Here's another excellent vegan chocolate cake (another one here) zhujed up with some cherries in the chocolate ganache. A 3-tiered cake means business! Thanks to Nadia Lim for the foolproof recipe. She says you can use any liquid but coffee gives more depth and richness to the cake.

2 1/2 c self-raising flour or plain flour with 3 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 c cocoa

1 1/2 c sugar (I used coconut)

1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt

2 c coffee, water or milk (I used decaffeinated coffee)

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp vinegar (I used apple cider)

3/4 c neutral oil (I used rice bran)


Cherry or berry jam


Ganache:

200g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

1 c coconut cream

can of pitted cherries, drained and pat dry (keep the liquid for smoothies or jellies)


Preheat oven to 180. Line a 23cm round tin with baking paper. You can use 2 sponge tins or I used 3 x 20cm sponge tins.

In a large bowl whisk the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda and salt. In another bowl whisk the coffee, vanilla, vinegar and oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.

Pour into your tins and bake for about 30 min for one large cake or around 20 for smaller cakes. The cake should come away from the edges of the pan and spring back when you press gently in the centre. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tins.

To make the ganache: Put your chocolate pieces in a bowl. Heat the coconut cream in a small saucepan over low heat until just bubbling. Pour into the chocolate and mix together with a spatula until fully incorporated. Place in the fridge to thicken, at least 2 hours.

Once your ganache has reached the thickness for spreading, transfer 1/2 to 2/3 to a separate bowl. Chopped the cherries and mix in.

Spread jam on your bottom cake layer then spread with your cherry ganache. Top with the next cake layer and repeat. Spread the top of your cake with the plain ganache. Decorate with chocolate scrolls or shards or fresh fruit, as you wish.