Double-chocolate lava cake with raspberry bourbon frosting
Some desserts are designed to behave themselves. Clean layers. Delicate sweetness. Restrained presentation.
This isn't one of them.
This cake is dense, dark, warm, and unapologetically excessive. Deep chocolate batter loaded with chunks of dark vegan chocolate, finished with a raspberry bourbon frosting that lands somewhere between frosting, glaze, and controlled chaos.
You can make this as a full cake, cupcakes, or smaller lava cakes depending on how dramatic you want dessert to become.
Food occupies an important place in my life. It wasn't always so. Growing up, I mostly thought of it as fuel. My family saw eating simply as something you had to do. I had little interest in cooking and gave almost no thought to ingredients, where food came from, or how our choices shape communities, cultures, and the environment around us.
Over the years, my relationship with food evolved and it became connected to hospitality, community, and everyday politics. Sharing meals, cooking for others, volunteering in people's kitchens, and choosing what ends up on the plate all carry values whether we talk about them or not.
Working in hospitality also changed how I think about food. Beyond the dishes themselves, I came to appreciate the atmosphere of kitchens, the teamwork, the banter, and the strange mixture of pressure and camaraderie that emerges when people work together to feed others. Much of what I value about hospitality lives there.
Everything I cook and share here will be vegan. Not because I expect everyone else to eat the same way, but because this is simply how I cook, how I live, and how I try to move through the world.
Good food should bring people together. A little excess every now and then doesn't hurt either.
The lowdown
Active prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 13–20 minutes for lava cakes or cupcakes, 35-45 minutes for a full cake
Chilling time: At least 1 hour for the frosting
Difficulty: Moderately chaotic
Equipment needed:
- Large mixing bowl
- Small saucepan
- Whisk or hand mixer
- Cake tin, muffin tray, or cupcake moulds
- Sieve or strainer (optional)
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- Cooling rack
Best served: Slightly warm, preferably with strong coffee and questionable self-control.
Ingredients
For the double chocolate cake:
- 360 g flour
- 6 tbsp cocoa powder (approx. 48 g)
- 240 g soft brown cane sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp vanilla powder
- 200 g dark vegan chocolate, roughly shredded
- 480 ml water
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 100 ml neutral oil
Optional:
- Extra chocolate chunks for molten centres
- Fresh raspberries for serving
For the raspberry bourbon frosting:
- 250 g raspberries
- 50 ml bourbon whiskey
- 450 g vegan cream cheese
- 115 g vegan butter, softened
- 480 g powdered sugar, sifted
- 50 g corn starch, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Method
- Prepare the raspberry bourbon reduction
- Add the raspberries and bourbon to a small saucepan over medium heat. * Cook slowly until the raspberries fully break down and the liquid reduces into a thick, jam-like consistency.
- Stir regularly so it does not catch at the bottom.
- If you want a completely smooth frosting, strain the reduction. If you prefer texture and a slightly rougher finish, leave it as it is.
- Set aside and allow it to cool completely.
- Make the cake batter
- Preheat the oven to 180°C.
- Grease a cake tin or line a muffin tray or cupcake moulds.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and vanilla powder
- In a separate bowl or jug, whisk together water, oil, and apple cider vinegar
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Fold through the shredded dark chocolate.
- Do not overmix. The batter should stay thick and heavy.
- Bake
- For a full cake, bake for approximately 35–45 minutes.
- For cupcakes or smaller lava cakes, bake for approximately 13–20 minutes.
- The exact timing depends on your oven and the size of the moulds. If you want the lava effect, remove them while the centre still feels slightly soft.
- For complete excess, press an extra chunk of dark chocolate into the centre before baking.
- Allow the cake to cool slightly before frosting.
- Make the frosting
- Beat the vegan butter until smooth.
- Add the vegan cream cheese and mix gently until combined.
- Mix in vanilla extract, salt, and cooled raspberry bourbon reduction
- Add the powdered sugar and corn starch gradually until the frosting reaches your preferred consistency.
- Taste and adjust if needed. Depending on the raspberries, bourbon, and how thick you want the frosting, you may prefer slightly more or less powdered sugar.
- Chill for at least one hour before spreading. I usually leave it overnight in the fridge. The flavour settles properly, the bourbon softens, and the whole thing comes together far better the next day.
To serve
- Spread the frosting generously over the cooled cake.
- Top with fresh raspberries, raspberry sprinkles, chocolate shards, or absolutely nothing at all.
- A small pinch of flaky sea salt over the top works surprisingly well and stops the sweetness from becoming too polite.
- Serve slightly warm if possible.
Notes
- The frosting can easily be made a day ahead.
- The batter works well for cupcakes, mini cakes, or layered cakes.
- The bourbon is present without dominating. If you want more warmth, add an extra splash after the reduction has cooled.
- The frosting sits somewhere between classic frosting and soft glaze depending on temperature - that's part of the charm.