By Savini Gauri
You’ll love this Vegan Chocolate Cake. The chocolate sponge is moist and soft, the Mocha frosting is aptly fluffy and firm to counter the moistness of the cake. And the best part? It’s incredibly easy to make – and no funny egg replacements (and like always, no weird ingredient names that can't be pronounced)!
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Can we all just agree that chocolate cake and mocha frosting are a match made in heaven and definitely one of the best flavour combinations ever? Need me to prove it? Here is this amazing Vegan Chocolate Cake with Mocha Frosting recipe. Try it and you'll agree.
The vegan chocolate sponge is soft and moist and packed with a rich chocolate flavour – without any egg replacements or funny ingredients. If you've been here before, you know that I am not a fan of vegan replacements. No chia seeds or flax seeds or whatever the latest trending 'perfect egg substitute' is, because let’s be honest, they never work.
As always, I have tried to keep the recipe and its ingredients as straightforward and simple as possible. This recipe is proof that simple and common ingredients can give you a wonderful, soft, moist and fluffy cake crumb.
*This is not a paid promotion* The Mocha frosting is an actual flavour explosion thanks to Urban Platter's Vegan Coconut Cream (which whips up beautifully giving soft and fluffy peaks). I’m a big fan of them and have been using their products for a very long time.
How do you make this vegan chocolate cake?
Making this vegan cake is super simple and requires minimum utensils. All you need to do is:
Mix together sugar and any neutral-tasting oil (like sunflower oil) and melted dark chocolate to it and mix well.
Mix together all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Add some warm water and vinegar to the chocolate and oil mix. Followed by the dry ingredient mix.
Add the dairy-free milk and mix until smooth and luscious.
Then, transfer into a lined 8-inch cake tin and into the oven it goes!
See, how easy is that?! (Don't forget, you can find the whole recipe, including the ingredient quantities, at the bottom of this page.)
As I’ve mentioned above, there are no funny egg replacements in this recipe. Simply by adjusting the given ingredient quantities (like the wet to dry ingredient ratio and the amount of raising agents), you can achieve a wonderful cake crumb without any chia or flax or similar stuff.
The purpose of the vinegar (or lemon juice) is to give a boost to the raising agents (mainly baking powder) and make the cake extra soft and fluffy. The warm water (in addition to the dairy-free milk), on the other hand, ensures a moist cake.
How do you know when your cake is completely baked?
This cake requires about 35-40 minutes at 180ºC. However, every oven is different (sometimes incorrectly calibrated), I would recommend you check the doneness of your cake with the "prick test".
Simply insert a toothpick or cake tester into the middle of your cake – and it should come out clean or with a few stray crumbs attached. If it comes out slightly battered, return the cake to the oven and continue baking until the toothpick comes out clean.
Assembling the Vegan Chocolate Cream with Mocha Frosting
Once your vegan chocolate cake is baked and properly cooled, it’s time for the fun part – preparing the frosting and then frosting the cake!!
First, you’ll need to whip up the Coconut Cream (or soft butter if you don't mind consuming dairy) with powdered/icing sugar to soft peaks. (Make sure your coconut cream is nice and cold before you start whipping).
Then, put the frosting on top of the cake and create pretty swirls with your spatula or the back of a spoon.
And to finish it off: dust some cocoa powder on top or sprinkle some chocolate swirls or chards. This step will give your cake a finished look and you can dig in.
What is this vegan cake's shelf life?
The cake keeps well in an air-tight container in a cool dry place for about 4-5 days. I actually like to keep it in the fridge. I would recommend keeping it outside for 5-10 minutes before serving. Unless you like your cake a little cold like I do (especially in these warm summer months).
And here you go! A yummy, easy to make vegan chocolate cake with mocha frosting that just goes to show that, yes - chocolate and coffee were clearly meant to be.
Happy Baking!
When you make this awesome recipe, do tag me on Instagram using #savinithebakeshop
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Vegan Chocolate Cake with Mocha Frosting
You’ll love this Vegan Chocolate Cake. The chocolate sponge is moist and soft, the Mocha frosting is aptly fluffy and firm to counter the moistness of the cake. And the best part? It’s incredibly easy to make – and no funny egg replacements (and like always, no weird ingredient names that can't be pronounced)! Course Dessert Cuisine Dairy Free, Vegan Prep Time 15-20 minutes Bake/Cook Time 35-40 minutes Total Time 1 hour Servings 10 Author Savini Gauri | Savini The Bakeshop
Ingredients
For the vegan chocolate cake:
1/4 cup (70 grams) melted dark chocolate
1/8 cup + 1 tbsp (40 ml) neutral-tasting oil (like sunflower oil)
1 cup (120 grams) maida or all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (110 grams) caster or powdered sugar
3 tbsp (20 grams) cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-processed)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 pinches salt
2/3 cup (160 grams) dairy-free milk (such as almond, oat, soy milk)
1/3 cup (80 mL) warm water
1/2 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice
For the mocha frosting:
100 g (1/2 cup) Coconut Cream, chilled (or 75 grams softened butter if you don't mind dairy)
1/2 cup (60 grams) powdered or icing sugar
1 tsp Instant Coffee Powder
2 tbsp (20 grams) melted chocolate
Instructions
For the vegan chocolate cake:
Preheat the oven to 180ºC and line an 8 inch (20 cm) round baking tin with baking paper.
In a bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, melted chocolate, warm water and vinegar.
In a separate bowl mix together maida, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the dry mix into the wet mix.
Slowly add the dairy-free milk to the batter. Whisk until you get a smooth cake batter with no flour clumps.
Transfer into the lined baking tin and bake at 180ºC for about 35-40 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Cool in the baking tin for 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
For the mocha frosting:
In a bowl, whisk the coconut cream and sugar until soft peaks form.
Add the coffee powder and melted chocolate.
Spoon the frosting onto the cooled cake and swirl it around into an even layer with a spatula or the back of a spoon.
Dust some cocoa powder or top with chocolate swirls or chards.
And serve.
Storage instructions: The cake keeps well in an air-tight container in a cool dry place for about 4-5 days.
