Mint Chocolate Cake

by Sarah

in Cakes, cholesterol free, Dairy-Free, Desserts, Egg-Free, Nut free, vegan

A rich velvety chocolate cake coated in minty fresh frosting, drizzled with chocolate ganache, topped with mint filled Ghirardelli chocolate.

mint chocolate cakeWhen I turned 24,  the Spork (read: boyfriend) surprised me with this lovely cake. I was meeting him for lunch after taking some finals, and was kind of surprised he offered to cook lunch since it was the middle of a work day.

Preface, the Spork has never baked before! He’d seem me decorate a number of cakes on my weekend baking escapades, but so far his expertise has been in taste testing cake flavors, and dish washing. Since he had no baking materials or ingredients of his own, he snuck into my apartment (my roommate was his accomplice) while I went home for the Thanksgiving holiday and made it while I was gone, froze it in his freezer, and surprised me on my actual birthday a week later,

mint chocolate cakeThe Spork and I had dinner with our friends that night and the compliments for his cake came showering in during dinner. Needless to say, the Spork was very pleased with himself.

birthday dinner with Savoring SporkThe Spork’s sister is a very talented baker and gave him some tips over the phone to make sure the workflow of decorating was correct. He used my mocha espresso cake recipe as the basis for the chocolate cake, and made his own frosting recipe. Here is the complete recipe for the mint chocolate cake!

mint chocolate cake

Mint Chocolate Cake

Savoring Spork
5 from 5 votes
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 40 minutes
Servings 22

Ingredients
  

Dry

  • 4 1/2 cups flour
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 1 1/8 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet

  • 3 cups canned coconut milk light
  • 1 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 6 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons vanilla extract

Frosting

  • 2 cups non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
  • 6 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup water add 1 tablespoon at a time to achieve desired consistency
  • 3-4 teaspoons peppermint extract
  • 4 drops green food coloring one drop at a time, to achieve desired shade of mint green

Chocolate Ganache

  • 1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk or almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips dairy free
  • 2 teaspoons canola oil

Instructions
 

Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350F. Grease three 9" cake pans and line with parchment paper (cut a circle the size of your cake pan bottom).
  • Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl until evenly mixed. Give coconut milk a good shake, and then mix all wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add wet to dry mixture and mix until just incorporated. Immediately pour batter into pans and bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out with just a few crumbs.

Frosting

  • Cream room-temperature shortening in a large bowl with a hand or stand mixer.
  • Add powdered sugar, peppermint extract, and cream.
  • Add water 1 tablespoon at a time to achieve desired consistency of frosting. Add food coloring to achieve desired shade of mint green.

Ganache

  • Whisk all ingredients in a sauce pan except the oil, and stir at medium heat till combined and smooth. Stir in the oil, and then pour onto frosted cake. Use a spoon to brush ganache to edges so it drips down the sides of the cake.

Like Cake? Here are some more!

Maple Walnut Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Maple walnut cake with chocolate ganache

Mocha Espresso Cake

mocha_espresso_cake

Leave a Comment

{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Nagi@RecipeTinEats December 10, 2014 at 2:58 am

Happy birthday Sarah!! Oh, that spark of yours is just so adorable….and I am seriously impressed, I can’t believe he’s never made a cake before!! I adore that photo of the two of you, so cute!!

Oh and FYI, you put the wrong Author in the recipe 🙂 Shouldn’t it be Savoring SPORK?? You can’t take credit for your boyfriend’s recipe!!!

Reply

2 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 9:00 am

Hi Nagi! You’re right, I will change the author to Savoring Spork! 😀

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3 Maggie December 9, 2014 at 9:55 pm

Happy Birthday Sarah! And what a lovely surprise! The cake looks perfectly decorated and looks way better than my first cake, and even the one I just made last month! Add him your team member and you’ll become the super blog couple 😉

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4 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 8:59 am

Thanks Maggie! I was really impressed with his cake making abilities too! I’ll be recruiting him when I make cakes in the future 🙂

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5 Mira December 9, 2014 at 1:13 pm

Happy B-Day Sarah! What a beautiful cake and a wonderful surprise! Sounds like you had a great birthday! The cake looks delicious! I’m probably going to try and bake a cake for my b-day in January, will follow your tips and suggestions.

Reply

6 Sarah December 9, 2014 at 1:49 pm

Hi Mira! I really liked this cake too! Good luck on your birthday cake – I’m sure it will be amazing and can’t wait to see it on your blog!

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7 ATasteOfMadness December 9, 2014 at 10:39 am

What an awesome surprise! And so sweet too! Happy birthday!

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8 Sarah December 9, 2014 at 11:23 am

Thanks! 🙂

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9 Grace December 9, 2014 at 6:18 am

The cake is gorgeous and very impressive!! What can I say – you guys are perfect for each other. 🙂

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10 Sarah December 9, 2014 at 9:29 am

Thanks Grace! 🙂

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11 Maryanne @ the little epicurean December 8, 2014 at 11:13 pm

Happy Birthday!!! What a sweet boyfriend! He’s a keeper for sure 🙂

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12 Sarah December 8, 2014 at 11:26 pm

Thanks Maryanne! 🙂

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13 Oriana Romero December 8, 2014 at 8:49 pm

Aww.. so sweet!! He is a keeper for sure. The cake looks very good. Happy Birthday!!! =)

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14 Sarah December 8, 2014 at 9:04 pm

Thanks Oriana! 🙂

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15 Connie @ Sprig and Flours December 8, 2014 at 6:03 pm

What an incredibly sweet boyfriend you have! I can’t help but notice what an amazing job he did frosting and stacking the cake. It sounds like you had a great birthday, despite having to take an exam in the morning. My birthday is in March, and it was always sometime during spring finals week, so I often had to study/take exams on my birthday. As you probably already know, it’s not so bad when you get to spend the rest of the day with loved ones!

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16 Sarah December 8, 2014 at 6:29 pm

Thanks Connie! I was impressed by his cake stacking and frosting too! It as a very good birthday 🙂

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17 Nora @ Savory Nothings December 8, 2014 at 12:03 pm

Awww that’s so cute! And what an amazing cake your boyfriend made! Love your nickname for him 😀

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18 Sarah December 8, 2014 at 1:09 pm

Thanks Nora!

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19 Annie+@+ciaochowbambina December 8, 2014 at 9:48 am

WoW! I am impressed! You are one lucky lady…and he, I’m sure, one lucky guy!! Happy Birthday, Sarah!

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20 Sarah December 8, 2014 at 10:21 am

Thanks Annie!

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