Gluten-free Cake with fresh blueberries will confuse your senses but delight your mouth. As my oldest stated, “This smells like graham crackers, looks like a cookie but it’s a cake!”
Sometimes, confusing your senses is a good thing! You smell the spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger swirling through the house and it reminds you of graham crackers. Then you see these 5 mini cake pans cooling and at first glance, the size of the pans and the fresh blueberries remind you of a large chocolate chip cookie. BUT WAIT, it’s actually cake! Can that be right?
A blueberry banana cake that smells like graham crackers? Yes, my friends, that is right.Β
I actually made this cake 2 different times in the last 3 weeks. The first time was for a friend’s baby shower that I was hosting at my house. I made 3 different desserts for that day because I just couldn’t decide. There was my Skinny Vanilla Cupcakes, Dark Chocolate Cupcakes and then this Blueberry Banana Cake (the original version was made with all-purpose flour and cane sugar). Everyone gushed over this pretty cake and I knew that I had to make it again, and soon.
So, I made it again yesterday. This time there was no baby shower, but instead, it was going to my husbands office as a treat for my friends who were putting in a ton of hours, working on a project that will impact thousands. If they could do that….I could make them cake.
This time around, I made a few changes to the recipe by swapping sugars and making it gluten-free. Although this was a little denser (between fluffy cake and banana bread consistency), all the flavors were still there, the cake was refreshing & sweet and everyone LOVED IT. Mission accomplished!
How to Make Vegan Blueberry Cake
This Blueberry Banana Cake can be made using either type of flour to fit your dietary restrictions but I’m sharing the Gluten-free version.
The dry ingredients are pretty simple. Flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & spices. Warm notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger & cloves will add a ton of interest to your palate and make your house smell even better as its baking.
Wet ingredients are also simple and easy to get your hands on in the stores. Mashed bananas (anyone else hear “the Wiggles” singing those 2 words as you read it? ), shelf stable coconut milk (I really love So Delicious for this one!), melted coconut oil & your extract.
- Whisk your dry ingredients.
- Whisk the liquid ingredients.
- Whisk together, but don’t over mix.
- Then fold in the blueberries. You can’t forget those.
How to make gluten-free layered cakeΒ
Adding height to this Blueberry Banana Cake also added a little extra sophistication. I used Wilton’s Β easy layered cake pans both times which made 5 small cakes. This took roughly 20-25 minutes in the oven.
You can also use 2- 9″ rounds which you can slice in half horizontally when cooled to make 4 stackable cakes. This will take approximately 30-35 minutes in the oven.
The best vegan buttercream frosting
If you don’t have the time to make a frosting, a simple “safe” store-bought buttercream frosting will do the trick. Otherwise, I’ve included my “go-to” frosting that you can use as-is or as a base for just about any flavor. Just be sure to let the cake cool a little longer than I did or else you’ll see your frosting start to melt a little.
If that happens, either throw it back in the refrigerator and allow to cool before you proceed, or finish your cake, refrigerate it and tell everyone you meant to do that!
I’ve learned that as long it is tastes amazing (and I promise you that this one does), no one will care if the frosting is a little less than perfect especially, if it’s accommodating all TOP 8 allergens. If you just can’t get enough blueberries, you’ll want to check outΒ Vegan Blueberry Lemon Cookies,Β Blueberry Lemon Snack Cake orΒ Blueberry Muffins.
Let’s make some vegan cake
Gluten-free Blueberry Banana Cake
Delicious Blueberry cake, bursting with fresh blueberries and a hint of banana & spices. This cake will truly be a crowd pleaser or the most requested cake in the house.
Ingredients
Blueberry Cake Ingredients
- *2 C. gluten-free flour (Bob's 1-to-1 brand is what I used)
- 3/4 C. cane sugar (Wholesome brand)
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- pinch sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
- 2 mashed bananas
- *1 C. coconut milk (So Delicious Culinary milk, shaken before measuring)
- 1/2 C. melted coconut oil
- 1 TB. apple cider vinegar
- 1 TB. vanilla extract (almond also works)
- 1 pint fresh blueberries
- Vegan ButterCream Frosting
- 1/4 C. non hydrogenated shortening (Spectrum brand at room temperature)
- 1/4 C. dairy-free butter (Earth Balance soy free blend)
- 2 1/2 C. confectioner's sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract (or almond)
- 3 to 5 TB. coconut milk creamer (So Delicious Original coffee creamer)
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350° and lightly grease cake rounds. (see notes for pan sizes to use)
- In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, & spices.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together mashed bananas, coconut milk, coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, and extract.
