Dairy Free Chocolate Cake

This is the best dairy free chocolate cake ever! Moist, fluffy, with rich chocolate flavor and a fudgy chocolate buttercream. It's the perfect dairy free cake recipe that will keep you coming back for more!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Diet Low Lactose, Vegetarian

Prep Time 20

Bake 22

Total Time 42

Servings slices

Calories 447kcal

Author Gabby

Equipment

Ingredients

Dairy Free Chocolate Cake

1½ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 eggs
1 cup water, hot
½ cup canola oil (or sunflower oil)
½ cup dairy free milk of choice (I use unsweetened soy milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dairy Free Chocolate Buttercream

1 cup vegan butter
½ cup vegetable shortening OR vegan butter (SEE NOTES)
1 ¼ cup cocoa powder
2¾-3 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoon dairy free milk of choice (as needed)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare two 8 inch round cake pans. Spray the inside with cooking spray, then cut round pieces of parchment paper so that they fit in the bottom of each pan (do not skip the parchment paper lining!)
Whisk flour, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda together in a large bowl.
Add in the eggs, vanilla, oil, and milk. Pour in the hot water and mix until smooth.
Divide the batter evenly between the two cake pans and bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20-26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean.
Let the cakes cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then run a butter knife around the outside of the cake to loosen it from the pan and flip upside down onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Make the buttercream. In the bowl of a standing mixer or handheld mixer, beat vegan butter and vegetable shortening together until combined. Beat in the cocoa powder until smooth.
Add in the vanilla extract, then add the icing sugar, ¼ cup at a time until desired consistency is reached. If the buttercream is too thick, add in milk 1 tablespoon at a time to thin it out to the consistency you want. If it's too thin, add in more confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar) ¼ cup at a time.
Once the cakes have cooled completely, frost them and enjoy!

Notes

PLEASE NOTE: I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to weigh your dry ingredients. Metric measurements are found above under the "Metric" tab.

PARCHMENT PAPER LINING: I highly recommend not skipping this step. It is highly likely that the cake may break when you try to remove it from the pan if you do. Lining the round pan with parchment paper will make your life so much easier when removing the cakes from the pan, trust me. To do this, trace then cut a circle in the shape of your cake pan out of the parchment paper and place it inside the pans.

COCOA POWDER: I recommend using dutch processed cocoa powder, but you can use natural if that's what you have.

MEASURING FLOUR and COCOA POWDER: Either measure your flour using a kitchen scale or use the proper scoop and level method: fluff the flour in the bag/container with a fork then use a spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup, then run the back of a knife along the top of the cup to even it out. Do the same for the cocoa powder.

VEGETABLE SHORTENING: If you are using a soft vegan butter that has a margarine-like consistency, I recommend using 1 cup of vegan butter and ½ cup of shortening. This will help the buttercream to hold its shape at room temperature. Margarine can soften too much at room temperature so using shortening will help with that.

BUTTERCREAM: This recipe provides enough buttercream to allow for piping and decorating. If you don'd need that much buttercream, you can make ⅔ of the buttercream recipe, or freeze the leftovers.

Storage and Freezing Instructions:

The cake can be stored covered at room temperature for 3-4 days. I store mine in a cake carrier.

To freeze the cake layers, let them cool completely, then tightly wrap them in plastic wrap, then aluminium foil. Freeze in ziploc bags for up to 3 months, then let them thaw at room temperature.

Leftover buttercream can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it in the fridge then mix it up using a handheld or standing mixer before using it.

To make as cupcakes: This cake recipe will make 20 cupcakes. Bake at the same temperature for around 12-15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

To make in two 9 inch round cake pans: The cake layers will be thinner and will bake quicker. Start checking on them at around 14 minutes.

To make in a 9x13 sheet pan: Bake for 18-20 minutes. You will only need half the buttercream for a layer cake, so halve the buttercream recipe.

To make as a 3 layer cake: The easiest way is to divide the batter between 3 8 inch cake pans (you'll have thinner cake layers). If you want big layers, you can also multiply the ingredients in the recipe by 0.5.

Nutrition