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).
Excited to make this for a friend’s birthday! However, I only have 8-inch cake pans. I have 3 of them. What modifications do I need to make for the recipe?
Thank you!
Hi Liz. You could make it in two 8 inch pans. Baking time might be slightly different, but not too much. Check with a toothpick to ensure they are done in the middle. Hope this helps!
This is seriously the best cake ever!! I’ve made it many many times. I’m going to make it for my daughter’s birthday party. I want to do a two layer 13×9, so would I double the recipe? Thank you for this delicious cake!!
Hi Nicole. You would need to double the recipe to get two 13×9 cakes. I suspect the cake may break in a two layer 13×9. Good luck, and let me know how it goes! Happy birthday to your daughter!
Thank you I didn’t even think about that! I think I’m going to do 2 separate either double or triple layer, 9 inch. I need enough to feed about 20 people. I was going to do a combined cake for both my daughter and my mom since they share a birthday but I guess they’ll each get their own. Thanks again
You are welcome! Your birthday celebration sounds fun! Happy birthday to both your daughter and mom, and happy cooking!
Do you have the recipe in different measurement i.e in grams for flour, sugar
Nd for the liquids in ml
Hi Roshni. If you look right under the ingredients list, there is a “metric” tab you can click on to find these amounts. Hope that helps!
Do you have recommendations to make this for a 12×18 sheet cake?
Have you seen my Vegan Sheet Cake recipe? It’s nearly identical but made for a sheet cake pan. Cook for 20-25 minutes.
I’ve made this cake many times and it’s delish. However, this time I don’t have any milk, do you think I could use water instead & skip the curdling step?
I’ve never tried it but it might work okay. Thanks!
Can dry fruits be added to the batter
Sure, that’s fine.
Thank you for sharing this recipe Nora. I’ve tried it a couple of times for my dairy and egg-allergic child, and for the first time, we are able to celebrate birthdays with cake! As I plan to make this recipe many times more, I’d like to ask you whether you use natural cocoa powder for this recipe or dutch processed cocoa? Also, we live in a hot and humid climate, so what would be the best way to keep the frosting hold its shape at room temperatures? I usually keep the frosting in the fridge before & after layering it on the cake, but when we are ready to cut the cake and eat it, even in airconditioning, it melts down and separates thanks to the weather. Any tips will be great!
Hi Zuri! I’m so glad you enjoy the cake. I have made this cake countless times and sometimes I use natural and sometimes I use dutch processed. I like it both ways honestly! For the frosting, use a vegan butter that is not coconut oil based, first of all. Second, start making the frosting when the butter is just barely softened, it shouldn’t be melty or too soft. If you are really in a hot climate and you want more stability, you could substitute half vegetable shortening, which is a lot more stable. Keep the cake in the fridge once frosted as well (normally this isn’t necessary, only because it’s hot where you are.) Hope that helps!
Lovely and insightful! Can’t wait to bake my first vegan cake!
Thank you for sharing Debbie! Let me know how your cake turns out!
Unbelievably delicious! I made it as a bunt cake for simplicity sake and it turned out beautifully (ended up only needing half the frosting). This cake is in no way compromised from a non-vegan cake, so I will be serving it on the regular so that everyone who comes to the table can get in on dessert! Oh, and I used hot coffee in place of the hot water for a little added decadency. Thanks for sharing a great recipe!!
Thank you for sharing your wonderful review! I’m so thrilled you’ll be making the cake on a regular basis! I do love using hot coffee in this cake a well! Happy cooking!
Hi Nora! This looks amazing! I’ll be trying the recipe today since my friend wants a vegan chocolate cake for her birthday! I was just wondering because i can only find sweetened applesauce do i need to change the amount of sugar that i put into it?
I wouldn’t worry about changing the amount of sugar, no. It should be just fine. Hope you and your friend enjoy the cake!
Hey Nora! I made this for my friends birthday and made a three layer 8inch cake! She absolutely loved it since she hasn’t had many options of chocolate cake after becoming vegan! Thank you so so much for this recipe! Ended up using flax eggs instead and it worked perfectly. She loved the buttercream frosting too! Ill defo be using this recipe from now on 🙂 thank you once again!
Hi Nisa! Thanks a lot for sharing your comments and review! I am so glad your friend loved the chocolate birthday cake, and I think it’s great that you made that for her! I’m thrilled you’ll be making this your go to chocolate cake! Happy cooking!
It’s pretty good! Thank you!
I made this cake a few weeks ago and this is the best chocolate cake I’ve had in a long time. So moist and easy to make. Another amazing recipe! Thanks Nora!
Hi Nicole! Thank you for taking your time to share your review! I’m glad you love the cake!
I forgot the boiling water. Do you think it’ll be alright? ???
It will be okay, just not quite as moist! Hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Hi Chef! I love your recipe. But can I make this on an 8-inch pan? Will the recipe just enough?
Hi Minette. You could make it in two 8 inch pans if you want. Baking time might be slightly different, but not too much. Check with a toothpick to ensure they are done in the middle. Hope this helps!
I love your recipes and am trying this one this weekend. Is the frosting pipeable?
Thanks in advance!
Yes, it is. Just make sure you start with the vegan butter barely softened, not melty at all.
I’ve tried this chocolate cake and LOVED it! Really delicious & so moist!
I have a friend who wants a gluten-free, vegan cake. Can you recommend any flour substitutions that can work?
Hi Victoria. Thanks for your wonderful review! You could make my Gluten Free Chocolate Cake, which is based on this cake but made perfect gluten free. ? Happy cooking!
Hi Nora, I’d like to try this cake with a cup of coffee added at the end instead of just plain water. Do you think that would work in this recipe?
Yes, it works! I have done it with great results. 🙂
Hi Nora! This recipe looks fantastic! I’m going to make it tomorrow for a friend’s birthday. I just was wondering if I don’t have an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, would it be ok to whisk the batter by hand? Thanks!
Hi Victoria. I think a hand mixer or standing mixer is necessary to get a light texture on the cake. Others have mixed it by hand, and commented that the cake itself turned out ok. The icing mixed by hand was lumpy. I hope this helps!
? = ❤️
Soooo delish! Can’t stop making it! Thank you Nora for making this wonderful recipe!
Hi Alexis! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review! I”m glad you LOVE the cake!
Can I use powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar? Btw I love your recipe’s Chef Nora.
Thank you so much Kassandra! I’ve never tried making the actual cake with powdered sugar, so it’s hard for me to say. It might affect the texture somewhat.
Hi can I add coconut ?
Sure!
Hi I haven’t tried your recipe yet but is there a UK conversion for the recipe please using grams please xx
Yes, if you look under the ingredients list you will see a “metric” tab. Thanks!
This is my 4th time making this. It is a hit Every time!!!!
I’m so glad! Thanks for sharing your review, Drizzy!
HI there!
How are far in advanced can you make this without it losing its deliciousness? Can I make it the night before for the next day and store at room temp? Or should it be refrigerated?
I usually store the cake in the refrigerator, or it can be stored at room temperature. It will last for probably 3-5 days, longer if refrigerated. I just cover the open part with plastic wrap so it doesn’t dry out. You can also freeze individually wrapped slices if you don’t think you’ll get to it all within a few days. I hope this helps!
I’m so happy I made these! They were perfectly moist and tasty. My non vegan mom LOVED IT!
I’m so glad the cake was a hit! Thank you for sharing your review, Victoria!