The combination of coffee, caramel and chocolate is a beautiful thing, this is a really light chocolate sponge with a balanced butter cream, both the cocoa and coffee offset the sweetness and the coffee adds this amazing subtle mocha like flavour, this is a beautiful, impressive cake!
Takes 59 minutesminutes
Serves 16
Ingredients
Chocolate sponge
300gself raising flour
250gsugar
70gcacao powder
1tspbaking powder
¼tspbaking soda
300mlstrong black coffee
100gvegetable oil
1tspvanilla essence
100gcoconut yoghurt
Caramel sauce
200gsugar
50gplant based butter
100mlcoconut creamthe fat from 1 tin of coconut milk
Buttercream
300gvegan block butter
580gicing sugar
4tbspcocoa powder
2tbspground coffee powder
2tbspplant milk
Instructions
Method;
Preheat oven to 180 C degrees fan
Grease and line 3 x 20cm (or 8 inch) springform cake tins with baking parchment on the base.
In a large mixing bowl, Sieve in all the dry ingredients, the flour, sugar, cacao powder, baking powder and baking soda and mix well. Make a well in the centre.
In a jug mix the coffee, coconut yoghurt, vegetable oil, and the vanilla essence.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well until they just come together into a nice smooth uniform batter using a spatula.
Split the mixture between the three lined cake tins and smooth it so it’s level on top. Place in the preheated oven for 20-26 minutes rotating half-way through cooking time to ensure they cook evenly. To check if cooked by placing a skewer in the centre, it should come out clean, if not put back in the oven and cook a little longer until the skewer comes out clean and dry. Remove cakes from the oven and set aside on a rack to cool fully.
While the cakes are cooling, prepare the butter cream and caramel.
For the Chocolate buttercream – Add the vegan butter to a large bowl and using an electric whisk or fork cream the butter, sift in the icing sugar and the cacao powder, coffee and 2 tbsp of plant milk. Using a fork or whisk, bring it all together. Alternatively you can use an electric mixer or stand mixer but a fork will also work fine too!
To make the caramel, add the caster sugar to a medium sized saucepan, along with 3 tbsp of water, give it a mix till it comes together and looks a little like a syrup. Put on a high heat and do not stir it again, leave to cook for approx 5-6 mins until the edges start to go lightly golden. Cut 50g of plant based butter into 6 cubes and carefully add them in, next add in the 100g of coconut cream. Turn the caramel off the heat and use a whisk to bring it together to a smooth silky golden caramel.
Once the 3 cakes have cooled, use a serrated knife to level the 3 cakes
To assemble the cake, choose the base and add 2 tbsp of butter cream to a flat plate or cake board and spread it out and add the base layer, add ⅓ of the buttercream to the top of this base cake, gently spreading evenly using a spatula to the edge.
Add a generous drizzle of caramel on top of the butter cream, ensuring not to go over the edges and gently place the second cake on top, pressing it down lightly so the filling just comes to the edge. Then add another ⅓ of the butter cream to the top of the cake, again working your way from the centre, spreading the butter cream to the edge. Add a good drizzle of caramel on top of this butter cream and add the final cake on top, followed by the remaining butter cream and finish by carefully drizzling some caramel over the top (not too much but enough to create some lovely droplets. Keep any remaining caramel to serve.
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