Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake
This is a light and dreamy dairy free lemon cake. The Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake has a subtle floral taste with notes of apple and a resemblance of sweet honey. This stunning naked cake will impress anyone, even if they aren’t vegan!
If you are looking for more vegan desserts, make sure to check out some of my other favorites like Vegan Strawberry Carrot Cake, Vegan Gluten Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies, Vegan Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake, Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes, or Vegan Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake
- Ready In: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Makes: 3 layer 6-inch cake
- Main Ingredients: vegetable shortening, cane sugar, pastry flour, chamomile tea
- Flavor Profile: bright burst of organic lemon, subtle floral whisper of chamomile
- Dietary Info: vegan, eggless, dairy free
- Difficulty: Medium
- Why You’ll Love It: naturally colorful naked cake frosted with roses!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Light & Sweet: This dairy free lemon cake is light and sweet. The addition of chamomile adds subtle floral notes that complement the lemon frosting.
- Naturally Colored: I use natural food dye in this cake, so it has a beautiful pastel hue without any artificial colors. I used India Tree Nature’s Colors Food Dye in the frosting, but this is totally optional.
- Easy AF: This cake is incredibly easy to make. This Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake may seem fancy, but it’s so easy.
- Simple Design: I love this style of naked cake because they are very simple to make but they look so pretty!
- Organic Cake: I use organic ingredients in this dairy free lemon cake. You can feel good about indulging without dairy or artificial colors with this cake recipe!
This beautiful cake is as fun to look at as it is to make! I love making naked cakes because they are seriously stunning with minimal effort. If you are new to making naked cakes, check out How to Make a Naked Cake.
If you are looking for more stunning naked cake recipes, check out some of my other favorites like Simple Naked Birthday Cake, Cookie Dough Layer Cake, Eggless Strawberry Zucchini Cake, or Eggless Birthday Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting.
Ingredients
- Coconut Oil: Organic coconut oil is the base of this cake. It can be solid or melted for this recipe, either way is fine as the hot tea will melt it when it’s mixed anyway.
- Coconut Milk: I use organic coconut milk, but if you prefer to use oat milk or almond milk that's fine too.
- Canola Oil: I use organic canola oil in the cake, but you could also use avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil if you are avoiding seed oils.
- Pastry Flour: I use organic whole wheat pastry flour in this cake. You can also use cake flour as well. Try my Homemade Organic Cake Flour recipe.
- Baking Powder: Make sure to use baking powder, not soda. Check out the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder for more info on leavening agents.
- Vegetable Shortening: I use organic Vegetable Shortening for the frosting. This works really well and resembles buttercream so well! But, you can also use your favorite vegan butter, I recommend Miyoko's.
- Lemon Flavor: I use Frontier Co-Op Organic Lemon Flavor.
- Yellow Dye: I use India Tree Nature’s Colors Yellow Food Dye so this cake is free of artificial colors.
*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Baker’s Tips for Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake
- Always weigh ingredients for the best results.
- You can use avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil in place of canola oil.
- Feel free to use your favorite vegan butter in place of shortening if you prefer.
- You can make this cake bigger by doubling the recipe and using 8-inch or even 9-inch cake pans.
- You don’t have to frost this naked style if you’d prefer or frost the whole cake, you can!
- I add roses on top, but you can also just spiral the frosting on top as well.
- Make sure to store extra cake in an airtight container so it stays moist.
How to Make Vegan Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three 6-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Bring ¾ cup of water to a boil, and steep 1 chamomile tea bag for 15 minutes. Measure out ¼ cup of the hot brewed tea and set aside. (Feel free to sip on the rest while you bake). In a medium bowl, empty the contents of the 2 remaining chamomile tea bags. Add the cake flour, baking powder, and sea salt and whisk together. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
- Cream the coconut oil, cane sugar, and vanilla extract.
- Add the coconut milk, canola oil, and ¼ cup of hot tea and mix on low until combined.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour to the sugar mixture.
- Continue to mix on low until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Divide batter evenly into each cake pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely in the cake pans. (If you’re baking at high altitude, be sure to check the notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).
- To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the shortening, powdered sugar, water, and lemon flavor. Mix on low until combined and then speed mixer up to high for 1 to 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add in the yellow dye and mix again, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix to combine the dye completely. Transfer to a piping bag with Ateco tip #846.
- To assemble the cake: Starting at the outside of the cake, pipe a circle of frosting and spiral into the middle of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top and repeat that process. Then top with the third layer. Pipe roses on top of the cake, starting around the outside of the cake in a circle and then fill in the middle with one rose.
Recipe FAQ’s
Yes, you can double the recipe and make it in either 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans instead. You may need to bake the bigger cakes a bit longer.
You can use 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and the zest of one lemon instead. It will have a little different flavor, it will be more tart than sweet.
Because this cake is frosted naked, it needs to be stored under a cake dome to stay fresh or made ahead of time. After you cut it, you can store extra in an airtight container as well.
More Lemon Cake Recipes
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Veagn Lemon Chamomile Tea Cake
Equipment
- Digital Food Scale
- Stand Mixer
- 6-inch Cake Pans
- Parchment Paper Cake Rounds
- Piping Bag
- Ateco Tip #846
Ingredients
Batter
- 3 bags chamomile tea
- 113 grams coconut oil
- 226 grams cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 6 tablespoons canola oil
- 354 grams pastry flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
Frosting
- 226 grams vegetable shortening
- 454 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 3 to 4 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon lemon flavor
- 3 drops India Tree Nature’s Colors Yellow Food Dye
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three 6-inch cake pans with parchment paper.
- Bring ¾ cup of water to a boil, and steep 1 chamomile tea bag for 15 minutes.
- Measure out ¼ cup of the hot brewed tea and set aside. (Feel free to sip on the rest while you bake).
- In a medium bowl, empty the contents of the 2 remaining chamomile tea bags. Add the cake flour, baking powder, and sea salt and whisk together. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the coconut oil, cane sugar, and vanilla extract. Add the coconut milk, canola oil, and ¼ cup of hot tea and mix on low until combined.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour to the sugar mixture. Continue to mix on low until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Divide batter evenly into each cake pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely in the cake pans.
- To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the shortening, powdered sugar, water, and lemon flavor. Mix on low until combined and then speed mixer up to high for 1 to 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add in the yellow dye and mix again, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix to combine the dye completely. Transfer to a piping bag with Ateco tip #846.
- To assemble the cake: Starting at the outside of the cake, pipe a circle of frosting and spiral into the middle of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top and repeat that process. Then top with the third layer. Pipe roses on top of the cake, starting around the outside of the cake in a circle and then fill in the middle with one rose.
- Store a cake dome for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Always weigh ingredients for the best results.
- You can use avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil in place of canola oil.
- Feel free to use your favorite vegan butter in place of shortening if you prefer.
- You can make this cake bigger by doubling the recipe and using 8-inch or even 9-inch cake pans.
- You don’t have to frost this naked style if you’d prefer or frost the whole cake, you can!
- I add roses on top, but you can also just spiral the frosting on top as well.
- Make sure to store extra cake in an airtight container so it stays moist.
Nutrition
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Light and sweet, I love the combination of lemon and chamomile!
Can you send me the receipe to make the lemon chamomile tea cake with just one round cake not three?
hi Karina, you can make this same exact recipe in a single layer 9-inch cake pan (round or square works). No need to change the recipe if you use the larger pan and do one layer. Happy baking!