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.
Sign-up to get new recipes by email and receive a FREE 5 Day Family Friendly Vegan Meal Plan! SUBSCRIBE NOW.
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).
Oh My God soooooooo good!! I followed directions exactly except I used country crock plant butter sticks and unsweetened vanilla almond milk. Best thing I’ve ever baked in my life!
That’s so wonderful to hear!!
Hi Nora,
I LOVE this recipe, thanks so much for sharing it with us!
My question is: If the boiling water works so well to make this cake super moist and fluffy, would adding boiling water to say Vanilla Cake work as well?
Im yet to find a Vanilla cake that is as light and fluffy as your chocolate cake (If you have one you think I’ll like please point me in that direction!).
So, will the boiling water work for other cake flavours or does it have some sort of chemical reaction with the cocoa?
Thanks so much!!
Thank you, I’m so happy you love it! I have wondered the same thing, but it actually doesn’t work for some reason. I’ve tested it. 🙂 It makes vanilla cake really spongy and strange tasting, not terrible, but nothing like the chocolate cake. Have you tried my vanilla cake? I love it.
This turned out soooo good!!! My first time trying my hand at vegan baking and the cake was the perfect about of moist and the flavor was amazing
I’m so glad to hear that!
Have you tried making this as cupcakes? I’m considering it! Sometimes cake recipes don’t transfer as cupcakes well so thought I’d ask ! If not, I’ll let you know how mine turn out!
Yes, it works great!
My daughter made this for my birthday this year. Hands down the BEST chocolate cake.
That’s so great!
This recipe is simply a MUST, for vegans and non-vegans alike! Super moist & rich but it’s not dense! Personally, I like a stronger chocolate flavor so I think next time I’ll use hot coffee instead of just boiling water. I made the recipe as a Bundt cake so it requires more baking time, closer to an hour. Topped with vanilla glaze, caramel drizzle and roasted almonds. Will make this again FOR SURE! Loved it :).
So glad to hear that!
I saw this recipe and saved it. I made this cake for my birthday during quarantine. It was absolute deliciousness! Incredibly moist! By far the best homemade vegan baked good I have had. Everyone loved it.
That’s so great to hear! Thanks!
The best chocolate cake I have ever had. The cake is light, but so rich at the same time. For the frosting I made a vegan chocolate ganache, chilled it, then whipped it with a bit of powdered sugar, it really complimented the cake nicely. I can’t recommend this recipe enough.
Thanks for the great comment!
This is the best chocolate cake I have ever had in my entire 25 years of life. Amazing.
I’m so glad to hear that!!
my 11-year-old daughter made this for her older sister’s birthday and it was delicious. everyone loved it. thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.
That’s so wonderful!! Thanks for the comment!
I made this chocolate cake & it is the best cake ever! No one knew it was vegan! Everyone loved it! I also made it into cupcakes for my grandchildren one of which has allergies! Best ever! Thank you Nora!
You’re so welcome!!
Came out really nice.little bit too sweet for me, but everyone loved it. next time, will try with less sugar.
Glad it came out nice!!
The name doesn’t lie— this is the best chocolate cake (vegan or non-vegan) I’ve ever had. My dad and I spent 2 years making different vegan cake recipes to find the best one and this one leaves the others miles behind. My non-vegan friends like it so much that a few of them asked for the recipe and use it as their go-to cake recipe (again, these are my NON-VEGAN friends).
Wow, thanks so much for the wonderful comment!!
Ok I’m going to be in tears writing this…
You’re cake recipe will be the first time in my daughter’s 3 year life she is having a real birthday cake!
When she was a year and a half we found about she had alot of food allergies, last year I made her a cake of fruit but inside I wanted her to be able to enjoy cake like the rest of us. I can not thank you enough for this recipe!
I just pulled the cake out of the oven and it smells amazing, I can’t wait to make the frosting and watch my daughter enjoy it like everyone else.
That’s so wonderful!!! Thanks for letting me know!
This truly is the best chocolate cake. Vegan, non-Vegan. Just utterly amazing.
