MOIST Vegan Cookie Dough Cake with ‘Cream Cheese’ Cookie Dough Frosting
This soft & tender unbelievably vegan cookie dough cake consists of a one bowl MOIST vanilla cake batter that’s loaded with dairy free chocolate chips and eggless cookie dough in every bite, and layered with a deliciously rich “cream cheese” cookie dough frosting and chocolate ganache. Decadence in every bite!
Why you’ll love this vegan cookie dough cake:
If you love chocolate chip cookie dough and you love vanilla cake, then let me introduce you to this amazing cookie dough cake. It’s the ultimate combination of two favorite desserts, and it’s pretty fantastic.
I was inspired by Jenna from Butternut Bakery’s delicious cookie dough cake, and so deperately wanted a cookie dough version.
I mean, we have cookie dough cheesecake and cookie dough cupcakes, so we needed a cookie dough cake!
We have deliciously rich cookie dough balls baked into a tender vanilla cake studded with chocolate chips. Then load on some decadently rich dairy free cream cheese-based cookie dough frosting, chocolate ganache, and more edible cookie dough for the almost cake recipe.
And guess what? This cookie dough cake is naturally vegan, eggless, and dairy free. Yet, I promise, you’d never know. If you’re looking to surprise your non-vegan family and/or friends, then this is your cake recipe!
Now let’s bake it!
What you’ll need:
This cake, while easy in concept, is pretty extensive in terms of the steps and materials. Worth it? Absolutely. If you’re a cookie dough lover, you’ll fall head over heels in love with this cake recipe. But you do need a lot of ingredients, so this is a great cake for special occasions!
The cake is comprised of four main parts. The cookie dough, the actual cake, the cookie dough frosting, and the outer chocolate frosting. Below is a list of ingredients that you’ll need, with the exact measurements found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. All ingredients can be listed as either Metric or US, but I recommend using the Metric measurements. This will give you the most accurate bake.
- Flour: you don’t need to heat treat the flour here, unless you’re also using the cookie dough to decorate the outside of the cake (which I recommend making that additional cookie dough during the decorating stage!). You can also use a gluten free flour blend here!
- Vegan butter: you can use coconut oil, but the cookie dough will taste best with vegan butter.
- Brown sugar & granulated sugar
- Dairy free yogurt: My favorite is to use Forager Project, though you can use Cocojune or So Delicious! Kite Hill works great too.
- Chocolate chips: I used Enjoy Life! Mini Chips.
Vegan Cake:
- Flour: again, you can use gluten free 1:1 baking flour here! I recommend King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour.
- Vegan butter: stick with the vegan butter for the cake. It will yield the best results!
- Sugar: you can use coconut sugar here or granulated sugar.
- Leavening agents: this is your baking powder and baking soda.
- Dairy free yogurt: My favorite for a vegan egg replacement in cakes.
- Dairy free milk with ACV: mixing the vinegar with the dairy free milk will give you a vegan buttermilk. This is essential for yielding that super fluffy and tender texture!
- Vanilla extract
Cookie Dough Frosting:
- Vegan butter: for frosting, stick with vegan butter please!
- Flour: For the frosting, you will need to heat treat the flour. This is because you’re consuming this part of the recipe “raw” in essence.
- Vegan cream cheese
- Light brown sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Chocolate chips
How to make an eggless cookie dough cake (overview)
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
You’ll make this cookie dough cake in 4 stages essentially. First, the cookie dough, followed by the cake layers. Then the cookie dough frosting, and finally the chocolate buttercream.
- The cookie dough: this component is based off of my edible vegan cookie dough, and is similar in process. Just without the applesauce! Simply cream together the vegan butter and coconut sugar. Then add in the flour and fold in the chocolate chips. If your cookie dough is too soft, you can chill it in the fridge as you make the cakes.
