Indulge Guilt-Free: The Ultimate Vegan Maple Pecan Cake with Decadent Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting
Experience pure delight with this exquisite vegan maple pecan cake, elegantly crowned with a rich chocolate cashew cream frosting. Naturally sweetened with wholesome maple syrup, this treat offers a delicious yet subtly healthier indulgence for any occasion.
Embrace Healthier Indulgence: Why This Vegan Maple Pecan Cake Shines
While I initially baked and photographed this delightful maple pecan cake before the festive season, sharing it in January feels particularly appropriate. As many of us seek lighter, more wholesome options post-holidays, this “healthier” cake offers a wonderful solution without compromising on taste. It’s a testament to the fact that delicious desserts can also be kind to your body and your dietary choices.
The beauty of this recipe lies in its thoughtful use of ingredients. Both the moist maple pecan cake and the luxurious cashew cream frosting are naturally sweetened with pure maple syrup, making the entire creation free from refined sugars. To ensure it remains entirely refined sugar-free, simply opt for a dark chocolate that contains no added refined sugar for the frosting. Let’s be clear, it’s still cake, brimming with flavor and satisfaction, but for those who prefer to minimize or eliminate refined sugars from their diet, this recipe is a dream come true!
The Vegan Maple Pecan Cake: A Symphony of Flavors
Prepare your taste buds for an absolutely delicious experience. The inherent sweetness and unique caramel notes of maple syrup infuse the cake with a truly lovely depth of flavor. This richness is perfectly complemented by the earthy, buttery crunch of pecans, which are folded directly into the batter. A warm embrace of aromatic spices—cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg—elevates the cake, creating a comforting and inviting profile that evokes cozy autumn days or festive winter evenings. Each bite delivers a harmonious blend of sweet, spicy, and nutty undertones, making this cake a standout in its own right.
The Decadent Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting
Beyond the incredible cake layers, the chocolate cashew cream frosting truly steals the show. It boasts an unbelievably creamy, smooth, and rich texture that rivals any traditional buttercream. What’s more, it offers a far more nutritious alternative, packed with healthy fats from cashews and naturally sweetened. This frosting is made by blending cashews, which have been softened by soaking, with maple syrup, coconut oil, non-dairy milk, vanilla extract, and a touch of cider vinegar. The key to its exceptional smoothness lies in using a powerful blender, such as a high-speed vacuum blender. Such equipment ensures the cashews are pulverized into an incredibly silky, lump-free cream, creating a truly luxurious base. Once blended to perfection, melted dark chocolate is stirred in, adding a profound depth of flavor and a beautiful, glossy finish. A brief chill in the fridge allows the frosting to firm up to the ideal spreadable consistency, ready to elegantly coat your cake.
Elevate Your Cake with Maple Pecans
While entirely optional, I highly recommend topping this maple pecan cake with a scattering of extra maple pecans. These candied pecans aren’t just a garnish; they provide a delightful textural contrast and an extra burst of maple-infused sweetness and crunch. They add another layer of sophistication and make each slice even more irresistible. The slight crispness of the pecans against the soft cake and creamy frosting creates a truly memorable bite, enhancing the overall experience and visually completing this stunning dessert.
Step-by-Step Guide to Baking Perfection
Crafting the Maple Pecan Cake Layers
The journey to a perfect maple pecan cake begins with combining your dry ingredients. Sift together all-purpose flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), and a pinch of salt. Sifting ensures an even distribution of leavening agents and spices, resulting in a lighter, more uniform crumb. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: pure maple syrup, your favorite unsweetened non-dairy milk, unsweetened apple sauce, melted coconut oil, and cider vinegar. The apple sauce contributes moisture and acts as a natural sweetener, while the cider vinegar reacts with the baking soda to create lift, ensuring a tender cake.
