Elana's Pantry

New York Times Bestselling author Elana Amsterdam founded Elana’s Pantry, the go-to website for easy, healthy, grain-free, Paleo recipes, in 2006

Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake

Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake

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Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake is made with just 6 ingredients. Yes! You’ve got that right. You can have an amazing paleo dessert for birthday celebrations that turns out perfectly every time. Better yet, mixing the batter for this cake is as easy as using a cake mix. The difference? Homemade Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake tastes so much better, and of course it’s healthy!

I’ve been getting requests for a Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake for some time now. Ever since I created my Paleo Chocolate Birthday Cake which is an all-time fan favorite. The rave reviews for that recipe keep coming in. People are saying that they love Paleo Chocolate Birthday Cake because it’s delicious, easy-to-make, and healthy. They’re also saying that having simple recipes that work every time is what they keep coming back here for!

Print Recipe
Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake
Serves:10
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Pulse coconut flour and baking soda in a food processor
  2. Pulse in eggs, butter, maple syrup, and vanilla
  3. Grease two 6 inch springform pans
  4. Pour batter into prepared cake pans
  5. Place cake pans on a baking sheet, then bake at 350°F for 25-35 minutes
  6. Cool and frost with Paleo Chocolate Frosting
  7. Serve

We are such a great community and we have a wide array of food allergies. Many of you may have substitution questions about this Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake recipe. Unfortunately, I don’t have a crystal ball so I don’t know the answer to your substitution questions. The only way to know if a substitution will work is to try it! Don’t be afraid, feel free to adapt the recipe to your own needs.

I make Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake a couple of days ahead of time when we throw a birthday bash that requires a lot of set-up. Here’s how this works. I bake the cakes, and let them sit out and cool in the pans overnight. The next morning I remove the cakes from the pans and then wrap them individually in foil and store Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

The cake is amazing when baked, cooled, and served the same day, and I’ve done that many times. For some reason though, when I make Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake ahead of time and store it in the fridge it gets even more moist and rich!

I am one of those people that likes a little cake with my frosting. So, when I make this cake I make a double batch of my Chocolate Buttercream Frosting. That’s what you see in the photo above. I like to serve all of my cakes on tall cake stands, also shown in the photo above, because cakes have a big wow-factor and look incredibly special when served this way.

Here are some of my favorite cake stands! Use them to create a breath-taking presentation when you make Paleo Vanilla Birthday Cake:

Comments

  1. Hi Elana, I’ve commented here before and will do again: I love this recipe! I’ve done it using larger spring forms (as one batch), as cupcakes and also using 4 6in spring forms, to get a tall cake with thinner layers.

    It’s a keeper and my whole family enjoys it.

    Just as a advice to first time users os coconut flour: unlike regular wheat flour, there is an enormous difference between coconut flour brands which affects how much liquid they absorb. The trick is to learn the expected consistency and adjust the liquids accordingly. In my case, I normally use less liquid than Elana’s recipe because I find less enough to get a cake consistency. Today I did this recipe with 7 eggs only. So add liquids little by little, mix and wait a bit for the flour to suck th moisture and add more if necessary.

    Reply

  2. Hi Elana, I love you recipes and I am so excited to bake this cake for my 3 year old’s birthday! Two questions: can I use two 8 inch pans instead of 6 inch? I need it wider to fit my cake toppers :) Also, do you have a vanilla frosting recipe? He doesn’t like chocolate. Thank you!

    Reply

  3. Elana, followed recipe to the “t” What happen? They didn’t rise much at all…😞 I thought 9 eggs would have been the trick of a high cake… Did I not whip it enough in processor? Its the only thing I can think of… Shelly M

    Reply

    • Shelly, this is exactly what happens when two 9-inch pans are used instead of the two 6-inch pans called for in the recipe :-)

      Reply

    • Hello Elana!!

      I was so excited to find this recipe and make it for a friend for her birthday. I made it today, and I substituted cocnut oil and a smidge of water instead of melted butter. I baked it in 6inch spring forms at 350 for just under 30 minutes and they came out looking lovely. After 30 they set completely and after 3 hours I took them from their molds, but the consistency was sooo SAD! The egg went down to the bottom completely! The very top 1/4 inch is cocnut flour, the rest is all eggy, with the most eggness at the the bottom…. like a quiche.
      This has happed one other time when I made a similar kind of cake. What went wrong?

      I also made your chocolate birthday cake in muffin tins and they are lovely….. what went wrong? I want to make another before tomorrow but I don’t want this to happen again….

      Reply

      • This is probably because of the coconut flour you used. There is an immense difference between brands which affect directly how much liquid the flour absorbs. First time I tried coconut flour recipes was just like that, all eggy and weird in the bottom. With time I learned how to adjust liquids to get the right consistency. You batter was probably very liquid.

