Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake

This Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake is my new favorite cake, hands down. It’s light, sweet, tangy, and whole wheat to boot! So yeah, basically I want to eat this cake every day! I baked it for a friend’s birthday and had to seriously talk myself out of eating it ahead of time. I ended up just picking lemon shortbread cookie pieces off the top of the cake. Shhh, don’t tell!

I came up with the recipe for this Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake live on Periscope! My husband and I do live vegan cooking demos there, come check us out @carrotflow! We did a nine hour marathon Periscope session, so I needed to cook something that would keep me busy. With five components, this Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake did exactly that!

You will be making:

• Lemon Shortbread Cookie Crumbs
• Raspberry Chia Seed Jam
• Vegan Lemon Curd
• Lemon Pound Cake
• Lemon Buttercream

If you make them in the order listed above, it actually goes along pretty quickly! Each delicious step is totally worth it, so get excited. This cake rules.

[ingredients title=”Vegan Lemon Shortbread Cookie Crumbs”]

• 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Cookie Crumb Directions”]

1. Preheat oven to 300°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt in a stand mixer bowl. Mix on low speed until even. Stream in the oil, vanilla, and lemon juice and keep mixing until large clumps form and it looks kind of sandy.
3. Break the mixture up into clusters (some small, some large) and spread onto prepared baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until crumble is light golden brown and crunchy, 10–12 minutes (it will firm up as it cools). Let cool completely.
4. These can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

[/directions]

[ingredients title=”Vegan Lemon Curd”]

• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• juice and zest of 3 Meyer lemons
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Vegan Lemon Curd Directions”]

1. In a small saucepan, whisk together all ingredients except the cornstarch. Heat on medium high until the mixture starts to boil. Add in the cornstarch and whisk until smooth.
2. Lower heat to medium low and let cook for another 5 minutes, stirring often. The mixture will be a bit lumpy. Let cool or put it in the fridge for a few minutes then blend it for a smoother consistency.
3. This can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 3 days.

[/directions]

[ingredients title=”Raspberry Chia Seed Jam”]

• 1 bag frozen raspberries
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons rosé vinegar
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Raspberry Chia Seed Jam Directions”]

1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the frozen raspberries and cook for 3-5 minutes until raspberries are thawed, stirring and mashing often.
2. Add the maple syrup and vinegar. Reduce heat to medium low and let mixture thicken for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for 10-15 minutes. (I usually speed this up in the freezer for a couple of minutes.)
3. Stir in the chia seeds. Set aside to thicken for 20 minutes. This can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 5 days.

[/directions]

[ingredients title=”Vegan Lemon Poundcake”]

• 1 1/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 2/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons organic sugar
• 1 cup non-dairy milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Vegan Lemon Poundcake Directions”]

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9×13 pan and line it with parchment paper.
2. Combine the sugar, milk, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on medium for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Turn the stand mixer on to medium-low and gently add the flour mixture into the bowl, bit by bit. Keep mixing until just combined.
4. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. (I usually speed it up by placing it in the freezer for a few minutes.

[/directions]

[ingredients title=”Vegan Lemon Buttercream”]

• 1 cup vegan shortening
• 1/3 cup vegan butter
• 1 cup vegan powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Vegan Lemon Buttercream Directions”]

1. While the cake is in the oven, combine the vegan shortening and vegan butter in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on medium high for 2-3 minutes until smooth, fluffy, and creamy. Stop halfway to scrape down the sides.
2. Turn the mixer down to medium low speed. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Mix for 1-2 minutes until even, stopping to scrape down the sides. Add the lemon juice and mix for another minute.
3. Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.

[/directions]

[ingredients title=”Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake”]

• Lemon Poundcake
• Lemon Curd
• Raspberry Chia Seed Jam
• Lemon Shortbread Cookie Crumbs
• Lemon Buttercream
• 2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice
• 6″ spring form pan
• 2 sheets of acetate

[/ingredients]

[directions title=”Cake Assembly”]

1. Place the two sheets of acetate or laminate into the cake pan. You are creating a tall mold to shape your cake in. Tape the sides of the sheets together to form your sturdy mold. Find a visual reference for these steps here.
2. Using another 6″ cake pan, or the bottom circle of your 6″ spring form pan, trace a circle onto a sheet of wax paper and cut out the circle. Place the wax circle at the bottom of the spring form pan and spray it with cooking oil. (I used coconut oil). Loosen the edges of the cake with a knife, and flip it over onto a sheet a wax paper to remove it from the pan.
3. Use a 6″ pan or the bottom of the spring form (before step 4) to cut out two full circles of cake, and two half circles. Once you have your shapes cut out, use the two half circles to line the edges of your spring form mold. You will want to save the full circles for the top layers, they will be prettier.
4. Use the remaining scraps to fill in the bottom layer. Shove the pieces into the middle, and tamp it down a bit with the back of your hand. You may have a few bites left over to munch on! Slowly and evenly, sprinkle 1 tablespoon of Meyer lemon juice on top of the bottom layer. Spread 1/2 of the vegan lemon curd on the layer. Top with 1/3 of the raspberry jam. Add 1/3 of the lemon buttercream on top and spread it evenly. Add 1/3 of the cookie crumbs on top of the buttercream and gently push the crumbs into the buttercream with the back of your hand, being careful around the rim of the cake. It will be visible so you want it to look even and gorgeous!
5. Add a full cake circle into the mold, then evenly sprinkle 1 tablespoon of Meyer lemon juice onto the cake layer. Spread the remaining 1/2 lemon curd on top of the layer, followed by 1/3 of the jam, and 1/3 of the lemon buttercream. Top with 1/3 of the cookie crumbs.
6. Add the final layer, then cover it with the last 1/3 of buttercream. In the center of the top of the cake, add the remaining raspberry jam. Use the rest of the cookie crumbles to decorate your cake in whatever design or fashion you like.
7. You have just made the most beautiful, delicious Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake ever! But you can’t eat it yet. Cover the finished cake in a few secure layers of plastic wrap and freeze overnight to set the cake. After 4 hours, or ideally overnight, set the cake out to thaw on the counter or in the fridge.
8. An hour or two before serving, remove your cake from the freezer. Pop open the spring form latch to release the cake from the pan, and remove the bottom circle of the pan from the cake.
9. Place the cake on your cake stand or cake plate. Peel away the laminate sheets, and VOILÀ, you have a Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake that is whole wheat and animal friendly! Bake one for yourself and more to share with friends and family! Be sure to remove the laminate sheets while the cake is still frozen to keep the edges nice and smooth.

[/directions]

Did you make this Vegan Raspberry Lemon Cake? We want to see your beautiful creation! Tag your photos with #carrotsandflowers! 🙂

For other tasty vegan desserts, check out our Raw Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream or our California Dreamin’ Granola Cookies, which just so happen to be the most delicious vegan cookies I have ever had!