No-Waste One-Bowl Fruitcake That’s Vegan and Gluten-Free

|Updated Dec 23, 2022

The ultimate fruitcake recipe is vegan and gluten-free made in one bowl with oat flour, oil, and apple juice instead of eggs and dairy. This sweet and delicious fruitcake is perfect for breakfast with a cup of coffee or brunch with your mimosa. It's also a delicious afternoon snack, especially with hot tea. But, if you're looking for the perfect holiday treat to serve your stayover guest in the morning, look no further. This fruitcake is best for breakfast, a snack, or a dessert.

Vegan fruitcake is made with nuts, seeds, dried fruit, spices, and fruit juices and is easily customizable based on your preferences. If you have a jar of mixed nuts laying around in your cabinet or a package of dried fruit you want to use up to create more space in your pantry, mix them both in this easy vegan and gluten-free recipe and enjoy the sweet and savory flavors with a bit of crunch.

Another bonus about this vegan fruitcake recipe is that it's made in one bowl. Yeah, that's right, this is an on-bowl vegan and gluten-free recipe so clean-up is made easy and your dessert caters to most allergies. Checking off all the boxes, this vegan and gluten-free fruitcake is freezable, whole, or sliced, so if you want to make extra to enjoy at a later date, you can store the cake easily. It's time to dig in!

What You'll Need to Make Vegan Fruit Cake

  • Oat flour
  • Sugar
  • Baking powder
  • Cinnamon
  • Ground cloves
  • Ground cardamom
  • Ground nutmeg
  • Vegetable oil
  • Apple juice
  • Mixed dried fruits
  • Mixed nuts and seeds

Easy Variations for Vegan Fruit Cake

This recipe is very adaptable, so feel free to mix and match your fruits, nuts, juices, spices, and seeds, and add any extras you like. You can really add any of your favorite melodies to this recipe and it's a great way to use up any leftovers or bags of nuts to clear out. You can keep your fruits and nuts whole, or chop them roughly. Try any one of these easy alternatives to switch up the flavor of your vegan fruit cake:

  • Try dried cranberries, figs, apricots, blueberries, prunes, raisins, or dates. Or use candied fruits like cherry, orange, lemon, or tangerine
  • Choose nuts like hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, pecans, macadamias, or pistachios. Toast them for extra flavor, if you prefer.
  • Seeds like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, or sesame seeds are great in this fruitcake.
  • Spice your fruitcake with vanilla extract, pumpkin spice, or a splash of whiskey or rum.
  • Play around with the liquids you add to the cake. Apple juice and water are a great combo, but you can also use plant milk, orange juice, cranberry juice, tea, or a combination of these. Adding a little coffee can give lovely flavors as well.
  • To make this cake oil-free simply use apple sauce or mashed bananas instead of the vegetable oil
  • You can bake this cake in a traditional round cake mold, or you can use muffin tins or a loaf pan. Make sure to adjust the baking time if choosing different baking dishes.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Bake time: 55 minutes

Vegan Fruitcake

8-12 portions (slices)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups / 250 g oat flour
  • 1/4 cup / 50 g sugar
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1.5 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/3 cup / 80 ml vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup / 120 ml apple juice
  • 10 oz / 300 g mixed dried fruits
  • 10 oz / 300 g mixed nuts and seeds

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 360 F / 180 C.
  2.  In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and nutmeg.
  3. Pour in oil, apple juice, and around 2/5 cup or 100 ml water, and mix everything well together.
  4. Fold in fruits, nuts, and seeds.
  5. Pour dough into a silicon form, or a lightly greased pan, and smooth out the top.
  6. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  7. Allow the cake to cool completely before slicing.