        Try using less eggs next time.

        Reply

  4. I made this as a sheet cake for my boyfriend’s birthday today, cooked it for 25mins & it came out perfectly moist. The only thing I’ll do next time is follow your advice to double the frosting recipe, which I also used & loooooved (as good as Duncan Hines’, he admitted!). I think your 9″round cake is certainly prettier so I’ll try that next time. (Also have your cookbook & everything is terrific so far, so thank you! )

    Reply

  5. I just made this tonight for my birthday weekend. I haven’t had cake in years! I doubled the recipe using coconut oil instead of butter (dairy free), added the seeds from a whole vanilla bean and used a 9 inch Spring form and 6 inch spring form pan. The cakes came out beautifully! I snuck a little nibble and it’s to die for! Not too eggy in my opinion, fluffy and moist! I’m going to frost it after it has sat in the fridge for a day or so with a strawberry meringue. Thank you for a wonderful recipe! I’ve been gluten year for 5 years now and with my Crohn’s disease I have to be very careful about the refined foods that I eat. This is a great alternative that makes me feel normal again!

    Reply

  6. This is such a clever idea on making a smaller cake…a lot of times I make a cake and my daughter eats almost the entire thing cause I normally can only have one piece. Now she won’t have so much to finish off, but I’m gonna try just regular 6 inch pans :-)

    Reply

  7. Your recipes are always successful and tasty on the first try. This cake is no exception. It’s so spongy, moist and tasty. I have become a coconut nectar convert recently. Seems a natural choice when baking with coconut oil and coconut flour. It works very well in this cake recipe too. Although this cake really needs no frosting, I have found that it pairs well with pots o creme! Freezes well too! I use 4 4″ springform pans and cut into 3 layers for a beautiful individual cake. You are a hit!

    Reply

    • Carrie, thanks for letting me know my recipes are always successful and tasty on the first try! So glad to hear you are enjoying this cake :-)

      Reply

  8. I love this recipe so much! It also makes a great marble cake. I split the batter in half, add 1/4 cup of cocoa powder to one half, then layer the batters in a loaf pan. Bake until firm, and it makes a beautiful marble cake loaf! You can also make marble cupcakes the same way.

    Reply

  9. Thank you, Elana! I love your recipes so much and love that you are here in Boulder.

    This cake was a huge success for my daughter’s birthday. I have to tell you the modification I did worked really well. I doubled the cake recipe and used 8 in spring form pans, added a little extra cooking time. Made extra frosting and it was beautiful! Thank you!!!

    Reply

    • Becky, happy birthday to your daughter! Thanks for letting me know this cake was a huge success for her party :-)

      Reply

  10. I am looking for a recipe to make a jelly roll, do you think this cake is moist enough to not crumble while rolling? It sounds great

    Reply

  11. I spent over a week on Pinning recipes for my son’s 1st birthday cake. Nothing looked good and I literally hit myself in the head when I realized I forgot about your awesome recipes. (I blame lack of sleep/mommy brain). I made your chocolate cake for my oldest’s birthday, which was wonderful by the way. I made this vanilla cake with your whipped cream frosting. FANTASTIC!
    Every recipe of yours I have attempted has turned out delicious, and this one ,or two, was no exception.
    I appreciate your work and creativity so those of us with special diets can still enjoy the finer things in life.
    Thank you!

    Reply

    • Eliza, thanks for your incredible comment! I’m so glad that I could be part of your family’s birthday celebrations with my cake recipes, and happy to hear this cake is FANTASTIC :-)

      Reply

    • I used unrefined coconut oil in place of the butter which helps to add sweetness (without actually being sweet) and balances that flavour. I also added the seeds from a whole vanilla bean and mine came out very flavourful and not eggy. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  18. Hello :)
    This cake was heavenly!
    Instead of using chocolate frosting though, I used strawberry jam to sandwich the cake and to keep it simple. What I was trying to achieve was a Victoria Sponge which most Brits will be familiar with.

    If I wanted to use this cake as the basis for a chocolate sponge, how much cacao powder should I add to the mixture? Presumably I need to reduce the coconut flour quantities so that it doesn’t turn out too dry? I will make it into a birthday cake for my husband and make a buttercream with passion fruit….

    Thanks so much! Helena

    Reply

  19. Hi Elana. I LOVE your recipes. Thank you for all the great information and inspiration you share on your site.

    I made this cake to honor my amazing Grandmother on her 100th birthday! It was a HUGE hit with everyone in my family. We have a lot of people with hypoglycemia and other food related special requirements. This cake was very special and met all of the requirements of my family.

