A votre santé: Vegan Mocha Valencia Cake w/ Grand Marnier Chocolate Mousse Filling

My beautiful friend Lisa celebrated her "16th Part Deux" birthday party yesterday.  She and her husband Cody are fantastic cooks and know how to throw a party.  I wanted to make her a cake that looked more feminine to keep with the Sweet 16 theme, but with a more sophisticated flavor.

Chocolate and orange is one of my favorite flavor combinations and I'm surprised I haven't done it in a cake yet.  I get excited as holiday season approaches because I know I'm going to see those chocolate orange balls that you whack and break into delicious segments.  Developing the recipe was quite simple since all that was needed was to add orange flavor into the chocolate cake.  But to give it an air of sophistication complementing the lovely Lisa, I turned to my bottle of Grand Marnier to spike a silky chocolate mousse filling thereby adding another layer of chocolate orange divinity.  A simple coffee buttercream ties all the flavors together into one harmonious symphony of taste.

The cake turned out to be quite moist with a nice hint of orange and cognac.  Because of the pungent flavors of the coffee and liqueur, the cake wasn't very sweet and is perfect for the adult crowd.  Lisa thought it was my prettiest cake yet and everyone raved about this recipe.

Vegan Mocha Valencia Cake

Dry Ingredients: 2 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour 3/4 cup Cocoa Powder 2 tbs Corn Starch 2 tsp Baking Soda 1 tsp Baking Powder 1 tsp Salt

Wet Ingredients:  1/4 cup Soy Milk + 1 tbs Apple Cider Vinegar 3 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer + 4 tbs Water 4 tbs Earth Balance 1 3/4 cup Sugar 2/3 cup Canola Oil 1 3/4 cup Water 1/4 cup Orange Juice, freshly squeezed 1/4 cup Apple Sauce 2 tsp Vanilla Extract  Zest of 1 Orange, finely grated

Preheat oven to 320ºF.  Add vinegar to soy milk and reserve.  Stir egg replacer and 4 tbs water, reserve.  Sift together dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl.

Using an electric hand mixer, cream margarine in a large bowl.  Mix in sugar and oil to margarine.  Add egg replacer mixture, water, orange juice, apple sauce, vanilla, and orange zest to combine until smooth.  Fold in dry ingredients.  Lastly, fold in soy milk and vinegar mixture.  Pour into two 9-inch cake pans and bake for 27-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Allow cakes to cool.  

Chocolate Grand Marnier Mousse Filling

1/2 box Firm Silken Tofu
5 oz Vegan Chocolate Chips, melted in double boiler
1 tbs Agave Nectar

1/4 cup Grand Marnier liqueur

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.  Pour into a medium sized bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Chill in the refrigerator until set (1-2 hours).  After chilling, beat with an electric mixer to loosen and to fluff until paler in color (4-5 minutes). 

Coffee Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup Earth Balance Vegan Margarine

1/2 cup Earth Balance Natural Shortening

3 cups Powdered Sugar

3 tbs Water

1 tbs Instant Coffee Granules

1 tsp Vanilla

Stir coffee granules in water to dissolve, reserve.  Using an electric hand mixer, cream margarine and shortening until light and fluffy.  Add powdered sugar in stages.  Lastly, mix in coffee and vanilla.

Chocoholic: Vegan Chocolate Fantasy Cake

Today is my brother's 30th birthday.  He hasn't been a huge fan of Vegan cuisine, saying everything tastes "healthy."  The one recipe that has received his approval is for Vegan fettuccini alfredo, which I make chock full of delicious but healthy fats.  His birthday cake needed to be the richest most decadent recipe I could construct, without using any animal products.

When I think of rich desserts, my mind wanders to Max's Opera Cafe, winner of the most gluttonous desserts I've ever ordered.  One such dessert is the Max's Fantasy Torte, with it's rich chocolate cake, cloud-like chocolate mousse, and luscious cheesecake layers all covered in thick chocolate ganache.   This would be perfect for my brother, so I set out to Veganize this monstrous recipe.