- The cake: this next section is based off of my vegan vanilla cake. You’ll make the cake as you would any other cake. Then when you’re about to bake the batter, add in dollops of cookie dough to the batter, and gently spread the batter over the cookie dough. Bake the cakes and allow them to fully cool before making the frosting.
- The cookie dough frosting: this is like cookie dough, but more frosting like! Once you make the buttercream, you’ll add in the flour and coconut sugar, and cream everything together. Then gently fold in the chocolate chips. At this stage, you can assemble the cake. Apply the frosting in between the cake layers and store in the fridge as you make the final component.
Can I make this cookie dough cake gluten free?
Absolutely! To make this vegan cookie dough cake entirely gluten free as well, swap in gluten free 1:1 baking flour, such as King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour.
Can I make the cake layers ahead of time?
You can absolutely make the cake layers ahead of time. I’d aim for making the cookie dough cake layers the afternoon before, and assembling the cake the morning of the next day. Allow the cake layers to fully cool before storing. This will prevent too much warmth and condensation getting into the cake layers, causing a soggy cake.
Then simply wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and either store at room temperature or in the fridge.
Does this have to be a vegan cookie dough cake?
This cookie dough cake in particular was designed to be a vegan option in the array of cookie dough cakes out there! There are plenty of non-vegan cookie dough cakes on the web. So why not try a vegan version?
There are plenty of amazing dairy-free substitutes out there that taste just like the real deal, so if you’re dairy free, then this is the cake for you. I recommend using Miyoko’s or Plant Crock for the best tasting vegan butter in baking.
In terms of eggless baking, dairy free yogurt is fairly common these days, and easy to find in the U.S. You can also use unsweetened applesauce.
Love vegan cakes? Check out these amazing vegan cake recipes!
Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
PrintMOIST Vegan Cookie Dough Cake with ‘Cream Cheese’ Cookie Dough Frosting
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This soft & tender unbelievably vegan cookie dough cake consists of a one bowl MOIST vanilla cake batter that’s loaded with dairy free chocolate chips and eggless cookie dough in every bite, and layered with a deliciously rich “cream cheese” cookie dough frosting and chocolate ganache. Decadence in every bite!
Ingredients
Inspired by Butternut Bakery’s Cookie Dough Cake.
Vanilla Cake:
- 2 batches vegan cookie dough
- 1 1/4 cup (300 mL) vegan buttermilk
- 3 2/3 cup (450 g) all-purpose flour (or 512 g gluten free 1:1 baking flour + 1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 3/4 cup (350 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (220 g) salted vegan butter (I recommend Miyoko’s or Flora Plant butter), room temperature
- 1 cup (240 g) unsweetened dairy free yogurt, room temperature
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract (yes, 2 tablespoons!!)
- Optional (but recommended): 1/4 tsp vanilla powder
- 1 cup vegan chocolate chips (I recommend mini)
Vegan Cream Cheese Cookie Dough Frosting:
- 1 cup (220 g) vegan butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (220 g) vegan cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (62 g) heat-treated all purpose flour*
- 1/2 cup (100 g) light brown sugar
- 2 1/2 – 3 cups organic powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2–4 tbsp unsweetened dairy free milk
- 1 cup vegan mini chocolate chips
- Vegan chocolate ganache, for decoration
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease three 8″ cake pans with cooking oil, and line them with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Prep ingredients: Prepare the vegan buttermilk. Combine the dairy free milk with the apple cider vinegar, and set aside to sit for 5-6 minutes. You can weigh and measure the remaining ingredients during this time.
- Make the cookie dough: Make sure the flour is heat-treated for both the cookie dough and cookie dough frosting. In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer to whisk together the vegan butter, sugar, light brown sugar, dairy free yogurt, salt, and vanilla extract. Add in the flour, and use a rubber spatula to gently fold the flour into the cookie dough. Fold in the chocolate chips. Then scoop the dough into 2-tablespoon sized cookie dough balls. You should yield about 15 cookie dough balls. You can make more for the decoration of the cake- make sure that you’re using heat-treated flour.
