Delicious on its own or covered in frosting, this moist and dense Vanilla Almond Flour Cake is super easy to make! This simple, yet classic dessert recipe is SCD, Paleo, gluten free, grain free, dairy free, and refined sugar free.
Cake! There's nothing quite like a classic vanilla cake and this one made with almond flour does NOT disappoint!
It is a moist, dense cake that's perfect on it's own or covered in delicious frosting!
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Almond Flour Cake Ingredients
- blanched finely ground almond flour
- baking soda
- fine sea salt
- honey
- nut milk (I prefer canned coconut milk or homemade almond milk)
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- fresh lemon juice
- coconut oil
or homemade almond milk)
Look at those clean ingredients!
For the honey
, I suggest one that's sweet and lighter in color.
How to make a vanilla almond flour cake
In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, sea salt, and baking soda (photo 1). Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer 
fitted with the paddle attachment
, combine the honey, milk, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and coconut oil on low speed (photo 2).
With the mixer still running, add the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated (photo 3).
Slowly add the almond flour mixture (photo 4).
Mix until just combined, don't over mix the batter (photo 5)!
Take a spatula and manually mix the batter once or twice, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl (the honey sometimes settles to the bottom and doesn't fully mix into the batter).
Pour the batter into a 9 inch round greased and parchment paper lined cake pan (photo 6).
Place on the middle rack in the oven and bake until lightly browned (a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake should come out clean).
You're going to LOVE the way your house smells as this deliciousness is baking!
Allow the vanilla almond flour cake to cool for about 10 minutes before gently removing from the pan and placing on a cooling rack.
Wait until the cake has cooled completely before slicing.
Vanilla Almond Flour Cake Tips:
- Make sure ALL the ingredients are at room temperature before beginning.
- The coconut oil should be melted but NOT hot when added to the batter.
- If the sides of the cake begin browning too much, tent the cake with aluminum foil.
- The cake can be baked in two 6 inch cake pans for 30 to 40 minutes.
- Coconut flour CANNOT be used instead of almond flour for this recipe.
What about frosting?
The beauty of this cake is how good it is on it's own BUT if topping the cake with just fresh berries isn't gonna cut it for you, here are some yummy frosting recipes to try!
- A Honey Italian Meringue is a sweet and creamy topping for this cake (it's in the photo below).
- The strawberry frosting from my Strawberry Almond Flour Cake would be AMAZING!
- If you're a coconut fan, the coconut icing from my Coconut Cupcakes is perfect!
- You could also top the cake with a delightfully tart lemon curd!
This vanilla almond flour cake is delicious no matter how you decide to serve it!
How to store the cake
The cake can be covered and kept on the counter for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
If you've decided to frost the cake, I suggest covering with plastic wrap and storing in the refrigerator.
Unfrosted slices of the cake can be individually wrapped with 3 layers of plastic wrap, then one layer of aluminum foil and stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Allow to thaw in the refrigerator overnight or on the kitchen counter for a few hours.
Here are more almond flour cake recipes you'll love!
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NOTE: If following the SCD diet, I suggest contacting the company to verify ingredients before using any prepackaged products.
NOTE: If following the SCD diet, I suggest contacting the company to verify ingredients before using any prepackaged products.
Inspired by Ina Garten's Strawberry Country Cake.
Recipe
Vanilla Almond Flour Cake
Equipment
- large bowl
- whisk
- stand mixer with paddle attachment
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- 9 inch cake pan
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 3 cups blanched finely ground almond flour
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup honey a mild, light colored honey is recommended
- ½ cup nut milk (canned coconut milk, almond milk, cashew milk, etc.)
- 2 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted but NOT hot plus extra for greasing pan
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F. Grease a 9 inch round cake pan with coconut oil and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Whisk together the almond flour, sea salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Combine honey, dairy free milk, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and coconut oil on low speed in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
- With the mixer still running, add the eggs one at a time. Once the eggs are fully incorporated, slowly add the almond flour mixture to the bowl. Stop as needed to scrape down the sides of the bowl, but don't over mix the batter.
- Once the ingredients are just combined, take a spatula and manually mix the batter one or two times, making sure to scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and place on the middle rack in the oven.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until the top is a golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Cool the cake for 10 minutes before gently turning out of the pan and allowing to cool completely on a cooling rack.
