One Bowl FRESH Vegan Strawberry Cake (No Food Coloring! Easy!)
This easy vegan strawberry cake is PACKED with fresh strawberries and so simple to make (no gelatin and just a whisk and a bowl!)! Layered with a fresh strawberry buttercream, this will quickly become your favorite spring vegan cake recipe!
The best homemade strawberry cake, vegan or not:
You are just going to love this fresh vegan strawberry cake. It’s full of fresh strawberries, bursting with sweetness, and deliciously light and tender.
And when I say it’s easy…as easy as my delicious one bowl lemon blueberry cake and vegan pistachio cake (you need only a whisk and a mixing bowl to make the batter!), and bakes SO lovely, you’ll be shocked to learn there are no eggs, no dairy, and no animal products whatsoever in this amazing vegan cake recipe.
And like my vegan strawberry cupcakes and peanut butter swirled strawberry sheet cake, we’re leaving the cake and frosting naturally colored pink from the strawberries. That’s right- NO food coloring whatsoever (because I really want to celebrate true natural colors!).
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The goal of this homemade strawberry cake that was not only vegan (so no gelatin nor JELL-O mix here!), but also simple in ingredients. And the buttercream is made so sweet with strawberry flavor thanks to the freeze dried strawberries!
Overall, this homemade strawberry cake is a win. It’s full of fresh strawberry flavor, lightly hinted with vanilla, tender, soft, and moist, and just an overall delight to eat.
Like my vegan vanilla cake with loads of strawberry flavor.
It’s the perfect way to celebrate late spring, early summer, Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, birthday parties (though my vegan yellow cake is LOVELY), baby showers, and more.
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need for this vegan cake recipe:
- Flour: I’ve used both all purpose flour and gluten free 1:1 baking flour (a blend that contains xanthan gum is a MUST). I recommend King Arthur measure-for-measure gluten-free flour if you’re baking this as a gluten free vegan strawberry cake!
- Strawberry puree: we go over this in the next section, but all you’ll need are strawberries! Just like my fresh strawberry ice cream, we’re focusing on real strawberry flavor 🙂
- Dairy free yogurt: This is our vegan egg replacement. I love using yogurt in cake recipes because the acid in the yogurt helps to react with the baking soda and give our cakes a lovely rise AND tender texture.
- Vegan butter: I do recommend using vegan butter over coconut oil. The flavor is nice with the coconut oil, but you don’t get the same lift and height of the cake as you do with vegan butter. The reason being is that it’s a lot easier to emulsify the sugar into the butter rather than the coconut oil. Make sure you’re using unsalted vegan butter if you can. If you can’t find unsalted, then simply use salted and omit the salt in the dry ingredients.
- Sugar: I love using Florida Crystals sugar because it’s 100% organic and vegan (super important).
- Vegan buttermilk: a combination of dairy-free milk and apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. You can use soy milk or almond milk for the best results- or oat milk for soy and nut allergies! I’ve also used Forager Project drinkable cashew milk probiotic yogurt- it works JUST like buttermilk!
- Vanilla: strawberries and vanilla extract just go so well together!
The key: fresh strawberry puree
If you’ve read online, then you know that you can’t just add strawberries to a vanilla cake and call it a day. Trust me, I’ve learned by experience!
For this vegan strawberry cake, all you need to do is blend the strawberries in a blender and incorporate into the wet ingredients.
You really need to be careful with how much strawberry puree is added to make sure there’s a strong strawberry flavor, while also not adding TOO much moisture to the cake (vegan cakes are already really moist!).
We’ve finally gotten down the perfect ratio, so I’m SO excited for you to try this recipe. It’s just perfectly moist, soft, fluffy, and FULL of fresh strawberry flavor- no extra work needed.
A deliciously fresh & easy strawberry frosting:
If you’ve ever tried to add fresh strawberries to a buttercream, then you know that it has a high potential of splitting. Trust me, I have been there before, and it’s so frustrating, so I feel you!
