Vegan Pineapple Cake
This vegan pineapple cake creates a simple, moist cake. Made with only 5 ingredients, you can throw this cake together in a few minutes!
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I love a simple cake, especially when a weekday craving hits. That’s one reason I love making my vegan mug cake. So easy!
This pineapple cake is another favorite. Being able to serve up a quick 5-ingredient cake makes all the difference in your weekday desserts. Serve it as is or add your favorite topping for even more wow-factor!
Ingredients & Substitutions
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe, including substitution ideas:
- Flour — Use all-purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or even gluten-free flour.
- Sugar — You can use granulated sugar or a mixture of granulated and brown sugar to add even more caramel flavor.
- Baking soda — Thanks to the pineapple, this cake is super moist. We’ll add baking soda to keep the cake light and fluffy.
- Pineapple — I USD a 20-ounce can of crushed pineapple, Including juices.
- Vegan butter — I’m using vegan butter to add a rich buttery flavor to every bite.
- Topping — See below for more on different frosting ideas.
How to Make Vegan Pineapple Cake
- Add sugar to a bowl with flour and baking soda.
- Stir it all together.
- Pour melted vegan butter with crushed pineapple and stir.
- Pour the wet mixture in with the dry.
- Stir until combined.
- Pour the batter into a prepared pan.
- Bake until the top is golden brown.
- Cool the baked cake completely.
- Add your favorite topping.
What Makes This Recipe Shine?
- EASY — This cake requires only 5 ingredients; that’s why it’s SO easy!
- LIGHT — Combined with a simple topping, like whipped cream, this cake is light and flavorful.
- CROWD-FAVORITE — Serve this cake for your next party and wait for the oohs and ahs from your guests!
Frequently-Asked Questions
Is pineapple cake vegan?
Most pineapple cake recipes are made with eggs and are therefore not vegan. However, eggs are not necessary to make a delicious cake. So you can make your own egg-free pineapple cake at home!
What is the best frosting for pineapple cake?
I prefer using a light frosting, like vegan whipped cream or even vegan ermine frosting. Both create a lightly sweet, fluffy topping.
Frosting Options
You have lots of options when it comes to frosting your cake. When it comes to this pineapple cake, here. are the frostings I recommend:
- Vegan whipped cream — For a light flavor, add vegan whipped cream on top.
- Coconut Whipped cream — Coconut and pineapple go great together, so for more coconut flavor, coconut whipped cream is the way to go!
- Dairy-free Cream Cheese Frosting — Add the tangy sweet flavor of cream cheese frosting in every bite!
- Dairy-free Ermine Frosting — Another light frosting option is the boiled flour frosting.
- Vegan Vanilla Buttercream — This creamy frosting is amazing!
Make a vegan pineapple birthday cake by adding some fun sprinkles!
Serving Suggestions
Serve slices of vegan pineapple cake with:
- Maraschino cherries add a nice finishing touch
- Drizzles of vegan caramel add color and flavor
- Keep it simple with drizzles of vegan honey over each slice.
- Chopped pecans on top add a nice touch.
Storage Tips
Store the cake in the fridge (either the whole cake or individual slices) for up to 7 days. You can freeze slices (or the whole cake) in freezer-safe containers for up to 2 months).
Marly’s Tips
- Make a gluten-free pineapple cake by substituting the all-purpose flour with gluten-free baking flour.
- Add some toasted coconut on top of the cake to make a vegan pineapple coconut cake.
- You can increase or decrease the sugar in this cake recipe by 1/4 cup for a sweeter or less sweet cake.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before adding the frosting.
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Vegan Pineapple Recipes
Sure, you love this vegan pineapple cake. Here are even more tasty vegan recipes using pineapple:
Ready for more? Try all these vegan pineapple recipes.
Vegan Pineapple Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 20 ounce can crushed pineapple
- ⅓ cup vegan butter, melted
- Topping: Add vegan whipped cream, whipped coconut cream, or vegan cream cheese frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9×13 pan with vegetable cooking spray.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl, including the flour and baking soda.
