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Home > Vegan Recipes

Vegan Hummingbird Cake Recipe

6/15/21 by Nicole | Leave a Comment

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5 from 1 vote. Leave a review!

This deliciously unforgettable vegan hummingbird cake recipe is always a huge hit. With amazing flavor from pineapple, banana, pecan and topped with vegan cream cheese frosting, this cake truly has it all!

The texture of the cake is soft and slightly dense, like banana bread with deliciously crunchy pecan pieces. It’s perfectly sweet; when paired with the slightly tangy and rich cream cheese frosting, it creates an amazing dessert you’ll want to make many times.

Double layer pineapple banana cake, with frosting on top and between layers, with a large piece cut out of it, sitting on a round wood cake board. A slice of cake, standing upright, sits behind the cake to the right and a small dish of chopped pineapple in the front right corner.

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Is Hummingbird Cake Vegan?

Hummingbird cake is a banana-pineapple spiced cake, often paired with cream cheese frosting. It’s a popular dessert throughout the southern United States (but originated in Jamaica).

Most cake recipes are not vegan because they often contain dairy and/ or eggs. Cream cheese frostings also contains dairy unless using a vegan cream cheese alternative.

However, it’s quite easy to prepare vegan cakes that are delicious and have a great texture. This recipe is a bit of a combination of my banana bread and carrot cake with pineapple recipes!

Double layer hummingbird cake with white frosting between layers and on top, that is dripping down the edges and topped with pecans around the top outer edge. Two slices are cut out of the cake, sitting with the cake on the round wood cake board. Small dish of pineapple and pecans in bottom right corner with glass bowl of frosting blurred in back right.

Egg and Dairy Free Hummingbird Cake Ingredients

This is an easy recipe to make and very similar to banana bread or carrot cake. The ingredients you’ll need are:

  • Ground flaxseed: This recipe starts by making a flaxseed “egg” with ground flaxseed and water. This mixture creates a gel that easily replaces eggs.
  • Brown sugar: For some sweetness, this recipe uses brown sugar which has a tasty, slightly molasses flavor. Sugar also provides moisture needed in baking, which keeps the cake tender and delicious.
  • Apple sauce: For additional moisture and some sweetness, I love baking with apple sauce. It can partially replace sugar and/ or oil in baking to help “lighten” the recipe.
  • Vegetable oil: For a super soft hummingbird cake, you’ll need a neutral vegetable oil. I often use avocado oil for its light taste.
  • Vanilla extract: Always a delicious ingredient that enhances flavors!
  • Banana: As one of the main flavors, mashed bananas are a base ingredient for this cake. They provide a great flavor and make for a soft cake that’s easy to make.
  • Crushed pineapple: One of the signature flavors in this cake is pineapple! I use canned, crushed pineapple since the texture works great and allows for every bite to have some pineapple.
  • Flour: This cake combines all-purpose and whole wheat flours. The recipe is a hybrid of my banana bread and carrot cake recipe which use the same flour combo. I like the flavor and denser texture whole wheat flour offers, but without all-purpose flour, the cake is too dense and doesn’t “lift”.
  • Cinnamon and nutmeg: A couple spices for a delicious depth of flavor.
  • Baking powder and soda: Both create a lift in the cake for a lighter texture.
  • Pecans: For a delicious crunch, pecans are a great addition.
  • Vegan cream cheese: Hummingbird cake is often made with cream cheese frosting. While this is optional, I’d never say no to my all-time favorite frosting which starts with a base of vegan cream cheese! Note that different brands create unique flavors and textures in your frosting. Use the vegan cream cheese substitute you like best (I use a coconut-based option which is especially welcome in this recipe).
  • Icing sugar: To create the frosting, you’ll need some icing sugar to whip in.
Top view of an arrangement of ingredients in small glass bowls sitting on white-grey marble. From top left corner: chopped pecans, flour, vanilla extract, oil, brown sugar, applesauce, crushed pineapple, baking powder and soda, two unpeeled bananas, water, ground flaxseed, spices.

