Decadent Vegan Chocolate Cake

It is about time that we share a recipe for a decadent vegan chocolate layer cake here on Full of Plants. While there is already a chocolate layer cake recipe on the blog, this one is easier and requires fewer ingredients.

It is not gluten-free, but it’s a classic recipe that everyone should have on hand. Perfect for any occasion, from birthdays to Valentine’s Day and graduation, any excuse is good to enjoy this cake! Let’s do it!

⭐️ Why You Should Try This Chocolate Cake

• It’s moist and fudgy: This chocolate cake just melts in your mouth. It is light, airy, and covered with a rich and creamy chocolate frosting!
• It’s easier than it looks: The batter requires just one bowl. Then it is divided between 3 pans and baked. Finally, all that is left is frosting the cake.
• It’s insanely delicious! Super chocolatey, just a bit salty, and perfectly sweet, this cake is a crowd-pleaser!

🥣 How to Make Vegan Chocolate Cake

Preparing this chocolate cake is much easier than it looks. You will need 13 basic ingredients and about 1 hour from start to finish.

Cake

For the cake, you will need:

• All-purpose flour – Use the good old all-purpose flour; no need to go with cake flour for this recipe.
• Unsweetened cacao powder – Try using a superfine cacao powder. It will result in a lighter texture. Also, a darker cacao powder will usually be more chocolatey.
• Sugar – While the frosting is prepared using powdered sugar, I went with coconut sugar for the cake itself.
• Yogurt – I like to use yogurt in this cake because it adds a little bit more fat and helps with the overall texture.
• Applesauce – Use unsweetened applesauce. You can’t taste it in the cake, but it brings a ton of moisture!
• Oil – Use a neutral oil like canola or grapeseed oil. I do not recommend using butter or coconut oil as it would result if a too-firm cake once chilled.
• Coffee – While you can substitute with more almond milk or water, dark coffee helps increase the chocolate flavor.
• Baking powder and baking soda – For a light and fluffy texture!
• Salt – To enhance the flavor of the chocolate, we will use a generous pinch of salt in the cake batter as well as in the frosting.
• Vanilla – Use good quality vanilla extract for the best flavor.

Start by whisking together all of the dry ingredients. Next, add the wet ingredients and whisk until the batter is smooth.

Slightly grease and line three 6-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Then, divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for about 20 minutes. The tops of the cakes should be just slightly cracked, and a toothpick inserted into the middle should come out almost clean.

Keep an eye on the cakes; you do not want to overbake them. We want moist and tender cakes!

Frosting

The frosting is super easy to prepare. Simply beat the softened vegan butter with cacao powder, powdered sugar, almond milk, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt until light and fluffy.

To assemble, spread a generous amount of the frosting on top of a chocolate cake and repeat the process two times. Finish by frosting the top and sides and top with shaved chocolate!

📔 Tips

• If you do not have a 6-inch cake pan on hand, simply use an oven-safe saucepan of about the same width! You can also bake this cake into a two-layer cake instead of three if you have 8-inch or larger pans.
• Since the chocolate cakes are very moist and tender, try to handle them carefully when assembling.
• For extra chocolate flavor and more texture, feel free to top this chocolate cake with mini chocolate chips!

💬 FAQ

🍫 More Chocolate Recipes

• Vegan Nama Chocolate
• Ultimate Vegan Chocolate Tart
• Vegan Chocolate Pralines
• The Fluffiest Vegan Chocolate Chip Muffins

Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!