Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake

Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake with vegan chocolate frosting is a dessert recipe for all occasions! It’s fluffy, chocolate-y, tender and SO delicious! Whether you’re celebrating a birthday or just craving all things chocolate, this cake is the perfect choice.

Easy Vegan Chocolate Cake

Any chocolate lovers around? If so, you’re going to LOVE this Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake! I know the holidays are usually a time for extravagant desserts, but it’s never a bad idea to sit back and enjoy a good slice of chocolate cake. I mean, one bite and you’ll know, this was the right choice.

You guys know it’s so important to me that the vegan basics that I do are very pantry friendly and filled with simple ingredients. This chocolate sheet cake is exactly that. It’s super easy to put together, and even easier to decorate. In fact, you might want to get some little helpers involved! Sprinkles are always appreciated by the kiddos.

Notes on Ingredients

Coming back to the recipe ingredients, there’s nothing out of the ordinary here. In fact, I would bet that you probably have everything you need already in the pantry or in the fridge!

For the Cake:

• Apple Cider Vinegar: this is for preparing the vegan buttermilk. Regular vinegar will also work if you don’t have apple cider vinegar.
• Soy Milk: about 1 cup. Any other vegan milks would also work, but I love this for its high protein content, and because it’s thick and smooth.
• Brown Sugar: you can also use cane sugar, which is sweeter than regular or brown sugar.
• All-Purpose Flour: I highly recommend a regular all purpose flour. You could also make this gluten free, but it might change the texture.
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: I recommend regular high quality unsweetened cocoa powder, not dutch processed cocoa powder (it doesn’t react the same).
• Baking Powder: will help the cake rise, and also provide a lighter texture to the cake. Always test that it’s good!
• Baking Soda: this will also help your cake rise. Always test that it’s good!
• Sea Salt: if you want to use regular salt, slightly reduce the amount used.
• Oil: takes the place of butter in this cake as the necessary fat, to ensure that the cake is nice and tender.
• Vanilla Extract: I highly recommend not skipping this because it really adds to the flavour!
• Warm Milk + Instant Coffee: The coffee REALLY boosts the chocolate flavour. You can also use espresso powder or what you have, it doesn’t have to be instant. Or even decaf coffee! You could leave it out, but I don’t recommend it. I like to stir this into warm milk which helps to melt the ingredients, as well as dissolve the coffee.

For the Frosting:

• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder.
• Unsalted Vegan Butter: it’s also okay if you use salted vegan butter, just skip the salt below!
• Vanilla Extract.
• Sea Salt.
• Powdered Sugar: you can also use confectioner’s sugar (it’s the same thing). You can also make your own by just blending any sugar in your blender!
• Vegan Milk.

How to Make Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake

Mixing together this chocolate sheet cake is a breeze. Once you prep the buttermilk, all you have to do is combine the ingredients and pour the batter into the sheet pan. Cake baking has never been easier!

Preheat Oven & Line Sheet Pan: Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Prepare a 9×13 sheet pan (with sides) by greasing & flouring or lining with parchment paper (I usually just grease and flour).

Prepare Buttermilk: In a jar, add the vinegar and room temperature vegan milk together to curdle to form a buttermilk. Set aside.  

Combine Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, add the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt. Using a whisk, whisk all the ingredients together, removing any clumps that may form.   

Mix In Oil & Buttermilk: Add in the oil, the buttermilk mix from earlier and the vanilla extract. 

Warm Milk & Stir in Instant Coffee: Heat up that additional milk in the microwave for 40 seconds (or on the stovetop until warm not boiling). You want it warm enough to dissolve but not boiling. Stir the instant coffee into it with a whisk or fork to dissolve for about 15 seconds. 

Mix Everything Together: Add it to the bowl on top of everything. Beat on medium speed of electric mixer for no more than 1 minute on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl once in between to ensure that everything is incorporated. You want to mix until just combined.

Get Rid of Air Bubbles: Pour the batter into the pan. Tap on the counter three times lightly to remove any air bubbles.

Bake the Cake: Place the pan in the middle rack of your oven and in the center of that rack. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until fully baked. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. 

How to Make Vegan Chocolate Frosting

And once you have the cake, it’s time to whip together some frosting! This recipe for chocolate frosting is like a chocolate buttercream, but made with vegan milk and vegan butter. You won’t believe how velvety and sweet it tastes! Try not to eat the whole thing before it even reaches the cake!

For the Frosting: Add the cocoa powder, vegan butter, 2 1/2 cups of the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, sea salt and half the vegan milk to the bowl of an electric stand mixer or a hand mixer. Start mixing it together at slow speed, gradually increasing speed until it’s very thick and smooth. Add the 1/2 cup of the extra powdered sugar at a time until it reaches your desired thickness and consistency. If needed, add in the other half of the milk about 1 tablespoon at a time.

Decorate and Serve: After cooled, frost with chocolate frosting and sprinkles (optional!) Enjoy! For an even more moist cake, brush with simple syrup before putting on the frosting!

FAQ & Expert Tips for Success

Looking for some tips on how to make the best chocolate cake? I’ve got you covered:

• Weigh: I highly suggest using a kitchen scale for this! It gives you the most accurate results!
• Sift the Dry Ingredients: this will ensure that you remove any lumps in the flour, etc., and that you get a smooth, tender cake!
• Don’t Over-Mix the Batter: over-mixing the batter can make the cake too dense because of the gluten that activates in the flour – just mix enough to combine all of the ingredients together.
• Sift Your Powdered Sugar: be sure to sift your powdered sugar before making your frosting! This makes such a tremendous difference to the consistency of the frosting.
• To Avoid Thick Frosting: you don’t want the frosting to be runny, but you also want it to spread easily across the top of the cake. If your frosting turns out to be too thick, try adding a splash of milk to it.

Cake Decorating Ideas

What’s the best way to decorate a cake? Well, you can’t really go wrong, but here’s some inspiration to get you brainstorming:

• Sprinkles: they’re so colorful and fun! Plus, kids love to decorate with them almost as much as they love to eat them.
• Chocolate Shavings: triple chocolate cake anybody?
• Berries: raspberries, strawberries, and cherries all seem like great choices.
• Chopped Nuts: I would recommend walnuts, or maybe even pecans.

How to Store Leftover Cake

Leftover cake should be stored in an airtight container. If you’re going to eat the rest of it fairly quickly, it should be fine at room temperature, but you can also keep it in the fridge for 4-5 days if you need to.

Can I Freeze Chocolate Cake?

The cake can be frozen in an airtight container, or tight layers of plastic/reusable wrap or even in parchment paper with foil covering it (I did this last part), for up to a couple of months, as long as you haven’t frosted it yet.

More Cake Recipes

• Vegan Pumpkin Sheet Cake
• Chocolate Mug Cake
• Vegan Chocolate Layer Cake
• Pumpkin Cheesecake with Salted Caramel Topping
• Vegan Mango Coconut Cheesecake

Enjoy friends! If you make this Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!