How to Make Vegan Hummingbird Cake

Follow the simple steps below detailing how to prepare this simple cake recipe! After creating a flaxseed “egg” the rest of the steps are like traditional baking recipes.

This recipe makes a single layer cake. If you want a double layer cake, double the recipe!

Step 1: Prep Flaxseed “Egg”

The first step in this vegan cake recipe is to prepare a flaxseed “egg”. Simply stir ground flaxseed with water.

Set this mixture aside, but not too far away so you don’t forget to add it later (I’ve done that way too many times).

When mixed with water, ground flaxseed forms a gel which is a great (and nutritious) vegan egg replacement for many baking recipes.

Hand pours water from small mason jar into another small glass jar filled with ground flaxseed in it. Hand is in top left corner.

Step 2: Mix Wet Ingredients

Next, whisk together your wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Start with the sugar, apple sauce, oil and vanilla.

Top view of large glass mixing bowl with dark brown liquid that is being whisked with a small metal whisk by a hand appearing from the top left corner. Hand is slightly blurred in motion. A second hand grips the bowl in the top right corner.

Then, mash the bananas and add ¾ cup to the bowl.

Hand scooping mashed banana from glass bowl to green measuring cup using a fork. Hand is in top left corner and is slightly blurred, in motion.

Lastly, measure ½ cup of crushed pineapple. Instead of pouring, scoop the pineapple from its can into your measuring cup. By scooping, you’ll get more pineapple pulp with less liquid; some pineapple juice is fine, but we don’t want too much.

Spoon scoops crushed pineapple from small glass dish to green measuring cup. Spoon is on it's side and is slightly blurred, hovering over measuring cup.

Add this pineapple to your bowl and mix everything together until well combined.

Step 3: Stir in Dry Ingredients

Most classic baking recipes require you to whisk dry ingredients in a separate bowl before mixing with the wet ingredients. I’ve yet to have any issues adding dry ingredients directly into the wet mixture, so I don’t bother creating extra dishes with a separate bowl.

Measure and add in the dry ingredients (excluding pecans) to your wet mixture. When measuring flour, lightly scoop it into a measuring cup, then use a flat edge (ex. back of a knife) to scrape off excess flour.

Stir your dry ingredients into the wet using a spoon, until the mixture is mostly combined. At this point, add the chopped pecans and continue to stir until evenly mixed. Stop stirring as soon as there are no dry clumps of flour and the pecans are well distributed.

Top view of a large glass bowl filled with cake batter that is being stirred by a blurred hand in the bottom left corner. Another hand holds the bowl in the top right corner.

Step 4: Bake and Cool

Prep a 9-inch round baking pan by greasing it with vegan butter, margarine or an oil spray. Pour your cake batter into the pan. If making a double batch, you’ll need to prep 2 pans.

Gently spread the cake batter, which will be quite thick, to form an even layer in your baking pan.

Place the cake(s) into an oven preheated to 350 °F and bake for 35-40 minutes. If baking two cakes at once, you’ll likely need the full 40 minutes, but it also depends on your oven! A toothpick inserted into the center of your cake should come out clean when done. They’ll also be fully golden brown on top.

When you take the cake out of your oven, allow it to rest for a few minutes before carefully flipping onto a cooling rack.

It takes at lest a couple of hours for the cake to cool completely, depending on the room temperature.

Step 5: Prep Frosting and Frost Cake

While the cake bakes, or while it’s cooling, prepare some vegan cream cheese frosting. Simply add vegan cream cheese, icing sugar and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl and whip with an electric hand beater until smooth.

A hand holds a metal and black electric beater that is whipping off-white (very light brown) frosting in a glass bowl. Frosting appears glossy and has a few flecks of vanilla and icing sugar throughout.

The flavor and texture of your cream cheese frosting depends on which brand you use. The brand I selected for this video/ photos results in a slightly runny texture, whereas other brands create a firmer frosting.

