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Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake

    Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake. Very delicious, very moist. You’ll never know it was vegan – just wait until you slice into it!

    Lead in image of two unfrosted Vegan Orange and Chocolate Cakes.

    Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake

    This week, I’m venturing into new territory again. I did start this blog as a journal to challenge myself and bake new recipes. This time, it’s my first Vegan Cake. I decided to make an Orange and Chocolate Cake. However, I then covered it in Ganache (not vegan) but you can make a different frosting to suit your dietary needs.

    I also tried a new product for this cake. Wilton makes these Bake Even Stripsir?t=psbusa23 20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00C1LU8SA and tried them for the first time with this cake. Thanks to the help of Instagram I got some great advice from fans and bakers who use them.

    My only comment is that my pans are not 90 degrees from the bottom to the sides. They are canted slightly and angle out so that the bottom diameter is like 1/8th inch less than the top diameter. So… the stripes didn’t hug the entire side of the cake pans. I don’t think that this really changed the way that the cake baked up because my cakes still had a nice flat top and I didn’t have to cut a top mound off to level it.

    A top view of the cake where you can see the rings of chocolate and orange cake batter baked together.

    I think I did overfill the pans though… as seen in this photo, the edges pushed straight up and the cake did not overflow in my oven. For that, I am happy.

    I LOVED the stripping effect of the cake layers. I thought about marbling the two cakes, but I was hoping that  the zebra look would be more stunning! And it was! You’ll see that on the final cake photos when I slice into it.

    By complete freak of nature, a heart formed in the center of the cake when I added the last bit of chocolate cake. It must have known that Valentine’s day was just around the corner.

    This recipe is part two of a three part series including Whipped Ganache Frosting and Orange and Chocolate Cake.

    Collage image showing the three recipes I used to make the final vegan orange and chocolate zebra cake.

    Are you looking for more Vegan Desserts? Try this Low-Sugar Flourless Vegan Apple Crisp, these Vegan S’mores Dessert, or give this Vegan Raspberry Coconut Tart a try!

    Yield: 16

    Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake

    Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake

    Orange and Chocolate Vegan Cakes are very rich and moist that you will never miss the butter, milk and eggs.

    Prep Time 40 minutes
    Cook Time 30 minutes
    Rest Time 4 hours
    Total Time 5 hours 10 minutes

    Ingredients

    For the Vegan Chocolate Cake

    • 1 1/2 cup flour
    • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
    • 6 tablespoons cocoa
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/8 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup water
    • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
    • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla

    For the Vegan Orange Cake

    • 1 1/2 cup flour
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup orange juice
    • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
    • 1 tablespoon orange zest
    • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla

    Instructions

    1. Prepare each cake in separate bowls

    For each cake

    1. Combine the dry ingredients then stir in the wet ingredients.
    2. Prepare two 8 inch round cake pans. Alternately add ¼ cup of the cake mixes into the cake pans creating the zebra effect. I stared and ended with chocolate. Bake at 350°F for 30 - 35 minutes.
    3. Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes then flip them out onto a cooling rack.

    Note

    1. You can make each cake individually for one 8 inch cake. The chocolate cake may cook faster than the orange cake.

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    Did you make this recipe?

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    Images, text and all other content Copyrighted©Karyn Granrud, Susanne Queck and Wunderlander Verlag LLC, or ©Pro Stock Media via Canva.com. Unlicensed republishing permitted. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn on qualified purchases.

    Karyn Granrud

    Karyn Granrud

    I'm Karyn, a mom and wife, and I founded this little baking blog. Baking and making desserts have been my passion since I was a kid. I love experimenting with different flavors and sharing delicious recipes with all of you. Read more.

    58 thoughts on “Vegan Orange Chocolate Cake”

    1. This looks like a delicious cake! Since I’m allergic to orange (anything with orange), do you think lemon juice could be substituted? I’m not much of a cook so just wondering before I dive into a disaster of my own making 🙂 Thanks!

