This chocolate cake is my first time baking something vegan. I wanted to see what it was like in comparison to my usual chocolate cakes, whether flourless or not. It is amazing! The chocolate mousse has only 2 ingredients, and can be a dessert on its own.
Vegan Chocolate Mousse Cake
Whatever name you give to this chocolate strawberry mousse cake, one thing is for sure, it's really delicious and you don't have to be vegan to make it again. It's an awesome choice any way you look at it.
It has none of the traditional ingredients we are used to finding in a cake-like butter, eggs, and milk. This is often a way to save money on baking as well as not needing to run to the store when you are out of a "regular" ingredient.
So this is just a vegan cake. From a book that is not vegan at all. The one that gave me that fantastic recipe for homemade vanilla marshmallows and the killer brownies.
When you read the list of ingredients in this cake, it feels like some non-foodie editor forgot a piece of the recipe. But though it's common to replace butter for oil, the idea of replacing eggs with vinegar is mind-blowing. For me, eggs make up so much of a cake, not only in taste but in volume. Here they are omitted and not missed at all.
My cake sunk in the middle, because I have a habit of using only one pan. I lost all of my oven racks except for one, I suppose from all those moves, so one cake pan is the easiest way. The recipe called for two, and I guess that would've made it possible to have a layer cake. Filled and frosted with the chocolate mousse and fresh strawberries.
Well, you get the same here, just in a different order. The order of things doesn't alter the product.
Two-Ingredient Chocolate Mousse
Chocolate mousse is a wonderful thing, but it can be time-consuming to make and you end up with a pile of dirty bowls, and who wants those right? That is, on top of the ones you used for the cake. So this is a method of making a chocolate mousse I had seen a year ago.
Just two ingredients, chocolate, and hot water.
Chocolate is ruined if you add a few drops of water, but not if you add a lot.
It does work, so well and so simple. Melt chocolate, add hot water and beat the heck out of it over a bowl of ice water. It will suddenly start getting cold and stiff, like a mousse. Nothing will appear to happen for the first few minutes.
But just wait and see. Chocolate mousse in no time. And perfect for filling. If it gets too hard you add a few teaspoons of hot water. And the chocolate flavor is absolute. So use chocolate you love straight from the packet. In my case, it's very dark and very semi-sweet.
Perfect for the chocolate cake and the tanginess of the strawberries, because it's fall here and let's just say that these little red fruits are not in their sweetest mood.
Other recipes you might like:
Dark Chocolate Mousse
Mint Chocolate Mousse Pie
Easy Strawberry Mousse Dessert
Complete Guide to No-Bake Cheesecake
Let me know in the comments below if you made this recipe and loved it and if you had issues so we can troubleshoot together. I love to hear what you think, always. Thanks for being here. It's much appreciated.
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Chocolate Strawberry Mousse Cake
A chocolate cake that is amazing and vegan, which means the ingredients are not your typical. But this recipe works so well.
- Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 1 ¾ cups soy milk
- 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 1 ⅔ cups sugar
- 1 ¼ cups sunflower oil
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
For the chocolate mousse:
- 10 oz. dark semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- ¾ cup hot water
- Ice
- 1 ½ cups fresh strawberries (hulled and sliced)
- Powdered sugar (for sprinkling)
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF/180ºC. Butter or grease a 8-inch springform cake pan.
- In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, and salt. Mix a little to combine and make a well in the center.
- Add soy milk, vinegar, sugar, oil and vanilla. Beat or whisk until very well combined. The batter will be quite runny.
- Pour into prepared pan and bake for for about 50 minutes or until a tester comes out with almost no crumbs attached. It will feel springy to the touch.
- Let cool on a wire rack and then unmold onto the serving platter.
- Cover the top with the chocolate mousse and decorate with sliced fresh strawberries. Sprinkle with sugar and serve.
For the chocolate mousse:
- Begin making the mousse right after the cake is cooled and unmolded. Have ready a large bowl with ice and some cold water, enough so that the bottom of the bowl where you melt the chocolate fits comfortably.
- Melt chocolate over hot water or in the microwave. Transfer to a large bowl (or use a large glass bowl to melt the chocolate and mix) and add the hot water all at once. Put the bowl over the one with the ice water.
- With an electric mixer beat at high speed. For a few minutes it will not thicken much, but it will start to do so unexpectedly. And it will thicken stiffly just after that.
- If the mousse is too thick to spread, add a few teaspoons very hot tap water and beat until smooth. Use immediately.
Notes
You can use any fruit you like for the topping and your favorite frosting or whipped cream.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cooling time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: International
Keywords: vegan chocolate mousse cake
Adapted from Tea with Bea.
Dru @ Teenage Cakeland says
I've never seen mousse made this way! I'm glad I found a vegan version. The cake is beautiful and looks delicious!
Laura Dembowski says
I am not vegan either but some people I know are and I am always intrigued by vegan recipes. This looks so decadent and decidedly un- vegan.
Renee says
Your cake looks utterly sensational!
Andrea_TheKitchenLioness says
Paula, your vegan chocolate strawberry mousse cake looks like an ultra rich treat of a cake, perfect for any celebration or just because chocolate and strawberries go so very well together!
Have a wonderful weekend!
laurasmess.me says
That mousse looks so deliciously fluffy, creamy and delicious! I can't believe that it's been made with just... chocolate and water?! Wow. I have a very similar food philosophy to you Paula. I have several friends whom, over the past year, have decided that they're either vegan, lactose-intolerant, gluten-intolerant, vegetarian or all of the above (after spending a perfectly normal 25+ years eating everything). I've respected all of their choices but I don't completely understand them. Lots more I could say on this topic but I'll abstain! Thanks for this gorgeous recipe!
Marissa | Pinch and Swirl says
"I don´t think our bodies are made to abstain completely from certain food groups" - Amen!
Your cake looks fantastic. And who cares if it sunk in the middle when you have all of that lovely chocolate mousse to fill it with. 🙂
Angie Schneider says
Love the contrast of the colours. The cake looks really moist and the flavours are divine.
Miss Messy says
This looks so good! and its vegan! 🙂
The Ninja Baker says
Food philosophies aside, this is one must-have chocolate cake in my daily required nutrients =)
Thank you, too, for the fantastico quick and easy road to chocolate mousse.
FYI. Your tantalizing photos have been Pinterested!
Inside a British Mum's Kitchen says
Isn't it amazing how delicious a cake can taste without dairy!! this looks so beautiful - I'd LOVE a large piece right now!
Mary x