Moist and Buttery Vegan Pound Cake

Updated February 2026: I’ve improved the crumb texture, retested with tofu and yogurt, and added new moisture tests so you can successfully bake the perfect vegan pound cake!

Ah, pound cake, or “quatre-quarts” as we call it in French. It’s probably the sweet that brings back the most nostalgic memories from my childhood. While the store-bought ones I had before tasted pretty good, I can assure you that my recipe tastes MUCH better!

To develop this recipe, I did a ton of research to understand what makes pound cakes so special. I started by calculating the percentages of fat, sugar, and carbs in traditional pound cakes, then checked the nutritional information on supermarket packaging. My research showed that most pound cakes in France contain, on average, 29% sugar, 48% carbs, and 24% fat. With that in mind, I started experimenting with different ingredients to create a vegan pound cake that tastes as good as the traditional one, minus the eggs!

⭐️ Why This Recipe Works

• Dense and buttery cumb. Guests who tried this pound cake were SHOCKED it was vegan! It’s rich, buttery , and literally melts in your mouth. And the texture? Just like the traditional: perfectly dense yet moist and tender.
• Stays moist for 4+ days. Forget about cakes that become dry the next day. Thanks to the combination of vegan yogurt and oil, my pound cake stays moist for up to 4 days! This means you can enjoy it throughout the week.
• Tested with yogurt + silken tofu. I’ve extensively tested this recipe with different ingredients and ratios, so you have different options based on what’s available to you.
• 9 simple ingredients. You will need only 9 staples, no hard-to-find ingredients here!
• Ready in one hour. 20 minutes prep time, and the rest is baking!

🔬How I Perfected My Vegan Pound Cake

I’ve tested this recipe 14+ times to replicate the dense, buttery texture of traditional pound cake without eggs. It was not an easy task, but I’m so happy with the results! Here’s what I’ve experimented with:

• Yogurt vs. silken tofu for structure.
• 50% vs. 75% sugar for a slightly less sweet cake.
• Butter-to-oil ratio to improve moisture retention.

You can read about my experiments in depth below.

🥛 Yogurt vs. Silken Tofu

Many of you have asked me if they can replace the yogurt in this recipe, as it’s not always easy to find unsweetened vegan yogurt. The answer is yes! You can replace the yogurt with silken tofu. I tested this recipe with yogurt and silken tofu and compared both. Here are the results:

• Yogurt version: I used regular, unsweetened soy milk yogurt made with only soy milk and cultures, and baked the cake as noted in the recipe.
• Silken tofu version: To replace the yogurt, I use an equal weight of silken tofu. Since silken tofu is less liquid than yogurt, it has difficulty dissolving in the batter. To prevent that, I blended it into a cream before using it. Baking time was identical to the yogurt version.

Conclusion: Whether I used yogurt or silken tofu, there was no significant difference in texture or flavor. The slightly different shape and texture you see in the photos above may simply be due to how I cut it and the lighting. Taste-wise, I found it tasted exactly the same.

🧁 Lowering the Sugar

If you are wondering whether you can reduce the sugar content of this pound cake recipe, I have you covered! I conducted a few tests by reducing sugar by 25% and 50%. Here are the results:

• 50% sugar: The lower amount of sugar made the batter much thicker, and I had to add an extra 3 tablespoons of milk. This pound cake didn’t rise as well as the others and was also a bit drier. Taste-wise, it was good, but we thought it needed a bit more sugar. I think this version would be great served with a sweet spread such as vegan Nutella or jam.
• 75% sugar: This version had a texture and shape almost as good as the 100% sugar one. I didn’t have to add any extra liquid.
• 100% sugar: Obviously, this pound cake had the best shape of all and a sweetness comparable to traditional pound cakes. It was also moister than the two other versions.

Conclusion: Each version tasted good, but the one containing only 50% sugar was significantly drier and had the worst shape. The 75% sugar version was probably my preferred option, but note that I do not have a particularly sweet tooth.

📘 What is a Pound Cake

A pound cake, also called “quatre-quarts” in French, is a sweet cake traditionally made with equal parts: flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. While its exact origin is unclear, it is believed that pound cake appeared in Northern Europe in the early 18th century.

Later, additional add-ins, such as vanilla extract, dried fruit, or chocolate chips, were added.

