Three layers of rich coffee infused vegan chocolate cake are stacked with rich chocolate coconut cream frosting to create this decadent vegan chocolate mocha cake.
Lesson learned from this cake: don't buy cake carriers from the dollar store. I did and it was nearly a disaster. I've never had a cake carrier, and usually when I need to transport a cake somewhere I end up squeezing it into an empty Amazon box, which doesn't work out that great. I had to transport this cake to my mom's birthday celebration and wanted to keep it nice and fancy looking (because it's pretty impressive, right?), so at the last minute I made a desperate cake carrier purchase at the dollar store. I knew it wasn't sturdy, but I totally didn't expect the bottom to drop out when my husband carried it across a parking lot. Eek!
Lucky us, it landed flat on the ground with the cake still sitting on it. No cake got contaminated by parking lot. So all in all, it was a win.
Now I'll say this: if the cake had come into contact with the parking lot, I just might have still eaten it. Sorry, but this was the best cake ever.
I'm not saying I'd eat it if it was full of gravel. But a little parking lot cooties in exchange for this deliciousness? I'd already taste-tested so I knew what I'd be missing out on.
So I guess you've guessed by now that this was the best cake ever? It was.
You can't go wrong with coffee and chocolate, so that's the combination I went with for both the cake and the frosting. Three layers no less. Normally I might shy away from three layers where there's frosting in between, but this frosting is super rich and chocolaty, without being overly sweet.
I figured now's about a good time to share the recipe, since Easter is coming up, and sweets are a big Easter thing, right? Enjoy!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Mocha Layer Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 ½ cups unflavored soy or almond milk
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 ½ cups vegan granulated sugar, I used turbinado, but use whatever variety you've got on hand
- ⅔ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the Frosting
- 3 cups vegan dark chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 14 ounce cans coconut cream, chilled overnight until it separates
- Up to ½ cup unflavored soy or almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly oil 3 round 9-inch cake pans, and line the bottom of each with a round of parchment paper.
- Stir the milk and vinegar together in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Set aside.
- Stir the flours, sugar, cocoa powder, coffee powder, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk mixture, oil, and vanilla extract. Beat the mixture with an electric mixer on high speed for two minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber scraper.
- Divide the batter among the prepared cake pans. Place them into the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of each comes out clean, about 22 to 24 minutes.
- Remove the pans from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and allow to cool completely before removing the layers from the pans.
- While the cake bakes, make the frosting. Place the chocolate chips, coffee powder, and cinnamon into a medium saucepan set over low heat. Heat while stirring constantly, just until the chips melt, being careful not to let the chocolate burn. Open up the cans of coconut cream and add just the solids. Stir until fully blended with the chocolate. You can put the pan back over low heat briefly if needed to help this along.
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl and place it into the refrigerator. Chill for 1 to 2 hours, until the mixture is firm (like ganache). Scrape the mixture into a mixing bowl and beat it on high speed with an electric mixer until very light and fluffy. If the mixture is very dense you can add some non-dairy milk as you whip it, but just add a bit at a time, as it will get runny very quickly if you add too much.
- Once the cake layers are cool, remove them from the pans. Set a layer on a dish and spread the top with about 1 cup of the frosting. Top with a second layer, inverted, and spread the top of that layer with another cup of frosting. Top with the third layer, also inverted, and use the remaining frosting to coat the top and outsides of the cake.
- Slice and serve.
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Might want to add a little more soya milk as the batter was very thick. Maybe 1/4 a cup.
Can I use gluten-free flour in place of the two flours listed?
I haven't tried, but based on my experience with similar cakes, I think an all-purpose gluten-free blend should work! Enjoy!
Hello! This looks delicious! I’m curious if I can skip the whole wheat pastry flour and just use All purpose flour for eveyrthing?
All-purpose flour will work just fine! Enjoy!!
One of the best chocolate cakes I’ve tasted! I made this for my son’s 4th birthday (we are lacto-vegetarian but he has a milk intolerance so is vegan) and he specifically requested a “chocolaty chocolate cake with chocolate.” Only modifications were to use decaf instant coffee and plain flour since we didn’t have whole wheat pastry flour. My non-chocolate loving husband even enjoyed it. I would definitely make this again, and I highly recommend this recipe to others. Thank you for the recipe!
Hiii! I’m looking to make this recipe for this weekend and I’m so excited based on all the raving reviews! I was just wondering if the cake layers could be frozen and then thawed once they’ve cooled? Since many things will be going on this weekend (party planning) I don’t want to leave this until last minute and would like a head start, if possible! Thanks :)
Yes, you can definitely freeze them! Let them cool completely and then seal them up tightly, either in airtight containers or large freezer bags. Enjoy!!
