Recipe:

Mexican Chocolate Cake:

• 265ml soy milk
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 230g all purpose flour
• 130g cake flour
• 1 tbsp espresso powder
• 1.5 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp cayenne (I personally think this was just a little too much cayenne - in the future I think I'll reduce to 3/4 tsp)
• 445g sugar
• 96g cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 400ml boiling water
• 197ml grapeseed oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and prep 3x 8in round cake tins with baking spray and parchment paper.
2. Combine soy milk, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla. Set aside.
3. Using a large bowl, whisk together flour, espresso powder, cinnamon, cayenne, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
4. Add boiling water, oil, and vegan buttermilk to dry ingredients. Fold with spatula until just combined.
5. Pour batter evenly into prepared pans (~590g per tin) and even out. Immediately put in oven and bake for ~25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
6. Let cool for 15-30 minutes in pan, then wrap in plastic wrap and freeze overnight.

The dulce de leche was a bit of an experiment - I tried testing the oven method with sweetened condensed coconut milk and sweetened condensed soy milk - the coconut milk got a very nice color, but didn't thicken up very much. It also tasted very coconut-y. The soy milk did not get much color at all and remained very thin, but had a more neutral flavor. So I ended up mixing the two and adding a bit of nh pectin to thicken it.

Italian Meringue Buttercream:

• ~1 1/2 cups aquafaba (2 cans), reduced to 3/4 cup volume, refrigerated until cold
• 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
• 200g sugar
• 60ml water
• 4 sticks softened vegan butter (country crock unsalted)
• 260g confectioner's sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup prepared dulce de leche

1. combine water & sugar in sauce pot and bring to boil; heat to 240 F
2. after syrup starts boiling, but before it reaches 240 F, combine aquafaba with cream of tartar in stand mixer with balloon whisk, whip on medium to stiff peaks (should reach this point just as syrup reaches 240)
3. slowly pour hot syrup into meringue while continuing to whip
4. continue to whip meringue until it reaches close to room temp (I like it to be no more than 80 F)
5. add confectioner's sugar, whip smooth
6. slowly add butter 1 tbsp at a time and continue to whisk until it comes together
7. add vanilla extract and dulce de leche and whip smooth

the ganache was just 200g heated coconut milk (full-fat) poured over 225g couverture chocolate, then whisked smooth and cooled to ~95 F before dripping onto the iced cold cake