Vegan Victoria Sponge!
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A delicious two-layer vegan Victoria sponge with vanilla buttercream frosting, strawberry jam and more!
Veganuary!
Oh hey January, it’s been a while… obviously. It honestly doesn’t feel like it should be January already?! I still feel like it should be about September time, definitely not January, and a new decade.. but here we are!
And as most of you know by now, January = Veganuary. It’s a month dedicated to encouraging a vegan lifestyle and diet, and I thought I would treat you guys to a classic, turned vegan. And in genuine honesty, I LOVE THIS RECIPE.
Vegan Victoria sponge
Something about this cake… It’s so soft, so delicious, and so good. Genuinely think it’s just as good as the original non-vegan version, and that’s saying something. I will say before anyone comes for me for calling it a vegan Victoria sponge and not using a classic ‘fresh cream filling’ that 1) you can’t as it’s vegan, and also… I don’t care.
The amount of vanilla/Victoria style cakes that are called a Victoria sponge that have a different middle is so broad, that I will call is a Victoria sponge. It means you know what you are getting – a vanilla sponge, vanilla centre, and jam/fresh fruit.
I based this recipe on my vegan vanilla cupcakes and my vegan Biscoff cupcakes as I just love them. They are obviously different as this needed to be increased to get the right sizing, and to suit a sponge rather than cupcakes.
Alternative milk
I tend to use almond milk in my vegan baking as it’s my personal favourite amongst the dairy free milks – but you can use any. I generally tend to avoid Soya as it’s my least favourite by far – but it’s up to you. It won’t affect the bake too much, but I would also say coconut milk could potentially bake weirdly.
Sugar
There was a slight change in the recipes here – I found that if I used all caster sugar, the colour of the sponge was vary pale and anaemic and not that pleasant – so I tried using half caster and half light brown sugar, and it produced a lovely looking sponge. With something like a Victoria sponge you want it too look decent from the outside!
Vanilla
I use my favourite Nielsen Massey vanilla as it’s the only one I will EVER use – and I recommend using it down to the ground. Extract, paste and pods are the ones you should try to use – essence is rarely actually vanilla so I avoid it at all costs!
Oil and vinegar
For the oil, I use vegetable oil as I generally have it around. I find it much cheaper than coconut oil, and it works so beautifully in this bake. Also, I use white wine vinegar as it’s my favourite – but you can easily use apple cider vinegar! Both work wonderfully. Generally though, any white vinegar will work!
Buttercream
For the buttercream, it’s an obvious thing to say… but make sure you use dairy free/vegan butter. You just need to remember that dairy free butter tends to be softer, so can be slightly slacker in general.
Jam
For the jam, just make sure it’s vegan friendly – most should be but there are some curveball products out there. Randomly you’ll come across something with gelatine in, and it’s weird!
Decoration
For the decoration though, you can easily just use fresh fruit if you prefer – like I used for the decoration! The freeze dried raspberries always look very cute though!
Top tips!
And one last thing… when making it, DO NOT OVER MIX IT. The mixture needs barely any mixing, so I use a bowl and a spatula. Also, keep an eye on it when baking. The skewer will come out clean when baking – but cooling in the tin helps the sponge not break apart as it’s so soft! I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! Enjoy! x
Vegan Victoria Sponge!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 450 g self raising flour
- 150 g light brown sugar
- 150 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 400 ml dairy free milk (I use Almond)
- 175 ml vegetable oil
- 2 tsps vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
For the Decoration
- 150 g dairy free/vegan butter
- 350 g icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Jam
- Strawberries
- Freeze dried raspberries
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat your oven to 180C/160C fan and line two 8"/20cm cake tins with parchment paper!
- In a large bowl, add your flour, sugars, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder and mix until it's all mixed together evenly.
- Add to the bowl your dairy free milk, vegetable oil, vanilla and white wine vinegar.
- Mix as little as possible, until combined.
- Split evenly between the two tins and bake for 35-45 minutes. I check from 35 minutes onwards!
- Once baked, leave to cool fully in the tins.
For the Decoration
- Beat your butter on it's own to make it lovely and smooth.
- Add in your icing sugar and vanilla and beat again until combined, lovely and fluffy. I use my mixer with the paddle attachment!
- Get your first sponge, and spread over half of the buttercream.
- Add on a few tablespoons of jam and spread.
- Add on the second sponge, and spread on the rest of the buttercream.
- Decorate how you fancy - I used fresh fruit and freeze dried raspberries! Enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe is based on my vegan vanilla cupcakes and vegan Biscoff cupcakes recipes!
