This vegan chocolate cake is the bomb diggity!
Not only is it SUPER easy to make, but I’m actually convinced it is flop proof! You’re going to love the simplicity of the ingredients and how well this cake comes out!
Now, there’s a particular word that I just have to use to describe it, but it’s a word that some people just hate, hahaha. That word is: moist.
Yes, this cake is moist. There’s just no other way to say it, and honestly it’s fantastic. You will just love how moist it is!
This is due to the oil in the cake which you’re able to keep to a minimum in this recipe, while still reaching that perfect state of moistness, which actually…..is just exactly what you want in a cake.
This cake is rich, tall (two layers), dark and gosh darn handsome too! Not to mention velvety and chocolatey.
Paired with blueberries and fresh whipped coconut cream, and some vegan chocolate frosting this is a cake you’ll remember – and so will all your friends!
This is the easy route to popularity right here! Just whip up one of these babies for your friends and you’re it!
And did I mention how EASY it is to make?
There are no unnecessary extra steps involved in this cake. It’s just a case of throwing in all the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl, then adding all the wet ingredients, and whisking them up together. Then pouring the batter out into greased cake tins and baking for 30 minutes!
As soon as the cakes are baked you just have to constrain your glee for a bit while they cool down, and then you get to do the super fun frosting part! Or in this case, adding delicious whipped coconut cream to the center and delicious vegan chocolate frosting to the top.
If you’re not already a fundi at making vegan whipped cream, then check out our full tutorial (including a video) for how to make it.
If you make this fabulous cake then please let us know how it goes by rating it and leaving a comment.
AND don’t forget to take a picture and tag it #lovingitvegan on Instagram.
We’d love to see it!
- 1.5 cups (190g) All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup (200g) Sugar
- ½ cup (42g) Cocoa Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 cup (240ml) Soy Milk (or other non-dairy milk)
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ⅓ cup (80ml) Olive Oil
- 1 Tbsp White Vinegar
- 1 Flax Egg (1 Tbsp Flaxseed Meal mixed with 3 Tbsp Hot Water)
For the Whipped Coconut Cream Filling:
- 1 14 ounce (400ml) Can Coconut Cream, chilled overnight in the refrigerator
- 3 Tbsp Powdered Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
For the Chocolate Frosting:
- 1 and ¾ cups (210g) Powdered Sugar
- 2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder
- 2 Tbsp (30g) Vegan Butter
- 2 Tbsp (30ml) Soy Milk
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
For Decoration:
- Fresh Blueberries
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit (180 degrees celcius).
- Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a mixing bowl.
- Add the sugar, baking soda and salt.
- Prepare your flax egg by mixing one tablespoon of flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoons of hot water and leave to sit for a minute or so.
- While your flax egg is waiting, add your soy milk (or other non-dairy milk), vanilla extract, olive oil and vinegar to your mixing bowl and stir.
- Add your flax egg and stir.
- Whisk with a hand whisk until well combined.
- Grease two 7 inch round cake tins with coconut oil and divide the batter evenly between the two tins.
- Place into the oven to bake for 30 minutes.
- Prepare your whipped coconut cream
- The night before - place a can of coconut cream into the coldest part of your refrigerator and leave it there overnight.
- Remove from the refrigerator and being careful not to shake the can, remove the lid.
- The cream will have separated from the water.
- Scoop out only the cream part into a bowl.
- Throw out the water or use it for something else.
- Using an electric whisk beat the cream until it reaches whipped cream consistency.
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and whisk again.
- Place the cream into the fridge.
- Prepare your frosting
- Add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, vegan butter, soy milk and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl.
- Using an electric whisk start at low speed and then gradually increase until well mixed.
- If your frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar. It should be easily spreadable but not so thin that it slides off the cake.
- After your cake has baked for 30 minutes, remove it from the oven and check to see if it's cooked by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean then it's ready.
- Flip the cakes out onto a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
- Add whipped coconut cream to the top of one of the layers.
- Add the other layer on top and add chocolate frosting.