Is the coconut cream the canned coconut milk or is it something else? And the powdered coffee, I have never used it. Is there a specific brand? We absolutely love your Carrot Cake recipe so I can't wait to try this!
Glad you enjoyed the carrot cake! Coconut cream is normally sold in cans near the coconut milk. It's a different product, but you can make it from coconut milk - just chill the can for about a day. Then when you open the can you should see that it has separated into liquid and solid parts - the solid is coconut cream.
Yo. I can’t tell you how much I love this cake. I made it and forgot to add some of the milk; obviously it turned out dry and sad. I remade it correctly and it was SO worth it. I made it gluten free, too, and it’s honestly better than lots of the baking Ive done that wasn’t vegan or gf. So so happy to have found this recipe.
Grace, I would love to make this cake GF for my daughter. What type of GF flour did you use? Any other things you need to adjust to make it work?
There didn’t seem to be enough batter for 3 layers, so I made it in 2 layers. It still took 22 minutes to cook and the layers seem just average thickness.
Also, it says it takes 1 hour and 35 minutes, but the coconut cream has to chill over night and then after mixing it with the chocolate for the frosting, it has to chill another 2 hours, so make sure to plan! We will be eating it tomorrow, so I will update with the taste test!
Since I don't have three bake pans of the same size, could I bake the whole batter in one pan and slice it in three parts after baking instead of dividing the batter into three pans?
I think so! The bake time might be different though - probably longer. Keep a close eye on it and check it with a toothpick every few minutes. Enjoy!
Can I manually mix things together instead of using an electric mixer?
I wouldn't recommend it - the electric mixer adds air to the batter to make your cake fluffy and help it rise.
Hi. Do you thinking baking this all in one cake pan would work ok? If so, any idea on how long to bake it for? I only bake, like, once every 3 years 🙈 so definitely need advice 😅 Thanks!
I think that would work, and I'm guessing that it will take a bit longer - maybe 30 minutes, but I can't say for sure without testing it myself. I'd just keep a close eye on it after the first 20 minutes and test it with a toothpick every few minutes. I'd love to hear how it turns out!
I made this cake for my dear niece, who is a vegan.
I can’t tell you how much we all loved it. This is one of the best cakes I’ve ever made. I will always use coconut cream instead of butter for all my cake frostings from now on. You don’t miss the non vegan ingredients and in fact, it’s way better than any traditional cake. It was moist and the frosting was glorious.
Thank you!!!
Yay!! This is our favorite cake in my house too! I'm so glad you and your niece enjoyed it! Thanks Sylvia!
What an amazing looking cake, is it ok to use just all purpose/plain flour ?
Thank you! All-purpose flour should work fine. :)
I made this two times and both times the recipe made a VERY scant two layers, not three, and they were flat! I whipped the hell out of the second batch in my mixer just to be sure, but no dice. What am I doing wrong?!
Hmmm...the layers will be thin when you pour them into the pans, but they should rise to about an inch or so if you're using the right size pan. I'd check your baking powder and soda. Sprinkle some baking powder into a glass of water and spinkle the baking soda into a glass of vinegar. They should both fizz - if not it's time to chuck them. You also want to avoid overbeating the batter - this will cause all of the baking soda and powder to react prematurely. Good luck and I hope that helps!!
This is a great tip indeed. I will check this before I try mine. I want to try this for my kid’s birthday. Thank you for the awesome recipe and great tips.
- Sandy
I hope you enjoy it!!
Hi,
I made this cake for my son’s birthday and it was as a super hit in my family. My hubby said it was tastier than store brought and of course healthy. This was my first time making Cake and I rocked it. Thanks a ton.
-Sandy
Yay!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know!
Wonder if this can be made without an electric mixer?
The batter definitely needs some aerating, so I wouldn't stir it by hand. You might be able to get away with a food processor in a pinch.
This cake looks incredible! I love coffee and chocolate together. Swoon! Also, I've had the exact same thing happen with a cake carrier (and over-loved, needing to be replaced one). Things didn't turn out as good for me in that situation :) Glad you got it to your mom's birthday in one piece!
Thanks so much Sarah! And sorry things didn't turn out so well with your cake. That's got to be a huge bummer. I love your blog by the way! :)
Amazing recipe. I just ate it yesterday and it was damn yummy.
It certainly sounds good! If it was even better than your wedding cake. Can't wait to try it ?