    For the sweetner, I mixed in some Stevia liquid syrup and some coconut sugar with the maple syrup. I did it in a rectangle pyrex pan and smothered it with whipped cream and strawberries. It had to cook a liitle longer using this pan, but it puffed up nicely and had a great texture.

    This cake will be a new family favorite for years to come!

    Reply

    • Tracie, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUR GRANDMOTHER! That is so awesome! I’m so happy that I could be part of your family’s celebration and thrilled to hear the cake was a HUGE hit :-)

      Reply

  21. Hi Elena! I made this with olive oil instead of butter and it turned out fabulous. One of my first tries at Paleo baking and it is my new go to cake recipe. Thank you for such an awesome recipe!

    Reply

    • Laura, you’re very welcome! I’m so glad to hear this cake is fabulous and is your new go to cake recipe :-)

      Reply

  22. hello!!

    Was there anyone who made this cake with coconut oil instead, replacing the butter? I noticed that Elana used coconut oil in her chocolate cake recipe.

    Reply

    • Dana, thanks so much for your comment. I hope someone who has experimented with this substitution will let you know :-)

      Reply

    • I made this with coconut oil and it turned out fabulous! As with all coconut oil creations it is a little slippery to the touch (ie after taking it oout of the pan I had some oil on my hand) but the cake itself is very moist and fluffy

      Reply

  24. This cake was AMAZING. I made it today for my 9 year old who is Paleo. Everyone gobbled it up! Thank you so much – making again for her party. The Best!

    Reply

    • Julie, thanks for your comment and it sounds like birthday congratulations are in order for your daughter! I’m so happy to hear this cake was AMAZING :-)

      Reply

  25. Hi, I’m curious if I could substitute agave nectar for maple syrup? I imagine I should use less as it’s seeeter I believe?
    Thank you !

    Reply

  26. I want to make this for my birthday. Do you have a vanilla or coconut frosting you can recommend to use on this cake? I prefer a white frosting. Thanks.

    Reply

  27. I am making this for my son’s first birthday and just did a test batch – they are delicious! I added 2 1/2 very ripe bananas to make it a banana cake, but still used all the other ingredients as listed. I also used a “jumbo muffin pan” (with 6 cups) instead of the 2 6″ pans that were called for, but same baking time. It all turned out great and I’m looking forward to using this at the birthday get-together next month!

    Reply

    • Jen, happy birthday to your son! I’m very happy to be part of the celebration via this recipe. I’m so glad to hear it was great :-)

      Reply

  30. Dear Elana, I made the cake for my birthday, shared with friends and everyone loved it.
    I don’t have two cake pans, baked it in one and after cooling cut it in two parts in the middle with strong thread. It worked perfectly.
    Thank you for all your recipes. I am huge fan of yours.

    Reply

  31. Elena,
    Looking for a recipe for a 9×13 pan. Do you think this recipe would be successful? Maybe doubled? How long and at what temperature should it be baked?
    Thanks!

    Reply

  32. First, thank you for the recipe! I am having a bit if trouble with the bottom of the cake being much more “eggy” than the too. Almost as if the eggs settle to the bottom. Have you had this happen and if so do you have any tips?

    Reply

      • Hi Elana, I want to try the cake but have a nut allergy and I’m scared to use the coconut flour. Can I use a gf combo with rice, tapioca and Quinoa flour or brown rice flour? Thank you!

        Reply

        • Lindsey, I haven’t eaten quinoa, rice or any other grain-like seeds since I went on a paleo diet in 2001. Sorry I can’t be of more help :-)

          Reply

  33. I made this cake 2 days ago and it was amazing. My mum (anti gf anti paleo anti anything ?) loved it! Best ever paleo cake. Agree with leaving it 24hr for less eggy taste it was amazing. Thanks so much for sharing. Plus kids and baby devoured it ?????

    Reply

  34. Hi! Instead of a food processor, could I use my KitchenAid mixer? Going to try to attempt for my daughter’s birthday.

    Thank you!

    Reply

  35. should batter be thin or thick?once it turned dense because it was thick batter and the other I used less flour and was pourable,little thin so it was moist,still didn’t rise way up the tins…why?

    Reply

    • Demi, the batter for coconut flour baked goods is a little different than for wheat flour baked goods. However, the key to getting this cake to rise is using a 6-inch cake pan. If you use a larger pan, the cake will not be tall like it is in the photo :-)

      Reply

  37. Hi all. What an excellent page I’ve stumbled across!

    I’m going to give this one a go – but as a cake filling I’m also looking for a thick paleo custard (the sort I would normally use between the layers and all over the outside) for what the kids call my ‘Italian cake’.

    Would anyone have a thick paleo custard recipe that might be suitable (they’ve tried)?

    I’m thinking the sort for canolli but using arrowroot flour and stevia / agave drops as a sweetener.

