Chocolate Cake

I am starting with this recipe from awesome Buddhist Chef, with some plans to modify it a bit to reduce oil and sugar.  I cut the recipe for the icing in half as it seemed to me to make too much for one cake in the original recipe…but then I am not a big fan of icing on cakes, so you may choose to double the recipe.  This recipe uses the foaming interaction between the vinegar and the baking soda to help the cake rise.

Vegan Chocolat Cake

 

Cake Ingredients:

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1.5 cups sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 cup cocoa
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1.5 cups almond milk
  • 1/4 cup vinegar

Icing Ingredients

  • 1 Tbs coconut oil
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup of powdered (icing) sugar
  • 1/8 cup cocoa
  • 1/8 cup almond milk
  • 1/4 cup cashews (optional)

Directions

1  Preheat oven to 350˚F (175˚C). Grease a 9-inch/ 23cm springform pan.
Add flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and cocoa to a large bowl. Stir until well combined. Set aside.
In a separate bowl mix the vegetable oil and almond milk.
Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined.
Stir in vinegar, mix until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake 30 to 45 minutes.
Icing:
Mix coconut oil, vanilla extract, icing sugar, cocoa and soy milk. Whisk until the mixture is smooth. For a firmer frosting add a greater amount of icing sugar.
Grind the cashews and sprinkle on the cake. (optional)
Note:The interaction between the vinegar and the baking soda produce bubbles in the batter which help the cake to rise. But you can’t taste the vinegar at all.