Chai-Spice Cake Recipe

A fluffy vegan cake infused with the spices of Chai tea, and topped with a decadent vanilla bean buttercream.

Ingredients

• 2 cups minus 2 tbsp vanilla almond milk
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3 cups unbleached cake flour
• 1/2 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups raw sugar, processed until fine
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup brewed chai tea
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Vanilla Bean Frosting

• 2 cups (4 sticks) vegan butter, at room temperature
• 3 1/2-4 cups powdered cane sugar, sifted
• 1 vanilla bean, split down the middle and scraped
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-2 tablespoons vanilla almond milk (optional)

Directions:

For the Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the apple cider vinegar and almond milk. Set aside (make sure it sits for at least 5 minutes).
3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, beat together the sugar, oil, and chai tea. Stir in the vanilla and almond extracts.
5. Alternate adding the flour and the almond milk to the batter, starting with the flour. Before adding the last splash of almond milk, mix the batter enough to eliminate any lumps. Add the remaining milk, mixing until just combined.
6. Grease two 9-inch pans and line with parchment paper. Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Let sit in the pan for at least 10 minutes before carefully flipping onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the fridge until you’re ready to frost.

For the Frosting

1. Beat the vegan butter until creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar to the butter, scraping the sides with a spatula as needed.
2. Mix in the vanilla bean and vanilla extract. I added about 1 tablespoon of almond milk at this stage, but you can vary the amount of liquid based on your consistency preference. Whether adding milk or not, beat the frosting for another 2-3 minutes until whipped and creamy.

To Frost the Cake

1. Place one cake half on a piece of parchment paper. Spread about 1/2 cup of frosting on the top of the cake, then top with the other cake half. Cover the cake with a thin layer of frosting (this will be your crumb coat). Place the cake in the fridge for another 30 minutes to allow the crumb coat to set.
2. Remove the cake from the fridge, and cover with another layer of frosting. You can be done now, or you can place the cake in the fridge for another half hour, and then add another layer of frosting. I added a third layer and then used a fork to make hatch marks in the sides of the cake.

Source: veggieandthebeastfeast.com

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