Our favorite dark chocolate sheet cake recipe slathered with a rich chocolate frosting and dusted with a blanket of shredded coconut. A decadent and moist olive oil cake, no eggs, no dairy and totally vegan. Makes a great birthday cake and its ideal for bringing to a summer barbecue or holiday party.
Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever! From Scratch!
Made with simple classic ingredients and so easy to whip up in under 1 hour, good luck eating just one piece of this delicacy.
about the cake batter:
Insanely rich, basically you mix your wet and dry ingredients then combine them together in 1-bowl until a creamy batter is achieved. Transfer to a pan and bake then cover in a thick layer of frosting.
about the chocolate frosting:
Rich coconut milk and vegan butter get whisked together with cocoa and powdered sugar until lusciously silky and creamy. The key detail here is to sift the cocoa and sugar so no lumps form in the frosting.
the pan size:
I used a 13 x 9 x 2 inch sheet pan and found it perfectly fits with this recipe. I love a thick layer of frosting and extra moist cake. However you can adapt to whatever size sheet pan you have available, just remember to adjust the baking time.
If your pan is very shallow (12X18) start checking for doneness at the 15 minute mark, your cake will be ready when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or nearly clean.
toppings ideas:
- 3/4 cup shredded coconut.
- 1 cup fresh cherries, blackberries, raspberries or nectarines.
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate sprinkles.
- chopped walnuts or hazelnuts.
FAQ
- How do I store sheet cake ? At room temperature for a couple of days tightly covered. There is no need to refrigerate it unless you top it with fresh fruit. Alternatively you can wait to add any fresh fruit on top just before serving.
- Can I freeze it ? Yes you can but without the frosting. Freeze the cake and once solid transfer to a lidded freezer proof container for up to 3 months.
- What is a sheet cake anyways ? A cake baked in a flat rectangular pan called a sheet pan or jelly roll pan usually frosted with a chocolate or vanilla frosting. Awesome stuff!
more popular desserts:
Vegan Custard Napoleons
Shortbread Cookies (plant-based recipe)
Lemon Olive Oil Cake
No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies
Frozen Yogurt Bars (dairy free)
Vegan Baklava.
As always if you make this recipe report back, leave a comment rating below, snap a photo and tag me with #VeggieSociety on Instagram, it always makes my day ~ Florentina Xo’s
Vegan Chocolate Sheet Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- 2 cups warm coconut milk canned full fat
- 3/4 cup extra light olive oil
- 1.5 tsp vailla extract
Frosting
- 1/2 cup vegan butter I used Miyokos’ European butter
- 1/3 cup coconut milk canned full fat
- 5 tbsp cocoa powder sifted
- 3.75 cups powdered sugar sifted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350”F.
Make the Batter:
- In a medium size mixing bowl whisk together the dry ingredients (sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt) until combined.
- In a separate bowl mix the warm coconut milk, olive oil and vanilla extract util combined. Pour over the dry ingredients.
- Whisk everything together until a smooth batter is achieved. You could use a mixer if you wanted to but it isn’t necessary.
- Line a 9 x 13 inch baking sheet / pan with parchment paper. ( any similar size sheet pan will work, just adjust the cooking times accordingly.
- Pour the cake batter into the pan and give it a little shake to distribute evenly. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If your sheet pan is wider and shallower than 9 X 13 make sure to check your cake for doneness at the 25 minute mark to make sure you don't overcook it.
Make the Frosting:
- In a medium size sauce pan on medium low heat add the 1/2 cup of vegan butter + 1/3 cup coconut milk. Heat through until the butter is melted and whisk into the coconut milk. Add the cocoa powder and powdered sugar and continue whisking until a smooth creamy frosting is achieved.
- Pour the chocolate frosting over the sheet cake and using a spatula make sure to spread it around evenly.
- Sprinkle with the shredded coconut over the top or get creative with a few topping like fresh cherries, blackberries, nectarines or chocolate sprinkles.
Notes
- 3/4 cup shredded coconut
- 1 cup fresh cherries, blackberries, raspberries or nectarines
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate sprinkles
- chopped walnuts or hazelnuts.
Nutrition
Environmental Information
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Hi Florentina
Do you personally have an actual recipe book for purchase, or are all your recipes in the Forks Over Knives Cook Book?
Thank you and love your recipes!! 🙂
I do not have a cookbook in print at this time but you can find all my recipes on this blog for free anytime ~ Florentina Xo’s
Finally an awesome cake I can bake all by myself. I was a little skeptical about the olive oil but it turned out amazing and can’t even taste it but the cake is all kinds of amazing. Covered the entire sheet in coconut and it was fine the same day. Don’t refrigerate it unless you put fruit on it, it’s so much better at room temp.
Can I substitute the coconut milk for something else?
Sure, you could use cashew or oat milk instead. I prefer coconut for its rich fat content.
I want to take this cake to a party. One of the kids has an egg allergy. I wanted to use a disposable cake pan. It’s size is 12 1/4 x 8 1/4 x 1 1/4. will the batter fit in this size pan can I fill it to the top?
Thanks
That should be fine, yes you can fill to the the top.
Anyone tried this with gluten free flour??
I’d love to know how this chocolate sheet cake goes on gluten free flour too. There are no comments yet, so I’ll have to pioneer it tomorrow myself.
Hi Donna, I have not made this cake gluten free, hope it turns out great for you. Report back! ~ Florentina