Enter in the new and deliciously simple vegan strawberry buttercream frosting.
Using freeze dried strawberries (blitzed in a food processor) in lieu of fresh strawberries is the move. If you can’t find freeze dried strawberries, you can use strawberry preserves (NOT strawberry reduction) or a strawberry jam– these both work for making an amazing vegan strawberry buttercream (like my blueberry frosting recipe).
But I do advise caution, as too much liquid in your strawberry jam will cause the buttercream to split. Stick with fresh strawberry preserves, if you can!
The other thing to note is sifted powdered sugar. This will give you that really creamy and lush strawberry buttercream that will complement your homemade strawberry cake so beautifully.
I had some extra buttercream, so I decided to pipe the rest on top and top with fresh strawberries!
Final cake tips & tricks
- I recommend using just fresh strawberries: Unlike my blueberry cake, which can use frozen blueberries, since strawberry puree makes up a main portion of the batter, we don’t want really frozen and cold ingredients going into our cake batter. It will yield a really gummy texture. Try to just use fresh strawberries if possible!
- Make it a gluten free strawberry cake. As I mentioned above, this can easily be made as a gluten free strawberry cake!
- Don’t over mix the batter. Over mixing the batter will often times lead to the cake not rising and/or a gummy texture. Mix until there are JUST no more dry streaks.
- Bake with either 6″ cake or an 8″ round cake pans. The cake in the photo is over an 8″ cake that I baked in two layer sand sliced in half. You can also do a three layer 6″ cake or just two massive layered 8″ cakes! You can also bake this into a strawberry sheet cake as well!
- Turn into vegan strawberry cupcakes. If you want to make this vegan strawberry cake as strawberry cupcakes, go right ahead! The current recipe below will yield 24 cupcakes.
You’re just going to LOVE this fresh vegan strawberry cake as much as I do! It was such a hit with my family, and I just know yours will love it too.
If you make this cake, let me know by leaving a comment down below, as well as a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ so that others may find this recipe!
As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful cakes, so be sure to tag me on Instagram and Pinterest!
Happy cake baking!
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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!
Print
One Bowl FRESH Vegan Strawberry Cake (No Food Coloring! Easy!)
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 35
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This easy vegan strawberry cake is PACKED with fresh strawberries and so simple to make (no gelatin and just a whisk and a bowl!)! Layered with a fresh strawberry buttercream, this will quickly become your favorite spring vegan cake recipe!
Ingredients
Vegan Strawberry Cake:
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3 1/2 cups (440 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour*
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1 tbsp baking powder
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1 1/3 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
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1/2 cup (120 mL) vegan buttermilk or Forager Project drinkable cashew milk probiotic yogurt, room temperature
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1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar
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1 cup (240 g) strawberry puree*, room temperature
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1/2 cup (120 g) dairy free yogurt, room temperature
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3/4 cup (170 g) vegan butter, room temperature
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2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 batch vegan strawberry frosting
Instructions
- Prep: First make the vegan butter milk. Mix together the dairy free milk with the apple cider vinegar to curdle and become a vegan buttermilk. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350F and line two 8″ cake pans or three 6″ cake pans with parchment paper and lightly oil.
- Make the batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the vegan butter, sugar, dairy free yogurt, strawberry puree, and vanilla extract until combined and smooth. You don’t want any clumps of butter. If it’s easiest, you can melt the vegan butter first and allow it to come to room temperature. Sift in the remaining ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt) followed by the vegan buttermilk, and mix JUST until there are no more dry streaks (being careful not to over mix the batter).
- Bake: Divide the batter evenly into the cake pans, and place the cake pans into the oven. A 6″ cake will take around 28-30 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean. For two 8″ cake layers, bake for 30-35 minutes, and test with a toothpick.
- Cool: Once the cakes are baked, remove from the oven and allow the cakes to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to a cooling rack to fully cool before frosting.
- Make the strawberry buttercream: Once cool, make the strawberry buttercream per instructions.
