vegan chocolate covered strawberry cake & bridal shower

This Vegan Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake packs all the flavors of the traditional Valentine's Day treat in a fun layer cake! Chocolate cake is sandwiched with strawberry slices, covered in a pink strawberry buttercream, and crowned by delicious chocolate covered strawberries!

Hi buddies and happy Friday! It's finally the ~weekend~ woohoo! So I am currently in the midst of pure chaos as I'm moving this weekend. I though it would be fun to reminisce on last weekend, which was much less crazy and much more fun. It was my bridal shower!! I made this adorable Vegan Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake for the occasion, and it was such a hit with my friends and family! My signature chocolate cake is stuffed with strawberry buttercream and fresh strawberry slices, covered in the usual dark chocolate ganache drip, and topped with chocolate-covered strawberries for the perfect finishing touch!

My bridal shower was put together by my best friend/maid of honor and sister-in-law, along with the family I used to nanny for, my mother-in-law, and the mom of my flower girls! They all did such a fabulous job and it all came together beautifully. It was pink, girly, super fun, and everyone had a great time! Here is a glimpse at the food table. Everyone knows the most important part of a party is the food!

Besides my chocolate covered strawberry cake, we had fresh fruit cups, lemon sandwich cookies, petit fours, vegan and regular donuts (from Sara Donuts), vegan and regular pigs-in-a-blanket (made with original Pillsbury crescent rolls which are #accidentallyvegan and LightLife veggie dogs), and salted almonds. We also had some fun champagne & cotton candy cocktails for the girls! It was all so tasty and we seriously CLEARED this table. Who says girls can't eat ????

This chocolate covered strawberry cake is a perfect example of my #VeganBakingBasics concept! I know I keep talking about it, but the more I bake the more I see it! So for this, I took my usual vegan chocolate cake and baked it in little 6" pans. For the frosting, I mixed in some dehydrated strawberry slices that I pulsed into a fine powder to give it natural strawberry flavor, as well as a drop of pink food coloring. I then just used fresh strawberry slices in between the layers for even more flavor, and topped it all with my usual dark chocolate + nondairy milk ganache. Easy easy easy. You have to believe me! The actual chocolate-dipped strawberries on top just take it all... over the top!

For the party, besides just eating yummy food and chatting {and taking lots of photos, of course}, we played some games! My sister in law bought THESE from Amazon which were so fun! Our favorites were "How Well Do You Know The Bride" and "He Said/She Said." So many giggles and funny stories to share!

I don't usually get to be in my own blog photos but... HI! It's me! Let me tell you, I have never felt so pressured as right then, when I had probably 12 people taking photos of me as I was cutting this cake. Don't drop it!!!! I still dropped a slice or two on the tablecloth because I had to make the slices so skinny. LOL. My bad.

Here is my lovely crew of friends and bridesmaids! I hope you guys liked reading some bits and pieces of my bridal shower. It was so fun! And obviously, a baker has to make her own cake... if not for the wedding, then at least for the shower! Find the recipe below!

Looking for more cutie patootie layer cakes? Of course you are! Check out my dark chocolate cherry cake, dark chocolate fig cake, lemon curd layer cake, confetti layer cake, apple cinnamon layer cake, hot chocolate cake, and white chocolate cranberry cake!

Tips for success:

• Add nondairy milk as needed to your frosting if it's too thick or appears lumpy.
• Be sure your vegan butter and shortening are both at room temperature so your frosting comes out nice and smooth! It also helps to beat these until totally smooth and lump-free BEFORE adding in any powdered sugar.
• Corn syrup in the ganache is not necessary, but it does help keep the mixture more smooth and easy to pour!

vegan chocolate covered strawberry cake & bridal shower

 

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Prep time

45 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

 

This Vegan Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake packs all the flavors of the traditional Valentine's Day treat in a fun layer cake! Chocolate cake is sandwiched with strawberry slices, covered in a pink strawberry buttercream, and crowned by delicious chocolate covered strawberries!

Author: Valentina | The Baking Fairy

Serves: 15

Ingredients

• *for the cakes*
• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white granulated sugar
• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsweetened nondairy milk
• 1 cup water
• ⅔ cup vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• *for the frosting*
• ½ cup shortening
• ½ cup EarthBalance
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• ⅓ cup dehydrated strawberry slices, pulsed into a fine powder
• pink food coloring, as needed
• ½ pint fresh sliced strawberries, for filling
• *for the ganache*
• 3 oz dark chocolate chips
• 3 tablespoon corn syrup
• 1-2 tablespoon unsweetened nondairy milk
• chocolate-dipped strawberries, for topping

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Spray two 6" round cake pans with baking spray, and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
4. Add in the nondairy milk, water, and oil, and mix vigorously. Add in the vinegar and vanilla, and mix until well combined.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes.
6. Let cakes cool completely before removing from the pan.
7. When ready to assemble, cut each cake in half to create 4 thinner cake layers.
8. Make the frosting- in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the shortening and vegan butter and beat until creamy. Add in the vanilla, strawberry powder, and sprinkle of salt, then add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time until frosting is fluffy but stiff. Add a few drops of pink food coloring as desired.
9. To assemble, place one of the cake layers on a serving platter or cake circle.
10. Pipe a circle of frosting on top of the cake, close to the edge, then place the sliced of fresh strawberries inside, covering the whole surface. Repeat with the remaining cake layers.
11. Using an offset spatula, smooth the rest of the frosting on top and outside of the cake. For the naked cake look, I use a bench scraper and scrape off all the excess so that some of the cake layers show through the frosting. Otherwise, you can keep the frosting thicker for full coverage. You should have more than enough! Be sure to reserve some frosting for the piped decorations on top.
12. Place the cake in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before putting on the ganache.
13. While you wait, make chocolate-covered strawberries. Simply melt some vegan chocolate chips in the microwave, and dip some washed/dried strawberries in halfway. Place on a piece of parchment or wax paper to set.
14. When ready to decorate, combine the chocolate chips, corn syrup, and milk in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 15 second increments until smooth and melted. I like to pour my ganache into a squeeze bottle to get the drips! Go around the edge of the cake to make the drips first, then go back and fill the center with the remaining ganache. You'll more than likely have some left.
15. Place the cake back in the fridge so the ganache can set before adding on the additional frosting.
16. Finish the cake by frosting around the edge with a large star tip, and top with the chocolate covered strawberries. Refrigerate until ready to serve!

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