Four years ago this month, John and I were just kids planning our wedding. We decided to give up sweets during our engagement to feel our best on our wedding day, and to more fully enjoy our dessert bar and wedding cake.
The big day finally arrived. We had been so good, not even having an ounce of sweets aside from honey and the occasional after-dinner mint. And you better believe we pigged out at the reception. I was in sweet tooth heaven.
Like most, our honeymoon was a time of sheer indulgence so when we got settled back into “real life” we hit the reset button on our diet. Sweets were out the door again.
That was, until we attended the wedding of some close friends in Portland where I met the chocolate cake that perhaps changed my life.
Yes, big words for a cake.
I’d resigned to give desserts up indefinitely. But then we show up at this wedding and it’s absolutely charming and the food is delicious and the ambience is perfect and the music is a local bluegrass band…and all at once they bring out this giant chocolate cake.
I wrangled our entire table into a discussion over whether or not this cake was worth breaking my fast for.
Unanimously, we agreed yes. I took one bite into this luxurious, velvety, rich chocolate cake, and amidst so many layers of mousse, cake and ganache my mind couldn’t comprehend what my taste buds were experiencing.
Was it worth it? Without a doubt, yes.
These days my sweet tooth still wins once in a while, but I keep it to the occasional indulgence. A donut here, a cookie there, almost always something on the healthier side of the spectrum. But especially in the last 6 months, always dairy free. And so, it was a given that I had to make my dream chocolate cake vegan style.
Friends, I’ve done just that.
As the title suggests, this cake is made in 1 bowl in under 1 hour! You can even make your buttercream frosting in the same bowl you used for the cake. Simplicity at its finest.
The ingredients are fairly simple and considerably “healthier” than most chocolate cakes.
Coconut oil replaces vegetable or canola
Oil is reduced with the addition of applesauce
Cane sugar replaces granulated sugar
And the only (vegan) “butter” is in the (vegan) “buttercream” frosting
So, what does it taste like? Just like chocolate cake should! It’s:
Tender
Fluffy
Chocolaty
Sweet
Moist
Decadent
Generously frosted
& Perfect with a glass of almond milk
If you’re like me, chocolate cake (or any cake, for that matter) deserves a giant scoop of ice cream beside it. Melty ice cream and a thick slice of heavily-frosted cake – does it get any better than that?
But for the modest cake eater, a glass of almond milk is really all you need to wash down this vegan chocolate dream. Enjoy!
Speaking of almond milk, this recipe marks the first of several recipes we’ll be sharing over the next few months featuring Blue Diamond Almond Breeze! I’ve been using Almond Breeze for years and am thrilled to bring you guys some tasty recipes featuring a product I adore so much. For more information about the integrity of this brand, see their FAQ page.
Now bring on the cake!
1-Bowl Vegan Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
CAKE
- 1 ½ cups original unsweetened Almond Breeze Almond Milk
- 2 tsp white or apple cider vinegar
- 2/3 cup coconut oil, melted (or sub avocado oil)
- 1/2 cup strong brewed coffee (or sub more almond milk)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups unsweetened applesauce*
- 2 heaping cups whole-wheat pastry flour or unbleached all-purpose flour (heaping implies 1 cup + roughly 2 Tbsp)
- 1 ⅓ cups organic cane sugar (or sub granulated sugar)
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
FROSTING
- 1 cup vegan butter (softened)
- 2 ½ – 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate (melted and slightly cooled)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ~1/4 cup unsweetened original Almond Breeze Almond Milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C) and lightly spray 2 8-inch round cake pans or 1 large rectangular pan with nonstick spray (see notes for cooking times for different size pans // adjust number or size of pans if altering batch size). Dust with cocoa powder, shake out the excess and set aside.
- Mix the almond milk and vinegar in a large mixing bowl, and let set for a few minutes to activate. Add the oil, coffee, vanilla extract, and applesauce and beat until foamy. If coconut oil hardens, microwave the mixture in 10-15 second increments until melted.
- Add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a sifter and slowly sift over the wet ingredients while mixing with a hand-held or standing mixer. If you don’t have a sifter, simply mix dry ingredients in another bowl and add to the wet mixture while beating. Beat until no large lumps remain. It should be creamy and pourable. Taste and adjust sweetness as needed, adding more sugar if desired (I found it plenty sweet).
- Divide batter evenly between your cake pans or rectangular pan.
- Bake 25-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.
- While cooling, prepare frosting by beating together all ingredients until light and fluffy, adding the powdered sugar in small amounts until you reach your desired consistency and sweetness. If it becomes too thick, add more almond milk. If it’s too thin, add more cocoa powder or powdered sugar.
- Once the cake is cooled, frost generously with buttercream frosting, adding a thick layer between the top and bottom layers (if doing a 2-layer cake). Alternatively, omit the frosting and dust with cocoa powder.
- Serve with a scoop of dairy-free ice cream, a drizzle of chocolate, or caramel sauce, coconut whipped cream or a glass of almond milk!
Video
Notes
*Double the recipe and use 4 pans for a 4-layer cake. Halve the recipe and use 1 pan for a 1-layer cake.