- I used baking powder and bicarbonate in the cake sponges (and not in the cupcakes) as I felt it baked much better for the larger sponge size - I don't think the cupcakes need it though.
- I used Tate & Lyle icing sugar which is a vegan icing sugar.
- This cake is very soft - and will last for at least three days!
- If your sponge turns out rubbery, it's most likely over mixed. I personally have never experienced this!
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J x
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Hi Jane,
Love all your recipes. I have 2 separate questions.
If I want to do a 3 layer cake but 6” how would I adjust the recipe?
And if I do a 3 layer 8” and need it to be GF how do I adjust?
Thank you so much for always being so helpful x
For the 3×6″ I would use the recipe as it is but split between the three tins. For the GF one I am unsure as I haven’t tested this gluten free before to see if it works okay x
I made a chocolate cake based on your recipe by swapping out some of the flour for cocoa powder. I also used 6 inch tins so I could have a taller four layered cake. It was absolutely delicious and I got so many compliments on it. Thank you for you amazing recipes x
Is there anyway i can use regular butter instead of oil?
This recipe is designed for the oil to get the best results x
Hi jane, just wondering how would you make this sponge 4 layered for a 6 inch cake tin? thanks so much x
I’m not 100% sure, but I would say using 1.3x the recipe (so add on another third) and it should be good for it! X
hi jane! would I be able to use this recipe but replace the plant milk with semi skimmed? I’m making it for someone who doesn’t eat egg but can have dairy x
It would ideally be full-fat/whole milk, as it would need it to make sure it works well xx
Hi jane,
do i need to change quantities of baking powder and bicarbonate of soda when using plain flour?
Yes – so typically I would make my own self raising flour using a mix of plain flour and baking powder (2 level tsps per 150g of plain flour) and whisk that all together before using – but I would leave the extra baking powder out and keep the bicarbonate xx
Hi! Making this cake for a friends birthday and doubled the ingredients to make it 4 layers. However after layering them on top of each other they have started to crack!! Any ideas on how to stop/save this?
It is a very soft sponge, so it probably just too much weight – it may be worth using dowels to help prevent it, or chilling the sponges for a while first!
I’m trying to master the buttercream, mine tastes a little gritty, which i’m told it is supposed to, but is it. Also mine doesn’t look silky smooth to the eye, what is it supposed to look like?
I wouldn’t say it should be gritty.. what exact brand did you use? and what mixer do you use? Usually it just needed more beating!
Hi Jane!
I follow your 8inch recipes and they are amazing!! This cake in Particular is always a winner!
Generally speaking if I’m going from an 8inch recipe, how do I then change that to be 10inch and 6inch x
Hey! Ahh yay! Okay so it’s basically 0.6x the recipe for a 6″ and then 1.6x the recipe for a 10″ – obviously this changes the baking time but I am unsure of them as I’ve only ever made these 8″ x
I struggle a LOT with vegan baking so this was a godsend. Made a huge cake that everyone adored and complimented. So light and fluffy 💜 thank you!
Hi, if I wanted to make this in a 6 inch cake tin on 2 layers, how long would I need to bake it for? I was going to use the recipe for a top layer of my sons birthday cake so want it to be quite tall and full looking
Hiya! I’m afraid I am not sure – I have never made this cake in that size tin. It will take a reasonable amount of time because of the depth (as 6″ tins are typically 2/3 of the size) X
I’ve made this previously and it’s amazing. Would the recipe work to make mini individual sponges as I’ve got my hands on a mini sponge tin and want to experiment! Thanks as always, you are fabulous 🙂
Hey! I don’t see why it won’t – it’s a very similar mix for my vegan cupcakes, so it should be fine! x
This was absolutely delicious. I made it for my sisters boyfriend who is vegan for his birthday and everyone said it was the best Victoria sponge they have ever tasted! This will be my go too!
Hi lovely cake had no problems just my oven took longer than 40mins. Also can I reduce the sugar as I did find it on the sweeter side with 150 of brown and white sugar?
Hey! Yes you can do, but it can effect the texture slightly with less sugar! The timing could be due to the oven temp being too low, or over mixing the mixture xx
If I need to substitute the Self Raising Flour for GF Flour is all the recipe still the same or do I need to add in Any Xantham powder?
Thanks! X
I would do a simple swap, plus 1tsp xantham gum – however I haven’t tried this as gluten free yet so I’m not sure how it’ll go!