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).
Hi, can I use cacao powder instead of cocoa?
It should be just fine, yes.
I haven’t made it yet, but I have a question. Does it freeze well? Either as the batter or once baked?
I’ve never frozen the batter, but the finished cake freezes beautifully.
Thank you for the feedback! Very helpful and just in time!
Easy to follow. Very good flavor. Very moist. A little chewy but very good recipe.
Thank you, Nora.
Does this cake freeze well?
Yes, it freezes well. Thanks!
SO SO GOOD!! I usually struggle with making cakes so I opted for cupcakes but I followed this recipe and they came out beautifully, I nearly cried when I tried one. The cake was so fluffy, not dry or dense like many vegan cakes can be. Just amazing. I’ve tried quite a few vegan cakes in restaurants, from bakeries, stores, and a couple homemade but this is by far the best and tbh I’m not even much a cake person!
That’s so great to hear!
thank you for the recipe!
I’m wondering if you’ve noticed any differences between vegan butter like Earth Balance and regular butter. I’ve been using Earth Balance and Miyoko’s in buttercream frostings like your chocolate one and in pie dough but it seems to get softer much faster and my frosting seems to be runnier.
Miyokos is much more sensitive to temperature because it’s coconut oil based, so while I love it, I do think frostings made with it tend to melt at room temperature, more quickly than other brands. I almost always use Earth Balance still because it’s what I can find almost anywhere and I’m used to it. It’s very similar to butter as far as baking goes, in my opinion, and it’s not as sensitive to heat. I have no issues with my frosting being runny. I can get a nice, pipe-able frosting. You need to make sure your vegan butter is not too melty when you start, just barely softened is all that is needed, and then add less liquid if needed, or more powdered sugar until you reach the right, thick consistency. But if you start with already melty butter, you are going to have trouble. Hope that helps!
Thank you for responding. That makes sense about Miyoko’s. I’ll stick to using Earth Balance for frosting now.
This is really the BEST vegan chocolate cake recipe . . . I have tried multiple other recipes but this will be my “go to” vegan chocolate cake recipe. It was moist, chocolatey, fluffy and soft but not undercooked. I used an erythritol/monk fruit sweetener which is a 1:1 replacement for sugar per the instructions on the bag. Also, I used the recipe for a 2 layer cake to make a one layer cake in a 9 inch by 9 inch square pan baked in a toaster oven. I baked it about 15 minutes longer and turned up the heat to almost 400 degrees when the cake was still liquid at 20 minutes but I think the oven got a little too hot, so the top of the cake got a little crunchy but the cake underneath was moist and soft. This cake reminds me of the non-vegan “pudding in the mix” cakes I used to make as a child. I’ve been vegan for about 10 years now but I don’t cook or bake very well. This recipe is very easy to follow with simple ingredients found in a vegan cupboard and the video is helpful too. I look forward to making this cake again and again.
Glad to hear it worked for you using monk fruit sweetener! Thanks!
Hi, im planning to make this next week. Wondering how much of aquafaba do i use to substitute applesauce? Thank you
I’m not sure as I’ve never tested it with aquafaba! Hopefully it will work.
The frosting is absolutely amazing! Unfortunately after 40 minutes in the oven the cake was still raw, I followed the recipe meticulously, I assume the oven has some problems. What a bummer. Anyway, thank you for sharing the recipe!
Hi Ms Nora!! As an vegan beginner, your page is my go to for desserts(to start off with because our biggest issue was bad snacking) Thank you for this recipe!! This is actually my fav go-to as a chocolate fan! It turned out great, and more importantly, my husband(the one that cringes at the sound of any healthy alternatives, let alone when you mention the word vegan) loved it! I haven’t been so successful yet with you vegan vanilla cake recipes yet though! I am considering trying this recipe, and just substituting the cocoa for vanilla! Not sure how it will turn out, but this recipe turn out is so good-I’m willing try it in many flavors! Thank you! Happy Thanksgiving to you and family!!
I’ve made this several times it is AWESOME!
Has anyone made it with almond flour so it’s also gluten free?
Thanks! Almond flour won’t work, but a gluten free mix works well.
I made this for a church potluck and people could not believe it was vegan. It was really good. I am making it again.
Astounding cake. Rich, moist and oh so chocolate. The frosting is so crazy good.
Do you store the cake at room temperature or in the fridge if there is some leftover?
Room temperature is just fine, but I do enjoy it straight from the refrigerator, so either way works.
This cake recipe is amazing!! Thank you so much for sharing!!!
Absolutely amazing cake! I made my own icing so I don’t know about that but thee cake is so light and smooth. Best vegan cake ever!
This is the best chocolate cake ever, not just vegan chocolate cake. I just made it for a birthday!! The frosting is just as amazing !!
This was the best vegan or even non-vegan chocolate cake I have ever made. Soooooo good! I didn’t try the icing recipe cause we aren’t big on icing in this house. I didn’t have any applesauce handy so I used orange marmalade instead and it tasted like orange chocolate cake. Best home made cake I have ever made. And yes, it looked too runny after you add the boiling water but it turned out so moist and delicious.
Nora, this recipe is fantastic. I made it last week and everyone raved about it. Chocolate cake is my crypotnite and this recipe is excellent.
Thanks!
Do you think this would work with gluten free flour? X ☺️
Many people have had success with a gluten free mix.
I tried this recipe and the cake turned out amazingggg!! I made it for my wedding anniversary with hubby and we absolutely enjoyed it. I’m gonna make it again for his birthday because he loved it so much. Still can’t believe it was Vegan. Can’t thank you enough for this. I did add 10 more minutes to the timer cause it did need more baking with my oven. This is why I would always suggest to my fellow bakers to check what works for your own oven because the heat sometimes varies from one oven to another.
Just wanted to chime in and thank you for sharing this recipe. I made it for my husband’s birthday yesterday and he loved it. I decided to go with vegan cream cheese frosting (Trader Joe’s has THE BEST vegan cream cheese, imo). It was delicious. Just as good as a non-vegan cake. I actually halved the recipe, so we’d have just a small, single-layer cake, and it was perfect. Thanks again.
I love Trader Joe’s cream cheese as well, it’s so good. Thanks so much, I’m glad you and your husband enjoyed the cake!
Hi there! I was wondering If not adding as much cocoa powder will affect how the cake turns out?
Thanks 🙂
It will be lighter in color and taking away a dry ingredient will affect the cake outcome, so I wouldn’t recommend it.
I am a terrible baker but I made this cake at the beginning of October for my boyfriend’s birthday step-by-step with no alterations and—oh my God—this was dangerously good! Very easy to follow. I don’t have a sifter so my frosting had chunks of powdered sugar in it lol but it tasted great! My cakes were very dense which we LOVED (not sure if that’s how they were supposed to turn out). Tried a pinch of the cake before frosting and was disappointed but after I frosted it it all made sense why this recipe was the first to show up in my google search with a solid 5-star rating by hundreds of people.
I fully transitioned to a vegan lifestyle in August and my boyfriend joined me in September but we have really been missing some of our favorite sweets. I’ve been adjusting to the bitter taste of cacao powder but it’s a hit or miss for me. This chocolate cake though? I had to let my non-vegan family try HIS cake and they loved it and asked for the recipe so I’m sure I’ll be making this many more times! Thank you so much for sharing this one with the world.
You’re welcome!