If your frosting is too firm and doesn’t become smooth as you beat it, very slowly add additional liquid. Add no more than ¼ - ½ teaspoon of liquid (plant-based milk or water) at a time because frosting can quickly go from too thick to very thin with a small drop of liquid.

If your frosting is runny, like mine, add up to an additional ½ cup of icing sugar. More than that and the frosting will become excessively sweet and unpleasant to eat. You can also chill the frosting before using to help it thicken.

When the cake is completely cooled, spread your frosting across the top. There should be enough to frost the edges of the cake if you like as well. Decorate with extra pecans (whole or crushed) or add some toasted coconut for even more tropical flavor.

Thick white frosting being spread with a metal spatula over top a dark brown, round cake.

Hummingbird Cake Variations

It’s best to not mess around too much with baking recipes since it can lead to issues. However, you can adjust the spices without too much worry. Add extra cinnamon or nutmeg, or experiment with other delicious cake spices (like ginger or allspice).

You can also have lots of fun varying how you decorate the cake! Many hummingbird cake recipes include coconut which you can easily add to the top of the cake, or in the center layer. Simply sprinkle shredded coconut across the cake for a delicious burst of tropical flavor that pairs perfectly with the pineapple banana cake!

A slice of double layer cake with white frosting rests on it's side on a white plate. A second plate with cake slice to the back right and the rest of the cake sits on a wood board, slightly blurred to the back left. White-grey marble background.

How to Refrigerate and Freeze Hummingbird Cake

This recipe is best refrigerated in an airtight container. It’s a moist cake and includes cream cheese frosting, both factors that make storing it on the counter a challenge (it’ll go bad quickly if left out).

When refrigerated, the cake should last up to a week.

Top view of a round cake covered with thick white frosting and decorated with pecans around the outer edge sits on a round cake board with two slices cut out but still sitting on the board with the cake. Light brown towel wraps around left edge of cake.

The cake, without frosting, can also be frozen. Place the whole cake or slices into a freezer bag or wrap in plastic wrap before placing into an airtight, freezer safe container. It can remain frozen for up to 3 months.

Whether or not your vegan cream cheese frosting can be frozen depends on the brand of cream cheese and whether it freezes well. Sadly, my favorite vegan cream cheese doesn’t make a great frosting (as you can see from the runny frosting in these pictures) and doesn’t freeze well.

If your vegan cream cheese can freeze well, the frosting should be fine to freeze either along side the cake or freeze the pre-frosted cake.

Top view of an arrangement of a double layer cake with two slices cut out on a wood cake board in top left corner. Two slices of cake rest on their sides on round white plates, on in the center-right and one to the bottom-left of image.

If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!

Square cropped image of double layer pineapple banana cake, with frosting on top and between layers, with a large piece cut out of it, sitting on a round wood cake board. A slice of cake, standing upright, sits behind the cake to the right and a small dish of chopped pineapple in the front right corner.

Vegan Hummingbird Cake

Enjoy this delicious vegan hummingbird cake recipe that’s eggless and dairy free. Loaded with pineapple, banana, pecans and spices, it’s full of flavor and topped with a rich vegan cream cheese frosting.
5 from 1 vote. Leave a review!
Prevent screen going dark
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 40 mins
Total Time 1 hr
Servings 12 Slices
Calories 319 kcal
Cuisine American-inspired, Vegan

Equipment

  • Large mixing bowl
  • Small bowl
  • Spatula
  • 9-inch round baking dish
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Electric beater

Ingredients
  

Hummingbird Cake

  • 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
  • 4 tablespoons water
  • ¾ cup brown sugar , lightly packed
  • ½ cup apple sauce
  • ⅓ cup vegetable oil (neutral taste)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup banana , mashed (about 2 medium bananas)
  • ½ cup crushed pineapple (I use canned pineapple)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ cup pecans , chopped

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • ½ cup vegan cream cheese (4 oz)
  • 1 ½ cup icing sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Prevent screen going dark