Carefully incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, whisking until just combined. Overmixing can lead to a tough cake, so be gentle. Finally, fold in a generous amount of chopped pecans, ensuring they are evenly distributed throughout the batter. Divide the rich, fragrant batter evenly between two prepared 20cm (8-inch) round cake tins. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, indicating the cakes are perfectly cooked through. Allow them to cool completely on a wire rack before frosting, as warm cakes will melt your beautiful frosting.
Whipping Up the Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting
For the ultra-creamy chocolate cashew frosting, start by soaking your cashews. Place them in a bowl and cover them with boiling water for at least half an hour; this quick method softens them effectively. Alternatively, for even silkier results, you can soak them overnight in cold water. Once softened, drain the cashews thoroughly. Transfer them to a high-speed blender along with maple syrup, melted coconut oil, non-dairy milk, vanilla extract, cider vinegar, and a pinch of salt. Blend on high until the mixture is incredibly smooth and creamy. You’ll likely need to stop and scrape down the sides of the blender a few times to ensure everything is fully incorporated and no cashew bits remain.
Once you have a perfectly smooth cashew cream, transfer it to a separate bowl. Melt your dark chocolate (ensuring it’s refined sugar-free if desired) using a double boiler method or in short bursts in the microwave. Stir the melted chocolate into the cashew cream until it’s beautifully combined and homogenous. For the ideal spreadable consistency, pop the bowl into the fridge for a short period, allowing it to firm up slightly. This step is crucial for achieving that perfect frosting texture for assembling your cake.
Making the Irresistible Maple Pecans
To prepare the optional but highly recommended maple pecans, begin by preheating your oven and lining a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the raw pecans with ground cinnamon, a touch of salt, a spoonful of coconut sugar, and a generous drizzle of maple syrup. Toss everything together vigorously, making sure each pecan is thoroughly coated with the sweet, spiced mixture. This coating will caramelize slightly in the oven, creating an incredible flavor and crunch.
Spread the coated pecans out in a single layer on your prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes, then remove them from the oven, give them a good stir to prevent sticking, and return them for another 5-10 minutes, or until they feel dry and crisp to the touch. Once baked, allow the maple pecans to cool completely on the tray before transferring them to an airtight container. This cooling process is essential for them to achieve their full crispiness. These delightful morsels not only make a fantastic cake topping but are also delicious for snacking!
The Magic of Unsweetened Applesauce in Baking
Unsweetened apple sauce plays a vital role in this maple pecan cake, contributing significantly to its incredibly moist texture while also acting as a natural sweetener and a healthy fat replacer. For those residing outside the United States, finding unsweetened apple sauce in regular grocery stores can sometimes be a challenge. While it might be available in health food shops or online, making your own at home is surprisingly simple and ensures you have a fresh, additive-free product.
Homemade Applesauce: A Simple Recipe
To prepare your own unsweetened apple sauce, begin by peeling, coring, and dicing two large Bramley apples (or any firm, tart cooking apples). Place the diced apples in a saucepan with the juice of half a lemon and 50ml of water. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently. Continue to cook until the apples soften completely and begin to break down into a mush. If the mixture appears too dry during cooking, you can add an additional splash of water, but be mindful not to add too much, as the goal is a very thick and concentrated apple sauce.
Once the apples are thoroughly soft, remove the pan from the heat. Use a potato masher or an immersion blender to process the cooked apples into a smooth puree. Allow the apple sauce to cool completely before incorporating it into your cake batter. Any leftover apple sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. It’s wonderfully versatile and can be added to other baking projects, stirred into pancakes or porridge, or simply enjoyed with yogurt. For longer storage, homemade apple sauce freezes beautifully, ready for future culinary adventures.
Tips for Storage and Making Ahead
How Long Does the Cake Last?
Once fully assembled, this delightful maple pecan cake is best enjoyed fresh. It will keep well for 2-3 days when stored in an airtight container. However, for optimal taste and texture, consuming it on the day it’s made is highly recommended. The maple pecans, while delicious, can sometimes become slightly moist over time, and the cashew cream frosting, though stable, won’t maintain its peak freshness indefinitely. If the weather is warm, it’s advisable to store the cake in the refrigerator to prevent the frosting from softening too much and to prolong its freshness.