- Decorate the top with any remaining coconut cream and fresh blueberries.
*Chocolate Frosting is halved from this recipe.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate based on 1 slice of 10 with generous amount of coconut cream and chocolate frosting.
*Inspired by Vegan Baking
Mmm that cake looks delicious! Will certainly be giving it a go (hopefully this weekend!).
And looking for a recipe for my Mum’s birthday in November and this might just be perfect! Thanks Alison x
Awesome! It’s really SO good! And perfect for a birthday. I made it for my sister’s birthday the other day, was a huge hit!
Hi Alison
Yum yum! My favourite chocolate. May I know what can I substitute for the oil?
Thanks for your time.
Well, the oil is what is creating the moistness, and we’ve kept it to a minimum in this cake. You could always try another wet ingredient like apple sauce but I don’t know if it would turn out quite as well.
Hi Alison
So sorry. Do u think it’s possible to substitute buckwheat flour for all purpose flour?
Thank you so much.
Hi Shereen! I haven’t tried that, but always fun to experiment! If you try it, let me know how it turns out. 🙂
Hello. Could I use coconut oil instead?
Also do you think it will work gluten free?
I think switching out the oil for coconut oil should work fine. I’m definitely going to do a gluten-free version of this in future 🙂
Made this yesterday – didn’t fill and decorate as just a trial run for me and hubby before making as birthday cake for my Mum! Delish!
I did actually use gluten free flour as that was all I had in the cupboard and it seemed fine. Thanks again Alison ?
That is really good to know! Thanks so much for posting Linda! I am excited to try a gluten free version myself.
looks amazing! is it possible to replace the olive oil for coconut oil?
Hi Jen, this should work fine. Just make sure the coconut oil is melted when it goes in to your mix. 🙂
Made the cake today, super easy & yummy! I used organ egg substitute instead of the flax-egg and I used apple cider vinegar instead of white as white vinegar is derived from milk (well my bottle of it is anyway).
Hey Monique! Yes, apple cider vinegar is totally fine to use too. So glad to hear it came out well and thanks for sharing!
Where do you find the vegan butter? Is it something that I can find in supermarkets or did you make it on your own? 🙂
Hi Erra, it depends on where you are as to what would be available to you. In Dubai we get an Australian brand called Nuttelex and they have ones made from coconut oil and olive oil. In America they have Earth Balance brand of vegan butter. It’s definitely something I buy and don’t make myself. Just go to the butter/margarine section of the store and read labels until you find one, it may be that it isn’t labeled ‘vegan’ but actually is. Any spread that states it is ideal for baking, will work.
I made this cake it came out very thin! and quite hard, like frisbees! I used gluten free flour but i did everything else right! any ideas what i did wrong?
thanks
Beth
Hi Beth, in my experience doing a straight swap of flours to make a recipe gluten-free does not work out that well. If you look at my Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake (http://lovingitvegan.com/gluten-free-chocolate-cake-with-chocolate-ganache-frosting/) you’ll see that it’s adapted from this recipe to be gluten-free and there are quite a few changes that I needed to make. Regarding the cakes coming out thin, did you use the same size cake tins (7 inches)? Any bigger size and it would be pretty thin. So if your cake tins are bigger I recommend doubling the recipe or times it by 1.5.
I actually made the cake in 9″ tins and just baked it for 20 minutes and it came out perfect. It’s a little flatter but still came out amazing. I can’t comment on taste yet as the cake is for my boss’s birthday tomorrow.
Good to know Francesca, thanks for posting!
I have so much experience with gluten free flour. And yes, if you use plain gluten free flour, you will always end up with very hard cake or sponge..I would suggest trying to use self raising gluten free flour instead, and skip the bs and bp. I got better outcome using self raising. Hope that helps..
Hi there is it ok to skip white vinegar? And is there any replacement for a flax egg? Attempting to make it for my vegan friends birthday. Thank you!
Hi there, no the vinegar is a crucial ingredient. You can swap it for apple cider vinegar though. The flax egg is also necessary in this recipe. If you can’t use a flax egg then maybe consider making something like my vegan vanilla cake that doesn’t use a flax egg. Just do a search on my site to get the recipe. All the best!
