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).
Wonderful recipe. Came out great. My first vegan dessert.
Thank you for sharing your review! Glad you liked the cake!
I have baked this a few times in round 9inch pans. It’s always a hit!!!
I am planning a themed cake for thick I am trying a rectangle 9*13 cake.
Do I use same measures for a 9*13 (glass glass pan)? And what temperature and time do you recommend since it’s a glass dish (Pyrex) ?
I’m glad you are loving the cake! You can make it in a 9 x 13 dish or pan. I would bake it at the same temp for 35-45 minutes. It may take a little longer to bake, especially in a glass dish, so just watch it closely after 35 minutes. It’s done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean in the middle of the cake. I hope this helps!
How do you adjust the recipe for high altitude baking? I’m above 6,000 feet.
I’m not very familiar with high altitude baking, so I’m not quite sure, sorry!
Help!
I cant have any “gums, such as xanthan gum”, and I plan on using a gluten free baking flour without it. I saw your notes about baking with gluten free baking flour (needing) xanthan gum….is there something I can put in its place??
Hmmm I’m really not sure. It will probably be fine without it but it might be a little dense. I don’t know of a good replacement, but maybe someone else will have an idea!
My adult son does not eat dairy so was looking for a vegan cake to make for his birthday and I bumped into this recipe and boy am I glad I did! I cut the recipe in half as I only wanted to make a 6 inch cake and had 2 6″ pans. I quickly went to the supermarket this morning to buy the applesauce and once I started the recipe I did not realize that the one I had purchased was not unsweetened but I proceeded with the recipe since that was all I had. I had purchased a jar of coconut caramel at Whole Foods last weekend and I thought I would also add some of it in the middle of each layer and then paired it with a coffee flavored vegan buttercream instead of the chocolate one in this recipe. The chocolate layers were divine! I made sure the non-vegans also tasted it and they loved it. The layers rose beautifully and they were so light and MOIST so I may stick the sweetened applesauce in the future since it turned out so ,so good. I would omit the caramel next time because even though I had done a barrier of buttercream, it seemed to seep through slightly ruining my beautiful smooth finish of the cake so next time I would omit as it would be even better without it. My son was so happy that I made a full special cake for him and that it was shared and enjoyed by all rather than just for him. Normally, I would only buy him a vegan cupcake from Whole Foods and make a cake for the non-vegans. This one is definitely a keeper! Thank you Nora for sharing this great recipe.
I’m so glad you, and your son, had a wonderful experience with my cake recipe for his birthday! It’s so fun to share a birthday cake! Thank you for taking your time to share your wonderful review and comments! Happy birthday to your son!
I have made this recipe so many times and everyone LOVES it! I am making it today for tomorrow evening and I’m hoping it can stay in the fridge all that time and I just bring it out about an hour before serving? Does that sound about right?
Yes, it can be stored in the fridge for that long, no problem. I’m so glad everyone enjoys it, thanks!
I have been searching for a foolproof layer cake recipe for years. Yours is the first one that worked and it is just so delicious. Best chocolate cake I have ever eaten. Thank you!
I’m so glad! Thank you for sharing your review!
Hi, would regular butter work for this instead of vegan butter?
I don’t think I can find vegan butter one easily here in japan.
Yes, it will work it just won’t be vegan obviously then. Enjoy!
Hi Nora, would self raising white flour work? 🙂
Hi Natasha. Self rising flour just won’t work very well in this recipe!
Hi Nora, how much aquafaba would you recommend to use instead of Apple sauce? Thanks 🙂 excited to try!!
I’ve never made this cake with aquafaba, so I don’t know how it will work. Probably will be okay, and I would use the same amount as indicated for the applesauce.
I was non-vegan for 23 years. And like anyone, I’ve had a lot of cake. This is seriously the best chocolate cake I have ever had in my life.
I made it for a family gathering so that I and a few other vegans could have some cake for a party while everyone else had pre-made store cake. After 20 minutes, the massive sheet cakes were virtually untouched and this cake was nothing but crumbs. Un. Be. Lievable.
Your comments and review mean a lot to me! Thank you for sharing! I’m glad the cake was a hit!
Hi! I made this for my bosses who is vegan and they loved it. Thank you so much?
