This Coffee and Walnut Traybake style cake ticks all the boxes. It's delicious, easy to make (with foolproof, super easy icing) and it's vegan! You definitely can have it all!
Coffee and walnut cake in its full glory but in a traybake form simply because I love traybake style cakes.
They are super easy to throw together, there is just one baking tray to worry about plus (and that's my favourite bit) they're so much easier to cut into even slices and you can make it go further too.
When creating this recipe I took Mary Berry's coffee and walnut traybake cake recipe as a starting point and went from there.
I adapted it to make it vegan friendly and made couple of other changes based on my trial runs with the recipe and went for different method of preparing the icing (soo much easier and both fuss and mess free).
I hope you enjoy!
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe
- Quick and easy bake, only one baking tray needed.
- It uses simple, everyday ingredients (no espresso powder required).
- Easy, no mess, no mixer icing recipe.
- Coffee and walnut flavours all the way!
- Vegan recipe that is perfect for those avoiding eggs and dairy.
📝 Ingredients
Here's what you will need to make my Coffee and Walnut Traybake:
Cake
Self-Raising Flour - If you don't happen to have it you can use same amount of plain/all-purpose flour + 2 ¼ teaspoon of baking powder.
Cornflour (Corn Starch) - A little bit of cornflour will add a bit more lightness to the cake. You can also use potato flour here instead or if you don't have either simply add an extra tablespoon of self-raising or plain flour.
Baking Powder - Just a little extra to help with rising. If you 're making your own self-raising flour you would still add extra baking powder as per recipe card below.
Brown Sugar - For that extra caramel like flavour which goes so well with coffee.
Walnuts
Instant Coffee - All you need is some basic instant coffee granules which we will turn into strong coffee by adding a touch of water, you will find details below.
Vegan Yogurt - Plain soya yogurt will work best here.
Plant Milk - Either soya or oat work well.
Oil - Use neutral tasting oil for baking. I like cold-pressed rapeseed oil or light olive oil. Mary Berry uses butter here but oil work so much better in vegan bakes.
Icing
Icing Sugar - I use golden icing sugar but regular one works great too. Make sure to sieve it first for nice and smooth icing.
Vegan Block Butter - I use Flora Plants or Naturli (both in the UK). Both salted and unsalted work well. Personally, I like the salted butter in otherwise sweet icing.
Instant Coffee Granules - Just like in our cake we will make a strong coffee here adding just a touch of water.
Vegan Cream - Wo only need a little bit but it will help with the soft and spreadable consistency of the icing.
Walnuts - Not really icing ingredient, but you will want some for decoration.
🔪 Instructions
Ingredient quantities & detailed instructions to be found in recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Preheat the oven to 160C(fan)/320F/Gas Mark 3 and prepare baking pan by lining it with some baking paper.
Roughly chop walnuts.
Prepare strong coffee by dissolving 2 tablespoons of instant coffee granules in 1 tablespoon of freshly boiled water and let it cool slightly.
Put all dry ingredients (flour, corn flour and baking powder) in a large bowl and give them a mix with a whisk. Alternatively, you can sieve them in.
In a large jug (or another bowl) whisk together brown sugar, oil, strong coffee, yogurt and plant milk. You want nice and uniform mixture.
Next, pour wet mixture into the bowl with dry ingredients and mix until combined.
***Quick Tip*** Be gentle when mixing but don't over think it. I like to use silicone spatula and mix the batter using gentle, folding motion.
Add chopped walnuts towards the end of mixing and fold them gently into the batter.
There will be lumps in the cake batter but don't overmix it. As long as there is no visible specs of flour it's good.
Pour cake batter into prepared, lined cake tin and bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until skewer inserted into centre comes out clean.
Once ready, take the cake out of the oven and leave it in a tin for a few minutes before taking it out onto cooling rack to cool completely.
While cake is in the oven, prepare the icing.
Sieve icing sugar into a bowl and prepare strong coffee by dissolving 1.5 tablespoon instant coffee granules in 1 tablespoon of just boiled water.
Melt vegan butter in a pan or microwave and pour over icing sugar, following quickly with cream and strong coffee.
Whisk it all really well with small whisk (or wooden spoon) until the mixture is nice and smooth and without any visible lumps.
At this point the icing will be quite runny but once in the fridge it will set to the perfect consistency.
The icing prepared this way can be left in the fridge until the cake is ready and cool.
When you're ready to ice the traybake, take the icing out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes as initially it might be a little stiff.
Give it a quick mix and spread over the top of the cake.
Sprinkle some chopped walnuts or walnut halves over the iced cake, serve and enjoy.
🥡 Storing
Store: Coffee and walnut traybake will keep in the airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freeze: You can freeze portioned cake (including icing) in freezer safe containers for up to 1 month. Make sure to freeze it in a single layer and gently covered with layer of baking paper and then the lid.
You can also freeze uniced sponge. Make sure you wrap it well to prevent freezer burn and freeze for up to 3 months.
Defrost: Defrost in the fridge overnight or for couple of hours on the kitchen counter. If defrosting in the fridge, bring it to room temperature before serving.
💭 Pro tips
For the best results when baking use kitchen scales when weighing out the ingredients.
