gluten-Free Vegan Pound Cake

This cake can be made gluten-free if you like. Simply replace the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill. 

You’ll notice that I instruct you to prep your loaf pan. I strongly advise that you do this – almost ritualistically – any time you bake any kind of cake. Even if your pan is nonstick! Even if your pan is brand spanking new! You can spray your loaf pan, or you can grease it with some of the vegan butter that you’ve already got hanging out. 

Why Alternate Wet and Dry Ingredients? 

By alternating we are making sure the batter stays as tender as possible. By adding all the liquid ingredients first, the butter would start to separate from everything. Alternatively, if we were to dump all of the dry ingredients in one go, it would result in an over-thickening of the batter. 

We’d then have to mix way too much to get things nice and smooth (see above for the reason why over-mixing is problematic). In essence: over-mixing results in a gummy, tough texture, which is not at all what we’re going for.

Don’t be tempted to turn your cake out or remove it from the pan before it’s ready

This is huge. Cakes need to really settle, firm up, and cool down before they’re de-panned (not really a term). So, just be patient, get some things done around the house, and let the cake cool in its pan for at least half an hour before turning it out to cool completely. 

Sidenote: you don’t have to turn the cake out onto a baking rack. That’s a nice thing to do because racks allow for nice air circulation, but you can turn it out onto a platter, the counter top, a cutting board – just whatever. No worries. 

How to store this plant-based pound cake

This cake is just about the perfect dessert to prepare ahead of time, freeze and then bring it out when you’re ready to serve. Pound cakes are wonderful this way, as they have no frostings and can almost be treated like bread. 

If you want to bake this in advance, just follow the recipe as it’s written. Let the cake cool completely (no warmth left to the touch). Wrap it up nice and snug in some plastic wrap and then a layer of foil and pop it in the freezer for up to 2.5 months. 

If you don’t plan to freeze it and end up with some leftovers, this cake will keep in the fridge for you for up to 3 days. Just be sure it’s stored in an airtight container. 

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How to make a Vegan Pound Cake

This recipe took only two tests to really get right, and that surprised me. I was pretty skeptical, to be honest, given the very un-vegan nature of pound cakes to begin with. I mean, they classically call for a pound of butter and an incredible amount of eggs. But I was blown away by the results that I achieved from an ingredient list that was entirely plant based, and I’m so excited for you guys to give this one a try. 

What you’ll need

The ingredient list here is tres’ classic cake baking, save for the couple of plant-based things you’ll need to grab: vegan butter and vegan sour cream. I like to use Country Crock’s plant-based butter because it’s honestly awesome (it’s made with avocado oil). I have been consistently impressed with it’s flavor and creamy consistency and it works beautifully in this vegan pound cake recipe. 

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ cup vegan butter (one stick)

1 cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar

Zest of 1 lemon + 1 tbsp lemon juice

3 tsp pure vanilla extract 

1 cup vegan sour cream

2 tbsp refined coconut oil

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust the rack to the middle position. Liberally spray a loaf pan with a natural nonstick spray or grease with a little vegan butter. 

To a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate small bowl, combine the lemon juice and coconut oil.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a mixing bowl with a hand-held mixer, cream the vegan butter, sugar, and lemon zest until fluffy and airy. 

Next, add the vegan sour cream (scrape down the sides as you go). 

Add half of the flour mixture to the mixer and mix just until combined. Pour in the coconut oil mixture and mix just until combined. Add the rest of the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Don’t over-mix! It makes things tough.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a tester comes out clean. Cool for 30 minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely.

Top with powdered sugar, a simple lemon glaze or a basic blueberry sauce or enjoy simple and plain). 

Great Glazes and Sauces

Want to whip up a great, easy glaze or blueberry sauce to drip and drizzle all over your Vegan Pound Cake? You might want to try any one of these. Simply omit any milk and replace with a plant-based alternative, such as almond or soy milk. Water or citrus juice also work really well, depending on the flavor you’re going for.

Chai glaze from my Easy Biscuit Doughnuts with Chai Sugar or Chai Glaze.

The maple glaze form my Bakery Style Pumpkin Sugar recipe.

The Orange Cream Glaze from my Dreamsicle Rolls – just use vegan cream cheese.

The blueberry syrup from my Double Blueberry Crunch Waffles with Peach Brown Butter

If you like the looks of this Plant-Based Pound Cake recipe, you might want to try:

Sweet Cream Cornmeal Pound Cake

Best Lemon Cream Cake

Cranberry and White Chocolate Burnt Basque Cheesecake

Dark Chocolate Cake with Pumpkin Pie Frosting

Toffee Cinnamon Tiramisu Cake

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