Quick & Easy Vegan Chocolate Cake with Berries
Almost any special occasion birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, potluck parties can be celebrated with a delicious chocolate cake. It’s timeless! Our updated version of the original recipe is this wonderful, fluffy, and moist chocolate cake no one will ever know it’s entirely plant-based!
Vegan Chocolate Cake with Berries Recipe Card
Vegan Chocolate Cake with Berries
Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Medium12
servings15
minutes35
minutes312
kcalEnjoy a moist, fluffy vegan chocolate cake for any occasion! This plant-based recipe is a delicious twist on a classic that everyone will love.
Ingredients
Buttermilk
1 cup unsweetened soy milk
1 Tbsp white vinegarDry ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1½ cups granulated sugar
1 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp saltWet ingredients
¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
½ cup brewed espresso
½ cup refined coconut oil, melted
½ Tbsp pure vanilla extractFrosting
7.9 oz unsalted vegan butter, at room temperature
2¼ cups powdered sugar
¾ cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
⅓ cup unsweetened soy milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
⅓ cup melted dairy-free dark chocolateDecoration ideas
fresh mixed berries
fresh mint leaves
chocolate shavings
Directions
- Apply a thin layer of oil to the bottom of two 8-inch (20 cm) circular cake pans and cut out round pieces of parchment paper to fit the base of the pans.
- Pour the vinegar and milk into a medium-sized bowl and stir. Put aside. It will begin to curdle, as you can see. This makes buttermilk that is vegan.
- Put a big bowl over a sieve, and then pour all of the dry ingredients through the sieve. Combine, and then make a small well in the center. Set the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C)*.
- Transfer all of the remaining wet ingredients back to the medium bowl with the buttermilk. Stir well.
- Be cautious not to overmix when adding all the wet ingredients to the shallow well in the dry ingredients; just mix until everything is barely blended.
- Using two cake pans, divide the cake batter. To smooth out the batter and get rid of any air bubbles, lightly tap the pans on the counter a few times. A thin wooden skewer inserted into the center should come out clean after 35 minutes of baking on the center rack of a preheated oven.
- Prepare the icing in the interim. Add the butter to a large bowl and beat with an electric hand mixer until the butter is frothy.
- Next, include the milk, vanilla, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar. Gradually increase speed after starting at a low one until smooth. Stir in the melted chocolate as well when it has cooled a little.
- Once the cakes are baked, cool them in the cake pan for ten minutes, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely . If desired, the cakes can be leveled off with a serrated knife to provide a flat surface for stacking the cakes on top of each other.
- Cut a piece of parchment paper into six equal parts, then arrange them in a circle on the cake stand so that it is slightly larger than the diameter of the cake. These will be taken off later; they serve to keep the cake stand tidy. Place one of the cakes on the cake stand.
- Coat the first cake in a layer of icing. After flipping the first cake over, use the remaining frosting to coat the sides and top of the second cake.
- Take out the squares of parchment paper from underneath the cake.
- Decorate the chocolate cake with your preferred toppings and dig in!
Recipe Video
Notes
- For this recipe, we suggest using soy or pea milk because their high protein content helps the milk curdle to produce vegan buttermilk. We can’t promise other plant-based milk will be successful.
Other vegetable oils will alter the final texture of the cake, thus we do not advise replacing the coconut oil. It’s best to use refined coconut oil because it doesn’t taste or smell like coconut. Unrefined coconut oil can also be used here if you don’t mind the taste of coconut in your cake.
Rather than using convection or a fan, we employed top and bottom heating.
