So the cake is vegan but the frosting is all cream cheese and butter. The recipe calls for dusting with powdered sugar not frosting so it could easily be vegan or I’m sure there are some great vegan frosting recipes out there if that’s your thing. I made these for Z to take to school for her birthday last week and they were a huge hit. The recipe said something funny like this won’t be the best cake you’ve ever had but it WILL taste good, it WILL be quick and easy to make and WILL be homemade, all which was true and that’s what I love about this cake. I didn’t even notice that it was vegan until a day or two later when I was trying to recollect the ingredients for a coworker. Bottom line, these simple chocolate cakes may be the new go to cake for occasions like this past week.
There’s a place here in town called Nothing Bundt Cakes that is mouth watering. They get tons of orders for work parties and special events etc. We’ve ordered them several times at my work and they are always amazing. These kinda reminded me of those but it could just be that I frosted them kind of like they do. This isn’t the normal way to “spread” icing on a cupcake but it was actually the perfect amount.
Vegan Chocolate Cake
From the cookbook The Essential New York Times Cook Book by Amanda Hesser.
- Ingredients (cake)
- 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 t. baking powder
- 1 c. sugar
- 1/2 t. sea salt
- 5 T. oil (I used sunflower)
- 1 c. cold spring water
- 1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
- 1 T apple cider vinegar
- powdered sugar to top (optional)
- Ingredients (frosting)
- 2 (8 oz.) packages of cream cheese, softened
- 1 stick butter (8 T.), softened
- 2 c. powdered sugar
- 1 t. vanilla extract
- Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 inch round cake pan (We went the cupcake route obviously). Mix the dry ingredients together then in another large bowl mix together the wet ingredients. Then whisk in the dry ingredients into the wet until lump free. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, you know, do the toothpick test thing and you’ll be fine. Cool completely on wire rack before removing from pan and dusting with powdered sugar, or frosting like us dairy lovers. The cupcakes only take like 10 minutes to cook so just keep an eye on them, you’ll know their done when none of them look wet on top anymore.
For the cream cheese frosting cream together the cream cheese and butter then whisk in the vanilla extract. Next whisk in the powdered sugar a bit at a time until it’s all incorporated into a wonderful frosting. Transfer to a ziplock bag and cut a corner to squeeze the frosting out and get creative with you patterns you make. Kids love to do this part!
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