Triple layer chocolate cake (dairy and egg free/vegan)

I'm having a wee bit of a love affair with Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero, the authors of my current favourite recipe book Vegan Cupcakes take over the World.  They are amazing vegan cooks and have produced one of the best cupcake recipe books I've come across.  This is a Triple Layer Chocolate Cake based on their basic chocolate cupcake recipe which was the first recipe I tasted from the book and which blew me away!
 
Its been a busy Easter weekend and I baked this for my Hubby and Brother in law's birthday celebrations yesterday.  Happy Birthday guys! xx
 

Ingredients
2 cups soy milk
2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder (I currently use Asda's own brand)
1 1/2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt


Icing

130g Pure Spread
70g Trex
400g Icing sugar
3 tbsp soya milk
1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder

To decorate:
Dairy free chocolate chips (I used Moo Free which are AMAZING!)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and line three 6 1/2 inch (16 1/2cm) cake tins with baking paper. Run a little dairy free spread or oil around the edges to prevent sticking.

2. Measure out the soy milk in an easy read measuring cup, and place in a classic batter bowl. Measure the vinegar using an adjustable measuring spoon and whisk together with the soy milk using a stainless whisk, and set aside for a few minutes to curdle. (This is home made dairy free buttermilk)

3. Measure out the flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, and salt using the easy read measuring cups and adjustable measuring spoon.  Sift together in a separate stainless mixing bowl. (Or if you are lazy like me use your whisk to remove lumps while mixing it all together.)

4. Add the sugar, oil and vanilla extract to the soy milk mixture and beat with the whisk until foamy.

5. Add the flour mix slowly to wet ingredients and beat with your whisk until no large lumps remain (a few tiny lumps are okay).


6. Pour into the tins, putting slightly less in one of them, to be the middle layer.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a stackable cooling rack, tip upside down, remove tins and baking paper and turn right way up to cool completely.

7.  Once the cake is cooled cut off any high spots to even out the base and middle layer, and make up the icing without the cocoa powder:  Cream the Pure and Trex together until smooth in a stainless mixing bowl with a mix n scraper then add the milk and icing sugar and beat hard for a couple of minutes until smooth.

8. Spread the bottom layer of cake with icing, add the middle layer and spread icing on this too. Add the cocoa powder to the remaining icing and beat well.  Spread this over the top of the cake with a large spreader and decorate with dairy free choc chips or dairy free smarties.

Thank you to Carolyn Figg a fellow Pampered Chef consultant for the Trex magic!