- Make the batter: In a large bowl, whisk the vegan butter, sugar, dairy free yogurt, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Then add in the flour and pour in the vegan buttermilk, whisking simultaneously JUST until the flour is combined. Then fold in the chocolate chips.
- Bake the cakes: Divide the batter between the three cake pans evenly. Drop 4-5 cookie dough balls into each cake layer. Bake for 30-33 minutes in the 8″ cake pans, or until the toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool: Remove from the oven and allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely. Once cooled completely (there is absolutely no warmth to the touch!), then you can prepare your buttercream.
- Vegan Cookie Dough Frosting: Cream the vegan butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer for about 3 minutes. Sift in the powdered sugar, flour, light brown sugar sugar, and vanilla extract and continue mixing until it becomes a fluffy buttercream. Use the dairy-free milk if needed to help incorporate the dry ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Assemble the cake: place the first cake layer onto a cake plate or stand. Spread 1/2 of the vegan cookie dough frosting onto the cake layer, then top with the second layer and repeat. Place the cake into the fridge to chill while you make the vegan chocolate buttercream.
- Finish decorating the cake: Frost cake the outside of the cake with the chocolate buttercream. Top with extra cookie dough balls and serve!
Notes
Vegan chocolate chips: I recommend Enjoy Life chocolate. They’re 100% vegan, Fair Trade, and have many options, including 100% dark chocolate and vegan milk chocolate.
Heat Treating the flour: you’ll only need to heat treat the flour of the cookie dough frosting, as that will be the only cookie dough part we consume raw (unless you top with additional cookie dough balls on top!). To heat treat flour, check out this article.
Gluten free: you can use gluten free 1:1 baking flour, such as King Arthur measure for measure flour for the entirety of this cake recipe if needed. Please still heat treat the flour where necessary.
Ohhh my goodness I can not wait to make this! I am super excited, but would you need to make any changes if you did cupcakes over cake? (I am more a cupcake girl Baker than cake)
Hi Jo!! Ah I’m so happy to hear it!! Yes, these can definitely be made as cupcakes- you’ll yield about 24. The only change is just making sure that there’s cookie dough in each cupcake. So instead of placing globs of cooking dough into the cake batter, you’ll just make the cake batter as is, fill each cupcake about 1/2 way full, and make 24 cookie dough balls (recommend doing this before you make the batter). Place 1 cookie dough ball into the middle of each cupcake and gently spread the batter over the cookie dough ball to slightly hide it. Then bake! My guess is the bake time will be about 24-27 minutes-ish but I haven’t tested this myself so please keep an eye on it if you make them as cupcakes! Let me know how they come, and enjoy!
in the pictures you show that you add chocolate chips to the cake dough but i don’t see that in the directions so i didn’t do it…noo!! what a great idea!
I’m so so sorry about that! I just corrected it- I hope you still enjoyed the cake!
What changes to the recipe instructions would need to be made in order to use this recipe to make cupcakes?
Also can I use a different type of sugar if I have a nut allergy? Like pure cane sugar?
Yes, cane sugar or coconut sugar (or even maple sugar!) all work 🙂
I actually have a cookie dough cupcake recipe now that you can use!
Super good! Worth the effort. Thanks!
I don’t have 3 8″ pans, Can I use 2 9″ pans?
Yes, that will work as well!
Hello!! I hope you’re well:) Thank you for the hard work you put into your recipes and blog. I’m looking forward to trying so many of them out!! I’m actually planning on making this particular one for my birthday this week! I was just wondering what the best way to store it would be. How long would it last in the fridge/could I freeze it? Thank you!
Aw thank you for being here! That’s so wonderful! I would say, if you want to make it ahead of time, frost the entire cake and make sure there’s a thick layer of buttercream on the outside of the cake- that will be the insulation for the cake as it sits in the fridge overnight and prevent it from drying out! I would keep it in the fridge for a day, but if you want to, you can also freeze it after frosting if you’re going to make it more than a day ahead of time!
