vegan spiced orange date cake

This Spiced Orange Date Cake is packed with warm winter flavors and spices for a rich, soft cake that pairs perfectly with a big cup of coffee!

Hi buddies and happy Friday!! I do think this will be my last post for the year which is crazy! It feels like this year flew by and simultaneously lasted a million years. I am so thankful for all of you sweet readers and for making this the best year yet! I say it every year but, I mean, it's true so ? I am wrapping things up today with this fabulous Vegan Spiced Orange Date Cake! Packed with warm holiday flavors and insanely moist and soft thanks to heaps of dates and a sticky-sweet coconut caramel on top. I know date cake sounds lame, but I promise it is SUCH a game changer! Trust me on this one. I also had to finish the year with a Bundt cake since I've kind of made that my thing. ?

Quite some time ago, I became the lucky winner of a ginormo Costco-sized container of dates. And by winner, I mean my neighbor accidentally bought two and asked me if I wanted one. Of course I said yes! What more could a girl want in life than a 56oz bucket of dates, right? L O L. Except now I've had this literal bucket for months and I haven't figured out what to do with it, besides the occasional peanut butter-stuffed date snack or throwing a few in a no-bake raw dessert. Enter - this spiced orange date cake! If I had to combine all the Christmas flavors into one single dessert, I think this would be it! There's fresh citrus, a nice punch of cinnamon, warm molasses from the brown sugar, and the sweetness from the dates. I also added in a splash of Cointreau for a little kick of extra orangey goodness! The best part... this cake alone uses a whole 12oz of dates. BLESS. I may just make it through this bucket of dates before 2020.

And now, for a game I like to play every year... what were my most popular favorite recipes! This delicious Vegan Hummingbird Bread was on everyone's baking list and got so many good review on Pinterest and IG. Yay! These Vegan Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches were also popular, as was this pretty Confetti Drip Cake {a personal favorite, if I do say so myself!}. Rounding out the top 5 is my Vegan Pumpkin Macaroni and Vegan Bang Bang Cauliflower! I am honestly so pleased that ⅘ of my top recipes were VEGAN! The world is changing, y'all! Of course, this last little treat is also vegan, as was my first of the year... had to keep my bookends consistent. 🙂

I hope you guys whip up this vegan spiced orange date cake before winter is over! I know it's almost the new year but I have a feeling it'll keep being cold for quite a while ? This rich and sweet cake is just the thing to keep warm! It's especially perfect with a big mug of milky coffee. YUM.

BEFORE I FORGET!!! I have an epic Oster mixer giveaway going on Instagram right now!!! It ends 12/30 at 11:59PM so be sure to drop by and enter before then! It's super easy to enter and I'm absolutely obsessed with said mixer ? If you don't happen to be the winner, you can buy one for yourself HERE. But I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Good luck!!!

Make it vegetarian:

• This cake is naturally egg-free, so no need to substitute that!
• Just use unsalted dairy butter in place of the vegan butter.
• Use 2% or whole dairy milk instead of non-dairy milk
• To make the caramel sauce, use heavy cream instead of coconut milk!

{recipe adapted from Cook with Kushi - thank you!}

Print Recipe

4 from 1 vote

vegan spiced orange date cake

This Spiced Orange Date Cake is packed with warm winter flavors and spices for a rich, soft cake that pairs perfectly with a big cup of coffee!

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time2 hours hrs

Total Time2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Course: Cakes

Servings: 18

Author: Valentina | The Baking Fairy

Ingredients

• 12 oz pitted dates
• 2 cups nondairy unsweetened milk
• ¼ cup Cointreau orange liqueur {can replace with orange juice or more milk}
• 6 tablespoon vegan butter softened
• 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
• 2 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 3 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 ½ cups packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup pecan pieces
• ½ teaspoon salt
• zest of 1 orange
• *for the caramel sauce*
• 1 can full-fat coconut milk
• ⅔ cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract

Instructions

• First, prepare the dates ahead of time. Heat the milk and Cointreau or orange juice until boiling, and add in the dates. Soak for 2-3 hours until soft and sticky.
• When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour a bundt pan very well, or use baking spray with flour.
• Grab the date mixture, and blend together with an immersion blender or food processor until smooth and creamy.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the vegan butter and brown sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Stir in the date cream.
• Finally, add in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, orange zest. Mix until a batter forms, and finally stir in the pecan pieces.
• Pour into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 60-75 minutes. If the top starts to get too browned, cover with foil and continue baking. Cake is ready when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs. Let cool slightly before turning out of pan onto a serving dish.
• While the cake is baking, prepare the sauce. To make the caramel sauce, combine the coconut milk, sugars, and vanilla in a small nonstick pot.
• Heat over medium until mixture comes to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is reduced by about ⅔ and appears thick and caramel-y. This will take 30-45 minutes. Remember that it will thicken a little more as it cools.
• When ready to serve, pour warm caramel sauce over the cake and enjoy!

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