*Adapted from my Fudgy Vegan Beet Cupcakes
*Buttercream adapted from Martha Stewart
*Confused on how long to bake your cake when using different pans? Here’s a helpful guide.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
Monica says
I was so excited to try this cake recipe but also nervous as we’re long time vegans but newly gluten free. It was surprisingly awesome even with gf subs!!! I used 1 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbls Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 baking flour and 1/2 cup almond meal. I used two, 9 inch round cake pans and baked for 30-35 minutes. It was moist and fudgy but not gummy. The frosting is kick ass and makes the perfect combo with the cake! Thank you for the work you do! Your recipes and beautiful pictures are inspirational :)
Olesya says
oops…sorry… posted on wrong page… you can delete the comment :-S
Olesya says
The best! I used recipe of the cream for my crazy cake… and idea with avocado was genius!
Hava says
woukd this work in a 9-13 pan and if so how much time would it take?
I would guess 20-28 minutes?
saira says
Hey there! thank you for sharing this recipe, I was wondering if I were to use a 10″ cake tin, would i need to double the recipe or keep this recipe as is and use it all in the 10″ tin?
I don’t think you’d need to double it, but maybe multiply it by 1.5
Beebs says
I always like to try out new recipes, so decided to try making this cake gluten free, given all the rave reviews above. I do a lot of baking, and a lot of “converting” of recipes to gluten free for family, so I wasn’t particularly daunted or concerned doing this. I use a GF flour blend we have here in Australia that I can usually just directly substitute in. I added 2 tblsp of almond meal as well, plus a pinch of xanthum gum, as suggested.
I’m sorry to say the cake was an unpleasant rubbery slimy kind of texture. I had to bake it for an hour. I still don’t think it was quite done but I took it out because it looked like it was going a bit dry around the edges. It sank after I took it out. The cut surface of the cake was dense, slimy with absolutely no crumb texture at all. It was very disappointing (I’m not used to things not working!!) I ended up throwing it out :-(
I’m open to any suggestions on offer for what went wrong, or how to make this cake work as gluten free…..
Mary says
I made this recipe with gluten free flour (well oats that I ground myself, so there might have been trace wheat in there). I’m not celiac or otherwise allergic, just ran out of wheat flour and got lazy.
As I’m sure you already know, gluten is important for creating sheets of denatured protein strands that capture the carbon dioxide bubbles in baked goods and impart greater resistance or ‘chew.’ Gluten, like most protein complexes, are relatively hydrophilic and bind water, retaining moisture in your baked goods as well. (I have a master’s degree in biochem, but there are also great tips in Cook’s Illustrated “How Can It Be Gluten-Free cookbook”.)
This recipe uses a simple chemistry trick with the vinegar and baking soda to release the carbon dioxide. That’s why overmixing it is so bad – if all the acetic acid finds all the sodium bicarbonate before applying heat, the CO2 will escape before baking. Cakes, unlike cookies and bread, don’t contain as much gluten, so most of the time substituting gluten-free for wheat flour should work reasonably well. In this case, I decreased the amount of total flour that I used (the final amount was about 1/4 cup less flour, wish I could be more precise). I also added the vinegar to the fruit puree alone (I used all banana) added that mixture to the oil and coffee, mixed to form a quick emulsion, then added that mixture to the dry mix. If I was to do it again, I would probably use commercial oat flour or invest in a mill – I didn’t grind up the oats as well as they should have been. My cake came out pretty spongy but there was a definite banana taste, so I just went with it and added coconut milk over the top.
Let me know if any of this helped.
Beebs says
Hi Mary
Thanks for the tips. I love the chemistry of baking (no degree though ;-), so fascinating how it all comes together isn’t it? Interesting that you added the vinegar to the fruit puree, not the almond milk. What does that do to the vinegar / bicarb interaction – slow it a bit? I sometimes sub banana in recipes calling for fruit puree, or a mix of apple and banana if I want it less “banana-ey”.
Did you use any milk at all in the wet ingredients, you didn’t list it in your comment, was curious to know…
I sometimes reduce the flour amount when I’m converting but it depends a bit on the recipe and the flour mix I’m using. More recently I’ve started experimenting with my own flour mix, so maybe I’ll try that in this recipe. Though I have so many gluten free vegan baking recipes now that I’m finding I’m generally doing less experimenting and just sticking to the ones I’ve got that are tried and true!
Thanks again for the advice, happy baking!
Mary says
Hello there Beebs. I got an email notification about your response so I came back to clarify. I used almond milk in the cake recipe itself. I tried pouring coconut milk (the thicker canned kind) on top but that didn’t change the texture.
Yes you’re exactly right about the vinegar/baking soda reaction. I wanted to slow it down so it would gradually release carbon dioxide into the cake. Not sure how helpful it is, would be interesting to do a side-by-side comparison one day. Given the description you gave (that the cake was dense and rubbery) it sounds like a leavening issue of some kind.
Grace says
Hi,
I am making this for a friend’s birthday tomorrow. We will both be attending an Orthodox church service for two hours before I’ll give it to her, so will it be okay until then? The frosting won’t melt or the texture won’t go funny?
I would really appreciate a quick reply because I need to make it tonight or early tomorrow morning!
That should be fine! Just make sure it isn’t sitting in a hot place. Good luck!
Gabi says
I was wondering if it would affect the consistency if I used less sugar ? Should I add more of something else?
Thanks a lot for sharing .Looks amazing
It will, so I’d recommend scaling back slightly on the amount of almond milk you add. Good luck!
Katharina says
Hi, great cake! I will try it within the next days. Thanks!
Chelsea says
I made this cake earlier today for a vegan friend of mine. It was the first time I have done any vegan baking or used coconut oil. This cake turned out quite well! I really enjoyed it. It was moist and rich. I halved the almond milk in the frosting and replaced it with some cooled coffee to create a more of a mocha flavor. The frosting ended up being a little thin for my liking and I didn’t want to keep adding sugar, so I just threw it in the refrigerator before applying to the cake to stiffen it up a bit. Thank you so much for sharing a recipe that even an amateur vegan baker can succeed with!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Chelsea!
