This super moist and tender red velvet bundt cake is so easy to make and naturally vegan and dairy free, yet you’d never know it! Topped with a dairy free cream cheese glaze, you’ll just love this twist on a classic red velvet cake!

moist red velvet bundt cake

Why you’ll love this secretly vegan red velvet bundt cake:

You’re going to absolutely fall in love with this red velvet bundt cake for a few reasons. Truly, it is probably the best red velvet cake I’ve had in a while.

This red velvet bundt cake is:

  • super moist and tender
  • velvety in texture and hinted with a bit of cocoa
  • the perfect blend of tangy and sweet
  • doesn’t require a ton of ingredients (and at that, they’re really simple ingredients!)
  • completely vegan and dairy free (there are no eggs needed for this recipe, and dairy free alternatives work great here!)
  • can be made gluten free by simply swapping out one ingredient
  • really easy! Plus no layering needed of cakes!

What makes a red velvet cake moist?

Traditionally, red velvet cake is made with buttermilk, which yields a really lovely velvety texture.

And the best part is that vegan/dairy free buttermilk works just as well in baked goods and cakes as regular buttermilk. You’ll simply make it from scratch with your favorite creamy dairy free milk and a bit of apple cider vinegar.

bundt cake with icing

However, I’ve also found that this vegan red velvet cake is extra tender and velvety for one ingredient: sour cream. And I do mean dairy free sour cream!

The sour cream adds a whole level of moisture to this cake while still helping it to be sturdy enough to stand on its own.

If Martha Stewart is using sour cream in her cakes, then we should probably too! 😉

slice of red velvet cake on plate

Ingredients you’ll need

As mentioned above, this red velvet bundt cake is made with just a few simple ingredients. Like all my cake recipes, I strive to make these recipes as easy and simple as possible for all readers.

That’s because I want you to see how amazing and fun baking can be, and I want you to be so proud of what you’ve made. And trust me, you’re going to be over the moon with this vegan bundt cake!

For this bundt cake, you’ll need:

  • Flour: I recommend cake flour here. If you don’t have cake flour, you can easily make your own by just sifting and whisking in 1 teaspoon of arrowroot starch or cornstarch. If you’re gluten-free, swap in your favorite 1:1 gluten-free flour (my recommendations are in the recipe card!).
  • Cacao powder: you can also use cocoa powder here, but I like the stronger flavor of cacao powder!
  • Leavening agents: just your typical baking powder and baking soda here.
  • Sugar: if you want to keep this red velvet bundt cake completely refined sugar free, you can swap in coconut sugar. However, the cake won’t be as red!
  • Vegan butter: I recommend Miyoko’s vegan butter, Flora Plant Butter, or Forager Project vegan butter. Those yield the best flavors. You can also use coconut oil if you’d like, but be sure to use a triple refined coconut oil if you don’t want a coconut oil taste to the cake.
  • Vegan sour cream: so the sour cream I use is Forager Project. It’s completely dairy free, and it’s the only vegan sour cream I’ve found on the market (when this recipe was created). That being said, it might not be available in your area yet! If that’s the case, you can use plain unsweetened dairy free yogurt, same measurements.
  • Vegan buttermilk: this is just a combination of dairy free milk and apple cider vinegar. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to curdle.
  • Applesauce: I use unsweetened applesauce, because this cake is definitely sweet (though not as much sugar as other red velvet cakes!). This replaces the eggs in traditional red velvet cakes.
  • Vegan food coloring: I’ve found that gel/liquid vegan food coloring works best here. You can use beet powder, but you’ll need quite a bit. The Whole Foods vegan food colorings do fade when they bake so I don’t recommend that brand. I found a red food coloring by Nomeca on Amazon that’s completely vegan so I recommend that one!
slices of bundt cake lined up on each other

Two ways to make this vegan bundt cake

For the longest time, I just mixed everything by hand or used my hand mixer. I even made a multi-tiered wedding cake by hand. So just know that if you don’t have a stand mixer, you can still make an amazing cake.

This red velvet bundt cake can specifically be made two ways:

The first way: by stand mixer.

The second way: by hand mixer.

Both ways will yield identical results; the only difference is that if you don’t have a stand mixer or don’t care to use yours, it’ll just be a bit more work on your end!

The beauty of this red velvet bundt cake in particular is that though you can use either a stand mixer or a hand mixer, the method is essentially the same.