Thanks so much!!!!
So this is absolutely delicious. I have a questions though. When I tried to layer and put the second cake on top, it fell apart. So we ended up with two single cakes instead of a layered one. Wondering what I did wrong? It felt like it was all the way cooked as I let it sit out for almost 3 hours before frosting and attempting to layer. Should I have trimmed the top off of the bottom layer to make for a more flat even surface for the bottom layer? Or was there maybe something else I could have done incorrectly? Thanks for the help!
I’m glad you enjoyed the cake! So I’m not sure why it fell apart, though you definitely have to handle the cakes very gently so they won’t break, and this one is quite moist, tender and light. But I’ve made in countless times and never has it broken for me, other than maybe a few cracks when I wasn’t very careful. My best suggestion would be to handle it very gently. Don’t lift it from the sides only, but get a good hold of the bottom as well. And move slowly. Thanks!
Can I use egg instead of applesauce I’m not vegan jst allergic to dairy
You probably could but I haven’t tried it.
I’ve made this twice now, perfect both times. Better than any non vegan choc cake I’ve had too. Question, how long will this last in an airtight container either in fridge or cupboard? Thanks
It will last probably a week in the refrigerator, but at room temperature only a few days, about 3 days. So glad you enjoyed the cake!
I only have 1 cake pan. Should I put it all in one 9inch pan? Or cook one at a a time?
No, don’t make it all in the one pan. You can cook it one at a time, I have done that and it worked fine.
Hi!
Love this cake! Last time i made i had a problem with the frosting. The sugar was like sand in the frosting. Is there a trick to make the sugar “dissolve”?
It sounds like you used regular sugar instead of powdered, which would taste very grainy. Powdered sugar doesn’t taste grainy and makes for smooth frostings.
I made this recipe for My first Mother’s Day with my family because my baby is dairy and soy intolerant. Just as described, moist and seriously the best chocolate cake period, vegan or not. I love icing and it made the perfect amount of icing. I’m usually the person to eat cake with my icing, but this cake was delicious even without icing. I’d happily make this again! I’m excited to try the lemon cake version.
I’m so glad to hear that you loved it!
Can you substitute cacao for cocoa?
Yes.
Okay this cake probably changed my life. I’m not vegan, but I do have a dairy allergy and it has been a struggle bus to find satisfying treats. But I feel like this cake was so so so perfect. Even my best friend said it was the best cake she EVER had- and she doesn’t have any allergies!
I will say, I’m not sure if anyone else had this phenomenon, but I found the frosting to be a bit too salty. I used the earth balance sticks as suggested, and even unsweetened almond milk, but just found it to be that way. But that being said, I don’t think it ruined the cake. I might just even dust powdered sugar on it next time. The cake is THAT GOOD. If there is a suggestion to maybe lessen the salt factor, I’m all ears, but it is by no means a dealbreaker.
I’m so glad you like the cake. The only ingredient with salt in the frosting would be the butter, like you noted. I’ve notice that Miyokos brand butter has less salt. It might be worth trying.
I used the Miyoko,’s for the icing, only vegan butter at Trader Joe’s and it was delicious!
What’s a good substitute for applesauce if you don’t have flax seeds?
If you have another egg replacer (like Bob’s Red Mill or something else), that may work. Or perhaps more oil. Mashed banana would work but I think the cake might taste like banana so I wouldn’t recommend it. Or non-dairy yogurt. It might even work out if you just leave it out, but I haven’t tried that. Thanks!
how much more oil would you suggest?
I’d probably try 1/2 cup more, not the full 2/3 cup.
Do dairy free yogurt it
Works wonders as keeps the cake super moist!! Like between 1/3-1/2c is enough but it will likely increase your baking time a little thats been my experience every time. Silk cultured almond is great! They have plain and vanilla.
Hello!! Can this recipe easily be made gluten free??
It works quite well gluten free, with a quality gluten free all purpose flour. Many have had success!
Great! Still 2 cups?
Yes, it’s a 1:1 sub. Thanks!