Norah says
The cake looks very delicious. I might bake it today :)
But I have a question, is the nutrition information correct? 15 grams of saturated fats is too much for one slice :/
Still considering baking it though.
Thanks
It is correct, Norah. Feel free to use less oil if you’d like. But remember that the oil is from coconut, which is far different than other fat sources.
Nora says
I’m not much of a baker, really. Nine out of ten baking experiments end in failure. When I saw the amazing pictures of this delicious cake I knew I had to make it though. This recipe dit not dissapoint! The cake was rich, gooey and fluffy and I was in heaven with the frosting. My friend claims it’s the best chocolate cake she’s ever tasted and could not believe it’s vegan. So thanks for this easy, reliant and delicious recipe!! :)
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Nora!
Nina V says
I made this cake for my little boy’s 5th birthday, yesterday.
Wow! It’s delectable. Beautifully moist and tasty. And yielded such a LOT of cake. This is definitely my ‘go to’ chocolate cake from here in. I added a cup of raspberries as he’s something of a berry fiend and it’s the close o Summer here in Oz. :)
Thank you SO much.
Nina V says
I made this cake for your little boy’s 5th birthday, yesterday.
Wow! It’s delectable. Beautifully moist and tasty. And yielded such a LOT of cake. This is definitely my ‘go to’ chocolate cake from here in. I added a cup of raspberries as he’s something of a berry fiend and it’s the close o Summer here in Oz. :)
Thank you SO much.
Kelly Robbins says
I have never EVER before left a comment for an online recipe but I have made a few dishes by Minimalist Baker now and this cake has prompted me to post!
I made a one layer cake to the letter (halving the ingredients) and it did not disappoint, it was so moreish, me and my partner have actually managed to eat the whole thing over 24 hours! Oops. Absolutely delightful sponge, perfectly sweet and the buttercream was enough. I tasted a hint of the coffee flavour throughout but it enhanced the flavour rather than overpowered it.
Just had to praise you for the fantastic recipe. Thanks so much, Kelly x
haha! Thanks for sharing Kelly! Appreciate the time to make the recipe AND leave a comment! Love.
Ellen Sherrod says
My daughter is vegan so I always looking for new recipes to try for her. Last Labor Day we had a lot of family over and I made this cake. It was a hit and no one new it was vegan except my daughter. She was delighted. I am going to make it this week for my women’s Bible study group. Thank you for sharing.
Amber Peters says
This seriously turned out so perfect!!!
Thank you so much for the consistency of excellence that this blog has!!
bob says
Let the cakes cool completely in the pans, otherwise they “deflate” a little when turned out hot.
Betsy says
I need a dessert recipe to make for my vegan step daughter and granddaughter who will be visiting us this weekend and this sounds like it will fit the bill. I have liquid coconut oil and was wondering if there is any reason I can’t use that. If so, do I simply measure as stated in the recipe?
That should work! You might also want to try these cupcakes!
Sara says
I just made this cake on Friday and it got rave reviews by my non-vegan family and friends! My mom was so impressed she thought I bought it. I made the recipe as is, except I used Arrowhead Mills gluten free baking mix for the flour. The only issue I ran into was that I had to bake my cake significantly longer, about 45-50 minutes, before my toothpick came out clean. The end result was a very dense and fudgey cake, definitely not too dry. My batter was also not pourable, it was very thick. Not sure if that’s because of the gluten free flour or if the thickness of the batter is what necessitated the longer baking time, but it all worked out in the end. I used a different chocolate frosting made with cashews and then decorated the top with a sprinkling of powdered sugar, cacao nibs, and toasted pecans.
Justin says
This cake is amazing! I made this cake for a church meal, and the whole thing was gone before I could even get a small piece it! I substituted the regular flour with gluten-free flour mix and some xanthan gum, because some people are allergic to gluten. Also, some kids of my friends are intolerant to eggs, and they finally were able to taste a chocolate cake :) and I saw one of them “clean up” the plate for me.
Thank you, Dana! I look forward to your new recipes :)
Claudia says
How can I sustitute the vega butter for frosting?? Its no easy to find vegan butter in Mexico :(
Thanks
Lourdes says
LOVE it. Made it today for my chocolate-loving vegan daughter’s 17th birthday. Mine kind of broke in half but I repaired with frosting. No complaints, everyone thought it was super delicious :)
Jennifer says
I’m not sure if this makes a difference, but will substituting soy milk for almond milk still work alright? My mom is allergic and I’d like for everyone to enjoy it! Thank you.
Julie says
Fantastic! This made for a really cute baby shower cake! Made it with a gluten free flour mix for a pregnant friend who was both gluten and dairy intolerant. Turns out beautifully and the guests ate it all up! My step by step picture tutorial is here: http://www.asweeterthing.com/2015/01/27/gluten-dairy-free-chocolate-cake-for-a-baby-shower/
So cool! Thanks for sharing.
Linda Ryder says
Hello,
I wanted to let you know that I made your cake with modifications to make this gluten free for my daughter’s birthday. My daughter is Coeliac and she has a friend who is vegan. The cake was a hit and altered easily to gluten free. I have also had one of the birthday attendees ask for the recipe!
thank you so much for your help – its not easy finding yummy cakes easy to bake with all those dietary requirements.
Ah, thanks Linda!! Happy birthday to your daughter!
