Cakes

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F.
2. Line 3 x 8″ cake tins with parchment paper.  (I used 2 x 10” tins)
3. In a large bowl, add your Flour, Sugar, and Cocoa Powder.
4. Whisk these dry ingredients together until evenly mixed and no visible lumps in sight.
5. Pour in the milk, vanilla, oil as well and vinegar.
6. Gently mix with a spatula until smooth, but please do not over-mix.
7. Divide the cake batter evenly between the cake tins and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a cake skewer comes out clean.
8. Take it out of the oven and let it cool in the tins for a minimum of 20 minutes.
9. Place on a wire rack on top of each cake tin. 
10. Turn it upside down and voila the cake will gently drop onto the wire rack.
11. Now leave it to cool down fully.
12. Handle gently as they can break easily (I can attest to that) as they are very soft when still warm.
13. Let the cake settle down, if possible, leave it in the refrigerator for ½ hour or so if you must decorate the same day. 
14. I left mine overnight to decorate the next day, so it had enough time to settle and be completely cold.

Icing

1. Melt the chocolate in the microwave dish at short intervals.
2. I generally, start off with 1 minute, then beat the chocolate with a metal spoon and if needed then return it to the micro for 30 seconds at a time and beat thoroughly after each session until fully melted.
3. Set it aside to cool down slightly.
4. In the interim whip, the Vegan spread with a metal whisk until smooth and slightly fluffy.
5. Add ½ of the icing sugar and all the vanilla and beat until smooth.  Once done, add the rest of the icing sugar and blend properly to obtain a perfectly smooth mixture.
6. Now combine it with the melted chocolate and continue to beat till well incorporated and smooth.

Decorate

1. As I only baked two layers, I used just over 1/3 of the frosting on the first layer.
2. Then I added the top layer and spread it with more icing.
3. Keep enough icing aside for some piping or rosettes or whatever you prefer.
4. Decorate with fresh fruit and nuts as desired.
5. You can store this in a sealed container for up to 3-4 days if you’re lucky to have any left.
6. You can also use Vegan cream in between the layers if you wish.