This vegan chocolate cake is fudgy, super moist, ultra chocolaty and is topped off with an easy whipped chocolate ganache frosting! Can be made gluten-free, whole wheat or with all-purpose flour.
Today my little boy turned one year old! In celebration, I’m posting this vegan chocolate cake.
If you’re here just for the cake, scroll down past the baby picture to where it says All About The Cake. If you’re one of my followers who has been wondering what’s been up with the serious lack of recipes the last year, keep on reading!
I’ve reposted a lot of old recipes this year. I’ve mentioned this in a bunch of other posts, but when I’m working on a new recipe, I usually make it 10+ times before I think it’s perfect. And I don’t want to post something unless I think it’s absolutely perfect.
Up until Björn was about 9 months old and became more mobile, he was what you would describe as a very fussy baby. He was rarely happy and everything was a challenge.
So I’ve pretty much taken the year off as maternity leave. If you’ve left a blog comment and it took me a while to reply, I’m sorry. And I haven’t even looked at Instagram in half a year. If you’ve tagged me and I didn’t reply, I’m really sorry. :/
Things are so much better now but I’m still far from having time to develop totally new recipes (starting in February, that’ll change!).
When Björn was a few months old, he started to get eczema. So we did some allergy testing and the number of foods he wasn’t supposed to eat was really hard to deal with. Same with me.
Other than one brand of jam, there’s nothing we can buy premade from the store. I make everything from scratch.
It wouldn’t be that bad if I could work in the kitchen when he’s awake. But if I’m in the kitchen, he stands at my leg, crying and tries to pull down my pajama pants.
So yeah. I don’t get anything done with him around! But I’m not complaining. We had a really tough start and I’m thrilled that things are getting better and better.
Warning! Some people might consider the next part unappetizing in a post about a dessert recipe. Scroll past the baby picture if you just want cake.
So – on to the cause of our difficult beginning. I had undiagnosed placenta accreta, which is when the placenta grows too deeply into the uterine wall and can’t detach as it is supposed to after childbirth.
With placenta accreta, part or all of the placenta remains attached. It can even grow onto other organs.
It’s sometimes diagnosed at some point during the pregnancy and from what I understand, you would then have a planned C-section at 34-36 weeks, with a team of doctors prepared for the hemorrhage that most patients have, often followed by a hysterectomy.
Pretty much the entire staff came running in the room while they tried scraping it out. I could feel it all. It was so much worse than the birth! It was chaos. But that didn’t work so they put me under and then I had a 3-hour surgery. I lost a lot of blood but had a transfusion, which helped a ton. The images I had from the part where I was still awake were hard to deal with for a long time. But it’s easier to handle now.
I’m really lucky and thankful to be celebrating Björn’s birthday with him today! I decided to make myself this vegan chocolate cake in celebration. :D Mr. Texanerin got one piece.
Björn didn’t get any. He won’t be partaking in a cake like this for a while if I can help it.
Today we had a little birthday party for Björn and we ate this Healthy Vanilla Chocolate Cake from Feasting on Fruit. She has a ton of vegan, date-sweetened + oat flour based recipes and I’ve made and loved so many of them.
All About The Cake
This vegan chocolate cake is seriously the most delicious chocolate cake ever. I think I even prefer it over this whole wheat chocolate cake recipe.
And amazingly, nobody can tell that this cake is vegan or gluten-free! If you prefer, you can use whole wheat flour or even all-purpose flour. White whole white or whole spelt also work.
I’ve also tried this cake with buckwheat flour and found it pretty strange. It tasted floral somehow.
One thing I love about this vegan chocolate cake is that it doesn’t require any usual ingredients. You don’t even need chia or flax seeds to make egg replacements.
If you’re vegan or egg-free, you most likely already have these at home. But for someone who is looking for a dessert recipe to make their vegan friend, this is a great option!
And the frosting is super easy and not too sweet like buttercream usually is. I used a vegan chocolate ganache that’s just chopped chocolate and coconut milk.
All you do is melt it together, chill and then beat until fluffy. Then you have yourself some whipped ganache frosting!
Oh, and there’s salt in there. 1/4 teaspoon salt. I haven’t really seen that in many ganache recipes but I think a bit of salt makes it even more delicious! Feel free to omit that or only use 1/8 teaspoon.
This vegan chocolate fudge frosting would be another delicious option if the whipped ganache frosting doesn’t sound your speed.
If you’ve got any substitution questions, check out the below section! Just one last note.
This recipe uses 1 1/2 cups of water but if you have milk that needs using up, you can definitely use that in place of the water. I wouldn’t say that the cake tastes any different with it so I wouldn’t buy it just for this cake.
The batter will be super runny. Don’t be alarmed! It’s normal.
Questions about this vegan chocolate cake?
- Can you taste the olive oil?
I used extra-virgin olive oil and you can taste it in the batter and while the baked cake is still hot. Once it cools, you can’t taste it. If you’re worried about it, use light olive oil (the light refers to the taste and not calories).