    2. Thanks for the yummy recipe! I have a habit of customizing.. I used 1/4 c of applesauce in place of the oil, used only 3/4 c sugar (and a bit of agave), and forgot to add zest. :p I just made the orange cake and sprinkled chocolate chips on top. This cake is really delicious! 🙂

      1. Sounds like great changes. I’ve used applesauce as well. Was it sweet enough with less sugar? I’m so glad that you enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know!

      1. Honestly, I don’t know. It may give the cake a slightly different flavor. You may want to google that ingredient swap before trying it.

      1. This recipe calls for regular flour. My recipes always have regular flour unless otherwise noted. thanks!

    3. Made this cake for my husband’s birthday and it was so delicious. Quick question – it says “1 cup + tablespoons sugar” for the chocolate cake. How many tablespoons should that be? I went with two and it turned out great, just curious! Thanks.

        1. Huh? The recipe says “1 cup + tablespoons sugar” – how many tablespoons should that be? I think it’s missing a number and I’m looking for what that number is, thanks.

    4. Hi, I made your cake the other day and it turned out really well – which was a bit of a shock as the two batters were both liquid when they went in the pan so I thought it was going to be a disaster! I cooked it for about 15 minutes more than the stated time and that seemed to help. Is the batter meant to be liquid or is it meant to be more like standard cake batter? I want to make it again but I feel I didn’t make it right and it was just luck!

        1. That’s great, thanks very much for the clarification. I plan to make this again and again and now won’t have to worry about it!

    5. This might be the best cake I’ve made! Made it twice in the past 4 days and that’s something I never do. And trust me i’ve made a ton of cakes. Here’s a tip: use coffee instead of water for the chocolate cake and add some zest in it too. Takes the cake to a whole nother level Thank you <3

      1. Lol! I’m so glad. Are you making the two cakes together or just the chocolate cake alone? My husband has recently been adopting a vegan menu so I’ve made this cake for him recently.

    6. Made the 2 cakes tonight, each 50/50. Substituted vegan butter instead of oil, and used ACV instead of white vinegar. It came out amazing. Thank you!

      1. You can always try, but know that the texture of the cake will change. It may denser – not as light and airy. Especially with the vegan recipe where you are relying on a chemical reaction for the lifting action on the cake. I found this article and thought it might explain it better. Hope that helps.

      1. I used a 1/4 cup in the chocolate and 1/4 cup in the orange then just created a bullseye in the center of the cake pan. Just keep alternating over and over, without mixing it and it will create that zebra look.

    7. Hi!
      Can’t wait to try this, but I’m a bit confused how to make those neat circles by filling 1/4 cup of mix in the pan at a time!
      Do you start at the outside?
      Thanks!

      1. Just add a bit of the mixture to the center of the pan – alternating it over and over again. The batter will create the rings and give you the zebra effect when you slice into it.

    8. I have a vegan friend who’s birthday is coming up and she’s asked me to bake a vegan cake for her party.

      I’ve decided to try your chocolate orange vegan recipe.

      But, I didn’t see the photo of the cut Cake with the interior zebra stripes.

    9. I can’t count how many times my daughter has requested this cake for her birthday, sometimes twice per year (for family and for her friends). Thank you so much! I don’t know what I would do if this post were taken down.

      1. I’m so glad that your daughter (and everyone at the party) love the cake. It’s a winner. BTW – I came across a great frosting recipe that was 1 C coconut milk (from a can) and a bag of vegan chocolate chips for a vegan whipped ganache. It was really good!!

    10. Made it! My first vegan cake and it was absolutely melt-in-mouth delicious! Thanks for sharing this simple and excellent recipe. For the chocolate cake, I substituted almond milk instead of water, the result was great!

    11. Hi Karyn,
      Thanks for sharing. My kids saw your pics when we were looking for a recipe to make and insisted we make it!! We tweaked it only a little with respect to ingredients we had and it turned out divine!!! Sounds like we will be making it again.

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