
A magical vegan dessert that creates its own rich, velvety chocolate sauce while it bakes. This warm, gooey pudding is the ultimate comfort food for any chocolate lover and is surprisingly simple to prepare.
Preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan/gas mark 4). Lightly grease the base and sides of a small baking dish with a little dairy-free plant butter.
Prepare the sauce by sifting the cocoa powder into a jug and stirring in the caster sugar. Gradually whisk in 250ml of boiling water until the mixture is smooth and well combined, then set it aside.
For the cake batter, sift the self-raising flour and cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar and espresso powder until evenly distributed.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour in the melted plant butter, oat drink, and vanilla extract, whisking until the batter is smooth.
Gently fold the roughly chopped dark chocolate into the batter, then spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dish and level the surface.
Carefully pour the prepared hot sauce over the batter. To avoid disturbing the cake mixture, pour the liquid over the back of a large spoon held close to the surface.
Bake for 40–45 minutes. The pudding is ready when the sponge has risen and a skewer inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (be careful not to dip the skewer into the sauce layer at the bottom). Let it stand for 5 minutes before serving warm.
For the best flavor, use a high-quality dark chocolate with at least 70% cocoa solids. If you don't have espresso powder, you can omit it, but it helps intensify the chocolate flavor without making the pudding taste like coffee. Serve this warm with a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream or a drizzle of dairy-free cream.