I can’t have normal chocolate because it has milk in it. This yummy dairy free chocolate cake is made with cocoa powder which is milk-free. Even if your OK with milk try it out and I hope you will enjoy it too!

Ingredients

• 300g self-raising flour
• 200g milk-free margarine or spread
• 200 ml almond or coconut milk
• 150g sugar
• 3 eggs
• 3 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

To make the cake:

1. Turn on the oven, set it to 180°C.
2. Grease two round cake tins and line the base with baking paper (use the bottom of the tin to draw two circles, then cut these out with scissors very carefully).
3. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a big mixing bowl.
4. In another bowl mix the spread with the sugar until creamy, then add the eggs one by one. Mix well then add the milk and the vanilla.
5. Add the flour mixture and stir until you get a thick batter.
6. Divide the batter between the two cake tins and spread it around with a spatula (a sort of wide flat knife).  Make sure the surface is even.
7. Ask an adult to put the tins in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
8. Cool the cakes in the tins for 5 minutes then ask an adult to turn them out onto a wire rack to cool.
9. While the cake is cooling make the chocolate icing or anything else you’d like.

This is how to make a dairy-free chocolate icing:

1. Ask an adult to melt half of  a chocolate bar (about 50-75g) in a bowl over boiling water and let it cool.
2. Mix in about 100g of milk-free margarine/spread, a cupful of icing sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 2 Tbsp of cocoa powder. Stir it until you get a thick, smooth cream.
3. Cover the top of one of the cakes with the spread then put the other cake on it.
4. Cover the top and the sides with the chocolate icing, then decorate it as you like it –  for example write letters & numbers with an icing pen, or put cherries, raspberries, marzipan or icing figures, sweets, candies, edible sprinkles, sparkles or glitter on the top.

Enjoy!

Tips

• Don’t over-mix the batter otherwise the cakes will have holes in them.
• Before eating it, put the cake into the fridge to chill so the chocolate icing won’t be too soft.
• For the icing use a milk-free, high-quality, dark chocolate bar.