The Best Vegan Chocolate Cake- A quick and easy recipe, made in 1 bowl! This really is the best chocolate cake ever, vegan or otherwise. It’s super moist, rich and full of chocolate.
My birthday was a few weeks ago, so what did I do? I asked my mom to watch all 3 kids for a few hours so I could create and photograph the BEST EVER Vegan Chocolate Cake. Pretty great birthday if you ask me! 😉
For some reason, every time I get a vegan piece of cake out (such as at Whole Foods or elsewhere), I am disappointed. The frosting is usually yummy, but the cake part is either 1. strange tasting OR 2. super dry, not moist at all. Seriously disappointing.
I’ve also made a few of the vegan chocolate cake recipes out there, but even those weren’t quite moist enough or perfect enough for my taste. So I did a little thinking and experimenting and I finally came up with the best, most perfectly moist and delicious vegan chocolate cake recipe!
The frosting is a mouthwatering, ultra rich chocolate buttercream. I recommend using earth balance vegan buttery sticks, I haven’t found another brand that tastes quite as good.
If you are looking for a lighter alternative, check out this Chocolate Cake with Cashew Vanilla Frosting. There is nothing “light” about this Chocolate Cake! It is a full on indulgent recipe. And I’m okay with that.
What is the secret to a super moist vegan chocolate cake?
A couple of things make this cake super moist. The applesauce helps (don’t worry, you can’t taste it). But the BIG secret is to add a cup of boiling hot water to the cake batter right before baking. It makes such a difference!
The batter will appear runny when you add it, but don’t worry, that is completely correct and exactly what it should be like. It results in the most moist, delicious chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted!
If you are craving a chocolate fix about now, or are new to being vegan and miss good tasting cake, give this recipe a try! It’s easy to make and hard to mess it up.
OR if you are wanting to try something other than chocolate, give this Vegan Lemon Cake a go! It’s one of my most popular dessert recipes, and impresses people every time I make it.
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Recipe inspired by Add A Pinch.
The Best Vegan Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup canola oil OR melted coconut oil
- 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups vegan butter, softened baking sticks preferred
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4-1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
For the Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease two 9-inch cake pans. I also line them with parchment rounds and lightly flour for easy removal of the cakes later.
- Measure 1 cup unsweetened almond milk and add the tablespoon of vinegar to it. Stir slightly and set aside to curdle.
- In a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk well to combine.
- Now add the oil, applesauce, vanilla and almond milk/vinegar mixture. Mix on medium speed with a hand mixer (or stand mixer with the paddle attachment) until well combined.
- Lower the speed and carefully pour in the boiling water, continuing to mix into the cake batter until combined. The batter will seem very runny at this point; that is how it should be, trust me!
- Divide the batter evenly between your cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. After 10 minutes of cooling in the pan, carefully remove the cakes from the pans and let cool completely before frosting.
For the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Add the cocoa powder to a large bowl (I just wipe out the cake bowl and use it for the frosting). Whisk well to remove any clumps.
- Add the softened vegan butter and mix with a hand mixer until creamed and well combined.
- Add half of the powdered sugar and half of the almond milk, and mix until combined. Add the rest of the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Mix starting on low, and turn to high. Mix until fluffy and combined.
- If the frosting seems too dry, add more milk, a tablespoon or two at a time. If the frosting seems too wet and doesn't hold it's shape, add more powdered sugar until it thickens up.
- Frost the cake using an icing spatula or just a butter knife.
Video
Notes
- For cupcakes, fill liners half full and bake for 20-25 minutes. The whole recipe will yield approximately 24 cupcakes.
- Double the recipe to make a 4 layer cake, or cut in half to make a 1 layer round cake. You can also make a bundt cake, simply bake for 45 minutes. Or a 9 x 13 inch cake, baking for about 35-40 minutes.
- Don't like a lot of frosting? Cut the frosting ingredients in half. The recipe as written makes enough for thick layers of frosting.
- Nut allergy? You may substitute soy milk or another milk for the almond milk, any non-dairy milk will work here.
- No applesauce? Substitute 2 flax eggs (2 tbs ground flax + 5 tbs water), whipped aquafaba or another egg replacer such as Bob's Red Mill (2 eggs worth).