Instructions

Step 1: Prep Flaxseed “Egg”

  • To begin, mix ground flaxseed with water in a small bowl. Set aside.
    2 tablespoons ground flaxseed, 4 tablespoons water

Step 2: Mix Wet Ingredients

  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together lightly packed brown sugar, apple sauce, vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and there are no clumps of brown sugar.
    ¾ cup brown sugar, ½ cup apple sauce, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • In a separate bowl, mash bananas then measure and add to the large mixing bowl.
    ¾ cup banana
  • Open a can of crushed pineapple and spoon it out (don’t pour or you’ll mostly get the juice).
    ½ cup crushed pineapple
  • Add your flaxseed mixture to the bowl.
  • Stir the mashed banana, pineapple and flaxseed into the liquid ingredients.

Step 3: Stir in Dry Ingredients

  • Next, measure all-purpose flour by spooning it into the measuring cup then use the back of a knife (or flat edge) to scrape off excess flour. Add this measured cup to your mixing bowl.
    1 cup all-purpose flour
  • Measure whole wheat flour the same way and add to your mixing bowl along with ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and chopped pecans.
    ¾ cup whole wheat flour, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ cup pecans
  • Stir until everything is just mixed, meaning you should stop stirring as soon as there are no more clumps of dry ingredients. The batter will be quite thick.

Step 4: Bake and Cool

  • Grease a 9-inch round baking pan (using vegan butter/ margarine or cooking spray).
  • Pour the cake batter into the pan and spread it out into an even layer.
  • Bake in an oven that’s preheated to 350 °F for 35-40 minutes; until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The cake will be a medium-dark golden brown color on top.
  • Once out of the oven, allow the cake to rest for a couple minutes before carefully flipping it out onto a wire cooling rack.
  • Allow the cake to cool completely (a couple hours at room temperature) before frosting it.

Step 5: Prep Frosting and Frost Cake

  • To make the frosting, add vegan cream cheese, icing sugar (measured the same way as the flour) and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl (a bowl with high edges is best).
    ½ cup vegan cream cheese, 1 ½ cup icing sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Whip with an electric beater until smooth and there are no clumps of icing sugar.
  • You may need to add additional liquid to get your desired consistency – you can use plant-based milk or water, but add extra liquid extremely carefully (¼ - ½ teaspoon at a time) as frosting can go from too thick to too thin very easily.
  • When the cake is cool, place onto a large plate or cake board and cover with frosting!
  • Refrigerate leftover cake in an airtight container for up to a week.

Video

Notes

This recipe makes a single layer cake; double your ingredients for a two-layer cake.
Accuracy of nutrition information cannot be guaranteed (certain ingredients may not have all nutrients listed in the database); amounts may vary (and will vary depending on brands of ingredients used); all nutrition fact values rounded to the nearest whole number.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 Slice (1/12 of recipe)Calories: 319 kcalCarbohydrates: 49 gProtein: 3 gFat: 13 gSaturated Fat: 3 gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4 gMonounsaturated Fat: 5 gSodium: 64 mgPotassium: 153 mgFiber: 3 gSugar: 32 gVitamin A: 22 IUVitamin C: 5 mgCalcium: 50 mgIron: 1 mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Vegan Dessert Recipes

Like this recipe? You should also try:

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    5 Ingredient Vegan Banana Bread Recipe
  • Wire cooling rack topped with peanut butter chocolate chip cookies.
    Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (with Banana)
  • Close up of small jar of chocolate pudding with bite scooped out.
    Vegan Avocado Chocolate Pudding Recipe

About Nicole Stevens

Nicole is a vegan Registered Dietitian (RD) and founder of Lettuce Veg Out.

She helps people thrive on a vegan diet with balanced recipes and easy-to-understand nutrition science.


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Hi, I'm Nicole! As a vegan Registered Dietitian, I empower vegans to live a balanced life and gain confidence in the kitchen.

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