- Serve the cake plain, top with berries, or decorate with one of the frosting recipes mentioned in the post above!
- Store the cake covered in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
Notes
- If the cake is browning too quickly, tent with aluminum foil.
- Cake can be made in two 6 inch cake pans instead.
- Reference post above for tips on how to make the cake.Â
jennifer wood
Great recipe - I used butter instead of coconut oil. And frosted with the honey buttercream frosting - rave reviews! I am a 20 year SCD'er - just found your site. Thanks for all the great work here.
Robin
I needed to find an SCD vanilla cake for a friend's birthday and I was so glad to see you had one since every recipe I've made of yours has been perfect. But I have a question about the nut milk you use. Usually when I make a recipe that gives a choice of nut milks, I use almond milk since I always have a carton in the fridge. But then I saw that you use canned coconut milk and your choice is Native Simple. I checked the amount of fat in a 1/2 cup of that and it's 21g, but my almond milk in a carton is less than 2g, about the same as the coconut milk I buy in a carton. The cashew milk I buy in a carton is about 2g for this amount. I'm going to use the full fat coconut milk in a can, but just wondering for future reference if the low fat carton milks will work. My friend says she can tolerate these and doesn't make her own nut milks. Thanks!
Jennifer Brown
Hi Robin! Yes it should work just fine. If she's following the SCD diet, just make sure that there are no gums or thickeners added to the carton of coconut milk.
Nadia
My teenage kids (and myself) said its the best cake they've ever tasted. Big Thumbs Up! Thanks. 🙂
Jennifer Brown
Yay! That's awesome, thanks so much for sharing Nadia!
Helen
Hi:) can I use sugar if I don't have honey?
Jennifer Brown
You can use maple syrup but using refined sugar will drastically alter the ratio of wet to dry ingredients. If you must use refined sugar, then for best results I suggest finding a recipe that already has it listed in the ingredients.
Kaylie
Mine was very wet - did I do something wrong? I baked it for quite a while more than what you said and it still has like a wet texture inside.
Jennifer Brown
Hi Kaylie, it sounds like something went wrong somewhere. The batter itself should have been pretty thick and the final product should not be wet. You may want to double check the measurements. Did you make any substitutions to the ingredients? If you used a pan smaller than a 9 inch round then it would take longer to bake.
Tracey
Delicious! Made the Honey Italian Meringue for icing. Moist and flavorful. Used cashew milk. Baked in an 8x8 square and it was cooked at 31 minutes. Very easy. Thanks for another great recipe - and making it simple to follow:)
Jennifer Brown
So glad you liked the cake Tracey! thank you so much for leaving a review, I appreciate it!
Anu
Hi, I am planning to make the cake on the weekend and had a question - Can I freeze the cake?
Jennifer Brown
So sorry for the late reply. Yes, you can freeze the cake.
Julie
This recipe is so good! Such a moist and delicious cake - this is my go-to recipe from now on! Thank you for sharing it.
Jennifer Brown
Thanks so much for your review Julie, I'm happy to hear you enjoyed the cake!
Jen
Looks delicious! Can I use this recipe to make cupcakes? Would the baking time change? Thank you!
Jennifer Brown
You absolutely can. They should take 20 to 25 minutes at 325F. i also have a Vanilla Almond Flour Cupcake recipe if you're interested! https://thehealthierbite.com/almond-flour-vanilla-cupcakes/
Anu
Absolutely delicious cake Jennifer! I followed the recipe except instead of honey I used Maple Syrup ( proportionately) and it was perfect. Thank you
Jennifer
So happy to hear you enjoyed the cake!
Christine Koester
Delicious, not too sweet was perfect flavor and spongy, I used Almond milk and the consistency was great.
Jennifer
Thanks for the comment Christine, I'm happy to hear you enjoyed the cake!!
cynthia gay
I made this cake last night. It was moist and delicious ?. I topped it with fresh strawberrys. Yum yum.
Linz
Love this cake! It was so moist and delicious. I paired it with a Paleo chocolate frosting.
Jennifer
Glad you liked it Linz, thanks for sharing!
Leah
I made this and it is fabulous!!! Thank you! I spread a thin layer of honey whipped with cinnamon on top. Your recipes never disappoint! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Jennifer
Thanks so much Leah! That honey cinnamon topping sounds divine!