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    You are here: Home / Dessert / Vegan Mocha Layer Cake

    LAST UPDATED: January 28, 2022 • FIRST PUBLISHED: April 8, 2017

    Vegan Mocha Layer Cake

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    Vegan Mocha Layer Cake

    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.

    Slice of Vegan Mocha Layer Cake on a Plate with Raspberries, with a Second Slice of Cake and Tea Cup in the Background

    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.

    Whole Vegan Chocolate Mocha Layer Cake on a Plate with Three Raspberries

    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.

    Hand Plunging a Fork into a Slice of Vegan Chocolate Mocha Layer Cake

    So I guess you've guessed by now that this was the best cake ever? It was. It was tastier than my wedding cake, even if not quite as much fun.

    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.

    Slice of Vegan Chocolate Mocha Layer Cake on a Plate with a Bite Taken Out

    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!

    Slice of Vegan Mocha Layer Cake on a Plate with Raspberries, with a Second Slice of Cake and Tea Cup in the Background
    5 from 5 votes
    Print

    Vegan Mocha Layer Cake

    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.
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Prep Time 1 hour 10 minutes
    Cook Time 25 minutes
    Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes
    Servings 12
    Calories 718 kcal
    Author Alissa

    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

    1. 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.
    2. Stir the milk and vinegar together in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Set aside.
    3. 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.
    4. 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.
    5. Remove the pans from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and allow to cool completely before removing the layers from the pans.
    6. 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.
    7. 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.
    8. 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.
    9. Slice and serve.
    Nutrition Facts
    Vegan Mocha Layer Cake
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 718 Calories from Fat 303
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 33.7g52%
    Saturated Fat 19.3g97%
    Sodium 3.5mg0%
    Potassium 355mg10%
    Carbohydrates 106.4g35%
    Fiber 2.7g11%
    Sugar 81g90%
    Protein 7.3g15%
    Calcium 50mg5%
    Iron 2.9mg16%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    « Slow Cooker White Bean Soup with Tempeh Bacon (Vegan Bean with Bacon Soup!)
    Quinoa & Lentil Cabbage Roll Soup »

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    About Alissa Saenz

    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors! You can read more about me here.

    I'd love to connect with you on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Maja Harder says

      April 08, 2017 at 12:23 pm

      It certainly sounds good! If it was even better than your wedding cake. Can't wait to try it ?

      Reply
    2. Susan George says

      April 11, 2017 at 9:27 am

      Amazing recipe. I just ate it yesterday and it was damn yummy.

      Reply
    3. Sarah says

      April 12, 2017 at 10:38 am

      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!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        April 14, 2017 at 8:50 pm

        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! :)

        Reply
    4. Chery says

      July 03, 2017 at 12:59 pm

      Wonder if this can be made without an electric mixer?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 04, 2017 at 10:49 pm

        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.

        Reply
    5. Liz says

      October 12, 2017 at 2:34 pm

      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?!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        October 14, 2017 at 11:12 am

        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!!

        Reply
        • Sandhhya says

          November 25, 2017 at 2:01 pm

          5 stars
          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

          Reply
          • Alissa Saenz says

            November 26, 2017 at 10:03 pm

            I hope you enjoy it!!

            Reply
            • Sandhhya says

              December 04, 2017 at 7:32 pm

              5 stars
              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

            • Alissa Saenz says

              December 06, 2017 at 8:42 pm

              Yay!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know!

    6. Jean Evans says

      March 12, 2019 at 8:44 am

      5 stars
      What an amazing looking cake, is it ok to use just all purpose/plain flour ?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        March 17, 2019 at 5:20 pm

        Thank you! All-purpose flour should work fine. :)

        Reply
    7. Sylvia says

      July 08, 2019 at 3:30 am

      5 stars
      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!!!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 14, 2019 at 10:57 am

        Yay!! This is our favorite cake in my house too! I'm so glad you and your niece enjoyed it! Thanks Sylvia!

        Reply
    8. Nera says

      October 09, 2019 at 1:47 pm

      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!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        October 13, 2019 at 10:54 am

        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!

        Reply
    9. Joyce says

      October 23, 2019 at 6:06 pm

      Can I manually mix things together instead of using an electric mixer?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        October 27, 2019 at 2:00 pm

        I wouldn't recommend it - the electric mixer adds air to the batter to make your cake fluffy and help it rise.

        Reply
    10. Susann says

      December 14, 2019 at 4:48 am

      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?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        December 15, 2019 at 2:54 pm

        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!

        Reply
    11. Dianna says

      February 06, 2020 at 5:55 pm

      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!

      Reply
    12. Grace says

      October 26, 2020 at 10:40 pm

      5 stars
      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.

      Reply
      • Mary says

        April 14, 2021 at 2:44 pm

        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?

        Reply
    13. Mary says

      April 14, 2021 at 2:46 pm

      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!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        April 18, 2021 at 6:13 pm

        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.

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors!

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