- Pour the wet into the dry ingredients then whisk again, just until combined. Fold in your fresh blueberries.
- Fill each pan evenly and using your spatula, lightly press batter to the edges (GF flour is a little more dense and needs a little more help to spread out in the pan).
- Bake 20-35 minutes depending on cake pan you use or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let cakes cool completely before frosting.
For the Buttercream
- Beat together the shortening and butter until creamy and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat another 3 minutes.
- Add extract then slowly add in the creamer and beat another 5 minutes.
For Assembly
- Unmold each cooled cake.
- For those that are really uneven, use a serrated knife and trim off the top of each cake, making a flatter surface.
- Place 1 cake on stand. Spread a generous amount of frosting on bottom layer, top with another cake and frost again. Continue until every layer is frosted.
- Top with fresh blueberries. Serve to happy friends.
Notes
*Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten free flour is what I used. No need to Xanthan gum or additional ingredients.
*To make with regular flour, just swap out cup per cup, that's it!
*So Delicious culinary milk, Original, NOT light is what I used in this recipe.
This Blueberry Banana Cake recipe includes the frosting, so don’t be scared by how long the list is.
Have you ever had a baking blunder?
Did you improvise and turn it into something awesome or trash it?
Is there a recipe that intimidates you at all? If so, why?
Don’t forget to share your answers below,,, It’s much more fun when everyone participates π
This looks so good! What a fabulous recipe to celebrate blueberry season!
Wow! This cake looks AMAZING! Managing to achieve that texture with gluten-free vegan ingredients is a job well done π
Thank you Aimee! You are so right, it can be difficult for sure. The best success I’ve had is when I use Bob’s 1-to-1 GF mix. Plus, I don’t have a ton of fussing with other flours to worry about.
What a gorgeous cake! All those layers!
Thanks Jenn. You could totally make this in (2) 9″ rounds but I just love any chance to use my smaller stacked pans.
That buttercream frosting – SO YUM! What a fabulous cake.
Thank you Ceara!
What a beautiful looking cake and I love your ‘cake build’ pictures! I want a great big piece :O)
This looks amazing Nicole and so doable with your instructions. I have to admit, I always make single-layer square cakes or cupcakes. I haven’t made a layer cake in years and now am a bit intimidated by them!
This looks absolutely gorgeous, Nicole!! What a great summer cake! π
Thank you! Seasonal berries are always fun to use.
That pile of cake looks amazing! That inside shot is like a cross between pancakes and dessert and I want it all now!!
Thanks Sophia! You are so right, it is a pleasant cross between pancakes & dessert. That means we can eat it for breakfast too π
Aren’t they just the cutest?
I thought they were just the cutest and pretty sure anything would taste sweeter on these plates :). But I’d definitely be up for another piece of cake.
I was scrolling through the dessert recipes and found the blueberry cake one. However, I can’t seem to find the full recipe above. I see where it was at one time: “hereβs your recipe [amd-yrecipe-recipe:2]”. Can you help? Thanks!
Thank you Holly! I fixed the issue and appreciate you letting me know. If you see any other issues, please feel free to tell me. When I switched the blog to a new template, I noticed not everything transferred over correctly! But the recipe is back on!!!! Enjoy
Looks delicious! I want to make this cake for my sons first birthday party⦠He absolutely loves both banana and blueberries. We are vegan. If I want to use regular flour is it still 2 cups?
Hey Elena, yes, you sure can use the exact amount of all purpose flour. For any of the recipes on the blog, it would work the same way as I try to use a 1-1 gluten-free blend and test everything using regular flour first. Hope he has an amazing 1st birthday.
Made this for Easter and it was a huge hit! I love all the banana recipes on the blog- my son can only have baked banana- so all the ideas are so helpful! This one will be made again!
Can this cake be made 2 days in advance?
I wouldn’t suggest frosting in advance but you can make the cake and store sealed and refrigerated until ready to frost.