Chocolate Cake

Sometimes, you just want to sink your teeth into some cake. You know what I mean. And if it's chocolate, that makes life 100% better. Thanks to Stephie I discovered the joy of this chocolate cake that is entirely WFPB. Guys. It's AMAZING. The texture is just like cake and it's so moist! It is quite cakey, all things considered, and not super sweet. But it is deeeelish!

I was particularly excited about this recipe because I made my own date sugar! Because let's be real. Who wants to pay for that kind of thing? I admit that it was a bit more pain than it might've been worth--I could've just coughed up the cost of buying date sugar. But it was an adventure! Look at that beauty:

 With the chocolate and date sugar, the cake looks almost black. But it's so tasty!

 I think I would've had more success blending the dates alone first, to be sure it was a paste before adding the other ingredients. My blenders have been really struggling with dates lately. Yes, I said blenders. All three of them.

Chocolate Cake (Vegan, sugar-free, oil-free)

Inspired by Minimalist Baker

2 C almond milk (I made my own! A TOTAL breeze)
2 tsp white or apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 C unsweetened applesauce
2/3 C mashed banana, or other pureed fruit
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 C + 2 Tbsp whole wheat flour
1 1/3 cups date sugar (or a bit less)
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line 2 8-inch round cake pans or one large rectangular pan with parchment paper or tin foil. I halved the recipe and made an 8x8 cake that turned out beautifully.
2. Mix the almond milk and vinegar in a large mixing bowl, and let set for a few minutes to activate. Add the pureed fruit, vanilla extract, and applesauce and beat until foamy.
3. Add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a sifter and slowly sift over the wet ingredients while mixing with a hand-held or standing mixer. If you don’t have a sifter, simply mix dry ingredients in another bowl and add to the wet mixture while beating. Beat until no large lumps remain. It should be creamy and pourable.
4. Divide batter evenly between your 2 cake pans or rectangular pan.
5. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.

Frosting

Inspired by Gluten-Free Vegan Girl

2 C dates, pitted
1/3 C almond milk (or water/other dairy-free milk)
1/3 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
a pinch of salt

1. Place all the ingredients in a high-speed blender/food processor and puree until completely smooth. If necessary, gradually add more tablespoons of almond milk until it reaches desired consistency. 2. Spread the frosting on top of any cake/cupcake. If you want to do a layered cake, you may need to double this recipe. I halved it for my halved cake recipe above, and barely had enough to cover the top.