Insane Vegan Red Velvet Cake

For your Sweetheart.. or Sweet tooth

 Growing up my Mom always made this epic red velvet cake for my birthday and around Valentine's day, which is my brother's birthday. When I got older and wanted to recreate it I asked her the ingredients and she told me about the beets. 

What? Beets were always hiding in my birthday cake?! 

Now I understand, they give this cake a moist texture that perfectly compliments the chocolate flavor. So of course I veganized and made a slightly more healthy version. 

Whip this up for your Valentine. It definitely says, I'm into you. This recipe can be easily converted to cupcakes too. 

[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxUUAdUpvao&w=854&h=480]

DRY INGREDIENTS 

• 2¾ cups GF flour blend 
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1½ teaspoons baking soda
• 1½ teaspoons salt

WET INGREDIENTS 

• 1½ cups non-dairy milk (hemp, Milkademia) 

• 1½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar or coconut vinegar
• ¾ cup coconut oil, melted 
• 1½ cups sugar or maple syrup
• 1 Flax egg: 6 Tablespoons ground flax mixed with 10 Tablespoons water 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup pureed beet (roasted beets pureed or canned pureed beets). 

ICING 

• 2 cans full fat coconut milk cream from the top ONLY (chill cans and scoop hardened cream, reserve coconut water for another recipe or smoothie). 
• 1 (8 oz) Container Vegan Cream Cheese, We like Kite Hill
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar or maple syrup-I am conservative, add to your taste 
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or apple cider vinegar/coconut vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 

METHOD

Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Use coconut oil to grease 2, 8"-ish round cake pans. Line the pans with cutout parchment paper, oil them again and dust with cocoa powder.
2. In a medium bowl combine the dry ingredients: GF Flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a small bowl create your flax egg, 6 Tablespoons ground flax + 10 Tablespoons water, stir and set aside. 
4. Combine the non-dairy milk with  apple cider vinegar in a small, separate bowl to butterimilk-ize it. 
5. In a large bowl whisk together your wet ingredients: "buttermilk" (non-dairy milk+aCv), Sugar/maple syrup, melted coconut oil, vanilla extract, beet puree and your flax egg. Whisk to combine. 
6. Add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients, slowly and stir to combine. If batter seems a bit dry add some water (this can happen if you use bob's red mill gf flour, so we don't recommend that, Cup4cup gf flour works best. or regular flour if you're not worried about GF). 
7. Divide the batter between your two prepared baking pans. 
8. Bake in the center of the oven for about 35 minutes, or until the cake is beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Rotate the pans halfway through the baking time.
9. While your cakes are baking create your frosting, method below. 
10. Let cool in the pans on a cooling rack for 30 minutes.
11. Carefully flip the cakes out of the pans and continue to cool on the cooling rack until they are completely cooled. 
12. When the cakes are completely cool frost them and stack. 

[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxUUAdUpvao&w=854&h=480]

FROSTING 

1. In a bowl scoop the chilled coconut cream off of the tops of the cans. 
2. Whisk vegan cream cheese to combine. 
3. Add vanilla extract and lemon juice. 
4. Add confectioner's sugar/maple syrup a little at a time to taste. 
5. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor. 
6. Cool until ready to frost the cake. 
7. Frost cake once it is completely cooled.