Vegan.This is my first time EVER making a square cake and I am absolutely obsessed!A moist and rich chocolate cake, with mint buttercream, decorated with desiccated coconut to give the cake a frosted effect, topped with iced polar bear, snowflake and tree sugar cookies.Absolutely delicious! Get the cookie cutters here.This cake is perfect for the festive season which is fast approaching.I love the effect of the iced cookies on top of the cake. It really brings the ‘arctic’ theme to life! Preparation- 10 minutesBaking time- 28-30 minutesServes- Approximately 10-12Level- Medium…Ingredients for the cake-480ml of dairy-free milk -2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar-420g of self-raising flour-2 tablespoons of cocoa powder-470g of golden caster sugar-1 teaspoon of baking powder-1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda-120g of coconut oil (melted)Ingredients for the buttercream -210g of dairy-free butter-500g of icing sugar-1 teaspoon peppermint extract-Green food gel-Dairy-free milk (if needed)Extras-Sugar cookies-Royal icing-Desiccated coconut…To make the cakesStep 1- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees c and line three 6 inch square cake tins with grease-proof paper.Step 2- In a bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined.Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.Step 3- In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Mix well to combine.Step 4- Add the melted coconut oil into the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine. Step 5- Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix.Step 6- Pour equal amounts of batter into the lined cake tins.Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.Step 7- Pop the cakes into the center of the preheated oven and bake for around 28-30 minutes. You will know they are baked when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch.Step 8- Place the cakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool fully.Once cool, pop them into a sealed container to keep them fresh before frosting.To make the buttercreamStep 1- In a bowl/stand mixer, cream the butter on high then add in the icing sugar, peppermint extract and enough green food gel to make a mint green colour.Whip together until combined, light and fluffy.Add a splash of dairy-free milk if too thick.Step 2- Stack and fill the cakes, then crumb coat the whole cake with the buttercream and pop into the fridge to set. This will take around 1 hour.To decorate, I added leftover buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a medium circle tip nozzle and piped some swirls around the top of the cake, added desiccated coconut to the edges of the cake and topped the cake off with homemade sugar cookies.Serve fresh or store in a sealed container in the fridge, the buttercream will firm up at room temperature. Best eaten within a few days!PIN MEMake sure you follow me on my social media Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/thelittleblogofvegan/Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/littleblogofvegan/Twitter- https://twitter.com/BlogofVeganI would love to see your take on my recipes. Tag me on social media using the hashtag #Blogofvegan #thelittleblogofvegan All of my social media links are in the side bar…come and say hi!Share and follow me for more yummy posts to come!
Absolutely delicious!
Get the cookie cutters here.