Can You Prepare Components in Advance?
Absolutely! Preparing certain elements of this cake in advance can significantly streamline your baking process. The cake layers themselves can be baked a day or two before you plan to assemble the cake. Once baked and completely cooled, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and store them at room temperature. The candied maple pecans are also excellent for make-ahead preparation; they can be made a few days in advance and kept in an airtight container at room temperature, maintaining their delightful crunch.
While the chocolate cashew cream frosting is best used fresh for the smoothest application, it can be made and stored in an airtight container in the fridge a day in advance if absolutely necessary. Do note that it will become quite firm when chilled. To restore it to a spreadable consistency, you will need to gently warm it up. This can be done by letting it sit at room temperature for a while, or by very gently stirring it over a bain-marie (a bowl set over simmering water, ensuring the bowl does not touch the water) until it reaches your desired texture. Avoid overheating, as this can cause the frosting to separate.
Print
Maple Pecan Cake With Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting (Vegan, Naturally Sweetened)
Ingredients
Maple Pecan Cakes:
- 300 g (2 ½ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- ½ tsp salt
- 240 ml (1 cup) maple syrup
- 240 ml (1 cup) unsweetened non dairy milk
- 180 ml (¾ cup) melted coconut oil
- 125 g (½ cup) unsweetened apple sauce
- 2 tsp cider vinegar
- 120 g (1 ¼ cups) pecans chopped
Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting:
- 200 g (2 cups) cashews
- 120 ml (½ cup) melted coconut oil
- 60 ml (¼ cup) maple syrup
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) unsweetened non dairy milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cider vinegar
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 150 g (5oz) dark chocolate chopped
Maple Pecans:
- 200 g (2 cups) pecans
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp coconut sugar
- 3 Tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
Maple Pecan Cakes:
-
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Grease two 20cm/8inch round cake tins and line with baking parchment.
-
Sift together the plain flour, ground ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
-
In a separate bowl whisk together the maple syrup, non dairy milk, unsweetened apple sauce, melted coconut oil and cider vinegar.
-
Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet being careful not to over-mix then fold in the chopped pecans.
-
Divide the batter between the tins and bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave the cakes to cool in the tins for 10 minutes then carefully transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Cashew Cream Frosting:
-
Place the cashews in a bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside for half an hour to soak. Alternatively you can soak them overnight in cold water.
-
Drain the cashews really well then place them in a blender with the maple syrup, melted coconut oil, non dairy milk, vanilla extract, cider vinegar and salt and blend until extremely smooth and creamy. You will probably need to scrape down the sides of the blender a few times.
-
Melt the chopped chocolate, either in a heat-proof bowl over a pan of steaming water (don’t let the base of the bowl touch the water), or in short bursts in the microwave.
-
Transfer the cashew cream frosting to a bowl and stir in the melted chocolate until smooth. Pop the bowl in the fridge for a bit until it has firmed up a little and reached a spreadable texture.
Maple Pecans:
-
Preheat the oven to 160C/320F/gas mark 3. Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
-
In a bowl, toss together the pecans, cinnamon, salt, sugar and maple syrup. Make sure that the pecans are well coated.
-
Spread the pecans out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes then remove from the oven, give them a good stir and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes, until they feel dry to the touch.
-
Leave to cool on the tray then transfer to an airtight container.
-
To assemble the cake, place one of the cake layers on a serving platter and spread over half of the chocolate cashew cream frosting. Place the other cake layer on top and spread over the rest of the frosting. Top with the maple pecans and serve.
*I’m a Froothie ambassador and was sent the Optimum Vac2 to review. If you click on the above links and purchase one of their products I will receive a small amount of commission. All opinions are my own. I only recommend products that I love and use myself.