Delicious and Dairy-Free Grapefruit Cake
A delicious and dairy-free Grapefruit Cake that is so tasty and light will leave you wanting a slice every day after dinner.
This recipe has a tantalizing mild citrus taste mixed with almond extract and is a perfect marriage between these two delightful flavors. The cake is light, fluffy, and airy. The grapefruits add a subtle flavor that is just amazing. And because the cake does not contain milk, it is not dense at all.
I had to share this cake recipe
If you are familiar with “sharing is caring,” then this is the time to share. I remember the first time I made this Delicious and Dairy-Free Grapefruit Cake, and I felt like I had the world at my feet.
Would you like to know why? This was the first time in my baking life that I changed a cake recipe for the first time that tasted good. Can someone stop me from eating the entire cake? 🙂
I am not fibbing, but seriously, this cake is moist, delicious, and very easy to make. It is also on the budget-friendly side as well. That is if you can find grapefruit at a reasonable price. These days we can never tell what costs we are going to have to pay for our groceries.
Let us not forget to overindulge on cakes in general. We all know what happens when we overeat carbohydrates and sugar. We gain weight!!! As I am writing this, I sure do feel that life it’s not fair – why can’t we enjoy eating what we like and not worry about the results?

Adding grapefruit to cake
Grapefruit is a fruit that many of us always have in our fruit bowls. It is not because it is an excellent source of vitamin C, a vitamin that helps support the immune system. It is a fruit that can be consumed in many forms, Juiced, mashed as a snack, sliced, or cut into chunks. IT WAS A HIT when I made the Grapefruit Cake the same way again and shared it with my siblings. Erika and I were even thinking about the many different types of filling that would taste wonderful with the cake.

When I bake a cake, I usually prefer making it plain because it gives me an idea of changing the recipe next time. Did I mention that Rex (the family dog) loves the cake! I also experimented with my freezing cake method, and it passed the test.

About the recipe for dairy-free grapefruit cake
The recipe came from Kay Chun, who contributed the recipe to the 2016 Annual Food & Wine. The original recipe, in my opinion, is a bit complicated because of the numerous preparation steps. The recipe has a poppy seeds glaze, which I was not interested in because I am not a fan of poppy seeds. Maybe one day I will try it with it.
I thought it would have removed the fruity and citrus taste of the grapefruit. Usually, I make my cakes with organic sugar instead of ore regular sugar. I also often don’t bother adding icing so I can decrease my sugar intake.
Reference:
- http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=25
- https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-grapefruit.html
Delicious and Dairy Free Grapefruit Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter softened, plus more for greasing
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar organic sugar preferably
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup medium-grind cornmeal
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon finely grated grapefruit zest plus ¼ cup fresh grapefruit juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9-inch cake pan.
- In a mixer, whip the butter, sugar and almond extract to a cream.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the cornmeal, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, grapefruit zest, and grapefruit juice. Pour the flour mixture into the sugar and butter mixture and alternate with the eggs mixture and continue whisking until well blended. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 40 minutes, until golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Transfer the cake to a rack to cool for 10 minutes. Run a sharp paring knife around the edge of the cake, then invert it onto the rack. Let cool before serving.
- Serve with additional fruits, alone, with whipped cream or with your preferred icing.
Notes
The recipe came from Kay Chun who contributed the recipe to the 2016 Annual Food & Wine.
Nutrition
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
Nutrition info is automatically generated and provided as a courtesy and as an estimate only.
This recipe was originally published on June 18, 2016. It has been updated to add more content.