This is the BEST Vegan Nutella Cake EVER! 3 layers of ultra rich and moist chocolate sponge cake, filled with ”Nutella” buttercream, drizzled with ”Nutella” and chopped hazelnuts, wrapped in a thick layer of more ‘Nutella’ buttercream. This is the Bruce Bogtrotter of vegan cakes!
If you love this, make sure to check out my Vegan Nutella Muffins.
Vegan Nutella Cake
This incredible Vegan Nutella cake is sure to hit the sweet spot. Made with three rich chocolate cake layers, layers of ”Nutella” buttercream, chopped hazelnuts and coated with more of the scrumptious buttercream. This cake is the ULTIMATE vegan chocolate cake, and a Nutella lovers dream.
The overall flavour, texture and LOOK of this cake is insane! It will please vegans and non-vegans alike with its rich taste of both chocolate and roasted hazelnut. Keep reading to learn how to make it!
Why you’ll love this cake:
There are a million reasons why this is the BEST Vegan Nutella Cake, but to save me the time typing them, and you reading them all, I have listed my top 10 reasons below.
- Vegan friendly
- Satisfying
- Loaded with ”Nutella”
- 3 layers of rich chocolate sponge
- Moist
- Decadent
- Fudgey
- Easy to make
- Perfectly nutty
- Perfect texture
Ingredients you’ll need–
Cake ingredients:
- Dairy-free milk – The best milk to use is soya milk, but you can use almond, oat or cashew. Soya milk curdles the best for the buttermilk so it’s the one i would best recommend.
- Apple cider vinegar – Mixed with the milk to make a vegan ‘buttermilk’.
- Self raising flour – Use self raising flour to make the cake super fluffy and helps with rise.
- Cocoa powder – Adds the delicious chocolate flavour to the sponge.
- Caster sugar – Helps to bind the cake and add sweetness.
- Bicarbonate of soda + Baking powder – Raising agents which help make the cake rise and become super fluffy.
- Coffee granules – Coffee is optional but it helps with the richness of the cake and add a deeper flavour. Mix coffee granules with hot water into a paste.
- Sunflower oil – Use a neutral flavoured oil such as sunflower oil. Coconut oil also works great.
Buttercream + filling ingredients:
- Dairy-free block butter – Use a vegan block butter for best results. My favourite vegan butters are Naturli Vegan Block and Flora Plant Butter Alternative.
- Icing sugar – Sift for a really light and creamy buttercream.
- Cocoa powder – The cocoa adds a delicious chocolate flavour to the buttercream.
- Vegan Nutella – My favourite vegan Nutella is ‘Nature’s Store Cocoa Hazelnut Spread‘.
- Dairy-free milk – Use a splash of any dairy-free milk to help loosen the buttercream, to make it creamier.
- Hazlenuts- Roughly chop and add to the filling and on top of the cake for decoration.
How to achieve even cake layers?
My biggest tip to make even cake layers is to use a set of kitchen scales. Make sure to weigh out the cake batter and divide it equally into the lined cake tins. One trick I do is to weigh out the entire batch of cake batter and divide it by 3. This makes each tin have the exact amount of cake batter, resulting in a even and perfect looking cake.
Once the cakes have baked, allow them to cool in the tins. Doing this helps retain some of the moisture, then you can use a sharp serrated knife to trim the tops flat. This cake recipe bakes flat cakes, but for whatever reason your cakes are slightly domed, this is a great tip to get even layers. Nibble on the cake scraps (win win).
Vegan Nutella Cake Tips & Tricks
- Don’t skip the coffee in the cake: You honestly can’t taste the coffee, but it helps to enhance the chocolate flavour.
- Correctly line your cake tins: Make sure the base and sides of the cake tins are lined fully with grease proof paper. My book goes into detail on how to correctly line cake tins, grab a copy here.
- Make sure to measure out your ingredients correctly: The most accurate method of baking is using gram measurements. Use a set of kitchen scales to weigh out each ingredient, this ensures a perfect bake.
- Use loose base cake tins: I cant express how easy they are to use! Simply push the base up and peel away the baking paper. No more getting the cakes stuck in the tins! Use three 8” loose base cake tins for this recipe.
- Don’t overmix: You don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour, only mix until you cant see any dry ingredients in the batter. This helps to ensure the cake is moist and doesn’t end up dry!
- Be patient: Allow the cake to cool fully before filling and coating. Doing this will prevent it from melting. You can store the cakes in a air tight container overnight and frost the next day, this also helps get the cake super moist, perfect for frosting and decorating!