🧈 Magic Behind the Ingredients

Unlike traditional pound cake, this recipe calls for more than four ingredients. However, it still uses easy-to-find and budget-friendly ingredients. Here is what you will need:

• Flour – I use basic all-purpose flour for this recipe, as it’s the one used in most classic pound cake recipes. There is no need to use bread or cake flour here.
• Plant-based yogurt – After trying different egg alternatives, such as aquafaba and applesauce, I finally settled on unsweetened plant-based yogurt. It gave the best and most consistent texture, bringing moisture and tenderness to the cake. Since I always have soy yogurt in my fridge, I used that, but any vegan yogurt will work.
  Note: You can use any vegan yogurt as long as it is unsweetened and unflavored. Blended silken tofu works too.
• Sugar – Like in traditional recipes, I went with granulated white sugar. The main advantage of using white sugar is that it has a bland flavor as opposed to other types of sugar, like coconut sugar or maple syrup. This allows the vanilla flavor to shine!
• Butter – You can use store-bought or homemade vegan butter. Butter not only adds the needed richness but also a lot of flavor! I do not recommend replacing it with oil, as it would alter the flavor and the texture.
  Brand recommendations: If you use store-bought butter, I got great results with Flora. Earth Balance, Country Crock, or Violife will also work well. I had the best results with brands that are firm when chilled. Stay away from the spreadable butter.
• Oil – The addition of oil does two things. First, it brings extra richness to the crumb. Secondly, it helps the cake stay softer for longer. See, oil always results in a more tender crumb compared to butter. Cakes made with only butter tend to dry very quickly. Adding oil prevents that!
  Note: Use a neutral oil such as canola, grapeseed, or sunflower. I advise against using coconut oil as it imparts a coconut flavor to the cake.
• Vegan milk – Any unsweetened vegan milk will work. You can use almond, cashew, or even oat milk. I only use a very small amount of milk to thin the batter since the yogurt already brings a lot of moisture.
• Vanilla extract – For the best aroma, opt for high-quality vanilla extract. You can elevate the flavor even further by replacing the vanilla extract with the seeds from half of a vanilla bean or the sugar with vanilla sugar.
• Baking powder – I used standard baking powder to help the cake rise and achieve a fluffier texture. Do not substitute with baking soda, as the results would be completely different.
• Salt – A pinch of salt goes a long way in enhancing the overall flavor. If you use salted butter, omit the salt.
  

🥣 Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Add the dry ingredients to a bowl. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to a large mixing bowl.

2. Whisk. Use a whisk to combine the dry ingredients.

5. Transfer to a cake pan. Once the batter is smooth, transfer it to an 8×4-inch loaf pan.

6. Spread the top into a smooth and even layer.

Secret Tip! Here is my secret tip to get the cake to split exactly in the middle. Dip a spatula in oil or melted butter, then draw a line across the center of the batter. This will allow the cake to crack precisely in the middle, not more cracks on the side! Creating that line of oil or butter in the middle of the batter is the magic trick to give your cake an aesthetic look.

🍫 Variations

This delicate pound cake is delicious as is, but you can enhance it by incorporating:

• Chocolate chip: Add 3/4 cup of chocolate chips or chocolate chunks into the batter for extra sweetness. If you add chocolate chips, I suggest reducing the amount of sugar in the batter by about 25%.
• Caramel: Either swirl in caramel sauce or try my caramel pound cake recipe, where the caramel sauce is incorporated directly into the batter!
• Dried fruit: Add about 3/4 cup of finely chopped dried fruits, such as figs, orange peel, dates, or raisins. Just like with chocolate chips, I recommend lowering slightly the amount of sugar in the batter.
• Orange: Add the zest from one orange to the batter.
• Lemon: I have made a specific recipe for lemon pound cake here!
• Marble: Divide the batter in half and add 3-4 tablespoons of cacao powder and 1 tablespoon of milk to one of them. Then, pour half of the vanilla batter into the pan and top with half the chocolate batter. Repeat once.
• Cinnamon: Add 3/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon for a holiday-spiced pound cake. You can even combine the cinnamon with orange zest!

🍵 What to Serve It With

You can serve this vegan pound cake as an afternoon snack with tea or coffee, for dessert with a dollop of whipped cream and fresh berries, or for breakfast with almond yogurt or cashew yogurt!

💬 Troubleshooting & FAQs

If you are looking for an elegant, buttery, and dense pound cake that tastes just as good as the classic without the eggs, you will love this recipe!

🍰 More Vegan Cake Recipes

Vegan Pumpkin Bread

The Best Vegan Banana Bread

Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread

Vegan Lemon Pound Cake

⭐️ Did you like this recipe? Let us know in the comments below, and tag us on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

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