- Can I use another oil other than olive?
You can use canola oil, vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, etc. Anything neutral tasting. Coconut oil also works.
- Can I use butter? I bet you could use butter in this cake for a non-vegan version but it wouldn’t be as moist (butter is 80-82% fat and oil is 100% fat). Same goes for vegan butter.
- Can I use a different gluten-free flour mix?
I used this 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour. If you have another brand that works as a sub for all-purpose flour, then you could probably use it here. I can’t say the texture would be as perfect as with the flour mix I used, though.
- Does the gluten-free version taste gluten-free?
This vegan chocolate cake honestly tastes like it was made with all-purpose flour. At least with the gluten-free flour mix I used and after it’s cooled a bit.
- Can I use almond / coconut / other flours?
Unfortunately not. If you want to use other flours like rice flour, buckwheat, whatever – you’ll have to experiment. There’s no direct sub for gluten-free flour mixes.
- Can I use a liquid sweetener?
Unfortunately not without experimenting! You could use a little honey or maple syrup for part of the sugar, but you’d have to reduce the liquid in the cake.
- Can I reduce the sugar?
You could probably get away with reducing it by 1/3 cup. Reducing sugar also reduces moist-ness so unless you want a dry cake, don’t go overboard and reduce it to 1/2 cup or some small amount.
- Does the frosting pipe well?
I haven’t tried it but it’s pretty firm. It should work but I can’t guarantee it.
- Can I use a different sized pan?
Here’s a pan conversion chart that should help. Looks like a 9″x13″ would work, though I haven’t tried it.
- Can I make this recipe into cupcakes?
Yes! This recipe will yield 16 cupcakes. Fill the liners slightly more than half-way full and bake for 16-18. The frosting yields just under 2 cups so that’d be enough for 2 tablespoons of frosting per cupcake.
- Can I freeze the layers / frosted cake?
Freezing the layers would definitely work. I haven’t experimented with the time but maybe up to 1 month? Freezing frosted layers, though? I think it’d work but I’m not 100% sure.
I hope you’ll love this vegan chocolate cake! If you try it out, I’d love to hear what you think. :)
Vegan Chocolate Cake (gluten-free, whole wheat, all-purpose flour options)
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 12 slices
Ingredients
- 1 2/3 cups (283 grams) semi-sweet chocolate, chopped or chips (make sure to use vegan chocolate like Enjoy Life)
- 1 cup (240 milliliters) canned full-fat coconut milk
- up to 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups (355 milliliters) water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) oil (like canola, vegetable, or olive) or 1/2 cup (113 grams) melted refined coconut oil
- 2/3 cup (133 grams) brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar or raw sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (207 grams) Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour for a GF version or 1 1/2 cups (188 grams) whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour for a non-GF version
- 1/2 cup (58 grams) cocoa powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the whipped ganache frosting:
For the cake:
Directions
- Note that the frosting needs about 2 hours to chill.
- In a medium or large sauce pot (one big enough for you to use your mixer in), mix together the chopped chocolate and coconut milk. Turn the heat to low and while stirring occasionally, melt the mixture. When no more lumps remain, stir in the salt (I like 1/4 teaspoon but you may want less). Place the pot on a trivet and put in the refrigerator to chill for 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 hours or until the mixture is cold and has thickened quite a bit (so that it's no longer pourable).
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C) and line two 8" (20-cm) round cake pans with a piece of parchment paper on the bottom. Grease the sides of the pans with baking spray or coconut oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the water, vinegar, oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract.
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add this to the wet mixture and stir just until combined. It will be almost as thin as water.
- Divide the batter between the two pans (about 495 grams of batter in each pan) and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with some moist crumbs (not raw batter). Let cool for 5 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once cooled, finish making the frosting.
- Remove the chilled ganache from the refrigerator and using an electric mixer (you could also transfer it to a stand mixer), beat the ganache until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Spread about 2/3 cup of frosting between the two layers of cake, 1/2 cup on top and the remaining on the sides. There's about 2 cups of frosting.
- Keep covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Prepare the frosting:
Prepare the cake:
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139 comments on “Vegan Chocolate Cake – Super Fudgy! (gluten-free options)” — Add one!
7 comments are awaiting moderation!
Hi Erin,
Can I sub in whole wheat pastry flour for a non-GF version?
Deb
This is the recipe I mean
Super fudgey choc cake with gluten free options. My g girl can’t eat dairy, eggs or nuts. I just need a printable recipe version so she can read them out when we bake.
