Easy Soy-Free Chocolate Cake

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Hello! Welcome to Beyond Soy!

One of the worst parts of being soy-free is that it is hard to find soy-free desserts. Desserts just happen to be pretty likely to use breads and oils, which often contain soy, and as a result, they are pretty much not an option when eating out. Adding to the problem, many home-baked desserts are made using a boxed mix which also often contains soy (in the form of soy flour and/or soybean oil). 

Since we discovered Ashley’s soy intolerance, we’ve been baking more desserts from scratch at home. It is surprisingly easy! After you assemble the ingredients, it really isn’t any harder than making a boxed cake mix.

image via pixabay

image via pixabay

One more piece of good news: Cocoa is soy-free! This means homemade chocolate flavored desserts can be safe to eat! We’ve previously talked about the challenges with chocolate and soy lecithin. Since many desserts include chocolate, they are often off the table. But, since powdered cocoa is soy-free, it is a great option for adding that chocolate flavor into your homemade dessert.

Today we are going to share a great (and easy!) recipe for a delicious, moist chocolate cake that is completely soy-free! This recipe actually comes from the Hershey’s (Special Dark) Cocoa container. It is easy to follow, not too complex, and creates a great looking and great tasting cake! Top it with some soy-free chocolate frosting (either homemade or store-bought: yes, frosting in a can/tub can often be soy-free!) for a fantastic dessert.

For the Cake: (2 9-inch round tiers)

image via pixabay

image via pixabay


What you’ll need:

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa (we use Hershey’s Special Dark)
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil - make sure to use canola oil!!!
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup boiling water

What to do:

  1. Heat oven to 350 F
  2. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans
  3. Stir sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
  4. Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla
  5. Beat on medium speed with mixer (or quickly by hand) for 2 minutes
  6. Stir in boiling water (batter will be runny) and pour into baking pans
  7. Bake 30-35 minutes (until a toothpick comes out clean)
  8. Cool 10 minutes, then remove from pans
  9. Cool completely before frosting


For the Frosting: (~2 cups frosting)

image via pixabay

image via pixabay

What you’ll need:

  • 1 stick butter - make sure to use real butter!!
  • 2/3 cups cocoa 
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla

What to do:

  1. Melt butter
  2. Stir in cocoa
  3. Add powdered sugar and milk in small amounts, alternating between the two while mixing quickly
  4. Stir in vanilla