Dairy Free Red Velvet Layer Cake
Inspired by Season 13 of the Great British Baking show, my allergy friendly red velvet layer cake has an amazing vegan cream cheese buttercream frosting and 6 layers of dairy free chocolate cake. Perfect for any occasion, this decadent cake is a real showstopper.
Equipment
- Offset Spatula (for icing the cake)
Angela's Top Tip
Weigh your dry ingredients in grams with a scale for best results!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 280 grams Plant Based Butter (unsalted)
- 335 grams Self Raising Flour (see note)
- 25 grams Cocoa Powder
- 245 grams Golden Sugar (also known as golden yellow sugar)
- 1 tsp Salt
- 3 Eggs (large)
- 270 ml Vegan Buttermilk (see note)
- 2 tsp Red Food Colouring (I recommend Americolor Super Red)
- 1 tsp White Vinegar
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
- Additional butter for greasing
For the Buttercream Frosting
- 500 grams Icing Sugar (sifted)
- 225 grams Plant Based Butter (unsalted)
- 50 ml Water
- 1 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
- 60 grams Plant Based Cream Cheese
Instructions
Prep:
- Start by preheating your oven to 350°F / 180°C and gathering all of your supplies and ingredients for the cake. Allow the butter, buttermilk, eggs to come to room temperature before you start the recipe. I advise making the frosting while the cake is baking as it works better with cold cream cheese.
- Thoroughly grease then line the bottoms of the baking pans with parchment paper. No need to line the sides.
To Make the Cakes:
- Using a stand mixer, cream together 280g butter and 245g golden sugar until smooth (roughly 2-3 minutes). Add the 3 eggs one at a time. Don't worry that the mixture will look curdled at this stage.
- In a small jug, make the red velvet paste. Add 6 tbsp hot water, 25g cocoa powder, 2 tsp vanilla bean paste and 2 tsp red food colouring. Stir until combined then add to the stand mixer bowl. Mix together. Again, it will look curdled but don't panic. It will come together once we add the flour.
- In alternating thirds, add the buttermilk and flour into the stand mixer bowl, mixing well with each addition. The mixture will start to combine into a smooth cake batter.
- In a small bowl, add the white vinegar to the baking soda. Stir and then add to the cake batter. It will fizz at this stage. Stir until fully combined.
- Using an ice cream scoop, divide the cake batter evenly between the 3 6inch cake pans. Tap the pans on the counter a few times to level out the batter.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until well risen. A toothpick/skewer should come out clean when they are ready. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Note: take the butter for the frosting out of the fridge while the cakes are baking. This will allow it to come to room temperature in time.
To Make the Buttercream Frosting
- Combine 225g butter and 60g cream cheese in a mixing bowl.
- Add half of the icing sugar then stir to combine.
- Add the remaining 250g icing sugar, 25ml water and 1 tsp vanilla bean paste and mix until silky smooth. Add the remaining 25ml of water if needed. Chill the frosting in the fridge until the cakes are fully cooled.
To Decorate the Cakes
- Split and level each cake, retaining any crumbs for decoration. You should end up with 6 thin layers in total.
- Use half of the buttercream frosting to fill and stack the cake layers.
- Use most of the second half of the buttercream to ice the cake with an offset spatula. Clean off the spatula after each smoothing of the icing, to avoid pulling away too many crumbs.
- Add the remaining icing to a piping bag which has been fitted with a 1M star tip. Pipe 8 swirls on top of the cake.
- To finish the decoration, add the cake crumbs to the sides and top of the cake.
Video
Notes
- Buttermilk: To make vegan buttermilk, add 1 tbsp white vinegar to 270ml plant based milk. Stir and allow to curdle for 10 minutes before using. Learn more about buttermilk in this recipe post.
- Flour: See my handy flour hack to make your own self raising flour. All purpose and gluten free options included.
- Yield: This cake serves 8.
- Frosting Consistency: This is intended to be a soft icing. Ensure you whisk the lumps out of the cream cheese and add extra water if needed.
- Storage: I recommend that this cake should be stored covered in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can also individually wrap and freeze any remaining slices for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost fully before unwrapping.
- Nutrition: Nutritional information is based on 1 large slice per serving and nutrition information is calculated based on the ingredients in this recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes.
- More Red Velvet Recipes:
- Quick and easy Red Velvet Donuts (Vegan)
- Classic Red Velvet Cupcakes (Vegan)
- Indulge in our Red Velvet Cookies - 3 ways (Vegan)
Nutrition
Serving: 1 SliceCalories: 889kcalCarbohydrates: 118.3gProtein: 9gFat: 45gSaturated Fat: 7.4gCholesterol: 70mgSodium: 902mgPotassium: 204mgFiber: 2.1gSugar: 83.9gCalcium: 83mgIron: 3mg
Did you make this recipe?I'd love to hear what you think - leave a review below. Sharing on socials? Tag me @itsbakeangel and use #makeitwithbakeangel!
