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.
Recipe inspired by Add A Pinch.
The Best Vegan Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk or almond
- 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, not the tub
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4-1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk or almond
Instructions
For the Chocolate Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease two 8 or 9-inch cake pans (8 inch pans will result in taller cakes). I also line them with parchment rounds for easy removal of the cakes later.
- Measure 1 cup unsweetened 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 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 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.
- 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).
I’ve made this cake a few times and it’s great!
I have a question though – can I double the recipe and bake it in a half sheet cake pan? How long would you guess it would cook for? I want to make sure I have plenty of cake for my son’s birthday party!
Thanks! You might be interested in my Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake, though it uses a quarter sheet cake (11×17 inches). For a half sheet cake pan, you could probably double the recipe for a thick sheet cake. I’m guessing the cake will take around 25-30 minutes to bake, but I’d start checking it after 20. When a toothpick comes out clean in the middle, it’s done. If there is too much batter for the pan, save some for cupcakes, as doubling might be too much batter.
Hi Norah, how far in advance can I make this cake? Can I refrigerate it for a week? Also, Wondering if it can be frozen? If so for how long please? How do you recommend storing it in the fridge or the freezer?
Thank you very much, I appreciated your time and advice x
While it might technically be okay to refrigerate the cake for up to a week, it won’t be at it’s best then. It’s best within a few days, 2-3 at max. It will start to dry out in the fridge. You can freeze it for up to 3 months.
girl knows she’s got the best vegan cake on the internet
I made this for mother’s day today UK as my mother is lactose intolerant as am i and it is delicious (one issue i had was that I had to bake my cakes for over an hour and half) so not sure where I’m going wrong the oven is fan assisted and was pre heated for well over 40 minutes. I may reduce the buttercream recipe next time as much as I love frosting this was wayyyyyy to much for this cake (we are still going to eat it haha) its got a fudgey almost brownie like texture to the cake and we love it. Thank you for the recipe i will add it to my list of favourites. X
Hi Nora! I’ve been using your recipes for a long time and recently found this one. It was absolutely amazing! Pretty simple and straightforward steps. My friends were in awe! It was soooo delicious! Thank you so much for all your recipes.
I used less about 50g sugar and it worked for me. (I know baking is meant to be precise).
I’m thrilled that you found my chocolate cake recipe, Amanda! This is a very well loved cake recipe, one made in our home often for special occasions! Thank you for taking time to share your awesome review and comments! I appreciate you loving my recipes, and wish you happy cooking!
Hi Nora, I love your recipes! However, I have never made a chocolate cake, I only have carob powder on hand as I have used it as a sub for hot drinks, smoothies etc. Do you think I can use it to make this cake along with all the other ingredients as is, what changes would you suggest?
It will taste quite different with carob but if you like it you can give it a try! I wouldn’t make any changes other than replacing the cocoa with the carob. Just know the flavor will be carob, not chocolate of course.
Absolutely the best chocolate cake…. Decadent….. We are not Vegan but this is my go to now…
I’m so glad that you loved the chocolate cake recipe! It is definitely loved by many folks! Thank you for taking time to share your terrific comments with me! Happy cooking!
Hi Nora. This cake looks amazing but I’m wondering if you have any tips before I attempt to make it with gluten free flour.
Thank you!
Susan
I’d go make this version for best results! Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Cake.
I have made this recipe several times before. Last weekend, I doubled it to 2 9×13 cake pans, frosted with the vanilla buttercream, and brought it to a friend’s retirement party. Because it was for other people, I weighed ingredients, to be sure they were correct.
It was excellent. I made sure to tell people “vegan, and NoraCooks.com.” Nora, each of your baking recipes that I’ve tried seems to be perfect. Thank you.
You are welcome, Suzanne! Thank YOU for taking time to share your glowing review and positive comments! I’m so glad that you are loving my recipes, and that they turn out wonderful for you! I put a lot of of thought into making my recipes easy to follow, and delicious! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I have made this and everyone loved it! My most popular cake of any kind ever! But now I need one that’s also gluten free… Do you know if it will work with gluten free flour?