- Assemble and frost: To assemble the cake, add about 1 cup of frosting in between each layer, smoothing to the edges of the cake. Frost the outer edges as well. If you have any reserved frosting, you can pipe decoration onto the top and bottoms of the cake as well!
- Serve & enjoy! Top with fresh strawberries and enjoy!
Notes
Gluten free: you can easily make this vegan strawberry cake gluten free by using a gluten-free flour blend containing xanthan gum (super important!). I love using King Arthur Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour with 1 tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot starch.
Strawberry puree: It’s really best to use a kitchen scale here if you can! 240 g fresh strawberries = 240 g strawberry puree. However, 1 cup strawberry puree is ABOUT 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, so it’s a bit different. Simply blend the strawberries in a blender or food processor until pureed. Then incorporate into your cake batter.
This cake is so gorgeous and refreshing!!
Aw I’m so glad you loved it!!
WOW! I cannot wait to try this recipe, also I love your photography and photos. They look absolutely gorgeous!
You are just the sweetest, thank you Erin!!! I hope you love it!
Hi, how do you bake the sweet potato? At what temperature? Thanks!
Hi Carol! You can bake the sweet potato at 400F on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 1 hour! I have a whole post here: https://thebananadiaries.com/baked-sweet-potato/ Enjoy!!
I was wondering if you thought this cake would be fine in cupcake form? It’s a little bit easier to transport cupcakes which is why I was wondering 🙂
Of course!! 🙂 Just be sure to fill the cupcakes about 3/4 of the way up, since oat flour tends not to rise as much!
Hi Britt,
Is it possible to use vegetable oil in place of vegan butter in this recipe ? If yes, how much of oil should be used ? I do not get vegan butter in the country I reside.
Hi Sudha! Yes, you can use vegetable oil, the same quantity will apply! 🙂 Enjoy!
Hi, I have 2 questions : 1- Can I cut half your recipe for a 10-12 person cake? 2- Can I reduce the amount of flour?
Hi Marie! Yes, you can cut the recipe in half, and you’ll still be fine- it will yield one 8″ cake layer or two 6″ cake layers. I wouldn’t reduce the amount of flour.
Thank you for your answer, it is much appreciated. 🙂 I have another question. In all your birthday cake recipes (except chocolate), what are your mellower? Because I’m looking for a nice variety of vegan cake flavor, but very mellow.
Oh yes, absolutely! I love my vegan blueberry lemon cake and vegan blackberry cake 🙂 They have really nice light and “buttery” flavors to them!
Can this be frozen to frost a week later?
Yes it can! Though make sure you’re wrapping the cakes layers after they’ve cooled and wrap them tightly so that they don’t lose any moisture.
I did the cake with all purpose flour, cream cheese frosting for the inside and chocolate sauce on the top. I left the cake in the refrigerator for a day and it was DELICIOUS!!! The cake didn’t rise a lot 🙁 but the taste and the texture was amazing
So happy to hear this!! The chocolate sauce sounds AMAZING! For the rising, it might have been the baking powder!
Could I double this?
Yes, you absolutely can!
conversion of grams to cups? we don’t measure by grams in most recipes
Hi Meg! If you click the “US” button right next to where it says “Ingredients,” it will convert all of the gram measurements to cups for you! 🙂 Enjoy!
Do you mean you use one 8 inch cake pan and then cut it in half to make the layers?
Oh no I use two cake pans!
What vegan butter do you recommend/ or use?
I recommend Miyoko’s or Violife!
I see you recommend a 8 inch pan. What would happen if I used 9 inch pan?
Hi Gabby! You can use one or two 9″ pans, if you bake it in just one 9″ pan, it will need longer to bake than the recommended time (and you won’t need as much frosting!), if you bake it in two 9″ pans, you’ll need shorter to bake than the recommended time!
How long do you recommend to bake if I have 2 9” pan?
Hi Marcella! It will probably need 27-30 minutes, but I would check around the 25-26 min mark with just the oven light!
