The Ingredients
I used gluten-free flour to make this vegan chocolate cake, like rice flour (you can choose between white and brown rice flour). Also, regular flour should work fine in this recipe.
I also added organic peanut flour from Bio Planete because it’s high in protein (it contains 58% protein!) and adds a very nice flavor. The buttercream is, of course, also vegan. I used margarine, but you can use any vegan butter instead.
And since this is a vegan peanut butter cake, I also included smooth peanut butter which made the frosting even more delicious.
This Vegan Peanut Butter Cake Is:
- Gluten-free
- Chocolaty
- Dairy-free
- Egg-free
- Rich
- Fudgy
- Plant-based
- Yummy
Related Vegan & Gluten-Free Desserts:
- Peanut Butter Truffles
- Peanut Butter Mousse
- Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
- Peanut Butter Crunch Bars
- Vegan Chocolate Pie
- Vegan Lava Cake

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup (240 g) rice flour white or brown (*see notes)
- 1 cup (150 g) coconut sugar
- 3/4 cup (70 g) cocoa powder unsweetened
- 1/2 cup (70 g) cornstarch
- 1/2 heaped cup (80 g) peanut flour (*see notes)
- 1 tbsp psyllium husk
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
Wet ingredients:
- 1 2/3 cup (400 ml) plant-based milk
- 5 tbsp (70 g) coconut oil melted
- 1/4 cup (80 g) agave syrup or maple syrup
Buttercream:
- 2/3 cup (150 g) margarine or vegan butter
- 2/3 cup (160 g) smooth peanut butter
- 1 cup (200 g) Erythritol or white sugar (see recipe notes)
- 1 1/3 cup (320 g) plant-based milk
- 3 tbsp cornstarch or potato starch
Instructions
- Put all dry ingredients into your food processor and blend for some seconds. Transfer the dry ingredients into a big bowl.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together in a bowl and pour them over the dry ingredients. Use a hand mixer or a whisk to mix everything together.
- Grease an 8-inch springform with some oil or line it with parchment paper. Pour the batter into the springform and bake it in the oven at 356 degrees F (180 degrees C) for about 40 minutes (check the center of the cake with a toothpick after 35 minutes to see if it's already done).
- Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes. Then carefully cut cake layers with a big knife. Note: If you have three 8-inch pans, then pour 1/3 of batter into each pan. This way you won't need to cut cake layers for the frosting. The baking time will be less if you use three pans (about 25-30 minutes).
- While the cake is in the oven make the buttercream: Process the Erythritol (you can use Xylitol or white sugar instead) in a blender or electric coffee grinder until it's a fine powder. Add milk and starch into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir constantly and let simmer for some seconds (it will get thick). Let cool.
- Meanwhile, use a hand mixer to whip up the margarine (vegan butter) in a big bowl. Slowly add the powdered sugar, 1 tbsp at a time until nothing is left. You can increase the speed of the hand mixer after a while. Add the peanut butter and once the milk/starch mixture has cooled, add it also slowly to the buttercream while you keep whipping the buttercream for a few minutes.
- Spread the frosting onto the cooled cake layers and assemble the cake. Put more frosting on top and on the sides of the cake. Decorate it as per your liking. Put the cake in the fridge before you cut it. Enjoy!
Notes
- Flour: Even though I never tried it, I am pretty sure that you can use regular flour (wheat flour) or spelt flour instead of rice flour.
- Sweetener: If you use white sugar you will probably need less (for example 150 grams because regular sugar is sweeter than Erythritol).
- Peanut flour: Any other nut flour should be fine.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
Hi Ela, this looks delicious, I can’t wait to try it!! Is it possible to substitute the cornstarch in the dry ingredients with tapioca or arrowroot? Thanks for your response!
Hi Vera, I think arrowroot should be fine. 🙂
Hi Ela,
Any idea on how to make it jut free as my kid is allergic to nuts (as well as egg and milk). Thanks
Hello Lucia. Use ground sunflower seeds, ground hemp seeds, or ground pumpkin seeds instead of the peanut flour. And use sunflower seed butter instead of peanut butter.
Hope this helps! 🙂
Great recipe Ela! I only made one layer in a 20 cm pan and it was really good. However It didn’t look like one of your layer, I don’t know why it was not as dark as yours!
Hi Eva, I am glad you liked it. Did you also add the cocoa powder? Maybe the color depends on the brand. 🙂
Hello Ela! I thought I did everything right, but I’ll go and check my recipe sheet later cause I’m not sure now xD But it was great even if I omitted it! Maybe because I used white rice flour also? Anyway, thank you again!
You are very welcome. 🙂
Hey Ella! I love your desserts I’ve made pretty much everyone! I haven’t made this cake yet and wanted to make my boyfriend his 21st cake. We aren’t really a fan of peanut butter, could I make the butter cream with almond butter instead and then do like a Black Forest cake? Or fill with whipped coconut cream and berries
Yes, both options sound great. You can definitely use almond butter instead of peanut butter. I haven’t tried to make the cake with whipped coconut cream and berries but it sounds like a nice idea. Enjoy! 🙂
THank you! I’ll let you know how it turns out! Was wondering if using mesquite powder instead of psyllium husk be a good substitute for a caramel taste?
Hi Georgie! You can add the mesquite powder in addition but please do not leave out the psyllium husk. 🙂
Hello Ela, thank you for your great recipes!! Do you think I can use Almond flour instead of Peanut flour?
Lots of love from Chile!
Hi Bianca, I think it should work just fine! 🙂
Hi Ela!
I don’t have rice flour on hand, what can I replace it with?
Thank you!
P.S. Love your recipes!
Hey! I made the recipe only with rice flour so I cannot tell you if any other flour will work. Buckwheat probably could work though. 🙂
How do I replace the psyllium?
You can try ground chia seeds. 🙂
How do i replace the husk ?
You could use 2 tbsp ground chia seeds or flax seeds. Hope this helps. 🙂
Wow Ela, this chocolate cake looks divine! Thank you for sharing the recipe! Dee xx
Thank you very much, Dee!! I am happy you like it 🙂
Peanut butter and chocolate is the best combo! Love the chocolate toppings on this cake too Ela!
Thank you, Jess! Yes choc and PB is the killer combo 😀
I like your recipes
Thank you very much 🙂