If like me you are a fan of traybakes, invest in good quality springform cake tin. I use and highly recommend this rectangular springform 28x18cm one. It makes getting your cakes out a breeze.
Preheat the oven ahead of time so that it's ready the moment your cake batter is in the baking tin. You want to get your cake in the oven as soon as you can.
Be gentle when mixing the batter, you don't want to overmix it.
Some lumps in the batter are fine, don't try to smooth them out or you will overmix it. As long as there are no visible specs of flour you are fine.
My easy icing can be made in advance and kept in the fridge until needed. Remember to take it out of the fridge 5-10 minutes before spreading to soften slightly.
Experiment with your toppings. I used chopped walnuts together with some cacao nibs as coffee and chocolate goes together so well. You could also use some dark chocolate covered coffee beans.
❓FAQ
No, I'm afraid not. It will simply not be strong enough to impart all that lovely coffee flavour into the cake. You would have to use a lot of it and that would simply not work due to too much liquid.
Absolutely.
American coffee cakes don't actually contain any coffee whereas British coffee and walnut cake does contain coffee both in the sponge and in the icing.
Have you tried my Vegan Coffee and Walnut Cake (Traybake)?
Please consider giving it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in recipe card below and share your views or tips in the comments.
😋 More delicious traybake recipes
Vegan Gingerbread Cake (Traybake)
Polish Apple Cake (Szarlotka)
Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake
Raspberry Cake (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Vegan Strawberry Yogurt Cake
📋 Recipe
Coffee and Walnut Traybake (Vegan)
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 225 g self-raising flour see notes
- 1 tablespoon cornflour (corn starch) see notes
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 75 g walnuts roughly chopped
- 225 g brown sugar
- 150 ml neutral oil see notes
- 2 tablespoon instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon freshly boiled water
- 200 g plain vegan yogurt see notes
- 50 ml plant milk oat or soya
Icing
- 100 g vegan block butter see notes
- 240 g icing sugar sieved
- 1.5 tablespoon instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon freshly boiled water
- 2 tablespoon vegan cream I like Alpro single cream
- more walnuts to top the cake with chopped or halves as per preference
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 160C(fan)/320F/Gas Mark3 and prepare baking pan by lining it with some baking paper.
- Roughly chop your walnuts.75 g walnuts
- Prepare strong coffee by dissolving 2 tablespoons of instant coffee granules in 1 tablespoon freshly boiled water and let it cool slightly.2 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- Put all dry ingredients (flour, corn flour and baking powder) in a large bowl and give them a mix with a whisk. Alternatively, you can sieve them in.225 g self-raising flour, 1 tablespoon cornflour (corn starch), ½ teaspoon baking powder
- In a large jug or another bowl whisk together brown sugar, oil, strong coffee, yogurt and plant milk. You want nice uniform mixture.225 g brown sugar, 150 ml neutral oil, 200 g plain vegan yogurt, 50 ml plant milk
- Next, pour wet mixture into the bowl with dry ingredients and mix until combined.
- Add chopped walnuts towards the end of mixing and fold them gently into the batter. There will be lumps in the cake batter but don't overmix it. As long as there is no visible specs of flour it's good. Pour cake batter into prepared, lined cake tin and bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until skewer inserted into centre comes out clean. Once ready, take the cake out of the oven and leave it in a tin for a few minutes before taking it out onto cooling rack to cool completely.75 g walnuts
Icing
- While cake is in the oven, prepare your icing.Sieve icing sugar into a bowl and prepare strong coffee by dissolving 1.5 tablespoon instant coffee granules in 1 tablespoon of just boiled water.240 g icing sugar, 1.5 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- Melt vegan butter in a pan or microwave and pour over icing sugar, following quickly with cream and strong coffee. Whisk it all really well with small whisk (or wooden spoon) until the mixture is nice and smooth and without any visible lumps. At this point the icing will be quite runny but once in the fridge it will set to the perfect consistency. The icing prepared this way can be left in the fridge until the cake is ready and cool.100 g vegan block butter, 240 g icing sugar, 2 tablespoon vegan cream, 1.5 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- When you're ready to ice the traybake, take the icing out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes as initially it might be a little stiff. Give it a quick mix and spread over the top of the cake. Sprinkle some chopped walnuts, walnut halves over the icing and enjoy.more walnuts to top the cake with
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving of cake with icing but without extra walnuts on top and based on 12 servings. This information should be treated as a rough guideline only.
- Plain/all-purpose flour + baking powder can be used instead of self-raising flour. For details see: Ingredients above.
- Corn flour can be substituted with potato starch or some plain or self-raising flour.
- Any neutral oil can be used. I like cold-pressed rapeseed or light olive oil.
- Plain vegan soya yogurt is best for this cake as coconut one might add coconut flavour.
- I like to use salted vegan block butter in my icing (Flora Plant) as a bit of salt works well in a rather sweet icing.
Sue says
OMG! The coffee and walnut traybake is amazing!! Came out perfectly. Thank you Jo for this recipe.
joskitchenlarder says
I'm so pleased to hear that Sue! Thanks for letting me know. 😊