Rosemary says
Great recipe. Jut made this for a friend’s birthday and it was amazing. Rich, moist, with a crumbly, caky texture. Subbed out regular flour for Bob’s Red Mill gluten free flour and it worked great. Thanks!
Great! Thanks for sharing!!
Georgina says
Not sure why my last post only gave a 2 star. It was meant to be a 5 star!
Georgina says
I made this cake this weekend for my birthday dinner. It came out picture perfect! I did replaced the almond milk with soy milk since I have a food sensitivitie to almonds. I also used half whole wheat flour and half unbleached flour. Turned out great! I did notice that mine did raise higher than your photos. Everyone had seconds at midnight. :) Thanks for putting together a great vegan chocolate cake!
Great! Thanks for sharing, Georgina!!
Grace says
My 75 year old grandfather loves to bake everyone a cake for their birthday. He measures out the box and will mail you a cake wherever you live. He makes several cakes a year so he usually buys box cake mix and canned icing and it’s usually not very pleasant looking or tasting when it arrives on the other end. I am fortunate enough to live with this man during my birthday this year. I requested he not make me a “box cake”. I wouldn’t eat it because I’ve seen the icing labels and tasted them in the past. I jokingly said how about a real cake, a vegan cake. Weeks go by. My birthday was over two days ago. My grandmother calls me downstairs and the two of them sing me happy birthday with a cake. He baked this cake at 2am while I was at work. It was delish!! How sweet life is? Thanks for creating a great vegan cake that even my grandfather can create.
So kind!!! What a set of grandparents you have there. Thanks for sharing!!
Glores says
Grace your story brought a tear to my eye! Sooo sweet :-)
Donna says
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I am looking forward to trying it soon! I am also excited to see you are using Almond Breeze ‘milk’. It just became available here in the last 6 months and I am totally sold on it, it’s wonderful!
Oh great! It’s my favorite almond milk, too!
Deborah says
This is the first recipe I have baked vegan. It is exactly what I expect a chocolate cake to be. Moist, rich, decadent, not too sweet but not bitter. I cut the recipe in half and only made one round. I don’t like frosting so I just mixed about 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder and sprinkled it on the cake. I served it with fresh strawberries and blueberries. A little plain greek yogurt with some honey mixed in. I will be dreaming about this tonight. Thank you for introducing me to vegan desserts!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Deborah!
Sue Hutson says
Delicious!! I cut the recipe in half and made cupcakes. They came out perfect (even though I forgot to halve the baking powder) and I will make them again, perhaps adding peppermint. Great recipe!! I didn’t have enough chocolate for the frosting, so I just left it out for a creamy vanilla.
Thanks for sharing, Sue!!
Clara says
Made this yesterday for a friend’s birthday. It was delicious and moist! However, when I cut into it, I saw white specks within the cake. I think that may be either the milk + vinegar reacting or solidified coconut oil. Have you seen that before? I’ve baked with coconut oil before so this was new/surprising to me. Either than that, cake was amazing!!! Thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Stephanie says
Just made this to test it for my son’s birthday. Amazing!! Followed the recipe to a T and it turned out so well. Definitely need a nice cold glass of almond milk to go with it :) Thanks for creating this!!
Carmen says
Thanks for this great recipe. My son is vegan and each year his birthday treats are a failure AND i’m a baker by trade so i fail miserably. Finally a cake that is moist AND didn’t sink in the middle. I gave some leftovers to my staff and a couple of customers who also thought it was delicious. Thanks again for this cake and in general for you fab site.
Ginger says
Just tried out this cake recipe, using Williams Sonoma Cup 4 Cup (gluten free) flour with a little xanthan gum added, and coconut milk subbed for almond milk. Haven’t frosted it yet, but on its own, the cake, while it looks exactly like your pictures, has an unpleasant gummy, almost slimy texture. I thought I might not have cooked it enough so I tried another batch with a longer cooking time. Same again. Did I do something wrong?
Laura says
Wait. You altered the recipe and it didn’t turn out as expected? I feel that a two star rating is a bit unfair, unless you follow the recipe exactly.
Sarah Smith says
Thanks for this amazing recipe! It is the best chocolate cake I have ever made. It is very easy and very forgiving. For example, I accidentally used 2 TBSP cider vinegar instead of 2 tsp. I will not make chocolate cake with eggs again…
Christina says
This sounded great on paper but I think that there should be an egg replacer (flax egg perhaps?) in this.. I’ve had it in the oven for well over 40-45 minutes and it hasn’t come out clean yet and I followed the recipe to the T.
ShanonS says
So excited to find this recipe and made a small modification to make it a red velvet cake. Lets see how it turns out, its baking right now! Now I just need to find a frosting, but maybe I can adapt the one above minus the cocoa powder. Any suggestions?
LOVE, LOVE your website, vegan, easy. I have a cake made, and kitchen cleaned up in less than hour an hour, my husband thanks you, I’m a messy chef!
Shruti Boddu says
I wanted to ask if you ever made this red velvet? :)
Georgette says
Came across your recipe since your the 2nd story of Google news when I typed in “vegan”. Good for you guys! I have made some of your recipes before. I made this recipe last night. And my best critic (my husband) says its one of the best chocolate cakes I’ve made! So thank you. And thank you from the animals.
Billie Lehman says
My hubby has a rather large sweet tooth, but unfortunately is gluten intolerant. What changes can I make to make this recipe gluten free?