If you make, and love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below. Thank you & happy baking! Make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram and Facebook! And if you want to pin this recipe for later, you can use the button on the recipe card, above or below this post, or on any of the photos. Happy baking all!
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Vegan Nutella Cake
- Total Time: Overnight
- Yield: 10–12 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
BEST EVER Vegan Nutella Cake- 3 layers of rich chocolate sponge layers, ”Nutella” buttercream, ”Nutella” swirls and chopped hazelnuts.
Ingredients
Ingredients for the chocolate cake
- 480ml of dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar
- 420g of self raising flour
- 30g of cocoa powder
- 350g of caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tablespoon of coffee granules + 1/2 tablespoon of hot water
- 120ml of sunflower oil
Ingredients for the buttercream
- 400g of dairy-free block butter (softened)
- 360g of icing sugar
- 80g of cocoa powder
- 100g of vegan ”Nutella”
- Dairy-free milk (if needed)
Ingredients for the decoration
- 80g of roughly chopped hazelnuts
- Vegan ”Nutella” for filling
Instructions
Method (chocolate cake)
- Preheat your oven to 180°C fan and line three, 8 inch loose base / push up cake tins with greaseproof paper. If you don’t have 3 cake tins you will have to bake the cakes separately. Just cover the unused batter until you’re ready to use it.
- In a bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined. Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.
- In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Stir to combine.
- Add the coffee granules into a small bowl and pour over the hot water, stir to combine into a runny paste.
- Add the coffee mixture and oil into the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix.
- Pour equal amounts of batter into the lined cake tins (it should weight out to approximately 470g in each tin). Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.
- Pop the cakes into the centre of the preheated oven and bake for around 25-30 minutes. You will know they are done when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch.
- Place the cakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool slightly before removing them from the tins. Leave the cakes to cool fully on the cooling rack. Once cool, pop them into a sealed container to keep them fresh before frosting.
Method (buttercream)
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, add in the dairy-free butter and whisk on high speed for a few minutes until creamy. You can use a stand mixer with balloon whisk attachment or a electric hand whisk. You can even use a standard hand whisk for this.
- Add in the icing sugar, cocoa powder and ”Nutella”. Whisk together until soft and creamy. If it’s too runny, add in more chunks of butter to get it to the right thick and creamy consistency. If it’s too thick, add in a splash of dairy-free milk.
Method (assemble)
- Place one of the cakes on a serving plate or cake stand. Dollop or pipe some of the buttercream on top and spread out until even using an off-set spatula or pallet knife.
- Optional filling: Make a well in the middle of the buttercream and fill with 1-2 tablespoons of ”Nutella”. Sprinkle over some roughly chopped hazelnuts.
- Place the second cake layer on top. Press it down gently so it sticks, repeat for the third cake. Coat the whole cake with a thin layer of buttercream. This creates a crumb coat.
- Place the cake into the the fridge to set for 10-15 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the fridge and apply a second/final coat, this time making it thicker, create swirls in the frosting with the back of a spoon or using an off set spatula.
- Decorate the top of the cake with some more ”Nutella” and chopped hazelnuts around the top edge of the cake.
- Slice and enjoy!
Notes
To store: Store this cake in a sealed container in the fridge. Best eaten within 3 days of making.
Remove from the fridge and leave at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.
Un-iced cakes can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature for 2 days.
What vegan butter to use? My favourite vegan / dairy-free butters are the Naturli Vegan Block and Flora Plant Based Butter Alternative.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
- Category: Cakes and layer cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
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Amazing moist cake recipe! Made it without the Nutella as I haven’t been able to find a vegan one and it was still delicious!
This cake is decadent. My son, who is a bit picky, thinks the cake is pretty good (that means amazing in my sons language). He has Nutella everything, so it’s no wonder he loved this cake. Definitely making this one again. I didn’t add hazelnuts because l don’t like them. I found these little chocolate bits called Boodles. They are little clusters of chocolate rice puffs. I smashed them up and sprinkled them over the top for a nice amount of crunch. They are probably not vegan but then neither am l. I make these recipes because l am allergic to dairy.
I made this cake in Oktober when my Partner had birthday. We loved it! I’m gonna make it again tomorrow for my son’s birthday. It’s super delicious and easy to make. We just love your recipes because they taste exactly like we love them to. Thank you so much to share Holly!