This secretly vegan Biscoff cake is the best of both Speculoos cookies and deliciously tender and soft cake. With cookie butter baked throughout the sponge cake layers, crushed Biscoff cookies, and biscoff cookie butter, this cookie butter cake is an absolute showstopper.

Best Ever Vegan Biscoff Cake (Gluten Free Option)

Why you’ll love this secretly vegan Biscoff cake!

Cookie butter lovers rejoice! This vegan Biscoff cake is the perfect celebration of the classic sweet and cinnamon-y cookie with all of the lovely flavors and texture of cake!

With soft, tender, and moist cookie butter cake layers, crushed Biscoff cookies and cookie butter sprinkled in between each layer, and the creamiest vegan buttercream, this amazing Biscoff cake is naturally vegan, eggless, and dairy free without anyone being able to detect it.

Basically it’s my dream cake. It’s just so good!

If you’ve never had a Biscoff (or Speculoos) cookies, then you’re in for a treat. They’re originally a Belgian cookie treat usually enjoyed with tea, but they’ve made their way over to the U.S. and majorly grown in popularity. Most people associate the flavor of Biscoff cookies with cinnamon and spices. They have a bit of a snap to them, but they don’t have any ginger in them, so these Speculoos cookies are quite different from gingersnap cookies.

Cookie butter is essentially Biscoff Lotus cookies ground into a delicious cookie spread! Much like peanut butter, except cookie butter tastes of cookies!

And guess what? Biscoff cookies are naturally vegan, eggless, and dairy free. And if you need gluten free, don’t worry, this cake can indeed be made gluten free as well!

Best Ever Vegan Biscoff Cake (Gluten Free Option)

What is biscoff cake made of?

The star flavor of this cake is the Biscoff cookie. You’ll get notes of cinnamon and the classic cookie throughout the cake: both in the cake itself and with its decorations.

Unlike other Biscoff cakes, we’re using cookie butter as the flavor enhancer for the actual cake. Then we’ll sprinkle crushed Biscoff cookies throughout the cake layers and drip the cookie butter over the edges. For this cake, you’ll need:

  • Flour: I used all purpose flour, but you can also use gluten free 1:1 baking flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill in the blue bag. I add in a tablespoon of arrowroot starch to simulate cake flour.
  • Sugar: I used granulated sugar. Be sure that your sugar if organic to ensure that it’s vegan. You can also use coconut sugar.
  • Vegan butter: I recommend Miyoko’s vegan butter or Flora Plant Butter. Earth Balance will work as well.
  • Applesauce: This replaces the eggs found in traditional cake.
  • Vegan buttermilk: I make my own vegan buttermilk by combining dairy free milk and apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice!). Let it sit for a few minutes to curdle then use in your recipe!
  • Cookie butter: Of course, we can’t have a cookie butter cake without cookie butter!
best cookie butter cake

How to make a secretly vegan biscoff 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 just love how easy this Biscoff cake is to make. We’ll first go over how to make the cookie butter cake layers, then we’ll get into how to assemble and decorate your secretly vegan Biscoff cake.

To make this vegan Biscoff cake:

  1. Cream together the vegan butter and sugar.

    I used a stand mixer with paddle attachment. You can also use a large bowl and hand mixer. Cream until the butter is fluffy and the sugar has almost emulsified throughout the butter. This helps give our cakes rise without eggs.

  2. Add in the applesauce, vanilla, and cookie butter.

    Mix until combined.how to make a biscoff cake

  3. Then sift in the dry ingredients and alternate in the vegan buttermilk.

    Mix on medium speed just until the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet ingredients!how to make a cookie butter cake

  4. Bake your cookie butter cakes!

    Pour the batter into your prepared cake pans and bake! How simple is that?cookie butter cake pans

How to assemble this biscoff cake

Now, let’s talk about the fun part: decorating!

It’s super important to note that your cakes should be fully cooled before you assemble. Any heat left in the cake risks melting your vegan buttercream, which would result in a messy collapse of your cake. Give your cakes at least 30 minutes (but I recommend an hour, especially if your kitchen is super humid) before you assemble. When you feel the cake, it should have absolutely no warmth to it.

Next, we’ll torte the cakes. This is not necessary, but if you want super leveled and clean cake layers, then you can easily torte the layers! There are special tools for this, but I simply use a large serrated knife, and make sure I’m leveling parallel to the table.

Now to assemble:

  1. Apply a thin layer of buttercream on top of the bottom layer of the vegan cake.
  2. Then pipe a border around the edge of the cake layer.
  3. Spoon the crushed Biscoff cookies into the middle, and drizzle with a bit of melted vegan cookie butter.
  4. Place your second cake layer on top, and repeat Steps 1-3.
  5. Then place your final cake layer on top, and apply a crumb coat.
  6. Next, you’ll chill the cake in the fridge or freezer for at least 20 minutes. This will help the layers set and stay as you apply your final frosting layer.
  7. Use a bench scraper and apply the final layer of buttercream frosting.
  8. Create a drip by spooning the melted cookie butter over the edges, and top with more piped buttercream on top.
  9. Slice and serve!
how to assemble a biscoff cake

FAQ’s

Why is my cake gummy?