Happy birthday!! Can’t wait to hear how it comes out!
Hi there! I was wondering if I could sub avocado oil for the butter in the cake batter?
Thank you!
Hi Kristi! You can, but I can’t guarantee it’ll taste as good, as the vegan butter really adds that “butter” flavor to the cake!
Under the “Cookie Dough Cake” recipe portion, it says Optional (but recommended): 1/4 tsp vanilla powder. Is this in addition to the 2 tblspn of vanilla extract or is it a substitute for vanilla extract? I appreciate your reply.
Hi Rachael! So sorry for the confusion! Yes, this is in addition 🙂 Enjoy!!
What brand of gluten free flour do you recommend?
I really like King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour!
Hi! I’m making this for my sister’s bday. Can you taste the yogurt in the cookie dough? I don’t want the dough to taste like yogurt.
Hi Abigail! So you won’t taste the yogurt at all! The baking soda neutralizes the yogurt flavor completely, so it really just acts like eggs in a cake 🙂
Thank you for creating this recipe! My boyfriend made it for me as a suprise and it was divine!! It was such a lovely thing for him to do and brought me so much joy! He said it was one of the best cakes he has ever had and he isnt vegan! Thank you!x
Omgsh that’s wonderful!! That’s so kind of him, wow 🙂 And so grateful you both loved it!! Thank you so much for the review, and enjoy!
Do you have to make this vegan? Can you use regular butter and ingredients?
Hi Kelsi! I can’t guarantee it will work with regular dairy products, though others have tried and have made it successfully. I just can’t speak to it personally!
I’m interested in making this cake but was curious as to what your thoughts are on using 1 cup of liquid Just Egg in place of the vegan yogurt?
Ohhh this is so interesting!! I’ve never experimented with Just Egg in baking but definitely need to. I’ll add this to the list to try for my testing, but if you do try it, please let us know how it comes out!
Can I sub the heat treated flour for oat or almond flour in the cookie dough?
Oat flour could potentially work, but you might need to add more in order for the dough to thicken!
I made this cake for a big birthday bash for my partner who is vegan and gluten free. I have to say, this was probably one of the best cakes i’ve ever eaten, let alone made myself! Your recipes are easy to follow and the cakes are so delicious people will never know they’re V+GF! Thank you so much for the time you put into these recipes! This is the second one i’ve made from you and i’m a sold customer! In fact, other people have even started asking if I will make them a cake!!! Ahhhh!! What have you started!!?!?! I’ll be back for more and will recommend your recipes to my friends. Thank you so, so much.
Made this a couple weeks ago for my sister’s birthday. Everyone loved it! It was definitely time consuming as the recipe says. I think it took me about 6 hours. I also made my cookie dough balls half the size (1 tbsp) and put less in the cake batter, as I wanted more plain cake. If I were to make this again, I would do even less. Perhaps just cookie dough balls in 2 of the 3 layers, not all. I also added a little sea salt to my chocolate ganache which paired really well with the super sweet cake.
I had noticed a couple small issues within the recipe that I wanted to point out, in case it helps someone else!
-My cookie dough was VERY soft. I couldn’t form balls. I know the recipe says to chill if necessary but it was so sticky for me. I added an extra 1/2 cup of heat-treated flour to mine.
-The Cake part of the recipe steps does not say when to add the vanilla extract.
-Step 8 says to spread 1/2 the frosting, top with 2nd layer, then repeat. However, this is a 3-tier cake so that should say 1/3 of the frosting.
-Step 9 reference a different chocolate frosting as a topping, not the ganache listed in the Ingredients. It also says to frost with it, which is not how ganache goes on (it’s first melted)
But this cake was definitely worth the effort! I wish I had more in my freezer but I already ate it all! (I included a photo of mine. I am not good at decorating and not good at a chocolate drip which is why mine is so thick at the top!)