This is hands down THE BEST CHOCOLATE CAKE. I have served it from fancy dinners to backyard barbecues and no one suspects it’s shhhhhhhh vegan. It has become every kids birthday cake and sometimes I use vanilla icing and sometimes chocolate but no matter what there’s never any leftover. If I could rate it with 1000 stars I would. Did I mention it’s darn easy too?
Thanks for the wonderful comment! I’m so glad to hear that this cake has gone so well for you!
Excellent recipe Nora. I have really enjoyed this. Your trick of boiling water at the end for a moist cake is exquisite.
I added a few raisins and cashews to the cake mix and it did come out very well. Now I cannot wait to try out your other recommendations.
Keep up the great research and thanks for sharing. You make vegan very tasty 🙂
Thanks for the wonderful comment!
Most delicious cake ever! So moist and chocolatey! I made a couple minor changes – I added a rounded tsp of espresso powder to the boiling water and rather than plant based milk in the icing, I used hazelnut flavoured plant based coffee creamer…. Delish! Served at a birthday and it was LOVED by everyone!!
That sounds completely wonderful Sara, thank you!
Just made this cake tonight for Christmas. We are already having a slice. So moist and delicious. This is a keeper. Thanks!
Thank you! So glad you like it.
Total awesomeness! My staff loved it. Biggest cake eater of all said it was better than “regular” chocolate cake.
Thank you, I’m so glad the staff liked it so much!
Hi Nora,
I am so excited to try this recipe, however my son has a wheat allergy, could I simply replace the flour for the schär flour (wheat free flour) I have or would more adjustments need to be made?
I’m not quite sure what type of wheat free flour that is, but some people have had good luck with a gluten free flour mix, such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour. Hope that helps!
I made this cake and it was ammazzzzing! It was easy, moist, delicious, chocolatey. Everything you want from a chocolate cake. The icing is super rich, my sister said it tasted like our childhood icing we used to fight over. Definitely will make again when in need of a good, simple, chocolate cake! Thanks!
Thanks for the great comment! I’m glad you all enjoyed it.
I made cupcakes for a holiday celebration at work, yesterday. After one bite, one vegan came running back to affirm it was vegan. They asked me if I were sure. Then people kept coming back to see if I had more…. but they were gone. My husband, a connoisseur of sweets and non-vegan, even liked it. Now, I’m going to have to make this all the time:-). Absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for sharing.
That’s so fantastic, thank you!!!
I made this cake today for my sister-in-law (Vegan). She always feels left out when it comes time for dessert during the holidays, We do a great job with vegan meals, but no-one wants to tackle the finicky vegan bakes. Well that is until I came across this recipe!
The cake is very moist, tender & full of flavor. I made absolutely no changes to the cake. The frosting recipe read to be too sweet for the plan I had mind, therefore I cut the powdered sugar amount in half and it still turned out to be FANTASTIC! I used the dairy-free Country Crock Plant Butter (from Kroger’s). I only used 1/4 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk and whipped the frosting with for 3 minutes. I added 2 tbsp of Vanilla (by accident lol). I made a used dark special and regular Cocao powder (because i only had a 1/2 cup of each remaining lol). I made a homemade vegan caramel sauce and “chocolate” sauce to drizzle over the cake at the end. I also used some left over Aquafaba “egg” whites and made some toasted pralines, crushed them up and sprinkled them over the cake.
My sister-in-law will have to carefully guard this cake in a locked closet with a fork and a glass of cold almond milk to keep it safe. I made a replica cupcake tester and OH-MY-WORD!!! This recipe is Absolutely Amazing. I had a tear in my eye…or maybe it was chocolate as I savored the cupcake slowly to make it last longer 🙂
Thank you so much for creating a great, flavorful and easy to make “chocolate” cake recipe.
Thank you for such a great review! The cake sounds absolutely incredible with your additions of caramel, chocolate sauce and toasted pralines, wow!
Hi! Need your help! There is any substitute for the Apple sauce? Maybe more oil or coconut cream? Thank you so much
Hi there! I haven’t tried it with anything else, but possible more oil or coconut milk/cream would work. Or a few flax eggs instead (perhaps 2 tablespoons ground flax + 5 tablespoons water).