    Reply

  38. Hi, Elana, as always, great recipe. Did 1/4 of it as cupcakes just as as a trial for my sons birthday and it turned out delicious. Did also the same thing with your paleo chocolate birthday care and it turned a tad bit greasy.

    Thank you!

    Reply

  39. DAIRY FREE VERSION: I substituted one stick of Earth Balance soy free buttery sticks instead of the butter, and it came out DELICIOUS!

    Reply

  40. Used this to create my husband’s favorite cake, a must have for his birthday this month–an apple cake popular here in the Philly area: thinly sliced apples, tossed in cinnamon sugar, layered with a kind of vanilla cake batter. Instead of sugar I used stevia drops and swerve, plenty of cinnamon, and this cake batter using butter.. Better thsn the old family recipe I used to make! A big hit!

    Reply

  41. Ooooh- a new cake recipe to try! I love using coconut flour as a little goes so far, but it isn’t my favorite. That said, the real cake fans in my house are not nearly as critical and love ALL your recipes and would love yet another cake.

    I love that you use 6″ pans- that is now my favorite presentation and I LOVE cake stands!

    Reply

  42. I made this cake yesterday in a loaf pan. I tagged you on Instagram. Currently devouring for my pre-lunch snack. Turned out great! I’m trying to find a GF mini-muffin friendly recipe for a fundraiser. Any tips? This one might not be the best for mini-muffins, but it makes and EXCELLENT cake! I wasn’t able to find 77% dark chocolate so I purchased one 88% bar and another 70% bar. I mixed them and it worked alright. Easy peasy!

    Reply

  43. Elana, thanks for another great recipe. One question though: why is it that most paleo cake recipes we do not beat the egg whites? Doesn’t it help to make the cakes fluffier?
    Thanks in advance!

    Reply

    • Ana, I started writing paleo recipes in 2001 and to keep them as simple as possible haven’t included extra steps like beating the egg whites. My cakes are as fluffy as can be :-)

      Reply

    • Ana, I started writing paleo recipes in 2001 and to keep them as simple as possible haven’t included extra steps like beating the egg whites. My cakes are as fluffy as can be :-)

      Reply

      • That’s too bad; coconut flour is so finicky and it really makes a difference how it’s measured. I won’t be making this I guess because coconut flour is expensive and I run the risk of it not turning out due to “poor” measuring…

        Reply

        • Hi Monika, I totally understand your trepidation about using volume measurements as they are not as accurate as weight measurements. If you do decide to make this recipe, and you measure carefully I think you’ll see what so many other readers have found –that these recipes have few ingredients, are easy to make, and work because I test them (using volume measurements) so many times. Happy baking!

          Reply

          • Karen, not to be a downer, but that won’t work because all flours (and solid items) weigh different amounts depending on their densitites :-)

  45. This looks great! Thank you for sharing. Can honey be substituted for the maple syrup? I can only use either honey, date syrup or stevia for sweetening.

    Reply

  46. I made this into cupcakes last night and used the buttercream chocolate frosting. Oh my goodness, it was delightful. I had enough to make 12 cupcakes and a mini loaf. Everyone who triedo it loved it. Especially with that frosting! The texture was great. I usually really dislike gluten free cake of any kind, but this is definitely a winner!!!

    Reply

  47. If someone bakes this with a butter substitute such as coconut oil or Earth Balance soy free buttery sticks, please report back here. Since Elena uses the coconut oil in the chocolate version of this, I will try that first if I do not see a successful report from someone else. :-)

    Reply

    • Hi, Patricia
      The recipe says it fills two 6-inch pans, so you should not need to double it. I have a cake cookbook that roughly equates cake batter volume for two 6-inch pans (3.75 cups) to the volume needed for one 8-inch round pan (7 cups), or for a thinner layer, one 9-inch round pan (8.66 cups). I don’t have an exact number, but the recipe volume seems also perfect for an 8-inch square pan, if you have one. The problem with all of these is whether you can get away with a standard pan vs. a springform. Can Elana address this? I would like to know, too. Thank you!

      Reply

  49. First, I can’t sing your praises enough. Your site has really helped me and my son on our journeys over the past 3 years. We have tried so many of your recipes and are NEVER disappointed. My daughter, (who has no allergies but eats as though she does because of us) loves vanilla, so thank you! This looks awesome and can’t wait to try it. The past month, I switched over from Paleo to Keto and I am definitely in ketosis; I know that you eat this way as well, so my questions is, how does this affect ketosis since the ‘sugar’ in the maple syrup is so high? Does this ‘kick you out’ or do you not worry about being in that constant ketosis state? I guess this would apply to all your delicious treats…Thank you again! You are changing lives.

    Reply

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