Vegan Orange Cake

This vegan orange loaf is the perfect lazy-day bake. It’s super moist, topped with a thin layer of icing and sprinkled with orange zest. A super easy but delicious dairy-free dessert that everyone will love.

One of my most popular desserts of all time on this blog is my lemon drizzle cake.

I made it at Easter a few years ago and everyone has loved the recipe so far, which I’m so glad about because it’s one of my favourites too! Since that one was so well received, I figured it was time to do an orange version! The exact same concept, just a different flavour.

I’d considered making a dairy-free orange layer cake but decided against it. A loaf cake is much easier to make and has a more homely, cosy feel to it. Like the types of cakes my granny used to bake.

I made a slight few changes to create this recipe. That was mainly because the lemon one was too moist to stick together as a loaf cake, but they are pretty similar.

Related posts: 20 Vegan Cake Recipes

First off, I reduced the amount of dairy-free margarine to make the cake more sturdy, ensuring that it would be able to hold its shape after removing it from the loaf pan. Then I switched the dairy-free milk for orange juice and of course, the lemon zest for orange zest. This one also had to be baked 5 minutes longer too because the batter was less spread out in the loaf tin.

Lastly, I increased the amount of icing sugar and water ever so slightly, to make a thicker icing for the topping. It really helped the orange zest to sit nicely on top, rather than sinking or blending into the icing.

I chose not to for this recipe but if you want to create an orange drizzle for the top, you can absolutely do that too. I’ve put the instructions in the FAQ section near the bottom of the page.

How to make vegan orange loaf

Step 1:

Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F. If you’re using a fan or convection oven, set it to 160°C/325°F instead.

Step 2:

Dairy-free orange loaf obviously calls for a loaf tin, so the next step is to line a 2lb loaf tin with baking paper. 2lb is the standard-size of loaf tin that you’ll find in most shops and they are approximately 8 x 4 x 3 inches. I purchased mine from Tesco.

Step 3:

In a large bowl, mix 150g of vegan margarine (1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons) with 200g of caster sugar (1 cup) together until smooth.

Step 4:

Add in 225g of self-raising flour (1+3/4 cups), 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and 250ml of orange juice (250ml).

Mix everything together well until you have a smooth batter. Make sure to get any dry mixture that may be stuck at the bottom or on the sides of the bowl.

Step 5:

Add 3 tablespoons of orange zest to the bowl and gently stir it into the batter.

Step 6:

Transfer the batter into your lined loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick through the centre comes out clean.

Let the cake cool in the tin for 5 minutes or so then gently flip it out onto a wire rack. Carefully peel the baking paper off the bottom and leave the cake to cool completely.

Icing the cake

To make the icing, mix together 150g of icing sugar (1 + 1/4 cups) and 3 tablespoons of cold water. If you want the icing to be runnier, you can add more water and likewise, if you want it to be thicker, you can just add more icing sugar.

Gently spread the icing over the top of the loaf cake, letting it drip down the edges a little bit.

Add a sprinkling of orange zest over the top and let the cake sit at room temperature for around an hour. This will give the icing time to set and become hard, making it easier to cut into without mess.

Once the icing has set, cut into slices and serve. You can enjoy as is or spread some marmalade on for an extra boost of orange flavour. This cake will serve around 6-10 people, depending on how big you like your slices.

FAQ

More vegan cake recipes:

• Lemon drizzle cake
• Biscoff cake
• Vanilla sprinkle sheet cake
• Chocolate fudge cake
• Carrot cake

I hope you enjoy this vegan orange loaf recipe. If you make it yourself, please let me know how it goes by leaving a comment and rating below. Happy baking! xo

5 from 8 votes

Print

Vegan Orange Loaf Cake

Moist vegan orange drizzle loaf cake with icing and orange zest. Dairy-free and eggless!

Course Dessert

Cuisine vegan

Keyword vegan orange loaf cake

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Servings 8 slices

Calories 370 kcal

Ingredients

• 150 g Dairy-free margarine (½ cup + 2 tablespoons)
• 200 g Caster sugar (1 cup)
• 225 g Self-raising flour (1 + ¾ cups)
• ½ Teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda
• 250 ml Orange juice (1 cup)
• 3 Tablespoons Orange zest

For the icing:

• 150 g Icing sugar (1 + ¼ cups)
• 3 Tablespoons Water

To top:

• Few Tablespoons Orange zest

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F (or 160°C/325°F if you're using a fan or convection oven).

2. Line a 2lb loaf tin with baking paper.

3. In a large bowl, cream the dairy-free margarine and sugar together.

4. Add the flour, bicarbonate of soda and orange juice. Mix well until you have a smooth cake batter, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to include any dry bits.

5. Add the orange zest and gently stir it in.

6. Transfer the cake batter into your lined loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes. Check that it's baked all the way through by inserting a toothpick through the centre.

7. Let the cake cool in the tin for 5 minutes then gently flip it out onto a wire rack. Carefully peel the baking paper off the bottom and leave the cake to cool completely.

8. Once the cake has cooled, prepare the icing by mixing the icing sugar and water together. If you want it thicker, you can add more icing sugar and if you want it runnier, add more water.

9. Spread the icing over the cooled cake then sprinkle over some orange zest.

10. Let the cake sit at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the icing to harden. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

• Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Nutrition Facts

Vegan Orange Loaf Cake

Amount Per Serving (1 slice)

Calories 370 Calories from Fat 99

% Daily Value*

Fat 11g17%

Sodium 162mg7%

Carbohydrates 65g22%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 45g50%

Protein 3g6%

* All values are an estimate only and will vary depending on the food brands used.