Transform a Box of Cake Mix and a Can of Soda Into a Luxurious Vegan Cake
No matter what dietary restrictions you have or what ingredients you avoid, you deserve a piece of cake. But vegan baking often requires stabilizers and other ingredients that most people don’t have in their pantries. However, cake mixes are typically egg and dairy free; Added eggs and/or butter will help. Luckily, you won’t need any of these things to make a cake using packaged mix. You just need a can of cola.
Really, with the exception of diet soda, any carbonated drink will do. Mix a can of your favorite soda or seltzer with one box of any flavor of cake mix, then pour it into a greased cake pan and bake as usual. You’ll end up with a moist, springy cake without any egg substitutes, gum, or chickpea liquid .
One thing to keep in mind is that with this trick you will only get half of a regular cake. A box of cake mix usually includes a few eggs, oil and sometimes water. A can of soda takes up much less space, which means you’ll only get one eight- or nine-inch-thick round layer instead of two. (It’s not the end of the world; I just don’t want you to be surprised.)
Soda and seltzer water, height and taste
I first saw this tip in a Facebook group dedicated to vegan recipes. As a Southerner, I’m very familiar with Coke in cakes, but the ones I grew up with are decidedly not vegan. In these soda-infused baked goods, the carbonation of the drink helps aerate the dough, giving it height. It also adds flavor. The cola I added to the box of chocolate cake mix enhanced its sweet, dark, and malty flavor, and a can of cherry-lime Polar Seltzer gave the box of yellow cake mix an unmistakable fruity-grainy note.
Bake a little longer for best results.
The texture of this cake is easy to read as “vegan” as it has a slightly gooey texture. When I first bit into the chocolate cake, I found myself biting off the ends more than the middle as the center was too springy for my liking. To combat this, simply bake the pie a little longer. You want a toothpick to come out completely clean, and be sure to let the cake cool completely before cutting into slices.
The finishing touches are critical
The Coca-Cola chocolate cake tasted great. All it needed was a dollop of whipped coconut cream , or maybe a vegan Brigadeiro frosting made with sweetened condensed coconut milk.
However, the seltzer cake was a little unbalanced. While Polar and its ilk are known for their subtle flavors, the cherry-lime seltzer was immediately noticeable when baked into a simple yellow pie. It was fruity, like Fruity Pebbles—almost cloying, without the carbonation flavor. It asked for acid, so I coated it with lemon simple syrup that I had in the refrigerator. This corrected the situation by adding a slightly sour, fresh and lemony note to the flavor profile.
Vegan two-ingredient cake
Ingredients:
- 1 box cake mix, any flavor
- 1 can of soda or seltzer, any flavor except diet
Preheat oven to 350℉. Once fully heated, pour the mixture into a large bowl, then add the soda or seltzer water and mix with a gentle folding motion to keep the dough as fluffy and fluffy as possible. Pour the batter into a greased 8- to 9-inch cake pan and bake for 35 to 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out completely clean. Let cool completely and then add vegan whipping cream or infused simple syrup.