You’ll love this easy chocolate cake without milk and eggs for a first birthday cake, classroom cupcakes, or just an easy weekend dessert for the family.
It takes just simple ingredients from your kitchen. See the classic cake recipe below.
Get our printable recipe sheet for this and 24 other top MAM recipes when you join membership! See recipe below.
So glad you stopped in for our milk-free and egg-free cake recipe today.
This recipe is so special to us because it saved my first baby’s first birthday, and our community has enjoyed it with us for over seventeen years.
In fact, this recipe is what often introduces us to new food allergy friends!
Thousands of food allergy families love it as much as we do, and we’re so glad.
Can’t wait to share it with you below!
This is an old fashioned, penny-pincher recipe that’s both easy and tasty.
It may be milk and egg free, but it doesn’t taste like it one bit. Promise!
HOW TO MAKE CAKE SOY-FREE
When my kiddo was first diagnosed with food allergy, he also tested allergic to soy.
He’s since outgrown that, but then my little niece was diagnosed with soy allergy, as well.
So guess who gets to make that cutie pie’s birthday cakes?
That’s right, Aunt Jamie!
Here’s how we made my son’s and niece’s birthday cakes also soy-free.
I simply made sure to use all soy-free ingredients, which is pretty easy to do, and made my own frosting with soy-free, dairy-free butter.
Because this cake takes just under 10 basic ingredients, it’s pretty easy to make sure they contain no soy.
And if icing poses a problem, simply sift powdered sugar over the cake in a light layer.
That’s how they did it in the old days!
IS IT EASY TO DECORATE MILK & EGG FREE CAKE
Yes! Cake decorators tell us our recipe works great for decorating with icing and fondant.
And I agree. It’s a little denser than boxed cake and doesn’t crumble easily.
Decorate away!
DOES DEPRESSION CAKE NEED ICING
No, it doesn’t.
As stated above, the woman who taught me the basis of this recipe said her family used to serve it with powdered sugar sifted over the top. Sometimes through a large doily stencil! No icing needed.
I suppose that was another way to save ingredients like butter. So feel free to keep your cake that simple.
VEGAN CHOCOLATE CAKE REVIEWS
“Thank you so much for your very informative blog!!! We tried out your cake recipe it was a big hit! My son loved it, and I thought it tasted really good! I tried another allergy-free cake recipe before and it was awful. This one was terrific…cake came out moist and fluffy. So happy with it! THANK YOU! Keep up the great work…I always look forward to your blog posts!”
“This recipe is fabulous! Tasted great, and I couldn’t believe how easy it was! I made cupcakes out if it, and also used it to make cake pops (mixed with icing and dipped in Enjoy Life melted choc chips). My son loved it! Thank you!!”
“I love that you have posted this on your site. My boys are on a dairy free diet. I made this recipe as a cake the first time and my whole family devoured the thing. So this time we made a double batch and made cup cakes instead. We love your site and will keep coming back more and more. Thank you so much.”
“I tried the chocolate cake recipe for a Christmas dessert, and it was absolutely fabulous! I will most certainly keep this cake recipe in my repertoire. I am a food blogger myself, and since I am egg-intolerant and lactose intolerant, I struggle to find delicious recipes for baking. I am truly enjoying the wonderful egg-free and dairy-free recipes posted on your blog! Thank you!”
We’ve loved all these sweet reviews over the years and are so glad we’ve made birthdays so happy for food allergy families.
I also want to share some of our favorite frostings for our dairy and egg free cake.
Homemade or store-bought, you choose! Just make sure they work for your allergies.
VANILLA BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
This frosting can also be soy-free if you choose soy-free ingredients.
1/4 cup dairy-free butter
1/4 cup solid coconut oil or shortening
1 and 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (affiliate)
1-3 teaspoons dairy-free milk (optional)
dash of salt if your dairy-free butter is unsalted
Cream together dairy-free butter and solid coconut oil or shortening with a mixer on medium speed.
Add vanilla.
Slowly add powdered sugar 1/4 cup at a time.
If it’s too thick, add dairy-free milk 1 teaspoon at a time, up to 3 teaspoons.
Add a dash of salt if the dairy-free butter is unsalted.
Beat on medium speed 5-10 minutes until light and fluffy and frosting becomes bright white.