Can’t wait to make this later this week! I noticed a couple “either/or” options and wondered which you find gives the best texture and flavor? Specifically for the vegan buttermilk vs cashew milk, and applesauce vs dairy free yogurt?
Thanks!
Hi Robin! That’s wonderful! So for the batter, I recommend using the dairy free yogurt over applesauce- I think it gives a much more tender texture, and you definitely want to keep in the buttermilk, as that will help give the cake a fluffy rise- otherwise, you’re just relying on the baking powder to do the work! I hope that helps!
I think you didn’t mention, what temperature should we bake the cake?
Hi Francine! Oh yes, it’s in the first step! 350F 🙂 Enjoy!
I made this for my book club and it was delicious! I accidentally used granulated sugar for the frosting so I had to remake it with powdered sugar (that’s what I get for rushing!) and it was divine. Love this account since two of my book club friends can’t eat dairy.
This is so lovely!!! I’m so happy to hear it was so enjoyed! Thanks so much for coming back to review 🙂
Hi, wondering if you can use almond or coconut flour to make this cake grain free??
Hi Mary Jo! I haven’t personally tried this with almond flour, so I don’t know how it will come out (I normally don’t bake with almond flour at all actually!), but it definitely won’t work with coconut flour- I’m so sorry!
I made this today and it was so good!!! I just had trouble making the frosting thick, I think I added a little too much milk but other than that it was amazing. Will be making again!
I’m so happy to hear you loved it!! Thanks so much for the review 🙂 Enjoy!!
I’m making this now! My batter had little tiny butter chunks. Is this normal? I don’t normally whisk butter but it was room temperature – I let it sit out for several hours. Also by batter seemed really thick – not pourable but scooped it into the pans. I sure hope it turns out!
Hi Sally! The butter should have been whisked until there were no clumps there. It should have been smooth and incorporated into the batter. Did you also use a kitchen scale or measuring cups?
I use measuring cups. Maybe put that in the instructions that the butter needs to be smooth? I don’t know why mine wasn’t. I actually used my kitchen aid to blend it at first so it would be smooth. But it looks like cakes came out nice and fluffy! They are cooling now….
Can I frost it today. – Friday – with strawberry buttercream and it still be fresh on Sunday if I put it in s covered cake container?
I did just add a note, so thank you for that! I’m happy they look good 🙂 Yes, you could frost it today- but just make sure that the layers are completely cool before frosting, and then make sure that you’re not frosting naked cake-style- so just ensure that the entire cake is covered in the buttercream, as that will also help with insulation! 🙂
I love this recipe! The cake does not only look absolutely beautiful, it tastes amazing and my whole (non-vegan) family loves it. It is also really easy to make. Highly recommended!💗
This is so wonderful! Thanks so much, Klara 🙂 Glad you loved it!!
Ok, so I just attempted this recipe. My cake turned out very ugly but still very tasty (: I’m not sure exactly what I did wrong, hoping for some pointers. My main issues were 1. The cakes were moist and flavorful but fell apart when I tried to assemble them(one layer a lot more than the other). And if you squeezed some cake in your hand it was like putty, too moist? I felt that my “buttermilk” didn’t really curdle, could that be it? I used oat milk. I used coconut based yogurt. 2. My frosting was way too runny and I could not get it to fluff up at all. It just slowly dripped off my crumbling cake layers. I could not find the exact dairy free cream cheese you recommended and so I used the Kite Hill dairy free one. Those were the two main issues I had, which is basically the whole cake lol! I used all of the ingredients you listed and did not make any subs so I’m not exactly sure how it went so wrong. Would love as much advice as possible, I would love to attempt it again!
Hi Alana!