- Stir together the melted vegan butter and the crushed pineapple, including the juices from the can.
- Pour the wet mixture in with the dry and stir together vigorously, until you don't see clumps of flour.
- Pour the batter into a prepared pan. Place in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. The top will be golden brown, and a tester inserted in the center of the cake should come out clean, but a few crumbs are ok.
- When it's ready, remove the cake from the oven and set it on a rack to cool completely.
- Add your favorite topping, such as vegan whipped cream or vegan cream cheese frosting.
- Store leftover cake slices in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Freezing will chang the texture of the pineapple, but it will still taste great.
Recommended Equipment
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
About the Author
Hi! I’m Marly McMillen. I’m the founding editor, author, recipe developer, vegan home chef, and food stylist behind Namely Marly. I’m so grateful to you and every member of my audience for your support and dedication. More about Namely Marly ›
16 Responses to Vegan Pineapple Cake
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This recipe is absolute perfection *chef’s kiss*
Thanks, Nadia! I’m so happy to know you loved this cake recipe! Chef’s kiss is the goal!
Wow I didn’t expect such a delicious cake from such a simple recipe! It is absolutely insanely delicious! I added a banana since I had used some of the crushed pineapple for another recipe and it’s so so good. I’m not much of a baker but I’m definitely making this again!
Hi Ana! I’m so glad you liked this pineapple cake – makes my day to know that you enjoyed it so much! I really love the idea of adding a banana to this…of course I’m all about the bananas! Makes me think if we added a maraschino cherry on top, it could be like a banana spit cake! 🙂
I haven’t made this cake yet but I would like to try it as a layer cake with 2 – 8 inch cake pans. I was thinking of a coconut frosting (vegan) instead of the topping you suggested. Would there be any changes to the ingredients?
I definitely think this would work as a layer cake with frosting instead of whipped cream between layers. I think the ingredients would work as they are but I would reduce the baking time for the smaller cakes. This is my vanilla frosting recipe, in case you’re curious. You can add coconut flakes to this frosting for that flavor you’re after. And then you could add some toasted coconut flakes on top for a dramatic flair!
Would love to make this! Any subs for oil/butter?
Hi Trish! If you want to make a fat-free version of this cake, substitute an equal amount of applesauce. I haven’t tried this myself, but I think it should work. You might want to extend the baking time another 5 minutes or so to make up for the added moisture. Use the toothpick test – it should come out mostly clean. Happy baking!
Delicious. I used date puree in a 1:1 ratio instead of sugar and we loved it. I glazed it with a little pineapple juice and maple syrup thickened with arrowroot powder. So yummy and so easy. Thank you.
Hi Lisa! I’m so glad you liked this recipe and I love your adaptations!
Hi! Do you know if this would work if omitting the sugar to make for a baby’s first birthday? Thanks!
Hi Ashley. I have not tried making this cake without refined sugars. You could try using some refined sugar alternatives, such as 1) coconut sugar (this is still refined but I’ve read some indicate that it has less impact on blood sugar), 2) Substitute 1 cup of pitted dates (pureed would be best for a cake), or 3) 1/2 cup of maple syrup. All of these can impact the color and texture of the cake. You can also try using whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour. This will add more fiber, also reducing the impact on blood sugar and then reducing the sugar by 1/4 to 1/2. Reducing sugar will impact the texture of the cake, but I think it would still be quite enjoyable. Let me know if this helpful or if you need more info. Feel free to email me at marly at namely marly dot come if you’d like to continue brainstorming on this!
Can fresh pineapple be used instead of canned? How much would you suggest for a swap? Thanks in advance!
Hi Tamara! I haven’t tried this recipe with fresh pineapple, but I would suggest using 1 1/2 to 2 cups. You might want to run it through a food processor first. Run it in short pulses to break it down. Also, you may need to add 1/4 cup of water to the batter too. I hope this is helpful!
What size pan should I use for this recipe?
Hi Tami! I used a 9×13 baking pan. Thanks for your note! I added the pan dimensions to the recipe card.