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.
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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!
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.
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.
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.
Then, mash the bananas and add ¾ cup to the bowl.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!
Vegan Hummingbird Cake
Equipment
- Small bowl
- 9-inch round baking dish
- 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
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
Nutrition
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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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