Thank you , sonja
Hi! When you go to the recipe box below the post, after the last picture, there’s a square picture of a piece of cake. And under that square picture, is a button that says Print. That will print off just the recipe. :)
Five stars!!! ⭐️Wanted to give my review and some ideas I’ve tried. This cake is the best Gluten Free cake I’ve made, and I’ve made a lot of recipes. It’s our go to for chocolate cake, and it is for a couple of my friends I’ve shared it with too. I don’t need vegan, but it’s nice when I take something to a friend who needs egg free. We have some in our family that can’t have cane sugar, so I use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar and half as much of a stevia blend for the white sugar (Gentle Sweet is what I use), and it turns out perfect. I’ve also used almond milk in place of half the water.
It’s so decadent with some raspberry sauce and ganache drizzled on it (also makes an awesome volcano if you make it in the mini bunt pans). With strawberry frosting and ganache drizzle and some chocolate dipped strawberries, it makes a decadent Valentine’s Day cake.
Oh, wow! I have never felt like running to the kitchen after reading a review before. 😂 That all sounds amazing! I wish someone would make me such a cake for Valentine’s Day. 😆 I’m thrilled that you’ve been enjoying the cake so much and have shared it with friends! I so appreciate you taking the time to leave a review and the tips. Thanks a million!
Hi Erin,
If I am baking non GF version, do I skip the vinegar?
Hi! Nope. You still need it! It’s to help the cake rise. :) I’d love to hear how it comes out! Enjoy.
Also, I see your other comment on the cookies and will get back to you tonight! I’m going out now to pick up my son but wanted to answer your cake question in case you’re baking it right now.
thank you so much Erin, you are so nice to reply me right away. You have a great day.
No problem! I answered your question on the cookies post. Just saying since you don’t have comment notification turned on for that post. :)
This is a great recipe! I added 1.5 tsp of instant coffee to the water, but that was the only adjustment I made. It is as good if not better than the Hershey’s non vegan chocolate cake recipe I used for years. Would definitely make again. And again, and again …
Instant coffee sounds like a great addition! I’ll have to try that. Thanks for your comment! I’m so glad that you’ll be making it again in the future. :)
Made the cake even more decadent by adding 1 tsp of instant coffee, another 1 tsp of vanilla extract, and 1/8 cup of cocoa powder. Used this recipe for my brother’s birthday cake. Used the King Arthur Measure for Measure GF Flour Blend and came out just right.
What a great idea! I’m so glad it came out well with your changes. Thanks for the tip on KAF GF flour! That’s great to know. Thanks for your feedback!
This cake tastes sooo sweet and the texture is perfect, super fudgy, exactly like a cake should be! I have topped this with some peanut butter, melted chocolate and bananas. Must try :)
I’m so glad that you enjoyed it! Thanks a bunch for your feedback. :)
Hi, hope all is well! This cake looks delicious! Was wondering if it might work to make the ganache with oat milk instead of coconut milk because of a coconut allergy in the family? I read that oat milk has a bit higher fat content then some other coconut milk alternatives. Thanks so much!
Hello! You could look for a ganache recipe using oat milk (I do have this amazing vegan chocolate fudge frosting recipe that you could use oat milk in), but in this whipped ganache recipe, oat milk wouldn’t work because it’s so much less fatty than coconut milk and it wouldn’t whip properly. Sorry about that!
Oh no! Thanks for replying though and I’ll check out that frosting recipe! Cheers!
Hi Erin,
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! The cake turned out wonderfully! I used canola oil and white vinegar since I had them on hand and a 9.5 inch round cake pan with the hole in the middle (took about 40 min at 350, to fully cook in it but turned out beautifully). I couldn’t find the flour you used, so used Robin Hood Gluten Free All Purpose Flour Blend instead.
I’m also most grateful for you directing me to the other frosting recipe, it was delicious! I couldn’t use coconut oil or milk (allergies) in the frosting, so instead used Earth’s Own SoFresh Oat milk and Becel made with Oat beverage, in your other frosting recipe. Everyone was able to enjoy the same birthday cake (vegan, gluten-free, allergies, and everyone else), they all loved it and my brother who usually avoids dessert loved it more than regular chocolate cake and even snuck a second slice, lol! I felt so happy to be able to find something we could all share! I can’t thank you enough, and when you responded so quickly about the frosting it saved the day! Really unforgettable!
Thank you and God bless! :)
And now it took me 5 weeks to reply to your lovely feedback. 🤦♀️ Sorry. I don’t know how but I somehow missed your comment! I’m really glad that the cake worked out well and it’s fantastic to know that Robin Hood GF flour works well! That’s super helpful for the Canadians, I’m sure. And how awesome that your brother even enjoyed the cake, despite not being a sweets person. :) Thanks for your awesome feedback and sorry again!
We have used this for too many birthdays to count! It is a hit (even picky eaters like it and cannot believe it’s vegan). I sub coconut palm sugar for the sugars and it has turned out great! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe and sharing your story <3
I’m so sorry for just now seeing your nice comment! It was in spam for some odd reason. I’m really glad that the cake has been a hit at several birthdays! I just love it when vegans and non-vegans can enjoy the same cake. :) Thanks for your great feedback and my apologies again for just now seeing it!