Vegan Chocolate Cake with Mousse Frosting

I had this recipe bookmarked for a while and finally got around to making it recently. The cake itself was good, but what really makes it special is the mousse frosting, made with silken tofu (such as Mori-Nu, which is shelf-stable). It is luscious without being overly sweet, and it would actually make a good chocolate pudding by itself, which I’ll have to keep in mind! Plus, this dish is super easy to make.

For the cake
1 ½ cups white whole-wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
4 Tbsp. cocoa powder
½ tsp. salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup coconut oil
2 tsp. white vinegar
¾ cup cold water

Preheat the oven to 375 °F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan or 8-inch square pan; line with parchment paper and grease again.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, soda, salt, and sugar directly in a medium bowl. In a 2-cup measuring cup or a small bowl, measure and mix together the oil, cold water or coffee, and vanilla.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork or a small whisk. When the batter is smooth, add the vinegar and stir quickly. There will be pale swirls in the batter as the baking soda and vinegar react. Stir just until the vinegar is evenly distributed throughout the batter and put it in the oven right away. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes and set aside to cool.

For the chocolate mousse
1 package firm silken tofu
1 tsp. cocoa powder
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. almond or soy milk
1 pinch salt
melted dark chocolate to drizzle on top
8 to 10 oz. chocolate chips (a little over 1 1/3 cup), white or dark

Purée tofu in a food processor, scraping down the sides as needed, until completely smooth.

Add the cocoa powder, vanilla, milk, and salt to the mixture, and process until smooth.

Melt the chocolate chips in 30-second intervals in the microwave on 50% power.

Add chocolate mixture to tofu in food processor. Pulse mixture until smooth and completely combined, scraping down the sides as needed.

Spread mousse mixture on top of the cooled cake.

Drizzle melted dark chocolate on top of the mousse and sprinkle it with chocolate chips.