Thank you for sharing! I’m glad the cake was a hit!
Hi Nora
Do you know if oat milk works the same?? Would love to make this for my mom’s birthday tomorrow.
Sorry I should’ve looked in the comments first. I see it works. I’m so excited to bake this!
I hope you enjoy the cake!
It was amazing! My mom said it was THE BEST cake she ever had. I brought the leftovers to work and all the teachers really enjoyed it.
Unbelievable! I’m the only vegan but my family always wants vegan birthday cakes so that I can have a piece. The bakery I was planning on ordering from wasn’t taking any more orders for the holiday weekend. I thought… “wait a second, I can just whip up a cake!” I had everything on hand and followed the recipe exactly. Everyone absolutely raves about this cake. I think they will be requesting it from now on. It’s the best, most rich cake I’ve ever made. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing!
We have tree nut & peanut allergies. Has anyone ever used oat milk ?
Yep, any milk is truly fine here, oat milk works.
one of the best cakes i’ve ever had! super easy to make and tastes good every time! even my non-vegan friends and family love it 🙂
Thank you! I’m glad you love it!
Best cake ever! I made this for my nephew who is anaphylactic to eggs, dairy, and nuts. I used coconut milk instead of the almond and opted for regular oil instead of coconut. Seriously hands down the best chocolate cake ever.
Nora, do you have a white or yellow version of this?
I am so glad you loved the cake, and that your nephew could enjoy it! I do have a couple of vanilla cakes! Check out my vegan funfetti cake, and my vegan vanilla cake! Happy cooking!
I made this cake for my husband’s birthday and it was amazing!!!
Thank you!
I have never baked anything from scratch and after following this super simple and easy-to-understand recipe, I must say it was a breezy success!!! The cake was moist and warm and absolutely delicious!!! I did make few substitutes such as mashed avocado for vegan butter and walnut milk for almond milk. My biggest substitute, however, was date sugar for all of the sugar required in the recipe. I wanted to avoid processed sugar and the date sugar is just the right sweetness and fineness to work in both the cake mix and the frosting (however my frosting was a really dark color because of it although it worked really well in this recipe). I say all of this to say thank you so much for this recipe. My son requested that mom bake a cake for his birthday and with your help I absolutely delivered!!!!!!!!!
Thank you for sharing your review and comments! I’m so glad the cake turned out wonderful! Happy birthday to your son!
Thank you so much! I am so excited to try more of your recipes as I now have confidence that I am able!
hi, i just made this recipe as cupcakes with your suggested changes and they baked perfectly and taste amazing, but the problem is that they’re almost completely stuck to the wrappers. i could only take the top of a cupcake out and had to scrape the rest off with a spoon, and even then it was really resistant to coming off the wrapper. do you have any idea why that might have happened?
When I make cupcakes, I spray the cupcake wrappers with oil so that the cupcakes can be easily removed from the paper. I hope this helps your cupcakes next time!
Hi there, can icing sugar be used instead of powdered sugar? Also is it 1 1/2 cups of melted butter?
I think they are the same thing? So yes. And no, don’t melt the vegan butter or your frosting will never set up right! It should just be a little softened, like if you leave it at room temperature for 30 minutes. Sticks are best. Hope that helps.
What if we wanted to make a two layer six inch cake? How long would it need to bake for?
Well, the problem is that I don’t think the cake batter will fit into just 2 6 inch pans, it may overflow. I’m not sure it would work.
No lie,it is simply the best !!
Hello!
Thank you so much for this recipe. I am making it for my friends birthday! I am a very beginner level baker. I’m using a small square pan a little bit smaller than a 9×13. What cooking time do you recommend?
Also can I make the icing without chocolate to make a vanilla buttercream? I want to color it light green for her favorite color. Thank you!
Hi there! Without knowing the exact size of the pan you are using, but you can try baking for about 40 minutes or so, just check the middle with a toothpick, when no wet batter comes out it should be done. Hope that helps!
You can make my Vegan Vanilla Frosting instead. 🙂
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! Will be making it for a dinner party this week. Just a quick question, can the almond milk be substituted by soy milk for the frosting? Thank you once again!
Hi. You can you use any non dairy milk in the recipe. Enjoy the cake!
Thank you so much!