I've been meaning to try out a Vegan cheesecake recipe and this cake gave me the perfect opportunity.  There are two versions of Vegan cheesecake I have found: baked and raw.  I decided on the latter because it meant less time at the oven, and because it is much more natural.  Baked Vegan cheesecake recipes that call for cream cheese and sour cream substitutes are full of transfats and I try my best to stay away from those foods.

Cafe Gratitude in San Francisco is a wonderful Raw Vegan establishment and they serve the most sinfully delicious raw "cheesecakes".  I was able to get my hands on one of their recipes, but it calls for Irish Moss, an ingredient I don't have experience cooking with.  There are a few recipes for raw cheesecake online that utilize coconut oil, so I decided to give one a try.  It was quite easy to make with only a handful of ingredients, but the end product does taste coconut-y.

I wouldn't say the coconut ruined the flavor of the cake.  Rather, it was a nice surprise.  My family said the cake tasted like an Almond Joy bar.  When I find the time, I will have to give the Cafe Gratitude recipe a try, and will update the Vegan Fantasy cake.  BTW, my brother enjoyed his birthday cake, but who wouldn't enjoy eating chocolate 3 different ways plus cheesecake?  For any of you self-confessed chocoholics out there, give this recipe a try.  You won't be disappointed.

Vegan Chocolate Fantasy Cake

Chocolate Cake Layer

Dry Ingredients: 1 1/4 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour 1/4 cup + 2 tbs Cocoa Powder 1 tbs Corn Starch 1 tsp Baking Soda 1/2 tsp Baking Powder 1/2 tsp Salt

Wet Ingredients: 2 tbs Soy Milk + 1 1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar 1 1/2 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer + 2 tbs Water 2 tbs Earth Balance 3/4 cup + 2 tbs Sugar 1/3 cup Canola Oil 1 cup Water 2 tbs Apple Sauce 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 320ºF.  Add vinegar to soy milk and reserve.  Stir egg replacer and 2 tbs water, reserve.  Sift together dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl.

Using an electric hand mixer, cream margarine in a large bowl.  Mix in sugar and oil to margarine.  Add egg replacer mixture, water, apple sauce, and vanilla to combine until smooth.  Fold in dry ingredients.  Lastly, fold in soy milk and vinegar mixture.  Pour into a 9-inch springform pan and bake for 27-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Allow cake to cool. 

Chocolate Mousse Layer

(Adapted from Vegan Chocolate Mousse by Steph Davis)

1 box Firm Silken Tofu
10 oz Vegan Chocolate Chips, melted in double boiler
3 tbs Agave Nectar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.  Pour into a medium sized bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Chill in the refrigerator until set (1-2 hours).  After chilling, beat with an electric mixer to loosen and to fluff until paler in color (4-5 minutes).  Evenly spread half of the mousse over cooled cake and chill in the freezer to set while preparing cheesecake layer.  Store remaining mousse in the refrigerator to use as frosting. 

Cashew Cheesecake Layer

(Adapted from Raw Cashew Cheesecake by Whole Family Fare)

3 cups Raw Cashews (soaked overnight, drained and patted dry)
2/3 cup Agave Nectar
1/3 cup Lemon Juice, freshly squeezed
1/3 cup Water
2/3 cup Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Optional: 2 oz Vegan Cookie or Biscuit, processed to fine crumb (I used Trader Joe's Bistro Biscuits)

In a strong blender or food processor, blend cashews, agave, lemon juice, water and vanilla.  Slowly drizzle in coconut oil while blender is running until thoroughly combined and smooth.  Pour and evenly spread over chilled chocolate mousse layer and sprinkle cookie crumbs on top, if using.  Allow to set in freezer for 4 hours or overnight.  Invert onto a cake circle or cake plate, and frost with remaining chocolate mousse.  Store cake in refrigerator while preparing ganache. 

Chocolate Ganache 

6 oz Vegan Chocolate Chips
1/4 cup Soy Creamer
1 tbs Earth Balance Vegan Margarine 

Place all ingredients in a double boiler, and melt over low heat constantly stirring until thoroughly combined.  Pour over chilled frosted cake.  Allow to set in refrigerator (10-15 min).