This eggless orange cake is made with fresh orange juice and zest. And it gives a perfect citrus punch in every bite. Plus, the orange glaze takes this cake to a whole new level.
Love citrus flavor? Check out this eggless lemon cake, eggless lemon cupcakes and orange muffins.
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❤️About This Recipe
- Texture: soft, fluffy with a moist, tender crumb, melt-in-your-mouth texture
- Without eggs: After having a bite, trust me you won’t believe that this is eggless orange cake. It is so soft and fluffy.
- Flavor: using fresh orange juice as well as zest in both cake and glaze packs this cake with an amazing bright orange flavor.
- Versatile: Leave it plain for everyday snack cake, or drizzle the orange glaze to turn it into a dessert cake.
🧾Ingredient Notes
Here is the pic of the ingredients required to make this citrus eggless orange cake. All of them are basic baking ingredients and you may have them available in your pantry.
- Cake flour: It makes the cake super light and fluffy texture. Instead, you can use all purpose flour if you want or make cake flour at home.
*Homemade cake flour: It is a combination of all purpose flour and cornstarch. For this eggless orange cake, 1 ½ cups of cake flour = 1 cup+2 tablespoons all purpose flour mixed with 3 tablespoons tightly packed cornstarch (corn flour).
- Light brown sugar: It makes the cake moist. But if you don’t have it at home, replace it with regular white sugar. It will be fine.
Note: When you measure the brown sugar it should be tightly or firmly packed. Meaning, pressing the sugar firmly into the measuring cup and when inverted into a bowl, it will hold its shape.
- Oil: I have used canola oil. I recommend using any flavorless oil like canola, corn, vegetable, safflower oil, etc. Do not use strong-flavored oil like olive oil.
- Vinegar: I have used white distilled vinegar. But you can use apple cider vinegar too.
- Orange juice: It has to be freshly squeezed orange juice. It is the key to getting that bright citrus flavor. Bottled juice won’t give that nice flavor.
- Orange zest: It is the outer bright orange layer of the orange rind. Use the Microplane zester to get the zest. Make sure not to grate the inner white part of the rind, just grate the orange part. The white part is bitter and makes the cake slightly bitter taste.
Tip: It is much easier to zest the oranges before juicing.
- Powdered sugar: It is used for making a glaze. This sugar has other names like icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar.
🎥Watch The Recipe Video
👩🍳Step By Step Photo Instructions
Prep:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F or 190 degrees C for at least 10 minutes.
- Lightly grease and flour the 9-inch round cake pan and keep it aside. Grease with butter or spray with cooking oil spray. Sprinkle a tablespoon of flour in the pan, now swirl the pan so the flour will stick to the greased surface (all over the pan and also around the edges). Now invert the pan over a sink or garbage and tap it gently with your hand to remove excess flour.
Making Eggless Orange Cake:
1) Take dry ingredients (cake flour, light brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt) in a bowl.
2) Break the brown sugar and whisk everything until incorporated well and keep it aside.
3) In another large bowl add wet ingredients (orange juice, oil, vinegar, orange zest, vanilla extract) one by one.
4) Beat it well using a wire whisk until everything is combined.
5) Add dry flour mixture into the wet mixture.
6) Whisk it until all comes together, do not over-mix the batter.
7) Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Shake lightly to spread the batter evenly.
8) Bake into the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. Always check 2-3 minutes before the mentioned time. Check by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean then the cake is ready.
Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes then release and loosen the sides by running a butter knife around the edges. Then invert it and remove it on the cooling rack and let it cool down completely.
Topping With The Orange Glaze:
1) To make the glaze, take powdered sugar and orange zest in a bowl. Add orange juice.
2) Start whisking and beat it until you get the smooth and runny consistency of the glaze.
3) Pour the glaze on the cake. (Note: Keep a plate under the rack to catch any drizzle and avoid the mess.
4) Spread it around evenly using the back of the spoon or butter knife. Let the icing dry and set before you cut or cover and store.
💭Expert Tips
Check out the ingredients notes above. Many tips are mentioned there.
Layered cake: You can double this eggless orange cake recipe to make a two-layer cake. In this case, you have to choose other frosting like orange buttercream instead of glaze. Spreading orange curd between two layers of cake is a good idea too.
Food Color: For more vibrant color, you can add some orange food color in the batter to get a bright orange color. This is optional.
Tips about orange glaze:
- The cake is cooled completely and then topped with glaze. After it sets, you’ll get a nice crust. {See the pic below}
- The cake is still warm and topped with glaze then the cake will absorb the icing (no crust is formed). {as shown in the main pic}.
- Icing stays crusty the day it is made. As you store the cake, the next day icing will soften.
🧁 Storage Instructions
- You can store this eggless orange cake overnight at room temperature in a covered container. Only if you are finishing it the next day.
- If you want to store longer, store in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
- As it is an oil-based cake, it stays soft even after storing in the refrigerator, unlike butter-based cakes. So you can enjoy it chilled or bring it to room temperature before serving.
