Vegan Chocolate Cake
There are no eggs or butter in this cake, and nobody will notice: the layers are moist, fine-crumbed and deeply chocolatey. Baking soda reacting with vinegar gives the lift, and hot coffee brings out the cocoa without making the cake taste of coffee. The coconut cream ganache is thick, shiny and spreads like velvet.
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Rest
- 2 h 30 min
- Total
- 3 h 45 min
- Servings
- 12
- Level
- Medium
- Per serving
- 400 kcal
Ingredients
For the cake
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What to use instead
Soy milk curdles best with the vinegar, but oat or almond milk will also work.
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What to use instead
Swap the coffee for hot water if you like — the cake is slightly less intense but just as moist.
For the ganache
Makes: one 20 cm cake, 12 slices
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
Oven
180 °C · top and bottom heat, no fan
With a fan: 160 °C
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Step 1: Prep the tins
Heat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan, 350 °F). Oil two 20 cm round tins and line the bases with parchment. Stir the vinegar into the soy milk and leave for 5 minutes — it will thicken slightly, like buttermilk.
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Step 2: Mix the dry ingredients
Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda and baking powder into a large bowl, add the sugar and salt and whisk well so no cocoa lumps remain.
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Step 3: Make the batter
Pour the soured milk, oil and vanilla into the dry ingredients and whisk just until smooth. Finally stir in the hot coffee — the batter will be thin and glossy, which is exactly right.
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Step 4: Bake
Divide the batter between the tins straight away and bake for 28–32 minutes, until a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs and the top springs back when pressed.
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Step 5: Cool completely
Let the cakes sit in their tins for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack, peel off the parchment and cool completely, about an hour. Warm layers will melt the ganache.
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Step 6: Make the ganache
Heat the coconut cream until it just starts to bubble and pour it over the chopped chocolate. Wait 2 minutes, add the maple syrup and salt and stir from the centre outwards until smooth and glossy. Leave at room temperature for 40–60 minutes until it thickens to the texture of soft peanut butter.
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Step 7: Assemble
Set one layer on a plate and spread with a third of the ganache. Top with the second layer upside down for a flat top, then cover the top and sides with the rest, making soft swirls with a palette knife. Leave to set for 30 minutes.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Don’t overmix: stop as soon as the dry streaks disappear, or the layers will turn dense.
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Swap
Swap the coffee for hot water if you like — the cake is slightly less intense but just as moist.
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Tip
Check the chocolate label: many dark bars contain milk fat or milk solids. Look for a vegan mark, or ingredients limited to cocoa mass, cocoa butter and sugar.
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Swap
Soy milk curdles best with the vinegar, but oat or almond milk will also work.
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Storage
Keeps 2 days covered at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge; bring it back to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 12 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 400 kcal | 4,800 kcal |
| Protein | 6 g | 72 g |
| Fat | 19 g | 228 g |
| Carbohydrates | 50 g | 600 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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