White chocolate is literally my favourite thing ever. I could quite honestly devour a whole bar a day. I always have plenty in abundance, so knew I had to try and make it into a new cake recipe. If you’re looking to bulk buy vegan chocolate – I highly recommend Coco’s Pantry as it is where I get all of my baking chocolate from. Everything on there is vegan – just make sure to check it is also gluten free. Here, I have used the moo free white chocolate.
I based this one off my 26th birthday cake – the first celebration cake I ever created. It uses a simple yet gorgeous vanilla sponge, sandwiching a white chocolate vanilla buttercream. Pure heaven.
I can’t explain how proud of this cake I am. It is one of my best yet – so reproducible and the texture is to die for. You’ll see in the recipe below, but I actually separated my egg whites and yolks. Whipping the whites into stiff peaks before use gave so much fluff to the sponge. That and the use of a homemade vegan buttermilk, utilising apple cider vinegar. The sponge itself is soft and moreish, which compliments the heavier and more flavoursome white chocolate buttercream.
This cake has been a huge hit with family and friends. The first time I ever made it, the cake was completely demolished within 2 days. I’m not even kidding – I woke up to my friends helping themselves to several slices for breakfast. I was chuffed. Oh and if white chocolate isn’t your thing, you can always use the vanilla buttercream from my funfetti cupcakes instead. You’ll just have to triple the amount to cover the whole of this cake.
Have any leftover sponge? Maybe from the cut offs? Try my vanilla cake truffle recipe so nothing goes to waste. Just adjust the recipe to your required leftover sponge quantity. I love cake truffles for a quick and easy way of reviving leftover sponge. I can imagine this would be beautiful with a white chocolate shell.
White Chocolate Cake
Equipment
- Oven
- 2x 20cm Cake Tins (Loose bottomed)
- Greaseproof Paper
- 3x Mixing Bowls
- Mixing spoon
- Piping bag
- Piping nozzle
- Serrated Knife (For leveling the cake)
- Icing Smoother
- Icing Spatula
- Whisk
- Sieve
- Spatula
- Cooling Rack
- Microwave or Bain-Marie
Ingredients
For the vanilla sponges
- 400 grams Self raising flour Gluten free
- 1 tsp Xanthan gum
- 300 grams White sugar
- 350 grams Vegan butter Room temperature
- 3 medium Eggs Room temperature
- 2 Egg whites
- 3 tsp Vanilla extract
- 200 ml Plant-based milk
- 1.5 tsp Baking powder
- 1 tsp Bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tbsp Apple cider vinegar Optional, see notes*
For the white chocolate buttercream
- 425 grams Vegan butter
- 500 grams Icing sugar
- 300 grams Vegan white chocolate
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
Instructions
To make the vanilla sponges
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C conventional (160°C fan)
- Line the two cake tins with greaseproof paper and set aside
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the sugar and butter until smooth and creamy
- Using a second bowl, split the egg whites into the new bowl (setting it aside for later) and the egg yolks into the bowl containing the sugar and butter mixture
- Beat in the egg yolks into the sugar and butter mixture
- Using a sieve, sift in the flour, xanthan gum, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder to the bowl containing the eggs, butter and sugar and mix together
- Optional: mix in the apple cider vinegar to the plant-based milk to create a vegan 'buttermilk'
- Little by little, add in the plant-based milk/buttermilk and then whisk until everything is combined well
- Get the bowl containing the egg whites and whisk until stiff peaks form (~8-10 minutes)
- Gently fold the egg whites into the rest of the cake mixture using a spatula, ensuring not to mix too much which will cause the whisked in air to escape
- Evenly pour the cake batter between the two tins and level out with the spatula if needed
- Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden and slightly risen
- Remove from the oven after baking and leave in the tins to cool (~30 minutes)
- Remove from the tins and place on a wire rack for a further 30 minutes to cool completely
- Use a serrated knife to level out the top of the cakes, cutting off any 'dome shaped top' that may have formed during baking
To decorate the cakes
- When you are ready to decorate, beat together the butter, vanilla extract and icing sugar in another bowl (this will take about 10 minutes to get a smooth and silky finish -using a machine if you wish)
- Using a microwave or Bain-Marie, gently melt the white chocolate until liquid
- Fold the melted chocolate into the buttercream mixture, ensuring it is evenly distributed
- Place the bottom sponge onto an even surface (or cake board) to decorate
- Using a piping bag and nozzle, spoon a small amount of buttercream into the bag and evenly pipe buttercream onto the top of the first cake layer in a spiral motion, starting from the outside and going in
- Use an icing spatula to even out the layer of icing so it is fully covered
- Place the 2nd cake tier onto the base and create a 'sandwich' with the icing
- Take the icing spatula and coat the cake in 1/3 of the icing to create a crumb coat
- Place the cake in the fridge for ~15 minutes for the coat to harden
- Use the remaining icing to coat the rest of the cake evenly, using the icing smoother to create an even finish
- Slice into 10-12 portions, tuck in and enjoy!
Notes
- Not suitable for home freezing
- Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 7 days or at room temperature for 3-4 days
