Vegan Chocolate Chip Cake – Easy & Moist!

This easy vegan chocolate chip cake is moist, fluffy, and loaded with melty chocolate chips! Topped with a dreamy vegan cookie dough frosting and drizzled with rich vegan chocolate sauce, this single-layer cake is made with just 11 ingredients, perfect for any events like birthdays, parties, or a fun gathering with your friends or family. No eggs or dairy are used in this recipe, just simple plant-based ingredients and a bit of love.

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Do I hear chocolate chip lovers wanting some new delicious cake recipe? I’m here to save your sweet cravings! Let me introduce to you this vegan chocolate chip cake, what dessert dreams are made of. Fluffy and tender cake speckled with melty chocolate chips, topped with my iconic vegan cookie dough frosting and finished off with a drizzle of homemade vegan chocolate sauce. It’s like your favourite chocolate chip cookie got a glow-up and turned into a celebration cake!

This recipe uses simple and easy-to-find pantry staples and requires no fancy techniques. All you need to make the cake is 11 simple ingredients and just over an hour of time. This cake is perfect for a special occasion or just to treat yourself to something sweet and is guaranteed to impress everyone, vegan or not!

Must Read: The Ultimate Guide to Perfect Cakes – A complete guide to baking your perfect vegan cakes with an easy and delicious vanilla cake recipe!

Main ingredients and substitutions

*Use room temperature ingredients unless otherwise instructed.

Chocolate chips: I used vegan dark chocolate chips for this recipe, and my family and friends loved the sweet and bitter balance! If you want to make a sweeter version, you can use vegan milk chocolate chips too.

Plain flour: The base of the cake is plain flour. I like the texture that plain flour gives to baked goods. If you want to make this recipe gluten-free, then you can substitute with a 1:1 gluten-free blend like the one from King Arthur.

Caster sugar: You can use granulated sugar if you don’t have caster sugar, or organic cane sugar if you are in the US. Other sugar like brown sugar or coconut sugar works too, they might give the cake a richer flavour, darker colour, and moister texture. But it will still taste great!

Melted vegan butter: I used vegan butter from Flora, it adds that buttery richness to baked goods and keeps the cake soft and moist. You can use vegetable margarine if you can’t find vegan butter, I think I will work.

Vegetable oil: I used vegetable oil as well as vegan butter, it helps keep the cake incredibly moist and soft. You can swap with other oil too such as sunflower, olive, or canola oil.

Cornflour: Substitute with arrowroot flour, tapioca flour, or potato flour if you don’t have cornflour.

Soy milk: The base plant milk for making vegan buttermilk! That said, you can also use other plant milk like oat or almond milk. No problem!

Other ingredients: vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar, baking powder, and baking soda.

Note: Substitution may change the final taste and texture of this recipe.

*I use bone char-free sugars for all of my recipes. I cover the topic in my article Vegan Baking 101. Go to the “Is sugar vegan?” section to learn more!

Recommended equipment for this recipe

Mixing bowls: I used 2 medium to large mixing bowls to make the cake batter. It’s essential for separating wet and dry ingredients and combining them smoothly.

Wooden spoon or silicone spatula: I used to use a large wooden spoon mostly to mix batter because I really like the look and feel of it, it makes me feel like I’m in a beautiful countryside cottage mixing cake batter on a Sunday. But, I primarily use a silicone spatula these days, it scrapes the side of the bowl much better. I have one that has a wooden handle, which I love using!

Cake tin: Use an 18cm(7inch) cake tin for this single-layer cake. One size smaller or bigger would work as well, but you may need to adjus the baking time.

Parchment paper: Always use parchment paper to help prevent the cake from sticking, it makes for an easy cleanup too.

*The ingredient list and measurement for this recipe can be found in the recipe card at the bottom.

How to make vegan chocolate chip cake

Step 1: Prepare and Make Vegan Buttermilk

Let’s start making our chocolate chip cake! First of all, preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Line your cake tin with parchment paper and set aside.

Start by mixing soy milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl or jug and set it aside. This curdles slightly, making vegan buttermilk. It gives the cake a lovely soft texture by reacting with baking powder and soda.

Step 2: Make the batter

Next, whisk the dry ingredients and wet ingredients, and make the batter! In a large bowl, whisk together the plain flour, caster sugar, cornflour, baking soda, and baking powder. This ensures that everything is evenly distributed. In a separate bowl, combine the vegan buttermilk with melted vegan butter, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth and silky.