Gax says
Usually, I love your recipes, photos, and writing. So, I’m reading this article, excited to find out how to make the delicious-looking chocolate cake, until my eyes hit this line:
” And you better believe we pigged out like fat kids at the reception. ”
Wow. I had to stop reading. Hurtful, guys.
Having been a fat kid, who was made to be deeply ashamed about her weight, I can tell you, I was extremely self conscious about eating anything around other people. Any amount a fat kid eats can get them accused of “pigging out”, whether they over-eat or not.
You do a food blog. Could you think about dropping the fat shaming?
Best,
Gax
Gax, I’m really sorry about that. I honestly didn’t even think about it when I wrote it. I’ll amend that in the post.
Gax says
Thanks for the amendment, and the prompt (and sensitive) response. We can’t all be aware of everything all the time, but I deeply appreciate your understanding and changing once the situation was brought to your attention. It means a lot.
Not only will I continue to follow Minimalist Baker (on Facebook, and I also pin a lot of your recipes on Pinterest), but I will also continue recommending your blog to friends (many of mine are vegan).
Thanks!
Gax
P.S. Can’t wait to try the cake!
Absolutely! Thanks for being so kind and understanding! I sincerely apologize again! Sending hugs – Dana xoxo
Apryl says
Hi! This is my first time ever making a cake from scratch and I need a little advice, please. The cakes turned out great, but I’m having trouble making the frosting “fluffy.” It turned out lake a pastry cake batter. Any suggestions? Thank you so much !
heidi says
This cake looks absolutely amazing and your story on it was awesome!! The temperance you have is outstanding.
I want to make this cake but I do not consume vinegar in my diet, i sub vinegar for lime juice or lemon juice, how much would you say I should use in this recipe?. Thank you soo much for all your amazing recipes!! I love them very much ❤
CB says
Can I freeze the leftovers frosted and all? Can’t wait to make it this weekend for my husbands birthday.
Hmm, not sure but I would think yes!
Boelle Kirby says
Just wish this was gluten-free! I have flourless recipes, but they have eggs, and are hard to make layer cakes with. Any thoughts?
Heather @ HeatherOMade says
this looks so good. my hubby love boxed chocolate cake – i wonder if he’d notice/like this better! i must try ASAP. thanks!
Cat says
I made this for my mum’s birthday, it was incredible! So moist, chocolatey, and mmmm delicious. I gave a piece to my friend, who fed some to her 9 year old son, he said it was the best chocolate cake he’d ever had! High praise indeed! It is quite expensive though, so will only bring it out on special occasions :)
Maria says
I made the cake twice now using one 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan. It tastes great and will definitely be a staple but I am wondering why the texture on the top half of the cake is different from the bottom. Top half is a moist chocolate cake, the bottom half is fudgy, and I can clearly see a demarcation line of the texture difference when the cake is sliced. I cooked at 350 F on my 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan for an hour and the toothpick came up dry. I tried cooking for less time but it was uncooked if less than an hour. Any thoughts on what I may be doing wrong? Or would it be really better on 2 8×8 inch pans?
Tastes great though otherwise and will be a keeper!
Melodie says
Can I make this as a jelly roll? Anyone try that yet?
Jana says
This recipe is out of this world! Delicious, moist, rich, chocolately without being too sweet. I’m the only vegan in the family but today I made this cake for the 4th time because everyone keeps requesting I make it for birthdays! Sharing wonderful vegan treats with people I love warms my heart like nothing else, so thank you Dana!
Grannie Annie says
At 70 years of age I am learning how to convert old recipes to vegan dishes since my son and his wife are now vegans after being vegetarians for all 15 years of their married lives. Today was Matt’s 39th birthday. So I made this cake and cannot begin to tell you how happy I am at how beautifully it turned out and at how delicious it is.
I followed your instructions and knew as soon as I tasted the batter it was going to be good. No need for extra sugar. For the frosting I used 4 ounces of Earth Balance and 4 ounces of butter flavored Crisco. I scalded the almond milk before adding it a bit at a time and I also used a few teaspoons of strong coffee in the frosting since I had some left from making it for the cake. It was just perfect.
Thank you for convincing me that vegan food can be this good. Old dog learning new tricks here.
Sonny says
Hi there. With your chocolate cake, what can I use to replace the oil and butter? I need to avoid these in cooking and was hoping you could advise me on replacements. Thanks
Hmm, not sure – maybe avocado? Haven’t tried it though – sorry!
Leah Ryals says
I made this cake for Thanksgiving this year, and it was a huge success! Living in the South and being vegan has many challenges, but the look on everyone’s face as they were gobbling up my cake and I told them that it was vegan was worth it! Now I’m making it again this weekend for one of my best friends birthday party. Thanks for sharing!
Great! Thanks for sharing, Leah!
Cait says
If I want to make this gluten free, would I be able to simply replace the wheat flour with a gluten free blend? Or would you recommend changing anything else if I do that?
Thank you for your time!
Christine says
I have family coming for Thanksgiving that are vegan. Since I am the baker of the family, I was asked to make a vegan dessert. I planned on making your cake, but only issue is, they also do not eat any oil, in any form. There already is applesauce in the recipe, so what would you suggest I use to replace the oil as well? I have looked through the comments, but hadn’t seen any with any suggestions.
Kim says
I’ve never had to bake without oil, but I might suggest avocado or some kind of fatty nut butter.
Almond says
I am a vegan and allergenic to dairy products. Recipe looks great and am sure it will taste even better; planning to try this one. Thanks
CamiCakes says
Any one try this recipe for cupcakes? Wondering how many it would make. Appreciate any feedback!
billie says
Does the taste differ greatly when you skip the coffee and add more almond milk? And do I add the same amount of almond milk as the amount of coffee?
I want to make this for my daughter’s christening, but don’t want my 3 year old having coffee!!
Yes! Just sub more almond milk or just water. Good luck!
Amy says
We recently discovered our daughter has an egg allergy, so I have been frantically searching for recipes to replace my tried and true standbys. This recipe takes the cake (heh). I intended to go all out vegan for the cake, but didn’t have enough almond milk, so I subbed for raw milk. This was the most deliciously most, tender and lovely egg free cake I’ve ever eaten! It was my son’s birthday cake and I made ermine frosting for it. Everyone loved it! This will be added to my rotation for sure!
Yay! So glad everyone enjoyed the cake. Thanks for sharing, Amy!
Erin H. says
I don’t have whole wheat pastry flour but I do have regular whole wheat all purpose flour…would that work or do you think I should just stick with unbleached all purpose flour? Also, can I use my own homemade almond milk?
Thanks and can’t wait to try this!
I think that would work, but no guarantees! You can definitely use your own almond milk. Good luck!
Teresa Murphy says
I made this cake yesterday as a birthday cake for a good friend. Myself and three carnivores concur, BEST CHOCOLATE CAKE EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!
OMG, first I have to say, I haven’t baked a cake in 20 years. My culinary skills are such that, while I can bake, I’ve kind of devolved into a combination of Lucy and The Three Stooges in the kitchen. The 15 minute, one-bowl cake took me several shopping trips and cost an extra dress and three sweaters: a day and a half to make. Didn’t realize I didn’t have a hand-held mixer. Had a little bullet thing with a whisk attachment. So, picture wiping chocolate cake batter off of multiple walls and weird places in the kitchen. It was entertaining.
I used super duper high-quality cocoa powder. Everything except my powdered sugar was of organic, good-quality ingredients.
It rose amazingly perfectly, high, smooth, pretty. The only substitution I made was Organic Coconut Sugar for cane sugar.
Honestly the taste, texture, richness, aroma, sweetness, complexity was all just fantastic!! Worth it!
Yay!! Thanks for sharing, Teresa!
Xan says
Made this cake last minute for a friend’s visit. Last minute as in I barely had time to let it cool and slap the frosting on before they were there! We all enjoyed it and agreed it was a nice cake, even if the bf said it had a strange ‘healthy’ taste to it. Afterwards I put the leftovers in the fridge.
OH
MY
GOD
Overnight the cake matured into THE MOST AMAZING mud cake I have ever eaten. It 100% belongs in a posh cafe. It’s incredibly soft and dense and delicious (and I only made one layer). My advice is to make it the night before a special occasion and then gloat heartily as your friends and and family tuck in and stare at you like a baking god.
Thank you so much for the recipe!
Also due to time constraints and a lack of vegan butter, I subbed in a chocolate avocado frosting from a paleo recipe site. It was more like a ganache but it worked really well. The recipe is crazy simple too, just drop 1 ripe avocado, 1/2 a cup of cocoa powder, 1/2 a cup of maple syrup and a small pinch of salt into a food processor and pulse a few times until they’re good friends and all creamy.
*I also subbed the unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze because it was in the fridge and had to use a sugar-sweetened jar of applesauce from the supermarket but doubt either of those things mattered too much besides added sweetness.
Yay! Thanks for sharing!! So glad you liked it!
Wendy says
Hi! I just made this cake for my son’s 4th birthday (my daughter has allergy to egg, nut and dairy) and it was a HUGE hit! To make it nut free, I subbed the almond milk for soy milk. I paired it with an avocado chocolate ‘frosting’ and it was divine. People kept asking me how it was so moist with no eggs and no milk! This is going to be my go-to chocolate cake recipe from now on! Oh and cake & pastry flour made all the difference!
Yay! So glad everyone enjoyed it, Wendy! Thanks for sharing!
Debbie says
I tried to make a vegan cake for the first time the other day and failed miserably. My housemate described it as looking like a fried tofu. I tried twice and both times they sank. But THIS cake I just pulled out of the oven and it looks amazing! It looks moist and soft. I haven’t been able to taste it yet as I am taking it to a fundraiser tomorrow but I’ll report back as soon as I do. Thanks!!
I hope you loved it, Debbie!
Debbie says
Hi Dana,
I know this is terribly late but the cake was beautiful and I was asked for the recipe and it has been passed on and made another group of people very happy!
Have you tried adding berries to the batter or any other variations? I am wanting to experiment with flavours!
Ah, love that you shared the recipe! thanks Debbie! Haven’t tried any other variations but consider me on the case! cheers xoxo
Erika Awakening says
I just made this, and it’s cooling right now. The batter tasted amazing so I hope to get as great a result as you did. I substituted freshly brewed espresso for the coffee, and coconut milk for the almond milk. We will see how it turns out :)
Let me know how you like it, Erika!
Caroline says
Made this cake for the first time for my vegan step-daughter’s birthday cake. My non-vegan, exceptionally fussy hubby & son ate it and loved it. The finished cake was lovely and moist and (I’m pleased to say) actually looked like your pictures. The frosting is divine!!!!
One comment, however, without the frosting the actual cake had no taste at all, despite all the cocoa powder in it and the batter tasting fine – any ideas why? I followed the recipe with two changes, I didn’t include the coffee (added the extra almond milk instead) and I used GF Flour and Xanthan gum instead of normal flour.
Hmm, not sure, but glad you still liked it! Mine was quite flavorful. Sometimes gluten free flours can absorb some of the flavor. Perhaps next time add a bit more sugar and cocoa powder? Hope that helps!
Deanna says
Don’t make the same mistake I did, I used liquid coconut oil that turned to solid after mixing with the cold milk. Have the milk room temperature at least. I set it over a pan of warm water and solved the problem. Has anyone tried making this as a bundt cake? This cake is delicious, I have made it for my twin sister and I for our birthday celebration. Very rich and moist!
Betsy Lou says
I made this lovely cake last night for my boyfriend and it turned out so good. I halved the recipe to make a smaller cake but calculated 2 things incorrectly so I ended up putting in more coffee and less applesauce. It still turned out perfect. I find a half recipe is quite enough cake for my boyfriend and I to consume in a couple days, plus it’s just easier to make. I bought apple baby food instead of traditional applesauce which is a thinner consistency, cheaper, and less waste than a big jar of it. Also I added almond extract to the icing which gives it a nice amaretto flair. Next time I might drizzle a little rum over the cake after baking. I agree with everyone on the fact that vegan cake is so much better than cakes made with animal products! Thank you Minimalist Baker!
Kirsty says
Hi,
This is my first Vegan or egg free bake….. any tips before I try???
Archana says
Hi I tried the cake today. I had to bake it at higher temp of 400 F after trying for 30 mins at 350 F. The cake had risen nicely after baking at higher temp but dropped as it cooled down :( It looks so flat and hard now. I am a novice baker, where did I go wrong? The last time I tried an eggless recipe, the same thing happened. Please advise.
Neha says
Archana, did you check the dates on the apple cider vinegar, baking soda and baking powder? Make sure they are fresh.
Charity Odama says
This was also my first time making a vegan chocolate cake and it was so delicious! Best chocolate cake I have ever had also! This is including non-vegan cakes! I altered the recipe to make it gluten free using a coconut flour mix and it was just as delicious :)
Seriously, thank you so much for sharing this recipe. My only question is about the frosting. Its pretty sweet. Is there a way to make it hold up nicely if making cupcakes but not adding so much powdered sugar? Your expertise is appreciated. :)
Yes! You can add enough powdered sugar to get it to the sweetness you prefer. Then add in another flavorless thickener of choice, such as arrowroot starch or a gluten free flour blend. Hope that helps!
Annalea says
not only is this the first vegan cake i’ve made, it’s also THE BEST chocolate cake i’ve ever tasted!!! seriously, WOW!!! thanks so much for such delicious delight :)
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it, Annalea!
Ayu Martin says
I made this cake for my hubby for Father’s Day. He thought it was “nice” and he ate almost half a loaf (I made 2 cakes in a tin loaf). My 3 year old daughter ate some, but thought it was too chocolatey and decided it was “a bit yucky” (boo!). I ate it and I thought I was a super woman!! I brought the other cake to work. My colleagues couldn’t believe it was vegan.
I will definitely make it again. Whoever says being vegan is boring, has never tasted this cake. Thanks for the recipe.
PS:
I reduced the amount of sugar to half a cup. The icing was sweet enough.
Lovely! Thanks for sharing, Ayu!
Lee Potvin says
I made this cake last night and it was fantastic and so much better than any traditional chocolate cake. Unfortunately in my haste to prepare it, I forgot to pick up apple sauce. Instead I substituted fresh, peach puree instead and it was amazing. Even my non vegan (yet very supportive husband) was very impressed <3
Ah, lovely! So glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing your changes! Always so helpful to other readers. Cheers!
Justine says
So I totally read it as 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and now I’ve got this lovely sour concoction on my hands. EVERYONE DON’T DO IT. More sugar? Mayhaps.
Nicole King says
This cake was to die for. Nobody even thought it was vegan, haha! I paired it with a vegan pumpkin buttercream, it balanced out the sweetness of that perfectly! Thanks for the amazing recipe.
Lovely! Glad you enjoyed it, Nicole!
Nichole says
I’ve been searching for a vegan chocolate cake recipe for my wedding cake and this cake is it! I’m in love. I made a test cake and nobody even guessed it was vegan.
The frosting did really odd things and I have never before had that issue (looked so greasy and kind of separated). I just added vegan cream cheese and it was both beautiful and tasted great! Next time I may just make a spiced cream cheese frosting to go with it on for the wedding. I will never love another cake as much as I love this one. Thank you for that.
Lovely! Thanks for sharing, Nichole. A tip on the frosting: If you use Earth Balance (or real butter) from a tub instead of sticks, there is water added for ease of spreading. SO, when I’m baking, I always recommend the sticks! Hope that helps. Thanks for sharing!
Ayu Martin says
Keen to try! Can you use soy milk instead? My daughter has nut & peanut allergy :( So can’t use almond milk.
Yes!
seniorita polyester says
I’ve made it and the texture was very nice. The only problem I’ve found is that for me the mixture needs more salt.
jinal says
I should have added, I am not a vegan ( I’m vegeterian) but came across this recipe online and with such good reviews I wanted to bake it. I hope I’ve not offended by asking about substitution with milk. thanks.
jinal says
hi, I couldn ‘t find almond milk here, can I use milk instead?
Trina says
This was a disaster. Never had a cake look like mush after 40 mins in the oven. Don’t know what went wrong.
Trina, sorry you had such trouble! Did you make any revisions to the recipe or instructions?
Trina says
The only thing I did different was cook it in a bundt pan which could have been the problem. I will try again as so many others gave it such good reviews. I will use two pans next time.