I’m glad to hear it at least tasted good!! But for what went wrong- it’s okay that the oat milk didn’t curdle- it won’t! Just adding the acid in there though will help with the cake rising. In terms of it falling apart and being mushy, it sounds like a mixture of underbaking and over mixing (and potentially a flour issue- did you use a gluten free flour?). For the frosting being runny, Kite Hill still works, but it must have been either that you let the cream cheese and butter come TOO much to room temperature (so it was overly soft) or that you were frosting on a warm cake! Did you use the freeze dried strawberries in the frosting recipe or fresh too?
I was wondering if there is a way to incorpore lemon as a flavor component , I want to do a strawberry lemon and I love everything about the recipe and wondered if there is an easy way to bring lemon in?
Oh absolutely!! Add the lemon zest of 1 lemon to the sugar and rub together, then you can incorporate the sugar into the recipe as it states. Then also add in 1 tsp of lemon extract along with the vanilla extract!
Yay! Perfect! Thank you!
The best quality powdered sugar I can find is the “Woodstock organic powdered sugar” but it still has cornstarch. There’s not a single bag in my town that doesn’t. Will this work in some kind of ratio or is cornstarch an absolute no?
You can absolutely use that one! The cornstarch won’t hurt the frosting at all- might even help!
This is the second time I have made this, and I have to tell you this is the best cake!! I made it a couple of months ago and my 16 year old daughter who actually doesn’t like cake (never knew there were people who don’t- especially kids) absolutely LOVED it. She said it is because the cake itself is delicious even on it’s own so that every bite is good with or without frosting. She requested it for her 17th birthday and it is now cooling. I have celiac disease and a dairy allergy so this was perfect. First time I didn’t have the yogurt so I just increased my puree a bit and added a little applesauce. This time I just increased my puree. Looks great. My butter substitute is Country Crock plant butter. I used 1 c almond milk with apple cider vinegar for the buttermilk. I also made the frosting suggested. Used SO Delicious brand cream cheese substitute. The first time I used full amount of milk it was excellent. This time I tried with just 2 T almond milk and it seems fluffier. 28 min at 350 in 2 9″ round pans. Holy cow is this a winner!!! Great recipe!
DEEEEELICIOUS!!! So fluffy and moist, perfect amount of sweetness and strawberry flavor. My family raved over this cake! Can’t wait to make it again!
Can this be baked in a 9×13 pan? Thanks
Yes it can! It will probably be around 40-45 minutes, but check with the oven light as you’re baking.
Thank you for your recipe, making this this weekend 🙂 Question: for the strawberry puree, is it just strawberry’s in a blender or are we adding sugar to the puree?
Oh absolutely! So the strawberry puree is literally just pureed strawberries- it’s awesome! No need to add any sugar 🙂 You just blend the strawberries in a blender!
Can you use this recipe for cupcakes? If so would the baking time modify?
Hi Elena! Yes you can! I would do about 1/2 the recipe though to yield around 12 cupcakes. They’ll bake for about 18-20 minutes!
Hi there! About to make this cake in a week, I am curious if they vegan butter used is salted or unsalted.. and if I can’t get my hands on vegan butter, can coconut oil be used? Thanks for these wonderful recipes! I look forward to baking this cake!
Hi Allison! Oh wonderful! The vegan butter is unsalted, but if you can only find salted (usually more widely available), no problem- just omit the salt! You can also use coconut oil, but the cake will have a bit of a coconut flavor!
So if I’m making this gluten free and using the King Arthur brand do I need to add the baking powder and soda or j just the cornstarch?
Hi Wendy! You’ll still add in the baking powder and soda as well as the cornstarch 🙂
Hello, can I make this with real buttermilk, yogurt, & butter?
Unfortunately I can’t guarantee results as I’m truly vegan and haven’t tried making this withy anything other than vegan ingredients!
I am one of those people who absolutely hate it when people modify a recipe on a blog and then rate the recipe poorly as if the fault of the recipe gone wrong wasn’t because of their modifications.
