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This vegan chocolate cake is endowed with a moist texture like brownies and gentle spice flavours. Plus it looks amazing so perfect as a birthday cake or treat for holidays as well, or when you can’t decide to have brownies or chocolate cakes.
So how come this cake appeared? Well, it’s actually quite simple. I just saw a bag of Spekulatius (spiced cookies) I bought earlier lying on my cabinet. And I want to bake some chocolate cake, which doesn’t require any reason I suppose. So here is a Vegan Spiced Giginer Chocolate Brownie Cake.
Features of this chocolate brownie cake:
- Moist & chocolatey, with a hint of a spice note
- Impressive look but very easy to make!
- Vegan, egg-free, dairy-free, no animal products involved
- Can be easily made into gluten-free
Ingredients You Need
- Ground flaxseed: Make sure you got ground flaxseed, not whole ones.
- All-purpose flour (Plain flour): Yes, just old good all-purpose flour for this cake. You can use gluten-free plain flour if you want.
- Sugar: I use a combination of dark brown sugar and golden sugar here to give out a more complex sweetness. You can just use light brown sugar or organic cane sugar if that’s what you have.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: Use the one that you like because the taste of the cocoa powder is very important in this recipe.
- Baking soda & Baking powder: I need something to lift up the cake. That’s when baking soda and baking powder come in.
- Salt: I always like to add a pinch of salt to my dessert. It just brings out more flavour than without.
- Ground ginger & cinnamon: These two spices will provide different taste profiles for this beautiful cake.
- Mixed spice: It’s a common spice mix powder in the UK. You can also use pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice.
- Unsweetened soy milk: I usually use soy milk because it’s one of my staples. You can also use another plant-based milk like almond milk or hazelnut milk.
- Peanut butter: or other nut butter like almond butter or cashew butter. (How to Make Nut Butter)
- Vanilla extract: I mean, you already know vanilla smells so good, so why not?
- Dark chocolate: Here I use 70% dark chocolate for a bitter-sweet taste. You can use 50% chocolate if you prefer a sweeter version.
- Hazelnuts: Here I use hazelnuts because they give out a more “festive” vibe.
- Vegan Spekulatius (spiced cookies): I add some crushed spiced cookies on top to compliment the theme. I use store-bought ones. Make sure to check they are vegan because I found many in the UK got dairy in them.
How to Make Spiced Giginer Chocolate Brownie Cake
- Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. Line an 8″ cake tin with baking paper.
- First, let’s make our flax “egg” by mixing the ground flaxseed and water together in a small bowl. Set it aside for later use.
- In a big mixing bowl, add the flour, and sugar. sift in cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, and mixed spice. Use a whisk to mix all ingredients together evenly.
- Add soy milk, peanut butter, and vanilla extract to another bowl. Use a whisk to mix them together until all incorporated.
- Add the flax “egg” and soy milk mixture to the flour mixture. Use a whisk to mix until no flour can be seen.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin. Smooth the top and gently drop the cake tin against the counter a few times to even it out.
- Sprinkle the chopped chocolate, hazelnuts, and crushed cookies evenly on top of the cake batter.
- Bake in the oven on the lower 1/3 rack at 175°C/350°F for 28 ~ 32 minutes. Insert a small knife in the centre of the cake to see if it’s baked. If no wet batter stick to the knife, transfer the cake tin onto a wire rack to cool down for at least 20 minutes. I’d suggest letting it cool down completely if you have time.
- Remove the cake out from the cake tin. Slice and enjoy! This cake can be enjoyed both cold and warm.
How to Store Spiced Giginer Chocolate Brownie Cake
Store the cake in an air-tight container in the fridge for 2~3 days or 2 weeks in the freezer. I’d suggest slicing the cake for easier storage.
Questions You Might Have
How can I make it gluten-free?
You can just use gluten-free plain flour to replace all-purpose flour (plain flour). Just pay attention to the gluten-free plain flour you use since each brand is different.
What is mixed spice?
Mixed spice is a common spice mix in the UK. You can find it in most grocery stores. It’s usually comprised of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and coriander. You can use pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice mix if you can’t find mixed spice.
I don’t have hazelnuts, what kind of nut can I use instead?
Technically you can use any kind of nut you like but just keep in mind that it will influence the overall flavour. Nuts like hazelnuts, and pecans would suit this cake’s profile better in my opinion.
Final Words
This vegan spiced chocolate brownie cake can be enjoyed both cold or warm. The texture will be fluffier when warm and firmer when cold. The sweetness is quite on the spot for me in terms of chocolate, just sweet enough.
I hope you will enjoy this cake as much as I do. Let me know if you have further questions or thoughts by commenting down below or tagging me on Instagram! (@barrelleaf)
More Vegan Recipes:
- Black Bean Sweet Potato chocolate Brownies (Vegan, Gluten-free)
- Vegan Blueberry Lemon Cake (w/ gluten-free option)
- Vegan Tofu Tiramisu (8 ingredients)
Vegan Spiced Giginer Chocolate Brownie Cake
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
- 3 Tbsp water
- 190 g all-purpose flour, plain flour*
- 50 g dark brown sugar, **
- 50 g golden sugar, **
- 40 g unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda, bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp mixed spice, or pumpkin spice / apple pie spice
- 300 ml unsweetened soy milk, or another plant-based milk
- 115 g peanut butter, or other nut butter like almond butter
- 2 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 40 g dark chocolate, chopped
- 4 Tbsp hazelnuts, or walnuts, chopped
- 40 g Vegan Spekulatius, Speculaas (spiced cookies), crushed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. Line an 8″ cake tin with baking paper.
- First, let’s make our flax “egg” by mixing the ground flaxseed and water together in a small bowl. Set it aside for later use.
- In a big mixing bowl, add the flour, and sugar. sift in cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, and mixed spice. Use a whisk to mix all ingredients together evenly.
- Add soy milk, peanut butter, and vanilla extract to another bowl. Use a whisk to mix them together until all incorporated.
- Add the flax “egg” and soy milk mixture to the flour mixture. Use a whisk to mix until no flour can be seen.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin. Smooth the top and gently drop the cake tin against the counter a few times to even it out.
- Sprinkle the chopped chocolate, hazelnuts, and crushed cookies evenly on top of the cake batter.
- Bake in the oven on the lower 1/3 rack at 175°C/350°F for 28 ~ 30 minutes. Insert a small knife in the centre of the cake to see if it’s baked. If no wet batter sticks to the knife, transfer the cake tin onto a wire rack to cool down for at least 20 minutes. I’d suggest letting it cool down completely if you have time.
- Remove the cake out from the cake tin. Slice and enjoy! This cake can be enjoyed both cold and warm.
Notes
- *Flour: If you want to make it gluten-free, simply use gluten-free plain flour instead. But keep in mind different brands might have different outcomes.
- **Sugar: I use a combination of dark brown sugar and golden sugar here to give out a more complex sweetness. You can just use light brown sugar or organic cane sugar if that’s what you have.
- Storage: Store the cake in an air-tight container in the fridge for 2~3 days or 2 weeks in the freezer. I’d suggest slicing the cake for easier storage.