I’d go make this version for best results! Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Cake. I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed this cake before, and I hope the gluten free version is a hit!
Thank you so much!
You are welcome!
The eternal plague upon my people through the instruments of societal and governmental discrimination inflicting never-ending woe and misery never lets me rest, but at least this cake has granted me a quick moment of respite in the sublime pleasure of it’s frosting and biscuit layers. 10/10 would bake again.
Thank you Nora!! I’ve made this recipe so many times I’ve lost count. Started using it for allergy reasons. And EVERYONE loves it. It’s the best and has helped make our family birthday celebrations very special!!
It is the best and we can’t thank you enough!!!!
What is the reason that you note vegan butter sticks, not the tub? Will I ruin the frosting with tub butter?
The tub tends to be greasier and softer. It will work if you must use it, but sticks work better. If using the tub vegan butter, I’d use much less milk and only add it as needed. Also, make sure the butter isn’t too melty and soft when you start, or it won’t work well.
Excellent recipe moist and delicious making it again second time in a month
I wish I could post a picture of my cake here. This cake was definitely as good as any non-vegan chocolate cake I’ve tried. The sponge was deliciously moist without being too dense. I’d have described it as ‘fudgey’ in all the right ways. The frosting is exactly like chocolate buttercream and had a wonderful fluffy texture but was a little sweet for me (as most buttercreams are) so next time I may try a ganache instead. I put dark chocolate covered strawberries on mine, I recommend it. Also, I discovered too late I was out of apple cider vinegar but an equal amount of lemon juice worked!
Wondering if oat milk is okay or if there is a reason why you suggest soy/almond milk.
Most often I bake with soy milk these days, but oat milk works here too.
This was a straightforward recipe to follow, with extremely delicious results! The cake was perfect! Chocolatey, moist, fluffy…amazing. Thank you. I made my own vegan buttercream with biscoff and topped with strawberries, which gave it a nice fresh lift.
I’ve made this cake a few times but for some reason it turns out fudgy in the middle. I’m at high altitude (7010 ft) and adjust the flour and leavening accordingly but this time I used a much darker cocoa powder and had to make it 3 times, reducing the liquids and apple sauce but it still came out fudgy although not as much. It’s passable. I am wondering if the dark “majestic” cocoa is the issue.
I found this recipe several years ago because my daughter is allergic to both eggs and dairy, making baked goods a challenge. This cake is so good that the rest of the family (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins) who are not vegan and don’t have allergies ask me to make this cake for their own birthday every year. I can whip up this cake so quickly, I’ve even forgotten the applesauce one time and I hardy noticed a difference in the end. Lately I’ve been swapping the cocoa out for Dutch processed black cocoa for an even richer, fudgy cake. If I could give this recipe 10 stars, I would.
Hello Nora, I would like to make this to wow my boyfriend as a treat. Can I use lemon juice to curdle the soy milk as that’s what I have to hand? Is the oven you’re using fan assisted? I have a fan oven here in the uk so should I reduce the oven temperature by 20 degrees because it’s fan assisted? Will melted vegan butter work in place of the oil? Thank you
Yes, you can use lemon juice, no problem. I don’t use a fan assisted oven, but you may want to lower the temperature a bit, or just know the cake might bake faster. You could use melted vegan butter instead of oil, but I’d reduce the salt if your butter is salted. I hope you and your boyfriend enjoy the cake!
Hi Nora,
I am looking forward to making this cake for my boyfriends birthday. And I was wondering if it would make a difference if i didn’t add the apple cider vinegar, we don’t have it and I wouldn’t buy a bottle for just a table spoon. Thanks!!
Hi Lilly. If you have white vinegar, you could sub that, or lemon juice. The vinegar can also be left out, if needed. The cake will still be good! Happy birthday to your boyfriend! Enjoy!
Hi Norah, this cake is beyond moist and out of this world delicious. I have been making it the past 5 or so years! Thank you! I have a question if I may please, can I use this chocolate cake recipe to make the German Black Forest cake? Or do you think, because this particular recipe results in a super moist chocolate cake, given that the Black Forest cake asks for the liquor to be added to the already baked spong chocolate cake, it may make the end result too soggy? I hope my question makes sense! I thank you, appreciate your time, your guidance and expert advice!