Of course, the full recipe to this bundt cake is found down below in the recipe card! However, let’s go over the basic steps to making this vegan red velvet bundt cake:

  • Whisk together the dry ingredients. This is just the flour, cacao powder, baking powder, and baking soda. Then set aside.
  • Cream together the vegan butter, sour cream, sugar, and applesauce. You’ll first start by creaming together the vegan butter and the sour cream. Once fluffy, you’ll add in the applesauce and sugar. As you continue to beat the mixture, whether in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, the sugar completely dissolves into the butter sour cream mixture with the applesauce.
  • Add the dry ingredients and vegan buttermilk in increments. Carefully add part of the flour and part of the buttermilk into the bowl as you’re mixing. Continue to do this until all of the mixture is added into the bowl, and beat the batter until there are no more streaks of dry ingredients.
  • Add in the vegan red food coloring. This you’ll have to experiment with. A common question is how much red food coloring to add, and with vegan red food coloring, you need quite a bit. Depending on your brand as well, you’ll need more or less. I would start out with 1 teaspoon while you’re mixing the batter, and continue to add a bit more until you reached a deep red.
  • Bake the red velvet bundt cake! Simply pour the batter into your prepared bundt cake pan and bake!
  • vegan butter being creamed
  • red velvet batter
  • vegan red velvet bundt cake batter
  • red velvet bundt cake in bundt cake pan

Once the cake is cooled for a few minutes in the pan, and you’ve flipped it onto a plate, I like to drizzle a bit of dairy free cream cheese icing on top!

To make this, you’ll simply combine softened dairy free cream cheese (I recommend Miyoko’s or Kite Hill) and powdered sugar. Drizzle on top and serve!

drizzling glaze

More tips on how to make a red velvet bundt cake

And just to make sure that your vegan red velvet bundt cake comes out perfectly each time, let’s go over some final tips!

  • Sift the flours before beginning. This is important for any recipe, but make sure that your flour and dry ingredients are sifted before beginning. This prevents any clumps of dry ingredients while mixing.
  • Use room temperature ingredients. Any time you bake with ingredients that vary in temperature, you’ll risk the texture of the cake (sometimes too gummy, sometimes dense and claggy). Allow a decent amount of time for something to come to room temperature.
  • Prepare your bundt cake pan before you begin. Always a good step, this will also save you time during the baking process. You’ll want to get that cake immediately into the oven after baking, as the leavening agents have already activated!
  • Make this vegan bundt cake entirely nut-free as well. This recipe is really easy to do nut-free. Just make sure you’re using nut-free dairy free ingredients!
  • Try not to make any swaps that haven’t been approved of in the recipe card. Of course, you’re always free to do so, but just know that the recipe might not come out as it’s intended.
slices of bundt cake

I hope you love this vegan red velvet bundt cake as much as I do! If you make it, let me know down below in the comments section, as well as giving it a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ so that others may find it!

As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there!

Happy bundt cake baking!

More vegan cake recipes you’ll love:

The Best Vegan Vanilla Cake

Ultra Moist Vegan Chocolate Cake

Easy Vegan Red Velvet Cake

Fudgy Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Cake

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

Super Moist Red Velvet Bundt Cake (Vegan!)
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drizzling glaze

Easy Vegan Red Velvet Bundt Cake

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review
  • Author: thebananadiaries
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 42
  • Total Time: 52 minutes
  • Yield: 16 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

This super moist and tender red velvet bundt cake is so easy to make and naturally vegan and dairy free, yet you’d never know it! Topped with a dairy free cream cheese glaze, you’ll just love this twist on a classic red velvet cake!

Ingredients

Scale

Vegan Red Velvet Bundt Cake:

  • 1/2 cup vegan butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup vegan sour cream, room temperature*
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup vegan buttermilk
  • 3 cups cake flour, sifted*
  • 2 tbsp cacao powder
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp vegan red food coloring*

Vegan Cream Cheese Glaze:

  • 4 ounces vegan cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
  • 2–3 tbsp dairy free milk.

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease a 10-cup bundt cake pan with olive or coconut oil.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cacao powder, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
  3. In a stand mixer or a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the vegan butter and sour cream until fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add in the applesauce, sugar, and vanilla extract, and cream together until the sugar is slightly dissolved into the mixture (about 2-3 minutes).
  4. Sift in about 1/3 of the flour mixture, along with half of the buttermilk mixture. Beat together until flour begins to incorporate into the batter. Add in the remaining flour and buttermilk mixture, and mix until it’s a smooth and drippy batter (about 2-3 minutes).
  5. Add in the vegan red food coloring (depending on the brand and its color saturation, you may need more or less), and mix together until the color is incorporated throughout.
  6. Pour the batter into the bundt cake pan, and bake the bundt cake for 40-42 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 
  7. Remove from the oven, and allow the bundt cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then carefully wedge a knife around the cake to release it from the edges. Place a serving plate on top of the bundt cake pan (top of the plate facing the cake), and flip the cake onto plate.
  8. To make the vegan cream cheese glaze, use a stand mixer or hand mixer to beat together the cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add in the dairy free milk to make the cream cheese glaze more drippy. Drizzle the glaze over the bundt cake and serve!

Notes

Gluten free option: to make this vegan red velvet bundt cake gluten free, simply use Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour or King Arthur’s 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour.

Sour cream option: I used Forager Project’s vegan sour cream here. It’s currently the only brand I know of that’s vegan, so if it’s not available near you, you can also swap in unsweetened plain coconut milk yogurt or cashew milk yogurt.

Refined sugar free option: you can make this cake refined sugar free by using coconut sugar; however, the color of the bundt cake will be more tan in color rather than red.

Vegan Food Coloring: