Description
This incredibly moist vegan chocolate cake delivers rich, decadent flavor without any dairy or eggs. Perfect for birthdays and celebrations, it’s an allergy-friendly dessert everyone will love.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk or almond milk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup canola oil or melted coconut oil
- ⅔ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 cup cocoa powder (for frosting)
- 1½ cups vegan butter, softened (use baking sticks)
- 4–5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (for frosting)
- ¼–½ cup unsweetened soy milk or almond milk (for frosting)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease two 8 or 9-inch cake pans and line with parchment rounds.
- Mix 1 cup plant milk with vinegar. Stir and set aside to curdle.
- Whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
- Add oil, applesauce, vanilla, and milk mixture. Mix on medium speed until combined.
- Carefully pour in boiling water while mixing on low speed. The batter will be thin.
- Divide batter between pans. Bake 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
- For frosting, whisk cocoa powder in a large bowl to remove lumps.
- Beat in softened vegan butter until creamy and well combined.
- Add half the powdered sugar and milk, mix, then add remaining sugar and vanilla.
- Beat until fluffy, adjusting consistency with milk or powdered sugar as needed.
- Frost cooled cake layers using an offset spatula or butter knife.
Notes
- Room temperature ingredients mix better – take your plant milk and applesauce out 30 minutes before baking
- Don’t overmix the batter once you add the boiling water – just mix until combined
- Use cake strips or bake at 325°F for more even, level layers
- Sift your cocoa powder for the smoothest frosting without lumps
- Chill the frosted cake for 30 minutes before serving for cleaner slices
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/12 of cake)
- Calories: 425
- Sugar: 38g
- Sodium: 380mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 14g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 65g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
Keywords: dairy-free chocolate cake, egg-free chocolate dessert, plant-based cake recipe, vegan birthday cake, chocolate cake without eggs, allergy-friendly dessert, vegan baking recipe, moist chocolate cake