Maddy says
I used coconut flower and thirty minutes later its bubbling like crazy! It smells really good though!
Crystal says
My son has several allergies, so when his birthday comes around, I have to find a suitable recipe. Would I be able to use soy milk instead of the Almond Breeze?
I hope so :)
Brenda says
Just wanted to say that I made this cake today. I’m not even going to frost it because it is wonderful on it’s own. Thank you for this recipe.
Maria says
I would love to make this cake for my son, but he’s allergic to dairy-eggs-nuts.
Liz says
Just tried this cake and it had good flavor but i found mine on the overly dense side – like it didn’t bake all the way through! :( looked more like fudge than cake when i cut it. The batter looked really good before i added the applesauce (cuz i had forgotten)… do you think this would work without the applesauce?
I do! Just add more oil to compensate moisture. Hope that helps!
Amy says
This cake is a dream. An actual dream. It makes me wonder why I ever bothered putting dairy in chocolate cakes before I was vegan. After making my apple sauce I realised I only had about 3/4 of a cup’s worth so I sub’d some soya yogurt to make it up to the right amount. I also only had self raising flour so I used that with a teaspoon of baking soda. The cake is so spongey and fudgey, it’s like eating a fudgey cloud. I filled it with some home made vegan nutella and topped it with with some coconut oil buttercream. I’ve had rave reviews. Thank you so much, this will be my go to chocolate cake from now on and most likely the recipe i use for my wedding cake!
Chris says
Sounds great. Suggest just pointing out to your readers that subbing granulated sugar and powdered sugar (if refined), disqualifies it as being vegan (processed via bone filtration). So many vegans these days confuse dairy free and egg free as sufficient for what truly vegan means. Even some vinegar is clarified with gelatin, etc.
I’ll try your recipe, as it’s similar to another I’ve used.
nikolaj says
A great recipe :) a really not vegi feeling cake :) best i’ve tried so far. A tip is to put some big dark chokolade pieces into it.
Alison says
Great point! In the US, all certified organic sugars are free of bone char, according to the USDA and the Vegetarian Resource Group. Many organic sugar packages are also labeled as vegan, in case consumers don’t realize.
Nightsinge says
True that, regarding sugar. However, sugar cannot use bone char and be qualified as “organic.” So organic sugars are safe to use for vegans.
Ragnheidur says
This is the best vegan cake I’ve ever tasted! I found your recipe a couple of weeks ago and I’ve all ready made it three times.
Thanks!!!
Amy McGarry says
Hey!! I was wondering what your thoughts were on using spelt flour instead? I really really want to make this cake :-)
Check the comments as I think other people tried it with success. I think it will work but as always, no guarantees!
sherri says
Awesome cake. I did my first cake and this was the first recipe I followed. Love it Dana. You are awesome.
Thanks Sherri! :D
Stacie says
Well, I’m back to stalking. The summer is our busy season at work and I haven’t had time to experiment. I saw several of your recipes that I wanted to try, but when we were invited to a BBQ (with non Vegans) I jumped on the chance to make this cake. I’ve never made a cake from scratch, Vegan or otherwise, so I did a test run before hand. The first one tasted good, but was messy – Totally my fault! I learned a lot of general stuff about cake making on the first go. Well, the second one I made, the important one, was AMAZING. You are awesome!! Everyone loved it!
Ah, thanks Stacie! So glad you enjoyed it!! xo
Deanna says
My friend made this for upmy husband and I when when came to visit and it was so delicious! Crazy good! My daughter wants to make this into cupcakes, do you have any suggestions for us?
So glad you liked it, Deanna! I think other readers have made these into cupcakes, so scan the comments for suggestions/results. However, I would say just reduce the cooking time by half and check every few minutes thereafter for doneness. Hope that helps and good luck!
Kim says
My last vegan chocolate cake was a bit of a disaster, this one seems to be MUCH more successful, I’m off to impress my dairy avoiding boyfriend with a cake that might actually be edible!
Ajay says
I made this cake for my family this past weekend. They totally loved it. I followed the recipe as written and it turned out great!! Thanks :)
Kat says
Killer recipe. Making it for the second time in cupcake form as I type (they’re in the oven). Thanks for coming up with this!
Molly says
I’ve made this cake about three times and each time it’s been gobbled by housemate (and myself!) far too quickly. I halve the recipe and make it in a rectangular slice pan with a frosting made from avocado/agave/cocoa/etc for more “everyday” eating (well, I like to tell myself this when I’m piling it into my mouth at 11pm…or 6am).
Julie says
Made this for my daughter’s 17th birthday part as one of her friends is vegan and I was amazed that it is the best chocolate cake I have ever made! First time baking a vegan cake but so moist and chocolaty. Everyone loved it. I am addicted to this now as well as your granola bars!
Carmen says
Wow! look so awesome! I wonder if it’s possible to replace the flour by a gluten free all-purpose flour?
Say yes, pplleeaasse:)
A girl from Quebec City who love your website.
Bre says
I made it with all purpose gluten free flour and it was so good!
Bre says
I used pamela’s brand
Delia says
hi! I just made this cake today with gluten free all purpose flour. I just added in 1/2 tsp of xantham gum like the gluten free flour bag recommended for cakes. It was delicious!!!!!!!! My parents who are neither gluten free nor vegan LOVED it and my dad asked me to make it for his birthday which is pretty incredible, as he pretty much hates vegan food.
I would totally recommend it! I also added coconut flakes into the icing- yum.