A rich, dark chocolate cake layered with decadent coconut–pecan frosting and coated with a smooth chocolate ganache.
Autumn is birthday season in our family. In the span of about a month and a half, we get to celebrate six birthdays! This makes for a fun couple of months and a lot of cake baking and experimentation. One cake that is a given every year is German chocolate. German chocolate cake is my dad’s favorite and is always requested for his birthday. Historically, every year I would experiment with a different version in an attempt to create the perfect vegan German chocolate cake ... until this. This cake checks all the boxes: rich and moist chocolate cake, crave-worthy coconut pecan frosting, and extra chocolate in the form of a smooth and decadent ganache (because, chocolate!). Now this cake is on repeat every year and no one is complaining ;) Enjoy!
One 8” 3-layer cake
Ingredients:
Chocolate Cake:
2 Cups almond milk
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
¾ Cup coconut oil
½ Cup strong coffee or 4 shots espresso
½ Cup aquafaba
1 ½ Cup organic cane sugar
1 ¼ Cup cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Coconut-Pecan Frosting:
One can sweetened condensed coconut milk
One 13 ounce can full-fat coconut milk
½ Cup turbinado sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons arrowroot
3 Tablespoons water
One 8 ounce bag unsweetened shredded coconut
One 8 ounce bag unsalted roasted pecans
Ganache:
16 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks
One 13 ounce can full-fat coconut milk
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Chocolate Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare 3 8” cake pans by spraying with cooking spray and dusting with cocoa powder.
Stir together the almond milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl and set aside for a couple of minutes to curdle.
Combine the almond milk mixture, coconut oil, coffee, and aquafaba together in a large saucepan and place over medium-low heat. Cook until the liquid mixture is hot, but not quite boiling, stirring often.
Remove the pan from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder, sugar, and vanilla until thoroughly combined and set aside.
In a separate bowl, stir together the remaining dry ingredients. Transfer half the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix completely. Stir the other half of the dry ingredients into the wet and mix just until thoroughly incorporated.
Pour the cake batter evenly between the three prepared cake pans and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Coconut-Pecan Frosting
Spread the coconut on baking tray and toast at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes, or until slightly golden.
Place the first five ingredients in a large saucepan over medium heat.
Mix the arrowroot and water together and then add to the saucepan, while stirring constantly. Continue to stir until the mixture thickens.
Once thickened, remove the pan from heat and add in the coconut and pecans.
Allow the frosting to cool to room temperature before assembling the cake.
Ganache
In a small saucepan, heat the coconut milk, maple syrup, and salt until boiling. Place the chocolate in a heat resistant bowl.
Once the coconut mixture starts to boil, pour the hot coconut milk mixture over the chocolate (ensuring all chocolate is covered) and let sit for 5 minutes. Then stir until smooth and glossy.
Let the ganache cool to room temperature or until it is a spreadable consistency. If the ganache is too runny, place in the fridge for a few minutes, then remove and stir until desired consistency is reached
Assembly
Place one cake round on the serving plate and top with 1/3 of the coconut pecan frosting, spreading it evenly to the edges of the cake. Place the second cake round over the frosted layer and spread another 1/3 of the coconut pecan frosting. Repeat process for the remaining cake layer and frosting.
Crumb coat the cake by spreading a thin layer of the ganache over the sides of the cake. Place the cake in the refrigerator until the crumb coat hardens. Remove the cake from the refrigerator and frosting the sides with the remaining ganache. Return to refrigerator for the ganache to harden, removing at least 30 minutes before cutting.
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