Vegan Applesauce Cake

This easy Vegan Applesauce Cake is deliciously moist and perfectly spiced. Made with homemade applesauce, this vegan cake has no added sugar or oil in the cake batter but is topped with a delicious streusel crumb and maple glaze.

This is the perfect recipe when you are looking for a delicious dessert that is quick and easy to make and is also on the healthy side. 

For a more indulgent version, try drizzling my homemade Vegan Caramel Sauce overtop of this cake. 

For more delicious vegan cake recipes, try this Easy Vegan Carrot Cake or Vegan Banana Walnut Cake. 

For more apple desserts, try these Vegan Apple Pie Crumble Bars, Vegan Carrot Apple Muffins, or Vegan Apple Cinnamon Bread.

Why You’ll Love This Cake

• Quick & easy – This is a great recipe for when you are short on time, but still want to impress. This cake has the most tender crumb and only takes 10 minutes to prep and 30 minutes to bake. The streusel crumb topping is both easy and delicious. The maple glaze is just 3 ingredients and adds the perfect Fall-flavored touch to this cake.  
• Easily customized – This delicious cake is packed with fresh Fall flavors from the homemade applesauce to the cinnamon spice and maple glaze made with pure maple syrup. You can easily make this recipe into more of an apple spice cake by adding more warm spices like all-spice, nutmeg, or cardamom. 
• Simple ingredients – This vegan cake batter is made with just 7 basic ingredients and no added sugar.  You can even swap out the sugar in the streusel topping and maple glaze if you are looking for a recipe that is completely free of refined sugar (see notes). 

Ingredients

Batter Dry ingredients

• All-purpose flour – I use all-purpose flour in most of my baking, but you can swap for 1:1 gluten-free baking flour to make this recipe gluten-free.
• Baking powder & baking soda – These are essential ingredients for giving this cake a super fluffy and tender crumb.
• Cinnamon – Feel free to add more warm spices to this cake like all-spice, cardamom, or nutmeg.
• Salt – Just a touch of salt helps highlight all of the flavors in this cake. 

Batter Wet Ingredients

• Unsweetened applesauce – As noted above, I used my homemade applesauce for this recipe, but you can easily use store-bought apple sauce instead. Make sure to select unsweetened applesauce to keep this cake free of refined sugars. 
• Pure Vanilla Extract – Another baking essential, vanilla extract helps round out the flavors of this cake. 

For the Streusel Crumb

• All-purpose flour – Helps the crumb to hold its texture while baking. You can sub any variety of flour such as oat flour, almond flour, etc. 
• Cane sugar* – See notes for ensuring your sugar is vegan. Swap for coconut sugar for a less refined option.
• Neutral oil – Any neutral flavored oil such as avocado oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil will do. If you want to keep this cake oil-free, you can omit the streusel and just sprinkle sugar over the top of the cake if desired.  

For the Maple Glaze

• Pure maple syrup – Adds the delicious maple flavor to this glaze.
• Icing sugar* – Also called powdered sugar. If you want to eliminate added sugar in this recipe, omit this ingredient and drizzle pure maple syrup over the finished cake. 
• Non-dairy milk – I prefer oat milk, soy milk, or almond milk but you can use any plant-based milk that meets your dietary needs. 

Helpful Equipment

In addition to measuring cups and spoons, the following equipment is helpful for this recipe:

• Large bowl – For mixing the cake batter
• Small bowl – For mixing the streusel crumb and maple glaze
• Baking dish – I used an 8-inch square baking pan, but you can also make this cake in a Bundt pan or loaf pan if desired. 

How to Make

This is a detailed step-by-step guide on how to make this recipe including photographs. For the quick version, skip ahead to the recipe card below!

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

In a large mixing bowl, combine the applesauce and vanilla extract. Next, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir until no streaks of flour remain. 

Do not overmix in this step or you will have a dense cake. 

Transfer the cake batter to an 8-inch square baking dish. 

In a separate bowl, mix the ingredients for the streusel topping until a crumbly texture is achieved. Sprinkle the streusel topping over the entire top of the cake batter. Use as much or as little as you’d like. 

Place the baking dish in the oven and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. The edges of the cake should be golden brown. 

Remove the cake from the oven and let it come to room temperature.

While the cake is cooling, make the maple glaze by mixing all ingredients in a small mixing bowl until the powdered sugar has dissolved.

After the cake has reached room temperature, drizzle the maple glaze overtop of the cake in the desired amount.

That’s it! Enjoy!

How to Store Vegan Applesauce Cake

• Fridge: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-7 days. Remove a piece from the fridge and allow it to warm to room temperature or reheat for 10-20 seconds in the microwave for a warmer cake. 

More Tips for Making Vegan Applesauce Cake

• Not Vegan? Use melted vegan butter instead of oil in the streusel topping, or use dairy milk to make the glaze.
• Oil-Free? Omit the oil in the streusel topping and sprinkle just granulated sugar over the cake before baking. 
• Refined Sugar Free? Omit the streusel topping and drizzle maple syrup over the cake instead of the maple glaze.