I wanted to create a cake that embraced the season and its rich flavors. Bold gingerbread, sweet pears, a little caramel sauce swizzled over the top to bring it all together. Something that would work well as a mid-morning snack cake alongside a perfectly brewed cup of coffee, but would also be well-received by all as a special occasion dessert (Thanksgiving, anyone?)
Initially, I thought of a few go-to vegan baking ingredients. Flax eggs. Almond milk. Coconut oil. But then my mind turned to one of my very favorite cakes, a cake I enjoyed often growing up, a cake I had no idea was vegan until a few years ago. It's a rich, moist chocolate number called Wacky Cake, though growing up, we called it Crazy Cake - and we always enjoyed it with a dollop of whipped cream. So much for being vegan.
Wacky Cake was reportedly created during the Great Depression, when staples such as eggs and milk were in short supply. Enterprising cooks dreamed up a cake that utilized vinegar and baking soda instead, creating bubbles that help the cake to rise.
I thought I'd borrow that naturally vegan cake's formula for this gingerbread version. Other than omitting the cocoa, of course, I also swapped the typical vegetable oil for, yes, coconut oil. Brown sugar and molasses give this cake that signature rich mahogany hue; a generous hand with the spices adds loads of flavor. And then, of course, pear chunks, and quite a few of them.
I'm super excited about this recipe, in part because just like the inspiration cake, I really believe no one would ever know it's vegan. Which is something you can't necessarily say about some vegan baked goods. It's excellent shortly after it comes out of the oven - drizzled with caramel sauce or not - but it's even better after a day or two, when the flavors really get a chance to meld. This is one of those cakes that gets moister the longer it hangs out.
And then, let's eat cake.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
For the Gingerbread Pear Bundt Cake:
- ½ cup coconut oil, melted + a little more for greasing the pan
- 3 cups whole wheat pastry flour, white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- ¼ cup molasses, not blackstrap
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 medium pears, peeled and diced ½-inch (about 3 cups diced)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar for dusting the top, if desired
For the Caramel Sauce:
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup white sugar (organic for vegan-friendly)
- ⅓ cup water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bundt pan with a little coconut oil - 1 or 2 teaspoons - and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted coconut oil, water, brown sugar, molasses, vinegar and vanilla.
- Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Use a whisk to mix the batter together just until combined. The batter will be rather loose and wet. Fold in the pears.
- Pour batter into the bundt pan and bake until the cake begins to pull away from the edges slightly and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out nearly dry, 45 to 60 minutes.
- Let cool for 5 minutes then use a knife to carefully loosen any stuck sides. Invert cake over a wire rack and lift off the pan. Let cake cool completely.
- Carefully transfer cooled cake to platter or cake plate and dust with powdered sugar, if desired.
- While the cake cools, make the caramel sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, vanilla and salt. Set aside.
- Add the sugar and water to a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir just to combine, but do not stir after that! Allow mixture to come to a boil and watch it carefully. After about 6 minutes, the mixture will start to turn golden, then light brown, and it will smell like caramel. As soon as it has turned brown, slowly pour in the coconut milk mixture. The caramel will bubble enthusiastically at first. If the sugar hardens around the whisk, don't worry, this is normal - just keep stirring and it will dissolve. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the caramel sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Slice cake and put on plates. Drizzle individual servings with the caramel sauce. Serve.
Vincent Tang says
Wish it came withe the cake...looks SO GOOD.
Robyn says
This cake looks AMAZING! I want to try it so bad, haha! 🙂
Millie | Add A Little says
I love the autumnal flavour of the gingerbread!
Sam @ PancakeWarriors says
Oh those spices with pear and caramel sauce - delish! Thanks for sharing the giveaway with us! I can't wait to get creative in the kitchen!
Lindsey | Cafe Johnsonia says
This cake has my name written all over it! I'm going to try a GF version next weekend. I'm also tripping out over the glass pan!!! I had no idea those were even available and I MUST have one now!
Bridget Young says
Hi Lindsey,
Did you try a GF version? Did it work? What was your flour /starch combo?
I'm dying to try this but am so tired of having flops when I try to make a regular vegan cake gluten free. I'm sure you know the feeling. Love to know your results.
Kimberly says
Why not blackstrap molasses?
Kare Raye says
Hi Kimberly, because blackstrap can be quite bitter and would likely overtake the flavor of the cake (and not in a good way!)
Francesca says
Praise baby jesus! A vegan cake that actually looks delicious.
Emilie@TheCleverCarrot says
Beautiful recipe Kare! The combination of pear and gingerbread is such a warming duo, it makes me want to grab a slice and revel in the season. Great healthy ingredients too 🙂
Kare Raye says
Thanks so much, Emilie. I am totally smitten with the combo, for sure. 🙂
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
Lovely bundt recipe, Kare! Delectable spices too 🙂
Kare Raye says
Thank you, Kiran!
Aniqa says
This looks amazing!! The photos are very good as well 🙂
Ella says
Do you think this cake would work with apples instead of pears? Thank you! The gingerbread part looks delicious, but I can't do pears unfortunately :/
julie says
HI- do not have a bundt pan- could I try a springform pan or just a pyrex square dish?
Kare Raye says
Hi Julie, I've not tried it in another pan but I would think either would still work great!
Deirdre Henry says
I make the Whacky Chocolate cake for my Vegan daughter. This pear version looks delicious and it will make a change for her. I'll surprise her with it Christmas Day. Thank you for posting.
GretchenJoanna says
Can the caramel sauce also be made ahead?
Bill says
Which size of the Simex glass bundt pan do you use for this recipe? I assume the large (10 inch diameter), not the small (8 inch)?
Jean Mayo says
Sounds good ! I am definitely going to try it! Curious tho, the caramel sauce has no caramel in it? Am I missing something?
lillian says
I just made this with some pears that someone had given me. The smell from the oven was wonderful, but the taste is even better. A scoop of vanilla ice cream would be perfect for it. My pears, however, were way too large, so I only used 2. I guess it was still too much because the added moisture and heaviness caused it to crack when I unmolded it.
Cecily says
Five stars! If you want the cake fluffy like no other vegan cake, serve and eat right away. However I flipped mine over onto a plate, and after tasting a slice, kept it in the (still warm) oven overnight and it became moist, caramelised (on the top) and dense. Loved it! It was gone in under 24 hours. Didn't even do the sauce yet! Thank you for the recipe!
Jagoda says
Thanks very much for this dealicious cake everyone loved ?
I took it , to Christmas dinner ,with most of vegan people,and it was so GOOD, that now I am taking this version everywhere .
It proofs, that vegan diet can be really enjoyable !!