- Icing will soften the next day as your store the cake.
FAQs
I have not tried with butter. But you can try. As per my baking experience, I can say that oil can be replaced with the same amount of melted butter in this recipe.
Yes, you can. The flavor will be slightly different but still good.
You can use the same amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice.
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📋 Recipe Card
Eggless Orange Cake
Ingredients
For Cake:
- 1 ½ cups Cake flour *Notes
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ cup Light brown sugar packed **Notes
- ⅛ teaspoon Salt
- ⅓ cup Oil Use flavorless oil like canola, corn, vegetable or safflower oil
- 1 cup Orange juice fresh
- 2 tablespoon Orange zest from 1 ½ oranges ***Notes
- 1 tablespoon White distilled vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
For Glaze:
- 1 cup Powdered sugar (Confectioner’s sugar or icing sugar)
- 3 tablespoons Orange juice
- Orange zest from half of the orange.
Instructions
Prep:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F or 190 degrees C for at least 10 minutes.
- Lightly grease and flour the 9-inch round cake pan and keep it aside. Grease with butter or spray with cooking oil spray. Sprinkle a tablespoon of flour in the pan, now swirl the pan so the flour will stick to the greased surface (all over the pan and also around the edges). Now invert the pan over a sink or garbage and tap it gently with your hand to remove excess flour.
Making Cake:
- Take dry ingredients (cake flour, light brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt) in a bowl. Break the brown sugar and whisk everything until incorporated well and keep it aside.
- In another large bowl add wet ingredients (orange juice, oil, vinegar, orange zest, vanilla extract) one by one. Beat it really well using a wire whisk until everything is combined.
- Add dry flour mixture into the wet mixture. Whisk it until all comes together, do not over-mix the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Shake lightly to spread the batter evenly.
- Bake into the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. Always check 2-3 minutes before the mentioned time. Check by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean then the cake is ready.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes then release and loosen the sides by running a butter knife around the edges. Then invert it and remove it on the cooling rack and let it cool down completely.
Making Glaze:
- Take powdered sugar and orange zest in a bowl. Add orange juice. Start whisking and beat it until you get the smooth and runny consistency of the glaze.
- Pour the glaze on the cake. (Note: Keep a plate under the rack to catch any drizzle and avoid the mess.
- Spread it around evenly using the back of the spoon or butter knife.
- Let the icing dry and set before you cut or cover and store.
Notes
It is much easier to zest the oranges before juicing.
- Layered cake: You can double the cake recipe to make a layered eggless orange cake.
- Food Color: For more vibrant color, you can add some orange food color in the batter to get a bright orange color. This is optional.
- If the glaze is added to the cooled cake, then you let it set. You’ll get a nice crust of icing on top. As you store, the next day it will soften.
- If the glaze is added to the warm cake then the cake will absorb the glaze and you’ll miss the crusty icing.
- Storage: If serving the next day, you can keep it overnight at room temperature in a covered container. If wanted to store it for more days, then it should be kept in the refrigerator in an airtight container. You can serve this cake chilled or bring it to room temperature before serving.
Rose
This is my favourite cake ever! I’ve made it lots of times. So fluffy and moist. I followed the recipe exactly including the cake flour. Thanks!
Kanan Patel
Very glad that you're enjoying this cake recipe.
Shilpa
Hi Kanan - I made this for Valentine’s day and my bf totally loved it. It turned out a little dense though, there wasn’t much bounce to it. The cake in your pics looks fluffy and spongey mine wasn’t the same. Do you know what could have gone wrong. I’m planning to make it again for his mom’s birthday, so any suggestions will be helpful. Thanks for sharing this wonderful eggless recipe with us!
Kanan Patel
Already replied to your comment in Instagram DM. Copy-pasting here so others can benefit from it.
Dense and dry texture issue. There could be any of these two reasons.
1. Over mixing the batter. After adding flour fold or mix just until combined. More you mix, the flour will develop gluten and results into dense texture.
2. Over baking. Every oven is different hence the baking time may vary by few minutes. Try checking next time a couple of minutes earlier. Over baking results into dry cake and as moisture is missing you don’t feel the sponge.
Jayshree
Hello i like all your recipes as being vegetarian we do not eat eggs. I want to make this cake tomorrow but I don't have brown sugar. Instead can I use white sugar? Also is it ok to use canola oil.or extra Virgin olive oil is better. Please advise. Thanks in advance
Kanan Patel
Yes you can use regular sugar.
I recommend using canola oil (or any other flavorless oil like vegetable oil, corn oil, safflower oil). Olive oil has its own strong flavor so it is not a good idea to use olive oil in this cake
Sonam
Hi Kanan, is there a way to make it with whole wheat flour?
Kanan Patel
You can try with 50-50 (wheat & all purpose flour). The texture will be slightly different because of wheat flour.