This moist and fluffy Vegan Apple Cake tastes just like fall, with diced apples, crunchy walnuts, and warm cinnamon in every slice! It’s easy to make in one bowl and served with an optional caramel drizzle on top.
Left with tons of apples after a trip to the orchard? Use them up in this Perfect Vegan Apple Pie, this Apple Baked Oatmeal, and this Apple Upside Down Cake!
This Vegan Apple Cake is almost more apples than cake! Rich, fluffy, and comforting, it only takes one small piece to satisfy your sweet tooth. If your family is anything like mine, they’ll be asking you to make this as soon as the crisp fall weather arrives.
“My family said this is the BEST CAKE they have ever eaten. Whoa! It’s that amazing!” – Meg
From the comforting cinnamon to the tart-sweet apples in every slice, this apple cake is a real winner. Just don’t forget to serve it with the caramel drizzle on top when you want to take the cozy fall flavors up a notch. It seeps into the cake, making it extra moist and scrumptious. Yum!
Why you’ll love this easy vegan apple cake recipe
- Tastes like an apple fritter – If you love soft, fluffy, apple-filled vegan apple fritters, then you’re going to love this apple cake!
- The best vegan apple dessert – This is the dessert to turn to when you need a break from pumpkin recipes. It’s loaded with tart-sweet apples, crunchy walnuts, and cinnamon to make every slice feel like a warm hug.
- An easy one-bowl recipe – Just mix the simple ingredients in one bowl, bake the cake, and enjoy!
How to make a vegan apple cake
Find the complete printable recipe with measurements below in the recipe card.
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Pour in the oil, applesauce, and vanilla and stir to combine. Fold in the diced apples and nuts (using your hands to incorporate everything if needed).
Press the batter into an even layer in the cake pan and bake until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
While the cake cools, prepare the caramel drizzle. Heat the vegan butter, brown sugar, and non-dairy milk together in a small pot until the butter melts. Bring to a boil and stir constantly. After 2 minutes, remove the pot from the heat.
Drizzle the caramel sauce over the cooled cake. Let it cool for 10 more minutes, then slice, serve, and enjoy!
Frequently asked questions
I recommend using firm apples with a mix of sweet and tart flavors. There are plenty of apples that are ideal for baking, but my favorites are Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, Granny Smith, and Braeburn (I’ll usually use 2 to 3 varieties). Just avoid soft apples, like McIntosh apples, since they tend to turn to mush.
The cake batter in this recipe is much stiffer and heavier than other cake batters, so it may not work as a layer cake. If you’d still like to try it, split the batter into two round 8-inch cake pans and decorate the cooled cake layers with vegan buttercream frosting and the caramel drizzle.
Sure! A few readers have tested this and had good results. Divide the batter into a muffin tin and bake at 350ºF for 28 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Drizzle the caramel sauce over the top before serving or decorate them with vegan maple buttercream frosting.
Sure! For a less-sweet cake, cut the sugar back to 1 1/2 cups or 1 cup.
A quality gluten-free flour mix will work pretty well as a substitute for the all-purpose flour.
The leftover cooled cake can be covered and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the fridge for 4 to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
1 Bowl Vegan Apple Cake
Ingredients
Apple Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup canola oil or melted coconut oil*
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups peeled and diced apples
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Optional Caramel Drizzle
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons non-dairy milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
- Now pour in the oil, applesauce and vanilla and stir until combined. The dough will be very stiff, not like most cake batters. This is because the fresh apples will provide a lot of moisture as the cake bakes.
- Fold in the diced apples and nuts. Use your hands if needed to get them incorporated.
- Press the cake batter into the pan, evenly. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cake cool while you prepare the caramel drizzle.
- Make the caramel drizzle: In a small pot on the stove, add the vegan butter, brown sugar and non-dairy milk. Heat over medium heat until the butter melts. Bring to a boil and stir constantly, being careful not to let the mixture overflow. Continue to boil for 2 minutes, stirring, then remove from heat.
- After the cake has cooled for about 20 minutes, drizzle the caramel sauce over it. Let cool for 10 more minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- You may use canola oil or melted coconut oil. Or use any neutral flavored oil you like, such as avocado oil.
- Substitute a gluten-free flour mix to make the cake gluten free.
- You can use walnuts or pecans, or leave the nuts out entirely.
- Serve with a dollop of vegan whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if desired.
SO AMAZING.
Easy simply recipe with 5 star results, moist and sweet.
I had to make this with gf flour, so that made mine a little dense & gritty, but that’s not the recipe’s fault. I also halved the oil, doubled applesauce, and halved sugar (but made half of that brown sugar), so I’m sorry for all the changes! But the flavor – with the diced apples and walnuts – is amazing. Not oily, plenty of sweetness and texture. Thanks Nora!
Hi Angie! I’m so glad that you loved the apple cake! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review and comments! I appreciate you using my recipes!
