One of my many hobb-sessions, as Nate likes to call them, through the years has included cake making. When this particular hobby/obsession came into my life, you could find me at Michael's or pretty much anywhere that had cake decorator tools. Of course like most of my hobbies, they die a slow death, but at least I can pick them up when I need them. My kids absolutely love when I tell them I'm going to make a cake. They run into the kitchen and grab two chairs and perch on them waiting for instruction on what ingredient gets poured into the bowl next. With only 2 weeks of summer left, it's a great time to bake together. I'm sad to see my little helpers go back to school. I have standby cake recipes that are most definitely not vegan. Time to improvise!
I found the cake recipe on Post Punk Kitchen. If you haven't already visited the site, it's a fun place to find recipes. All the recipes I've tried so far have been fantastic. I used the Rich Chocolate Cake recipe. I love that the recipe uses whole wheat pastry flour and maple syrup rather than sugar. Do follow the time suggestion. I left mine in a few minutes longer because it didn't seem done at the alloted time, and while it was still very moist and delicious, I think a few minutes less would have made a more moist cake the next day. I wouldn't know because I didn't have any left because it got gobbled up at a family gathering in 3 seconds flat, so it's just a guess. The frosting is a Chocolate Buttercream. I mourn the loss of swiss meringue buttercream, as of course there are no eggs left in my life, but I have to say this one was still really delicious. Really, who doesn't love chocolate frosting? I transformed an old recipe with vegan ingredients.
Vegan Chocolate Buttercream
2 C. Earth Balance Butter, room temperature
12 oz. Vegan Semi Sweet Chocolate, melted and cooled
3 T. Plain Soy Milk
2 t. Vanilla
5 C. Powdered Sugar
Beat the butter in a stand mixer until fluffy for about 2 or 3 minutes. Slowly add melted chocolate with mixer on low. After chocolate and butter are well combined, add vanilla, milk and sugar. Beat at medium low until just combined. This makes enough to frost 2 8-9 inch cakes. I had leftover frosting which I plan to use on a few cupcakes, or to eat out of the fridge as necessary :)
Nate's Two Cents: I'm really out of my element commenting on cakes, but I'll say this much, I really, really enjoyed this one. To me, anything with "chocolate" in the title should taste like it. And this cake is the real deal. There's no way I'd have known it didn't have eggs or refined sugar. In fact, the maple syrup worked so well it inspired me to start sweetening my coffee with it. So my advice would be to just not even bother telling your guests what the cake doesn't have in it, unless they accuse you of violating your vegan values. What they don't know won't hurt 'em.