This happens if you use cold ingredients while making your cake batter. It’s super crucial that you give your wet ingredients time to come to room temperature (room temperature is also a little different for each type of ingredient!) before baking. Gummy texture also happens if you over mix the batter. Be sure that you’re mixing the dry ingredients in just until they are combined!

Can I make this a gluten free biscoff cake?

There actually is a way so that you could easily make this a vegan gluten free biscoff cake! A brand called Partake sells gluten free cookies that are very similar to the classic Biscoff cookie, called the cookie butter cookie. They’re certified vegan and gluten free. You can also make your own homemade vegan GF cookie butter, linked in the recipe card below.

How do you get the cookie butter to be drippy?

I simply scooped a little of the cookie butter into a microwave safe bowl, and heated the cookie butter for just 30 seconds. The cookie butter should be drippy and very easy to move!

How long does this vegan Biscoff cake last?

If, by some miracle, you have any leftover slices (it’s just so good!), you can easily store the cake sliced and wrapped in tinfoil/plastic wrap twice. Then store the slices in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Can I use 8″ cake pans instead of 6″ cake pans?

Absolutely! Your cake layers will be thinner if you use three 8″ cake pans, but you could also use just two 8″ cake pans as well.

slice of vegan biscoff cake

You are just going to absolutely love this easy vegan Biscoff cake! It’s the perfect balance of cookie butter flavors and deliciously soft cake texture. Honestly, you won’t be able to stop at one bite!

This cookie butter cake is perfect for holidays, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and even Christmas Eve dessert! Or make this Biscoff cake for a birthday celebration, graduation, bridal shower, and more!

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

Best Ever Vegan Biscoff Cake (Gluten Free Option)

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!

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Best Ever Vegan Biscoff Cake (Gluten Free Option)

Best Ever Vegan Biscoff Cake

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 4 reviews
  • Author: thebananadiaries
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 16 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

This secretly vegan Biscoff cake is the best of both Speculoos cookies and deliciously tender and soft cake. With cookie butter baked throughout the sponge cake layers, crushed Biscoff cookies, and biscoff cookie butter, this cookie butter cake is an absolute showstopper.

Ingredients

Scale

Vegan Biscoff Cake:

  • 300 mL unsweetened dairy free milk, room temperature
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (to be mixed with dairy free milk milk)
  • 460 grams all-purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour + 1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 200 grams granulated sugar
  • 150 grams salted vegan butter (I recommend Flora Plant butter or Miyokos), room temperature
  • 170 grams unsweetened applesauce, room temperature
  • 150 grams biscoff cookie butter
  • 2 tbsp vanilla extract (yes, 2 tablespoons!!)
  • Optional (but recommended): 1/4 tsp vanilla powder

Vegan Vanilla Buttercream:

  • 2 cups vegan butter, softened
  • 4 cups organic powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2–4 tbsp unsweetened dairy free milk
  • 8–10 Lotucs cookies, crushed
  • 1/3 cup biscoff cookie butter, heated for 30 seconds until drippy

Instructions

  1. Prep:Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease three 6″ cake pans with cooking oil, and line them with parchment paper. Set aside. 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.
  2. Whisk the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
  3. Make the batter: In a stand mixer with paddle attachment or a large bowl with hand mixer, cream together the vegan butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides as needed. Then add in the applesauce, biscoff cookie butter, and vanilla extract. Mix again on medium speed until combined, scraping down the sides and at the bottom of the bowl as needed. Add in about half of the dry mixture, along with half of the vegan buttermilk, and mix on medium speed until just combined. Add in the remaining dry mixture and vegan buttermilk, and mix on medium speed until there are just no more dry streaks. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl as well as the sides.
  4. Divide the batter between the three cake pans evenly, and bake for 35 minutes in 6″ cake pans, or until the toothpick comes out clean. (for three 8″ cake pans, bake for 27-30)
  5. 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 Vanilla Buttercream:

  1. When ready to frost the cakes, add vegan butter to a large bowl or stand mixer and cream for 2-3 minutes.
  2. Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time, continuing the beat the mixture until it’s a thick buttercream.
  3. Add in vanilla and 2-4 tablespoons of coconut/almond milk and continue to beat until desired texture.

Assembly:

  1. To assemble the cake, pipe or spread about 1/2 cup vegan buttercream onto one top of a layer. Pipe a border around the top. Then sprinkle in about 1/4 cup of the crushed lotus cookies, plus a tablespoon drizzle of biscoff cookie butter. Place the second layer on top and repeat. Then place the third layer on top and coat with a crumb coat. Place the cake into the fridge to chill.
  2. Smooth the edges of the cake with a bench scraper, then apply the final layer of frosting. To create a drip, gently drip the biscoff spread over the edges of the cake. Then pipe the remaining frosting on top. Add Lotus cookies if desired and enjoy!

Notes

Biscoff spread & cookies: You can find both in bigger grocery store chains. If you’d like gluten free, there are similar style cookies called Partake, and those are gluten free. There is also this wonderful recipe for a gluten free biscoff cookie butter.