I made it with 2 mashed bananas instead of the applesauce, came out delicious! Pro is that you can use less sweetener too this way
Could I sub soy milk for the almond milk? My daughter is allergic to almonds…
Yes, that will work!
I am happy to say i made this yesterday for my daughter’s birthday and it looked exactly like your photos! This recipe was so easy to follow, everyone loved it and I will definitely make it again! Thanks!!!
Thank you so much Megan!
Can this be baked in a Bundt pan? And if so, what would be the baking time? Planning on making this for Christmas. Thanks!
I think it would work, I would suggest baking it for 45 minutes, maybe a bit longer. I haven’t tested it, but that’s my best guess! Hope you enjoy it!
This is up there with some of the best cake I have ever had! So moist, chocolate-y and delicious. Makes you question why eggs and buttermilk are even needed in cake recipes. This will be the go-to cake recipe for my family and to share with others.
Thanks so much for the comment! I’m glad it’s great!
Hello,
What is your recommend baking time for 6″ rounds?
Sonia
I’m not sure as I’ve never tested this, would you be making 3 6″ rounds? The time would likely be quite similar, maybe a little less. I would check with a toothpick. If you try to fit it all in 2 6″ pans I’m afraid it will spill over.
I’ve made this cake for a friends birthday and it was a total hit! I wanted to see if I could make it with vanilla icing instead of chocolate, is there a quick change you would make to the recipe to do so?
Sure! Just use this Vanilla Frosting Recipe instead of the chocolate frosting. Enjoy!
This came out absolutely fantastic! I have to say, it is probably my favorite chocolate cake recipe I’ve ever made. Also, it is very straightforward and easy to make. I don’t think I’ll ever use another chocolate cake recipe. My icing was good, but seemed a little too “buttery”, I might have misread the directions.
Made this cake for company visiting and everyone loved it (all non-vegans).
So glad it came out great!
Tried quite a few recipes for my sons one year birthday cake smash and ALL of them were dry and it did not taste right! This was SUPER easy to make and it is truly the best chocolate cake I have EVER had! Even my non-vegan friends who normally won’t even try something if it vegan saw it and just had to try it- it looked that good!
That’s so great! Thanks for the wonderful comment. And happy birthday to your son!
Several allergies in our family. This looks delicious!I love that this has no eggs. Any chance you can share how to make this gluten free? I know it is asking a lot. Blessings.
Thanks! To make it gluten free, simply use a gluten free flour mix in place of the white flour. Many have reported good results (you can read through the comments if you want). Hope you and your family enjoy the cake!
Hi there! Do you think these would turn out okay if I used coconut oil instead of Earth Balance? Thanks in advance!
For the frosting? I don’t know if that would work or not, coconut oil works quite differently than vegan butter. It would have a different flavor and be very melty. Sorry!
Do you think 1 or 2 of those 8 ounces of boiling water could be rum to incorporate a rum flavour in this cake?
It looks so yummy, can’t wait to try!
I don’t see why not, sounds good!
I ended up adding about 1 ounce of rum to the batter and 2 ounces to the icing. You couldn’t taste it much in the batter but it was a nice flavour in the icing. This cake is DELICIOUS and moist and I would absolutely make it again. Thank you for the recipe!
Wonderful, thank you!
Amazing! All our non vegan family thought it was the best chocolate cake from scratch they’ve ever had! I agree!
That’s so great! I’m glad you all enjoyed it!
I’m going to make this for Christmas, but curious if there’s a good sub for almond milk? My husband is allergic to almonds, but he’s fine with coconut, cashew, rice, etcetera. Which do you recommend for this recipe?
Soy, cashew or coconut milk are all good choices. No problem!
I used flax milk with great results!
My friend and I have both made this recipe multiple times and it’s always perfect! Absolutely perfect! Love, love, love your recipes.
Thanks so much for the great comment! I’m glad you both love it.
Made this for a birthday, AND IT WAS OUT OF THE BALLPARK delicious!!! Thank you, thank
you, thank you for the excellent recipe! (Found kosher sprinkles (with no confectioner’s glaze) to decorate!)
You’re so welcome! i’m glad it was delicious!
What would you do for a 13×9 pan? How long would you bake it?
It will take probably 45-50 minutes in a 9×13 pan, but it works!
is salt absolutely necessary
For flavor, yes.