Chocolate Crazy Cake
A soft, single-layer vegan chocolate cake made with oil and vinegar, topped only with chocolate ganache, dark chocolate sprinkles, raspberries and fresh mint. No filling or second layer. Batch yield: One 20 cm (8-inch) single-layer round cake, cut into 9 slices. One serving: 1 slice, approximately 118 g including toppings, estimated after baking moisture loss. Allow approximately 170 minutes from starting to serving: 20 minutes for preparation and overlapping oven preheating, 35 minutes baking, 90 minutes cooling the cake, 10 minutes frosting and decorating, and 15 minutes for the topping to settle. The 10 minutes of ganache preparation and its approximately 60-minute cooling period happen during cake cooling, so they are not added again. Active preparation totals about 40 minutes. Prep_minutes is the 135 minutes of elapsed time outside the oven bake, including mandatory cooling and frosting time; cook_minutes is the single 35-minute oven batch. No butter softening or refrigeration is required. Cooling may take longer in a warm kitchen. Appliances: Oven; Microwave. Equipment: 20 cm (8-inch) round cake tin, at least 5 cm (2 inches) deep; Baking parchment; Digital kitchen scales; Measuring jug; Measuring spoons; Large mixing bowl; Whisk; Flexible spatula; Skewer; Oven gloves; Wire cooling rack; Microwave-safe bowl; Chopping board; Sharp knife; Offset spatula; Serving plate; Clean kitchen towel. Allergens: Contains wheat (gluten). Vegan chocolate, sprinkles and other packaged ingredients may carry milk or soy cross-contact warnings; check the actual labels. Milk and soy are conservatively retained as possible allergens. No milk- or soy-free claim is made. Storage: Because the finished cake has fresh fruit and coconut-milk ganache, cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Limit time at room temperature to 2 hours in total, or 1 hour above 32°C/90°F. Freeze individual slices in airtight containers for up to 2 months; the raspberries and mint will soften after thawing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. For a softer texture, let a refrigerated slice stand for about 20 minutes before eating, within the room-temperature limit.
135 min
Prep
35 min
Cook
9
Serves
374
Calories
Macros · per serving
4g protein
50g carbs
17g fat
Ingredients
For 9 servings
- 190 g Plain all-purpose flour
- 180 g Caster sugar
- 30 g Unsweetened cocoa powder
- 5 g Bicarbonate of soda
- 2 g Fine salt
- 240 ml Water, at room temperature
- 75 ml Sunflower oil
- 15 ml White distilled vinegar
- 5 ml Vanilla extract
- 150 g Vegan dark chocolate, about 60% cocoa
- 100 g Full-fat canned coconut milk, stirred smooth
- 15 g Vegan dark chocolate sprinkles
- 135 g Fresh raspberries
- 2 g Fresh mint leaves
Instructions
- 1
Heat the oven to 180°C/350°F conventional or 160°C/320°F fan. Line the base and sides of one 20 cm (8-inch) round cake tin, at least 5 cm (2 inches) deep, with baking parchment. No greasing is needed. Allow about 20 minutes for preheating, lining and mixing.
- 2
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt, breaking up any cocoa lumps. In a measuring jug, stir together the water, sunflower oil, vinegar and vanilla.
- 3
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Whisk gently just until evenly combined, scraping the bowl with a flexible spatula. The batter should be smooth and pourable; avoid prolonged beating. Pour all the batter into the prepared tin and bake immediately.
- 4
Bake on the middle shelf for about 35 minutes. The top should spring back lightly, the centre should not wobble, and a skewer inserted into the centre should come out without wet batter; a few moist crumbs are fine.
- 5
Using oven gloves, transfer the tin to a wire rack and cool for 15 minutes. Gently turn the cake out onto the rack and remove the parchment. Leave for about 75 minutes more, until completely cool through the centre. Make the ganache during this rack-cooling period.
- 6
Chop the dark chocolate on a chopping board. Put the coconut milk in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 20-second bursts, stirring between bursts, until steaming but not boiling, usually 40–60 seconds total. Add the chopped chocolate, leave undisturbed for 3 minutes, then stir with the spatula until smooth and glossy. This preparation takes about 10 minutes. Leave at room temperature for about 60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and spreadable; this cooling overlaps the cake cooling. If it becomes too firm to spread, microwave for 5 seconds and stir.
- 7
Rinse the raspberries and mint and pat completely dry with a towel. Turn the fully cooled cake right-side up onto a serving plate. Spread all the ganache over the TOP ONLY with an offset spatula, leaving the sides bare. Do not split the cake or add a filling.
- 8
Scatter all the chocolate sprinkles over the ganache. Arrange the raspberries and mint in nine evenly spaced groups so every slice receives about 15 g raspberries and a few small mint leaves. Allow about 10 minutes for frosting and decorating, then leave for 15 minutes at room temperature so the topping settles.
- 9
Cut into nine equal wedges with a sharp knife. Each serving is one single-layer slice with its share of ganache, sprinkles, raspberries and mint.
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