Pour the dry mixture into the wet mixture and gently mix using a silicone spatula with a cutting motion. Be careful not to overmix, just until they are combined and you no longer see big dry flour. A little bit of small lumps is totally fine!

Sprinkle in the vegan chocolate chips and fold in very gently. Again, do not overmix! Not only can it spoil the texture of the cake, but it can also cause the chocolate chips to sink to the bottom. Just a few time of folding will do!

Step 3: Bake

Pour the batter into your prepared cake tin, spread evenly, and bake for 45 mins until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean with moist crumbs. If it comes out with wet batter, bake for another 5 to 10 mins and test again.

Once the cake is baked, take it out carefully from the oven and let it cool down in the tin for 10 to 20 mins. Remove from the tin and transfer to a cooling rack and let it cool completely before frosting. Very important that the cake is not warm when frosting!

Step 4: Decorate

Frost your cooled cake with a generous layer of vegan cookie dough frosting, drizzle with vegan chocolate sauce, and top with extra chocolate chips. Enjoy!

Serving tips and ideas

• If you can’t be bothered to make the frosting, serving a slice warm with a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream is a great idea.
• You can’t go wrong with pairing a slice of cake with fruits, can you? Add some fresh berries on the side for a fruity contrast.
• Some fun idea: bake it in a same size of square cake tin, and cut the cake into mini squares for a fun party tray bake! You can also use the squares to make a chocolate chip cake parfait too.

Expert tips and tricks

Don’t Overmix the Batter

As I always say, overmixing can make your cake dense and tough. The key is to mix just until combined and you don’t see any big dry flour in the batter.

Fold the chocolate chips gently

When adding your chocolate chips, fold them gently with a large wooden spoon or spatula and avoid mixing vigorously. There are 2 reasons for this. The first one is to prevent gluten from developing too much in the cake to ensure the cake comes out of the oven with a fluffy and soft texture, and the second is to prevent the chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom of the cake.

Let the Cake Cool Completely

If you are making the cookie dough frosting or any other frosting for this cake, ensure that the cake is completely cooled before frosting it. If the cake is even slightly warm, your frosting will start melting and can slide off or drip from the side. Patience is key here!

Use a digital scale to weigh ingredients

Always use a digital scale rather than measuring cups when you are baking. It’s so much more accurate and measuring correctly is very important to achieve the best result.

Recipe variations

• I love adding some nuts to cake batter, it adds such a nice crunch to baked goods! Add some chopped walnuts or pecans for a nutty twist, it will be a great addition to the cake.
• Mix in mini vegan marshmallows for a s’mores-inspired cake! Yum.
• If you like mocha flavour, add 1 teaspoon of espresso powder for a mocha-flavoured chocolate chip cake.
• It may not exactly be a variation, but if you want, you can chop up a bar of vegan chocolate and use chocolate chunks instead of chocolate chips too.

How to store

• Room temperature: Keep the cake on a cake stand with a dome lid, and serve fresh and as soon as possible. I don’t recommend leaving the cake at room temperature, especially if the climate in your area is hot.

• Refrigerator: If you have some leftovers that you want to keep for longer, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. Let it come to room temperature before serving for the best texture.

• Freezer: If you want to freeze, wrap the unfrosted slices individually and freeze for up to 1-2 months. Defrost at room temperature or warm gently in the microwave for a freshly baked feel.

*Although you can store this recipe in the fridge or freezer, it’s always best to consume it fresh and as soon as possible.

Q and A

Want to master the basics of vegan baking?
Check out Vegan Baking 101 – the beginner’s guide to vegan baking for you to become an excellent vegan baker and familiar with the basics of vegan baking, ingredients, and techniques with useful tips!

You will LOVE this vegan chocolate chip cake because it is:

• super easy to make single-layer cake
• full of delicious chocolate chips
• perfect for any occasion
• ready in just over 60 mins

Want more recipes like this?

Try my other delicious cake and dessert recipes you might enjoy!

• Caramel cake
• Chocolate banana cake
• Salted caramel chocolate cake
• Apple crumble cake
• Oreo cake
• Raspberry almond cake

Visit the cakes and cupcakes page and recipe page for more delicious recipes!

Please leave a comment and rate this recipe with 5 stars in the comment section below if you like the recipe! Let me know and tag me @thechestnutbakery on Instagram too. Thank you for making my recipe, friends!

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