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A plate of a two layer vegan chocolate cake on a plate with a fork on it.
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Vegan Chocolate Cake

You won’t believe how easy it is to make this Vegan Chocolate Cake. All you need are some pantry staples, and you’ll have a moist, decadent, and fluffy vegan cake in no time.
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 987kcal
Author: Justin Coit

Ingredients

  • 1 cup almond milk unsweetened
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 ¾ cups sugar
  • ¾ cup cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup avocado oil
  • cup applesauce unsweetened
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup boiling water

For the Vegan Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

  • 1 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ cups earth balance vegan butter room temperature
  • 4-5 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ¼-½ cup almond milk unsweetened

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and prepare two 9-inch cake pans by lining the bottom with parchment paper and greasing the sides.
  • In a small mixing bowl, add 1 cup unsweetened almond milk and add the tablespoon of vinegar, set aside to let thicken.
  • In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine.
  • Next we’ll add the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl. Add the oil, applesauce, vanilla and almond milk + vinegar mixture and mix on medium speed either with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Mix until everything is well combined then lower speed and pour in the boiling water.
  • Divide the batter evenly into each cake pa Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. After 10 minutes of cooling in the pan, carefully remove the cakes from the pans and let cool completely before frosting.

For the Vegan Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

  • Add the vegan butter into a large mixing bowl or stand mixer and mix until creamy.
  • Next add in cocoa powder, almond milk, vanilla extract and mix until combined. Slowly add in powdered sugar in increments, mixing starting on low then turning to high. Mix until the texture is fluffy.
  • Use the frosting to frost the cake as you wish.

Video

Notes

  • Make sure that the water added to the cake is hot. When you combine the hot water with the cocoa powder in the batter, it helps dissolve and bloom the cocoa powder to bring out the chocolate flavor.
  • Always ensure that the oven is fully heated up to 350°F before adding the cake pans. If the oven is not at the correct temperature, it can cause uneven baking. The rise of the cake would be inconsistent and underbaked.
  • When measuring flour for baked goods, the proper way to do so is by fluffing the flour and them spooning the flour into a measuring cup before leveling the top. Doing so prevents the flour from being over-packed into a measuring cup, leading to a dense cake.
  • Avoid letting the batter sit in your cake pans for too long before baking. The leavening agents in the batter have been activated, so the longer it sits out, the less active the agents will be.
  • Be sure only to mix the batter until it is just combined. Overmixing the batter can lead to a dense cake.   

Nutrition

Calories: 987kcal | Carbohydrates: 142g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 49g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Monounsaturated Fat: 26g | Trans Fat: 6g | Sodium: 921mg | Potassium: 350mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 105g | Vitamin A: 6IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 139mg | Iron: 4mg