Wow this is the best cake I’ve ever made. I did substitute a few things. I used almond milk, egg replacement powder instead of flax seeds and vegetable oil instead of olive. Just because those were the ingredients I had in hand but I’m sure with the original recipe it would be perfect too.
Great Soeh! Glad to hear! Thanks for posting. 🙂
Do you have any thoughts about how long it would take to cook if I made cupcakes instead? Thanks!
Yes, it’s around 25 minutes. I’ve adapted this recipe for cupcakes here: http://lovingitvegan.com/vegan-chocolate-cupcakes-mint-buttercream-frosting/
Can you use cake flour instead of all purpose?
Hi Esther, cake flour usually doesn’t work quite as well in vegan baking since it has a lower percentage of gluten, meaning it doesn’t hold together as well. That being said, I have not tried this recipe with cake flour so can’t say for sure. It might work out fine!
Hi,
Just wanted to say I have just made this and it turned out perfectly! The only vegan cake that doesn’t require fancy ingredients and is extremely simple to make.
Thanks 🙂
Kate
So good to hear Kate! Thanks for posting!
Hey, just seeing this now. I got here from your frosting page and I was curious how your recipe compares to mine. I thought it was rather interesting that your recipe for chocolate cake is so similar to mine except in a few areas. I got my recipe from my grandmother and it uses cold water rather than soy milk, I use vegetable oil instead of olive oil (I think that’s just a matter of taste), but the big difference is that I don’t make the “vegan egg.” Literally, there are even the same measurements for basically everything. I don’t know if you have access to it, but I’ve found that Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Gluten Free works really well with my recipe. I just thought you’d be interested in an ever so slightly different take on the recipe.
Hey Melissa – what a coincidence! Yes, I have used Bob’s Red Mill GF all purpose to make a gluten free version of this cake and it came out wonderfully! Thanks for posting! 🙂
Hello! I know this is an older post, but I am hoping to bake this cake for my husband’s bday party this Saturday. What adjustments would you recommend if using gluten free AP flour? Many thanks!
Hi Denise, I have made this into an awesome gluten-free chocolate cake with just a few adjustments, click here for the recipe! All the best!
Oooh excellent!! Cannot wait to make it! Thank you so very much, Alison!
Hi,
thank you for this recipe!
made the cake for my birthday.
As i was in a hurry the coconut cream melted in between the warm cakes. So really have to wait until they cool down (if you have the time…)!!!
For my taste it was much too sweet so i will try next time to make it with less sugar.
Hahaha yes, got to wait till those cakes cool down, it’s not easy when it smells so good! 🙂
Hi, thank you for this recipe! I really want to try it! I was wondering for how long can I keep it after I make it and if I have to keep it in the fridge? I want to make it on Monday and eat it with my family on Tuesday. Thank you 🙂
You can keep it covered at room temperature and it will be good for a few days. If you want to keep it longer (up to a week), then it will need to go in the fridge.
Hey Alison, this is a very good recipe, you explain in great detail about the cake making. I can not wait to try at home.
Great, thanks! Let us know how it goes when you make it. 🙂
Hello Alison,
My daughter’s birthday is this Friday, August 18th and I’m going to make this cake for her. I know you stated you like to use unpretentious food, but I did want to let you know one thing that might seem pretentious (this is not how I want it to come across, at all) lol! My daughter is a die hard Vegan (took me awhile to learn how to cook/bake for her) and she won’t use Regular confectioner’s sugar due to the bone char they use for the whitening process of the sugar so I will be using the Vegan version of confectioner’s sugar. I know a lot of Vegans don’t care about the bone char but I also know that an equal amount don’t know about it in confectioner’s sugar.
I can’t wait to make this cake!!! I think she will really love it so thank you for making your site and making it so easy for me to bake her a cake!
Awesome Heather! 😁 So cool that you support your daughter so fantastically. I think she will love the cake too! 👍😊