My anti-vegan-baking mom loved this as much as I did! 🙂
Thank you for the head’s up in terms of the batter’s texture which is really more like dough… it worked out fine, but without the instructions, I would have thought I did something wrong.
Wonderful, easy recipe. Came together quickly once I had done all the peeling/chopping. Used a combo of coconut oil and vegan butter. Timing was perfect. Thanks for another hit recipe, Nora!
Thank you for the lovely recipe! The cake was great. I used half the sugar, half the oil and twice the applesauce as recommended in the notes and by some of the other commenters.
Thank you so much for the recipe. This cake came out incredible! I added only half the sugar and substituted the apple sauce with vegan yogurt. Absolutely delicious!
This is SOOOO good. I also used only 1 cup granulated sugar and 3/4 cup coconut oil. Turned out perfect.
THIS CAKE IS AMAZING. I used half the sugar and oil and it was so great. Everyone ate it up so quickly I’ll have to make two next time.
Hi Alex! I’m glad the cake was a hit! Thank you so much for sharing your great review and comments! Isn’t a great time of year for an apple cake!?
Made it, it was awesome. Used less sugar than called for by half. Really didnt measure the sauce ingredients. Really must use your hands to incorporate everything into the dough. Added 2 vegan eggs too. Just great!
I’ve made this wonder-cake numerous times (using half the sugar), and it’s always perfect. This time I used GF flour, and it came out just as great.
Maybe a bit more oily than usual. I don’t usually bake with gluten free flour, so it could be it doesn’t absorb the oil as well. Next time if I use GF I’ll also reduce the oil. Thanks!
Thanks for leaving your wonderful review and comments! I’m glad you are enjoying the apple cake!
Made this cake today. It was so amazingly delicious! I didn’t have all purpose flour so I used bread flour. And I cut the sugar by 1/2 cup. Everything else was exactly the same. Thanks for such a great recipe!
I’m glad you enjoyed the cake! Thanks so much for sharing your great review!
This recipe is excellent! It gets devoured right away every time I make it.
Like others have suggested, I cut the sugar in half and it’s still plenty sweet for my crowd.
Some have asked about making it as cupcakes. I tried this in a 12-cup pan and it came out very nicely. While I reduced the cook time to about 35-40 minutes, that still might have been a little on the high side—the bottoms were burnt slightly, but it was hardly noticeable. I would recommend around 30 minutes or even less for cupcakes.
Thank you for this fantastic recipe!
I’m glad that you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for sharing your experience about making them with cupcakes! I appreciate you taking your time to share your wonderful review and comments!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. It is amazing!
You are welcome! I’m glad you love the apple cake!
This was a hit with everyone! What a great recipe. I used half the sugar in the cake, but kept the glaze and it was perfect amount of sweetness.
is it possible to make this in a bundt pan? how would the cook time change?
It might work, but I haven’t tried it. I’m afraid it might be too dense and heavy in a bundt pan, and it would probably take an hour or more to cook.
Nora,
This cake was great. I made a couple of alterations. I used 1/2 cup of canola oil and increased the applesauce to 1 cup. I also used whole wheat flour instead of white flour. This cake was a big hit. I a, going to make it again. Thank you for all your great recipes!
Hi Lois. I’m glad the cake was a hit! Thanks for taking time to share your review, comments, and ideas!
Thank you!!
I made this cake and my family loved it..
You are welcome. I’m so glad everyone loved the cake! Thank you for sharing your review!
Best recipe ever! I added less sugar and it is absolutely amazing ? love it! Thank you so much for this recipe.
You are welcome! Thank you for sharing your review!
I made this with half the sugar like some people recommended. It was delicious but a bit dry – FYI for anyone planning on doing the same thing. Going to try making it exactly as the recipe next time!
I have made this recipe four times in the last two weeks! It’s so good! I cut down the sugar and skipped the drizzle and it still dazzles every time! Thanks Nora for this awesome 1 bowl recipe!
Hi Sarah! This cake is one of my mother in law’s favorites! She loves it without the drizzle as well! I’m so glad you love the cake, and I appreciate you taking your time to share your terrific review!
Simple but delicious, thanks.
Thank you for sharing your review!
This was an absolute hitttttt!! Everyone loved it. Seriously. No leftovers. Thank you:)
Hi Mandi! Thank you for sharing your review! I’m glad the apple cake was a hit!
This recipe is amazing! The only thing I did differently from the recipe is I only used half the sugar for the cake, which was perfect since there’s plenty of sweetness from the apples and applesauce! This one’s going right into our Favorite Recipes book!
Thanks for sharing, I’m so glad you enjoyed the apple cake!
This is an excellent recipe. It is not difficult and comes out delicious. I didn’t use the full two cups of sugar and skipped the drizzle and it was perfectly sweet for me. Thank you!
Hi Zoe. I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for sharing!