How to make this 'magic' vegan chocolate cake that changed how I bake
No butter, no eggs, no milk: it’s pure cake magic.
That was until the birthday cake breakthrough.
One day on a family picnic, our lives changed for the better. My talented baker aunt brought out a stunning chocolate cake. It had glossy chocolate icing, a moist, airy crumb and a rich chocolate flavour. We all agreed that it was the best chocolate cake we’d ever eaten. Seriously, we all still talk about it today.
She revealed it was actually a vegan chocolate cake made with a combo of bicarb soda and vinegar, and it truly blew our minds. This has now become our family’s go-to chocolate cake recipe (and no one ever believes it’s vegan).
You can check out our vegan chocolate cake with coconut cream frosting recipe here.
How do you make a cake without any eggs, butter or milk?
It’s pure food science. Bicarbonate of soda is a leavening agent. When bicarb (which is alkaline) reacts with vinegar (which is acidic), carbon dioxide gas is produced and together they make the cake rise. The carbon dioxide gas in the batter gives the cake a light, fluffy and airy texture, which I thought could only come from eggs! (And yes, it’s completely safe to eat).
If the thought of vinegar in a cake doesn’t quite sit right, we promise you can’t taste it. Not just for salad dressings, this magical liquid can also help tenderise the gluten in the flour, resulting in a soft and tender cake crumb. It’s a simple yet genius way to ensure vegan cakes rise without the usual leavening agents like eggs or dairy. You can also use this trick to make super-fluffy egg-free pancakes!
If you’re looking for more cakes (that also happen to be vegan), our banana crazy cake, chocolate crazy cake, vegan chocolate cake and Oreo cupcakes tick all the boxes.
And, try the easiest egg free, dairy free, CRAZY chocolate cake
On my vegan chocolate cake deep-dive, I also stumbled across this gem. This chocolate crazy cake recipe defied all baking odds: no eggs, no dairy – just some baking powder, vinegar, oil and the usual suspects: flour, cocoa and sugar. Intrigued, I had to make it and see what the result would be.
It was quite possibly the easiest cake I have ever made. It took less than 10 minutes to whip up and 17 to bake. I now understand why it is called a crazy chocolate cake.
Just whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and baking powder. Then add the oil, vinegar and bake for 17 minutes. No eggs, no dairy – just an incredibly moist chocolate cake.
So if you ever want to bake, but don’t have any eggs, milk or butter in the fridge, keep these recipes bookmarked!
What is the difference between baking soda, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda?
We have the answers. Firstly, baking soda and bicarb soda refer to the same thing (already our minds have blown).
Baking powder is bicarb soda pre-mixed with a dry acidic ingredient (such as cream of tartar) that rises when mixed with wet ingredients. It is usually 2 parts cream of tartar to 1 part bicarb. All you need to add is the moisture, which gives off carbon dioxide in order to aerate and lighten a mixture during baking.
Bicarbonate of soda (otherwise known as bicarb soda) is a pure leavening agent. It is alkaline and commonly used in recipes that mix moisture plus an acidic ingredient (such as lemon juice, chocolate, buttermilk or honey) together to make batter rise.
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Originally published as How to make this 'magic' vegan chocolate cake that changed how I bake
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