Vegan Chocolate Cake

This is a delicious, vegan and decadent chocolate cake. Simple but classy, it’s made of a juicy sponge cake and a creamy dark chocolate ganache. For the sponge recipe I was inspired by the Chocolate Caramel Cake, but I skipped eggs and I added instead some cornstarch. And for the chocolate ganache, I used coconut cream instead of dairy whipping cream.

Ingredients Vegan Chocolate Cake

 ►Vegan Sponge Cake

• 250 g granulated sugar
• 50 g dark cocoa
• 5 g (a teaspoon) sodium bicarbonate
• a pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons of dark rum (or rum extract)
• 150 ml boiling water
• 150 ml vegetable oil
• 100 ml coconut milk
• 200 g cake flour
• 25 g cornstarch
• 40 ml fresh lemon juice

► Vegan Chocolate Ganache

• 1 can of full fat coconut milk, chilled
• 2 tablespoons of glucose syrup (or honey)
• 200 g vegan dark chocolate, crumbled

►Vegan Chocolate Glaze

• 100 g vegan dark chocolate
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil

Directions Vegan Chocolate Cake

►Preparing sponge cake: Prepare two baking pans with a diameter of about 18 cm; grease them with oil and coat the base with baking paper. Heat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Sift the flour with the cornstarch. Put sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a sauce pan. Pour over the boiling water, homogenize and cook until boils, then set aside. Add oil, rum, coconut milk and mix. Then incorporate the flour in two or three . Finally add the lemon juice. Divide the batter between the two baking pans and bake for about 30 minutes (check after 25 minutes, the toothpick should come out a little sticky, not completely dry).

When the cakes are ready, remove the pans from the oven, allow to cool, then remove the cakes from the baking pans. Cut each sponge cake into two horizontal layers.

► Preparing the filling: For chocolate ganache, we need a full fat coconut milk which must be stored into the fridge overnight, so the cream would separate from the whey.

Transfer the coconut cream into a bowl, add the glucose syrup and bring the mixture to boil into the microwave. Pour the hot mixture over the crumbled chocolate, let sit for about 2 minutes, then whisk until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is homogenized.

Place into the refrigerator for about 2 hours, then mix for a minute, until it becomes lightened and smooth. Assemble the cake by spreading ganache over the sponge layers.

► Preparing the glaze: Melt the chocolate, add oil and homogenize, then pour the glaze over the cake.Keep into the refrigerator until served.