Frosting can be a little temperamental depending on indoor temperatures.
If it’s warm inside, you will do best to use chilled butter and coconut oil.
If it’s colder inside, room temp butter and solid coconut oil works and milk may need added.
Store frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator if using coconut oil, as it can melt. Even professional bakeries do this.
You may also like our homemade dairy-free chocolate frosting.
DAIRY-FREE STORE BOUGHT FROSTING
If you want frosting from a tub, this store-bought frosting has been dairy-free but does contain soy.
Be sure to check labels because ingredients can change!
Now onto the cake!
CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE MILK & EGG FREE
CAKE PREPARATION
Heat oven to 350.
This recipe is for 12 cupcakes, a 9×9″ cake, or an 8×8″ cake. Double the ingredients for 24 cupcakes, a double layer round cake, or a 9×13″ cake.
Grease pan(s) with an allergy safe oil if you are making this for someone with food allergies. Or use our favorite non-stick cake pans. No grease needed.
CHOCOLATE CAKE INGREDIENTS
1.5 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla (affiliate)
1/3 cup oil
1 cup cold water
CHOCOLATE CAKE DIRECTIONS
Combine ingredients by hand or with a mixer.
We use our KitchenAid Stand Mixer (affiliate) because it gets the flour lumps out well.
Pour batter into your pan.
Bake approximately 20-30 minutes until the cake springs back to the touch or a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
Time varies depending on the pan you use.
Let cake cool completely before frosting.
See our other dairy-free and egg-free cake recipes below.
HOW TO MAKE A DOUBLE-LAYER ROUND CAKE
- use two non-stick round pans (affiliate) the exact same size
- make the batter separately for each round cake, using the recipe above, so they are same size
- once they bake, let them cool in the pans before removing
- to remove, take a non-stick knife around the edge, tip the cake upside down, and tap it out into your hand.
- once both are out of the pans, use a breadknife to saw the top of the dome off one of the cakes
- use the sawed off cake dome for cake balls (optional)
- the sawed cake goes on the bottom, sawed side up.
- put the second layer of cake over the first layer, with the dome on top.
- it’s trendy to saw the second dome off for a more flat top cake, you can decide!
As for storing cake, I’ve always had a cake stand with a dome lid.
In my humble opinion…if you’re going to work this hard creating double layered cake, it deserves pretty display where people can admire it before it’s gone.
I liked my glass cake stand (affiliate) better than my wooden one because it was much easier to clean. Plus, I could slice cake on it without scratching the wood.
Now here are more dairy and egg free cake recipes for your cake stand.
MORE MILK AND EGG FREE CAKE RECIPES
See more frosting options below, too!
Jess
Thursday 10th of August 2023
If making cupcakes with this recipe, what is the cook time?
Jamie Kaufmann
Sunday 13th of August 2023
Cupcakes take the shorter end of time. Check at 20 minutes. Probably 20-25 minutes. :) Hope that helps!
Rose Martine
Monday 20th of January 2020
Great recipe, very yummy! Any suggestions for other ways to use the left over Miso paste? Marinade? Make into another type of sauce? Ideas??? It’s too good to not use up!
Jamie Kaufmann
Wednesday 22nd of January 2020
That I'm not sure, Rose. Let us know if you come up with something!
Kelli
Friday 25th of January 2019
Hi Jaime not sure if you will ever see this but... your chocolate cake recipe is very similar to mine I use for my daughter except as a chocolate lover myself this cake never made happy. I remembered a trick my dad used for brownies he would add Hershey’s syrup. Since she can’t have that I have started to make my own and no one can tell the difference unless they see it in my container. I add 1/3 to 1/2 cup to my chocolate cake recipe and true chocolate cake fans think her cake is amazing. The syrup add a little richness and takes the acidic aftertaste away from the vinegar in this recipe.
Jamie Kaufmann
Tuesday 29th of January 2019
That's a great tip, Kelli! Thank you!!! I'm going to try it.
Linda
Thursday 2nd of November 2017
these cupcakes look super delicious, my daughter will love it, she's obsessed with a game - papa's cupcakeria, and been asking me to bake cupcakes for several days now. love the recipe, thanks.
koi seo
Friday 28th of July 2017
I would start at 20 min and test with toothpick every 5 minutes after. It really does vary.
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