Hi, my name is Raquel and I made a birthday cake. For my dog.
The sad (but not really sad) thing is that I’m totally one of those people who makes completely unnecessary homemade treats for my pet.
Yep, I said it.
My excuse is that it was also my birthday recently, so I made one for myself, and a chocolate-free canine-friendly version for the dog (not pictured – she gobbled up the whole thing!).
I usually struggle with making desserts like this, and am so jealous staring at photos of beautifully piped and decorated birthday cakes, so I almost couldn’t believe that I made one that any human with a sweet tooth would love to eat. And it’s not just a plain little treat…
This is a vegan vanilla, raspberry, and Oreo cake! Fluffy vanilla layers smothered in buttercream, filled with fresh raspberries and crushed Oreos, and topped with more cookies. It’s a work of art.
I even used raspberries that I picked fresh from the garden. To flex your own green thumb, you can learn how to grow your own raspberries from our sister site, Gardener’s Path. They are the perfect vibrant, juicy addition to this dessert!
If you can’t tell from the photos, decorating is definitely not my strength. I can never seem to get the frosting to be all smooth and professional-looking like other bakers, but I find ways to hide my weaknesses.
Like Oreos. Delicious, chocolaty, cream-filled Oreos.
If you don’t consume animal products, you’ve likely heard that Oreos are vegan. And when you heard this, you probably broke into song, thanking the heavens above. Because, let’s be real – who doesn’t love these crispy chocolate sandwich cookies?
To hide my lack of skill in decorating, I used some crushed Oreos, and a bit of patience, to press the crumbs onto the sides. It took a while (maybe five-ish minutes?) to go around the whole thing, but it made such a rustically pretty end result.
For another decorating idea that even the worse cake decorators (such as myself) can handle, use sugared flowers as an easy and elegant garnish.
And then I added candles. Two pink ones for the pup, and another four purple ones for me. We seem to lack any sort of normal candle-lighting tool, so AJ headed to the garage and got his blowtorch.
Never a dull moment around here!
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Vegan Vanilla Raspberry Cake with Oreos
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 small, 2-layered cake (8 servings) 1x
Description
For the perfect ending to a birthday party, make this vegan vanilla cake with fluffy buttercream, fresh raspberries, and crushed Oreos.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour
- 3/4 cup vegan granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup almond milk, or any non-dairy milk
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
- 1 cup crushed Oreos
- 1 recipe vegan vanilla frosting (about 2 cups)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease two small 5-inch or 6-inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
- Combine all the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Sift the mixture to get rid of any lumps and distribute the ingredients evenly.
- Combine the almond milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and lemon juice in another bowl. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture. Whisk together just until all the ingredients are moistened and no large lumps remain.
- Divide the batter into the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the middle should come out clean, and the sides should be a light golden brown.
- Let the cakes cool for about 15 minutes before removing them from the pans. Peel the parchment from the bottom, then let cool completely on a cooling rack.
- To assemble, place one of the cake rounds on a plate and cut off the rounded top, if desired. Cover with a good layer of frosting, then place some raspberries on top. Add a layer of Oreos on top of the raspberries.
- Before adding the next layer of cake, flip it over and add a layer of frosting to the bottom of the round. Invert it onto the raspberry and cookie layer, pressing down gently. Frost the sides of the cake.
- Garnish with the remaining cookies around the cake. Top with a few raspberries and some candles.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Dessert
Keywords: cake, frosting, vanilla, raspberry, vegan
Step Outside of Your Comfort Zone, and Make Something Delicious
All in all, I’m very proud that I made myself (and the dog) a perfectly pretty birthday cake this year.
I feel like I always say I am going to do something like this and then miss the opportunity entirely. But this time, I did it!
I urge all of you readers out there who are a little fearful of making a cake to take the leap! Even if your decorating is a little messy like mine, there’s nothing to worry about. It’ll still taste amazing.
Even if you think it is beyond ruined (like the layers turned out flat when you baked it, or if you accidentally drop it, or if your dog finds a way to take a few licks of it – uh oh!), there are plenty of ways to salvage your dessert.
I like to crumble up the pieces and make a beautiful trifle. Or, make cute handheld pops!
And for my birthday next year, I’ll definitely study Foodal’s articles for basic decorating techniques, and all the essential tools I’ll need to make my dessert as beautiful as it can possibly be.
I like to think I get a little wiser each year… maybe…
Do you enjoy decorating cakes? What are your best tips for someone like me? I’ll gobble up all of your advice below in the comments section!
More vegan desserts, please! Here are more cake recipes to try when you have another party coming up:
Photos by Raquel Smith, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published by on June 4, 2015. Last updated: February 14, 2021 at 10:12 am. With additional writing and editing by Nikki Cervone.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Raquel Smith
Raquel is a whole foods enthusiast, an avid mountain biker, and a dog lover. She works by day at Food Blogger Pro and formerly maintained her food blog "My California Roots" (now merged into Foodal).
Get. in. my. belly! Love desserts!! Happy Belated Birthday!
Thanks, Emily!
I adore your photography! And what a sweet pup. Great stuff! 🙂
Thanks so much, Sarah! Isn’t she just the cutest?
I love the idea of placing raspberries between the two layers of cake. I’ve been planning on making a smash cake for my nephew, and I think that might be the trick to making the cake look awesome as he rips it apart.
James – that sounds like so much fun! I hope you take pictures of the event!
Happy belated birthday.. and what a perfect cake to celebrate with! It is beautiful and I can imagine tasted divine.
Thanks, Thalia. It was delicious!
haha I would totally make a cake for my dog – you are not alone! 🙂 This cake is just beautiful!
Thanks, Ashley! She is just way too cute 🙂
Hi! This looks AMAZING! Would I be able to substitute cows milk for the almond milk?
Hi Rebecca! I’m sure that would work just fine 🙂
I tried this cake and it nearly exploded on my oven. Whoever reads this, Don’t try this cake. All of her other recipes are great but this, don’t bother
★
Wow, Mia, I am so sorry you had a bad experience with this recipe. I didn’t have any issues with explosion, so I have no idea what could have happened! Can you explain exactly what you mean by “almost exploded”? What size baking pans did you use?
I am trying it again today. Will tell u how it turned out
This is vegan?! This looks awesome! Totally pinning! Showing you some love from Food Blogger Pro.
Thanks, Nicole! It definitely is vegan 🙂
Hi i was wondering if coconut milk and jam would be ok to use
Hey Vanessa – I haven’t tried it that way, but if you do then let me know how it goes!
Can I use 9 inch cake pans?
No, this recipe is sized for smaller 6″ cake pans.
Hi there, I want to make this as a much bigger birthday cake for my friend’s birthday. Would doubling it work in 9in cake pans? Cheers!
Hi Raquel. I tried this with 8″ and 9″ pans. I doubled the recipe for 8″ pans and baked for 35-40 mins. Then multiplied all ingredients by 2.25 times for 9″ pans and baked for 40-45 mins. Both turned out great!
★★★★★
Same! I doubled the recipe, used 9″ cake pans and it turned out great!
Do you think strawberries could work in place of the raspberries?
Tried it, loved it, will make again.
★★★★★
This cake was AMAZING! Will def be my new go-to vanilla cake recipe as well! The raspberries with Oreos were such a good combo. I baked it for my friend’s birthday party and everyone was blown away! I also made the icing recipe too and it was PERFECT. I’ve had a hard time with getting vegan frosting just right but this was excellent! Will be using both recipes again and again!
★★★★★