In Germany, one of the most popular cakes at birthday parties is Kalter Hund – which translates to ‘Cold Dog’. Apparently it’s known as a Hedgehog Slice in the UK, but since I’m writing this post out of nostalgia, and also because ‘Cold Dog’ is a MUCH funnier name for a cake, I’m going with a vegan Kalter Hund.

The recipe is more or less fail-safe and super simple. Vegan Kalter Hund is a great recipe to try with the kids, since there’s no actual baking involved. Assembly is straightforward enough to get the toddler involved, but is also a huge mess, which ups the fun (until you’re cleaning up, that is). Plus, even if it goes completely wrong, the results will still be delicious. Biscuits and chocolate combined just can’t ever truly fail, can it!? Although if for whatever reason that isn’t your thing, I have lots more vegan baking recipes to have a look at, too!

How do I make vegan Kalter Hund?

There are a few things to note with this cake to give yourself the best chance of success.

• Firstly, it is 100% necessary to eat this chilled, otherwise it kinds of just falls apart. It isn’t called Kalter Hund for nothing
• Secondly, if you follow only one instruction from the method below, make it the one about lining your loaf tin with greaseproof paper*. If you try to make this in an unlined tin, you won’t ever be able to get it out
• Thirdly, you can play around with the types and ratios of chocolate you use. I used a mix of dark and vegan ‘milk’ chocolate* as this is closest to the original recipes I grew up with, but some people use all dark, with a higher ratio of coconut oil, or all milk. It’s up to you. I also really like to drizzle it with white chocolate at the end!
• Finally, make this your own. It’s a really basic recipe, so you can experiment to your heart’s content. Personally, I really want to try this with vegan white chocolate and chocolate biscuits. Also, I think a ‘birthday cake’ version with lots of sprinkles would be cool! If you try anything creative with this recipe, please do share in the comments – I want to hear all about it!

What ingredients do I need for vegan Kalter Hund?

To be honest, not many! But as always, the higher quality your ingredients, the better your finished products. I like to save on the biscuits and spend a bit more on the chocolate, personally.

• Any rich tea biscuit will do, but if you want to go traditional, a finger-shaped biscuit rather than a round one is best. Alternatively, you can also go for a wholemeal biscuit to add at least *some* nutrients… but honestly, it’s cake, who cares
• There are so many vegan milk chocolates available now, but the best ones are the ones that aren’t too sweet. I really like Nomo*, Moo Free, and Happi Oat.
• For coconut cream, you really just want the solidified part of a can of coconut milk. A while ago, I read that you should put the can in your fridge upside down. That way, when you turn it back over and open it, the cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the liquid. Simple, but life changing

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