Vegan Sweet Potato Rum Cake with Rum Glaze

By Published On: 28 December 2012Last Updated: 17 January 2017

I don't know if my cake tastes like a traditional rum cake or not, but if you like a richly tropical tasting moist cake liberally sprinkled with raisins and toppped with rum glaze, then make this cake.

Vegan Rum Raisin Cake Recipe | Your Daily Vegan

What's in this post

 

I made a vegan sweet potato rum cake for Christmas.  I’ve never eaten rum cake before, vegan or otherwise, and I have to say- I really like it.  I found this recipe, which I followed using vegan ingredients- though I swapped out the heavy frosting for a rum glaze.  I don’t know if my cake tastes like a traditional rum cake or not, but if you like a richly tropical tasting moist cake liberally sprinkled with raisins and toppped with rum glaze, then make this cake.

Side note: This cake turned out really pretty, honest.  Someone snuck a piece (and was working on a second) by the time I grabbed the camera.  And, of course, no food item could possibly be in my house without a cat investigating it, aka- putting their tongue on my food.

Johnny Cake

Sweet Potato Rum Cake w/Rum Glaze

For the cake:

  • 3/4 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup rum – I used Gosling Black Seal Rum
  • 2 cups mashed cooked sweet potatoes
  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar (firmly packed)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest (finely grated)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger (or use fresh)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 4 “eggs” egg replacer -I used Ener-G Egg Replacer
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup juice squeezed from fresh orange
  • 1 cup dried unsweetened coconut

Soak raisins in the rum for minimum 30 minutes to plump up.  Preheat oven to 350º.  Prepare a bundt cake pan

[or 13 x 9 glass baking dish] using cooking spray [or shortening] and dusting with flour.   Peel, dice, and boil sweet potatoes.  Mash and set aside to cool.

Combine all the cake ingredients (except raisins) in a large mixing bowl.  Using an electric mixer, mix for 2 minutes.  Fold in raisin and rum mixture.  Pour into bundt cake pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool cake completely before adding the glaze.

Rum Glaze

  • 1 1/4 cup organic powdered sugar
  • 2 tbsp of rum – I used Gosling Black Seal Rum
  • 2 tsp of dark corn syrup
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Place sugar in bowl, add rum and whisk like hell until smooth.  Add in extract and corn syrup.  Whisk some more, add cinnamon.  Whisk some more.  Icing will be smooth, shiny, and a little runny.  You don’t want it really runny or the icing won’t stick to the cake.  Icing will be hard with a shiny finish once dry.  Using a spoon, add glaze to the top of the cake and let run down the sides.  Easy!

Rum Raisin Cake

9 Comments

  1. Colleen February 22, 2020 at 9:45 am - Reply

    This is the best vegan cake I have ever made. Moist, flavorful and the rum didn’t overpower other Ingredients. I made a few substitutes-flax eggs, olive oil, cake flour and molasses for the glaze. Also soaked dried cherries, pineapple, figs and apricots in the rum for a week before using. My non-vegan friends couldn’t believe it was vegan. Big hit, perfect to bring to a party, will make it again and again.

  2. Tina December 21, 2017 at 7:52 pm - Reply

    Can I use flax egg replacement?

    • KD Angle Traegner January 4, 2018 at 4:43 pm - Reply

      Sorry, I just now saw your comment! I would think a flax egg would work fine, I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work. Let me know how it goes!

      • Ryan February 22, 2018 at 1:18 pm - Reply

        We made this last night for our son’s birthday cake and used flax for the egg replacer, turned out great!

  3. Dan January 8, 2017 at 7:53 pm - Reply

    I made this cake and it is delicious! Thanks for the recipe. I used coconut sugar instead of brown sugar and agave nectar instead of corn syrup and it still came out great.

  4. Sharnise December 10, 2016 at 12:54 pm - Reply

    This cake looks truly delicious! I love animals, but I don’t love them by my food. You have a cat hair in the first picture, looks like the same in the last. Thought it was my screen, but nope it’s a cat hair!

    • KD Angle Traegner December 12, 2016 at 10:33 am - Reply

      Hi Sharnise! Thanks for the heads up. In addition to writing here I also run an animal sanctuary for cats. I’d be more surprised if there wasn’t a cat inspecting the food around here! Good thing I didn’t serve that cat hair to anyone though! Yikes! :)

  5. cheryl December 29, 2013 at 4:48 pm - Reply

    okay I just baked the cake and it smells awesome!!! I substituted the sugar with maple and I use chia seeds for egg replacer. I’m waiting for it to cool but I can’t wait to taste it looks great and smells great. I don’t know how the glaze will turn out since I used maple instead of powdered sugar but it has rum so I’m sure it will be fine. Thank you!

  6. Laurie Conrad May 9, 2013 at 2:29 pm - Reply

    I cannot WAIT to make this cake. It looks soooo good!!!

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HELLO! I'm KD Angle-Traegner.

Writer, activist, and founder of Four Urban Paws Sanctuary. I’m on a mission to help people live a vegan life. Read more about KD…

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