Gently spiced and with a tender crumb, a slice of this Vegan Ginger Cake is the ideal treat to serve in autumn and winter. Subtle hints of orange and almonds add to the flavour and a generous splurge of sweet & zesty orange icing complete the package. Who wants seconds?
An almond milk latte would be a great drink to serve with this cake.
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The glow of candlelit pumpkins and the crackling flicker of fireworks may be behind us for another year, but we can still rely on toasty spices to pull us through to December when outlandish displays of fairy lights will add sparkle & charm to dark, nippy evenings again. I'm adding to the cosy autumn vibes this week with a Vegan Ginger Cake with hints of oranges and almonds to boot.
I can honestly say that, unless you had prior knowledge that this bake is egg and dairy free, you would be none the wiser. This easy vegan ginger cake is deliciously soft and fluffy with a tender crumb. It is not remotely dry. It does not fall apart too easily and it is very easy to eat... slice after slice.
Have you enjoyed my vegan Biscoff cake yet? For those not following a vegan diet then my sticky ginger cake is excellent and gets great reviews.
How to Make This Cake
Since this cake is vegan, it does not include eggs. This cake is, however, light and airy since I have included plenty of citrussy orange juice to react with the baking soda & powder. This is a straightforward and very easy to make vegan ginger cake.
- Measure all dry ingredients into a mixing bowl (sugars, flour, ground almonds, baking powder, baking soda, spices & salt) and mix
- Measure all wet ingredients into a jug. (oil, almond milk, juice, extracts, syrup). Add the orange zest and blend
- Add the wet ingredients into the dry and beat together with the balloon whisk until just combined
- Pour the cake batter into the loaf tin and bake
Tips for Making an Easy Ginger Cake
- This cake does use dark brown sugar. Not all sugar is vegan, so do double check on the pack before starting to bake this easy ginger cake
- Brown sugar does have a tendancy to form lumps whilst it is stored. Begin by removing lumps from the brown sugar by crushing with a spoon, rubbing between fingers or pulsing through a food processor
- Never try to ice a cake whilst it is still warm unless the recipe instructions expressly tell you to. When poured onto a warm cake icing tends to melt in and loose its attractive appearance
Inside of each squidgy slice of this vegan ginger cake is a gentle, yet warming ginger hug. Other spices are included in this bake, but they serve to accentuate the ginger, rather than detract from it. Subtle undertones of zesty citrus and sweet, mild almond run through each bite too.
In my opinion, a loaf cake is not complete without some form of icing. So I've slathered a reassuringly thick glacé icing, infused with orange, onto the top of this cake. And, just for a little pizazz, a few nuggets of crystallised ginger and flaked almonds top it all off in understated yet effective style.
This easy ginger cake is the kind of bake that begs to be served with a cup of tea when you've returned from a long, bracing autumn walk. In nice, thick slices. I don't know any better way to serve cake, do you?
More loaf cakes to enjoy
Please note that the following cakes are not vegan but they could be adapted.
If you have made this vegan ginger cake please leave a review to let me know if you enjoyed it.
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Vegan Ginger Loaf Cake with Orange & Almond
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 75 g/ ⅓ cup Caster sugar
- 75 g/ ⅓ cup Dark brown sugar
- 175 g/ 1 ⅓ cup Plain (all purpose) flour
- 50 g/ ⅓ cup Ground almonds
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 4 teaspoon Ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 60 ml/ ¼ cup Groundnut oil (or other flavourless oil)
- 120 ml/ ½ cup Almond milk
- 100 ml/ ⅓ cup + 4tsp Orange juice (freshly squeezed)
- ¾ teaspoon Almond extract
- ¾ teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoon Syrup from a jar of stem ginger
- Zest from 2 oranges (finely grated)
For the Icing
- 160 g/ 1 ¼ cup Icing sugar
- 25 ml (5 tsp) Orange juice (freshly squeezed)
Garnish
- Flaked almonds
- Crystalised ginger (chopped fine)
Instructions
Make the Cake
- Preheat oven to 170C/ 325F/ GM3 and grease & line a loaf tin with baking parchment
- Begin by removing lumps from the brown sugar by crushing with a spoon, rubbing between fingers or pulsing through a food processor
- Measure all dry ingredients into a medium sized mixing bowl (sugars, flour, ground almonds, baking powder, baking soda, spices & salt. Stir to combine
- Measure all wet ingredients into a jug. (oil, milk, juice, extracts, syrup). Whisk with a balloon whisk until blended. Add the orange zest
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and beat together with the balloon whisk until just combined. Take care not to over-mix as the glutens in the flour will begin to develop and adversely affect the cake texture
- Pour the cake batter into the loaf tin and bake for 50-60 minutes. After 50 minutes test with a skewer - if it comes out clean the cake is cooked. If not, return to the oven and bake for a few more minutes before testing again.
- Once baked, set aside to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove from the tin and parchment and let cool completely on a wire rack
Decorating
- Mix the icing sugar with 3 tsp of orange juice until smooth. keep adding more orange juice, bit by bit, until a soft-dropping consistency has been obtained. Too thick and the icing will not spread easily over the cake, too runny and it will just fall off the cake
- Once ready, spoon the icing over the cake and guide it with a palette knife to cover the top - it will begin to drip down the sides
- Sprinkle finely chopped crystallised ginger and almond flakes across the top of the cake
- Leave to set slightly before serving
- Store in an airtight container for 2-3 days
Elesa says
Dear good god this cake is DEADLY! I did lay the icing on a little thick but other than that the spicy flavours combinations were so good that these loaves didn’t last long. I quadrupled the recipe and made 5 smaller loaves. YUM!
Jane Saunders says
thrilled to hear you liked it - thanks for letting me know. Its made my Friday night.
Marsha says
This ginger loaf looks absolutely delicious! I'm loving that orange icing!
Jane Saunders says
Thanks Marsha.
Julia says
So delicious! Made it yesterday and the whole house smelled amazing.
Jane Saunders says
Oh my goodness - speedy baking. So pleased you liked it.
Leah says
This sounds delicious... but can I use cow’s milk rather than almond milk and semolina in place of the ground almonds? Lots of allergies in this household!
Jane Saunders says
Hi Leah, so pleased you'd like to give this a go. I haven't tried it with the ingredients you've suggested as replacements, so I caveat my suggestions with that in mind. I think cows milk (full fat) will work fine and as for the almonds - by all means you can try semolina. It does lend a drier consistency to cakes though, so maybe add a touch more milk. Alternatively, replace with 40g flour. As said, I haven't tried these out myself but would love to know how you get along if you do.
2pots2cook says
Beautiful for holidays !
Jane Saunders says
Definitely.