Vegan Chocolate Coffee Layer Cake for Easter!

• Serves about 8
• Preparation time : 1 hour
• Rest time : 1 hour
• Cooking time : 30 minutes

Sponge cake

• 150 g applesauce (5.3 oz)
• 120 g vegan heavy cream (4.25 oz)
• 195 g caster sugar or brown sugar (7 oz)
• 80 g vegetable oil (suitable for cooking) (3 oz)
• 130 g unbleached flour t-45 (4.5 oz)
• 35 g cocoa powder (1.25 oz) (5 tbsp)
• 7 g Phos-Free Baking Powder
• 45 g dairy-free milk (almond milk, coco, soy, etc.)
• ¼ tsp. salt

Ganache

• 400 g dark chocolate (14 oz)
• 400 g vegan liquid cream (14 oz)
• 1 handful coffee beans
• ½ teaspoon fleur de sel

To soak

• 2 expressos

• In a bowl, combine applesauce, cream, milk, and oil and mix well. Then add sugar and salt until well blended. Finally, add the sifted flour and cocoa.
• Stir gently and pour into a baking pan lined with parchment paper such as a 14 cm round pan.
• It is best to divide the dough and bake three sponge cakes at the same time. If you decide to only bake one large sponge cake, use a tall pan and increase the cooking time.
• Bake at 180°C for thirty minutes (or up to 50-60 min if you bake all at once) depending on the thickness, and let it cool.
• If you are making one large cake instead of three layers, you will notice that the cake will swell a lot. Wait for the sponge cake to cool completely before cutting.

• The day before, grind the coffee beans with L’Arbre à Café Coffee Mill (grind 14-5), then combine the cream and coarse coffee powder in container. Cover with cling wrap and let it rest overnight in the refrigerator. Once this process is completed, filter the coffee through a strainer or coffee/tea filter.
• In a saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer.
• Crush the chocolate with a knife and pour the cream over in a large bowl.
• Using a rubber spatula, stir in a circular motion through the batter from the center without incorporating too much air until combined. Let the ganache sit and harden at room temperature. To save time, you may also put it in the refrigerator to cool. But, make sure it stays somewhat soft.
• Grind the coffee beans in your coffee grinder and to prepare a strong espresso. If needed, use a serrated knife to level the surface of the cake. Place the cake in the coffee and allow soaking in. Spread a thin layer of ganache over each cake.
• At the end, the ganache must still be easy to work with: cover the edges of the cake with the ganache, then the top. Depending on what tools are available, skills and ideas you may not need to use a pastry bag. You can simply use a spatula to spread the ganache and then garnish with candy eggs, paper decorations, etc. if desired.

Enjoy with a good espresso!