I saw this recipe but I was missing sugar (I only had honey) and I didn’t have enough all purpose flour (I only had two cups, but had sprouted spelt flour I could use to make up the difference) but I wanted it now… I ended up using those substitutes, though, I didn’t know how to substitute honey in a recipe, so I googled and found a honey company blog that explained that I needed to reduce the oven temperature, add a bit more baking soda, decrease a small amount of fluids (I reduced the vegan buttermilk by a quarter and kept everything else the same), and use less honey than sugar (https://bigislandbees.com/blogs/honey-recipes/how-to-cook-with-honey). Thank goodness it worked, because this cake is amazing. Equally wonderful, my house now smells like strawberries. Thank you!
This is wonderful!! I’m so happy that it turned out amazing 🙂 And thank you so much for giving these notes, it’s so helpful to other readers!! Enjoy!!
You’re welcome and thank YOU! I’ve never baked such a moist cake before, it’s soooo good!
Since we both love Miyoko’s, I should also share for those who don’t have enough vegan butter, Miyoko’s shared their original recipe years ago online, and this link matches the recipe in her book from 2017: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/glorious-butterless-butter-from-homemade-vegan-127214962886.html However, in the book she notes that the coconut oil can be substituted for light flavourless oils.
The strawberry cake was a hit!! Even among my friends and family that believed vegan and gluten free couldn’t taste good. The only thing I noticed when poking around, is it true that if you increase the recipe that the measure to for flour, baking soda, baking powder don’t increase? I noticed when I toggled it did not change for those ones.
what size sheet pan do you recommend ?
9×13 would be great!
Hi do you have any tips for making ahead, freezing, and icing a week later?
Yes! I would wrap the cakes tightly in plastic wrap after they’ve cooled and then store them in an airtight plastic bag to keep freshness. Then the night before frosting, place them in the fridge to thaw. Then ice the next day!
How long can this be at room temperature, once frosted?
Thank you!
Hi Shannon! To help the frosting set after assembling, I chill the cake in the fridge for 30-60 min, then it can be at room temperature for 1-2 hours!
Do you have a dairy free yogurt you recommend?
Oh yes! I love Forager Project or Kite Hill! For nut free, I’ll use Culina- they’re also great!
Hi! I’m planning on making this for a birthday cake this weekend. Do you think the cake will still be moist and fresh if I bake the night before, allow to cool in the refrigerator and frost the day of the party?
Yes absolutely! If you bake the cake the night before, you actually don’t need to refrigerate- just let it cool at room temp and wrap it tightly, leaving it on the counter overnight. Then frost the next day 🙂 Enjoy!
I have made this cake several times. It always turns out delicious. My daughter request it for her birthdays!
AMAZING!!! Omgsh it’s so beautiful!!! The frosting looks perfect 🙂 So happy you all enjoy! Thank you for the review!!
I can’t find the freeze dried strawberries. Can I just use fresh strawberries for the frosting?
Hi Erica! Not a problem! This is actually a great discussion, as it’s such a common question. You can actually swap in 1/2 cup strawberry jam/preserves. That will work perfectly! Fresh strawberries will cause the frosting to split. Enjoy!!
The batter is becoming more of a dough. What now? I am following the recipe to the letter.
It shouldn’t be like dough- it sounds like either you measured something wrong, or did you use a different gluten free flour blend? It should be runny like cake batter!
I made this cake for my bday this year (Aug) and it did not disappoint. I was beyond blown away and taken aback by not only the cake but the cream cheese frosting. My husband practically ate the whole cake and loved it. I followed the recipe to the tee and was very particular about quality ingredients. I’m not much of a baker, but I am a vegan cook and I understand how quality ingredients can make a dish. What I appreciated the most was the details of the recipe, and notes provided. I am a recipe reader, and most times can understand a dish by reading the recipe and you did an excellent job! Excited to try the berry Chantilly cake. Great job all around.
This is STUNNING!! Oh I’m so so happy you loved it!! Absolutely beautiful 🙂 Thank you so much for the review!!
Made this for a small gathering and it was sooo good. I’m not vegan but one of my friends is. Everyone liked it!