I think you could certainly use this recipe to make a German Black Forest Cake! It’s actually been something I’ve wanted to try for years. I would likely only use 3/4 cup of boiling hot water, and try perhaps a few tablespoons of the liquor. That should help prevent the cake from becoming dense or soggy. Please enjoy, and let me know how it turns out!
I think I have made this cake at least a hundred times. I have been making this 2019… My only addition is a quarter teaspoon of espresso powder or instant coffee. This is hands down the best chocolate cake I have ever had! I was so proud to see your article in the New York times! Go Nora and your amazing persistence in perfecting every recipe.
Thank you for your awesome words and encouragement! I do work hard on perfecting my recipes to make them the best they can be, and your validation and support is priceless! Thank you for loving my recipes, loving my cake, and giving me a shout out! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I made this for my best friend’s birthday, and it was incredible! I used a cup of coffee instead of water to make it mocha, and it was a huge hit. Thanks for such wonderful recipes!
Amazing EXACTLY what I was looking for. Extremely moist, sweet, and soft. Just perfect. I wanted to ask how to store it? Thank you so much!
Hi Jody. I’m so glad that the cake is exactly what you were hoping for! Thank you for your fantastic review! The cake will last about 4-6 days when stored in the refrigerator and about 3-4 days if left out on the counter.
This is the best chocolate cake I have ever made. Absolutely delicious. Can I freeze the cake without the frosting ?
I am thrilled that you are loving the cake! Thank you for sharing your terrific review! Yes, you can freeze the cake without frosting it. It would be best to make the cake layers, let them cool completely, then wrap well and freeze. Let them thaw at room temperature for a few hours before frosting.
Hi Nora. The recipe states that you need a tablespoon of vanilla extract in the cake batter. Is this correct! Or should it be a teaspoon. It just seems a lot. I’m going to make the cake later today for a birthday. Thankyou
Hi Louise. Yes, the measurement is correct! Enjoy!
A triumph. The best chocolate cake, vegan or not. I will always, always come back to this recipe. It’s even better after a night in the fridge and stays perfect and moist for days and days. Nora is my hero forever.
Hi Jamie. I am thrilled that you are loving the chocolate cake! I’m with you, I love it after it’s been refrigerated! Thank you for sharing your amazing review and comments! I appreciate you loving my recipes! I wish you lots of happy cooking!
This recipe is fabulous! The cake always comes out so moist and delicious. I’ve made cupcakes as well and they turn our wonderful too. Could I add chocolate chips to the recipe? If so, how much would you recommend?
Thank you! Yes, you can add chocolate chips if you want. I’d say anywhere from 1/2-1 cup.
LOOK NO FURTHER! MAKE THIS CAKE! This may be the first time I’ve written a review on a recipe. When I tell you this is the best chocolate cake I have ever made and tasted!!!! I mean it!! I followed the recipe to the TEE no alterations and it was THE BOMB DOT COMB. I made this for my dairy and egg free daughters 2nd birthday. There were only a few slices left and those wont last longer than a day. Absolutely FANTASTIC recipe. The frosting was rich and perfectly chocolatey sweet (I ended up added 4 cups of powdered sugar I tasted as I went) with the perfect fluff (I accidentally got salted non dairy butter and that worked perfectly). The cake was soft and moist but held well together and tasted perfectly sweetened and salted. I divided the batter into 3 round pans and had 3 layers, that worked perfectly. I let mine cool and saran wrapped the individual lays and kept them in the fridge over night. I set them and frosting out for a few hours the next morning before icing and assembling. This cake taste better than any dairy/egg cake I’ve ever had in my whole life. Nora, God bless you for this master piece! This is my go to recipe for chocolate cake from here on out!! Thank you thank you for sharing this recipe with the world Nora! I would give it 100/10 you just HAVE to try this one!
Hi Jenise. Happy birthday to your two year-old! I am thrilled that the cake turned out perfect for her birthday! Thank you so much for taking time to share your glowing review and comments! I love sharing my recipes and I am so happy that you found my cake recipe, and that you loved it! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!