Babycakes Covers the Classics: Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes From Donuts to Snickerdoodles (16 page)
Read Babycakes Covers the Classics: Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes From Donuts to Snickerdoodles Online
Authors: Erin McKenna,Tara Donne
Tags: #Non-Fiction, #Health
Chill the cake for 20 minutes to harden chocolate glaze.
Serves 15
I’m hoping this cake doesn’t need much introduction. It’s one of those recipes for which a photograph speaks clearly and perfectly to its mega-rich glory. I will add, however, that even though a German chocolate cake is not as recognizable without its beloved pecans, you can easily omit them if you are allergic and still achieve the same delicious experience. If you want to add a little crunch and you have extra time on your hands, you can fold in graham cracker crumbs from the
S’mores recipe
along with or instead of the pecans.
BASIC CHOCOLATE CAKE
2 cups white or brown rice flour
½ cup potato starch
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup arrowroot
1½ tablespoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
1½ cups agave nectar
1 cup melted refined coconut oil or canola oil, plus more for brushing
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
⅓ cup vanilla extract
½ cup hot water
GERMAN CHOCOLATE ICING
3 cups
Vanilla Icing
, chilled in the refrigerator for 4 hours
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, plus more for sprinkling
¾ cup chopped pecans, plus more for sprinkling (optional)
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two 9-inch cake rounds with parchment
paper, brush with coconut oil, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, potato starch, cocoa powder,
arrowroot, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt. Add the agave nectar,
coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla and mix with a rubber spatula until fully
incorporated. Add the hot water and mix until a loose batter forms.
Divide the batter evenly between the pans, bake for 15 minutes, rotate, then
continue baking until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 15
minutes more. Let cool in the pans on a rack for 45 minutes. Run a knife around the
edges of each pan and invert onto a cake plate or the counter. Allow to cool for 1
hour.
While the cake cools, in a medium bowl stir together the Vanilla Icing,
coconut, and pecans, if using, with a rubber spatula. Set aside.
Place one layer of the cake on a serving plate and pour half of the icing on
top, allowing it to drizzle down the sides. Place the second cake layer on top. Pour
the remaining icing on it, allowing it to drizzle down the sides. Sprinkle the top
of the cake with the additional coconut and pecans, if using.
Serves 10
Once you’ve got a go-to cake recipe in your arsenal, it’s much easier to tailor it to your tastes than you might think. Here are a few suggestions for how you might manipulate the recipes included in this section so they become your very own.
German Chocolate Cake
Is coconut something you are not into? Do nuts of any stripe mean a helicopter ride to the emergency room? There are solutions. While the crumblings of a drier variety of cookie can stand in for the texture you lose by omitting the nuts, coconut is by and large irreplaceable in the traditional German chocolate cake, distinct as it is. I do, however, occasionally replace the coconut mixture with a favorite vegan toffee (there are lots of incredibly simple recipes found online!) and pretend I’m enjoying a slice while nestled in a ski lodge high in the Bavarian Alps, if that counts. It’s not the dictionary definition of a German chocolate cake, sure, but last I looked they don’t even grow coconuts in Germany, so who’s to say?
Italian Rainbow Cake
If you’re not familiar with Italian rainbow cake, you can easily wave any other patriotic colors you like. For Fourth of July festivities, simply replace the yellow with the vanilla cake, amp up the red so it is no longer pink, and swap the green for blue … you’ve got your USA party cake! Do you hate almond or maybe even raspberry? Switch them out for hazelnut and chocolate for a Nutella-like cake that’ll make you feel like you’re in Rome.
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
This cake is ripe for switching to any stone fruit that’s in season. Charlotte, a longtime BabyCakes NYC customer, dropped me a note suggesting we switch to peach when the season came around, and now we’re hooked! Get down to the farmer’s market and see what you can do.
CAKE
If you are having a party, I suggest this cake for two important reasons. First, you can make it up to a week ahead so you can focus on all the party duties you put off until the last moment. Second, there is not a person alive who doesn’t love ice cream cake. (If you find someone who says he/she doesn’t like ice cream cake, you can be pretty sure he/she is an insecure liar and I suggest you steer very clear of him/her.) I’ve really come to like the raspberry, vanilla, and chocolate combo, but there are absolutely no constraints on the flavor pairings with this one, and you can swap the layers around if you want.
One 9-inch layer of
Basic Chocolate Cake
½ pint vegan gluten-free raspberry ice cream (or flavor of your choice), softened
2
Chips Ahoy! cookies
, crushed
¼ cup vegan gluten-free chocolate chips
1 pint vegan gluten-free vanilla ice cream, softened
Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform cake pan with wax paper and line the
sides with plastic wrap. Set aside.
Slice the cake in half horizontally and separate the layers. Place the bottom
half of the cake in the prepared pan. Transfer the raspberry ice cream to a medium
bowl and fold in the cookies and chocolate chips. Spread the raspberry ice cream
over the cake with a rubber spatula. Place the remaining cake layer on top. Spread
the vanilla ice cream on top. Smooth with the back of a spoon. Pour chocolate sauce
over the top and let it run down the sides. Freeze, covered with plastic wrap, for
at least 4 hours. Release the cake from the pan, and remove the plastic wrap and wax
paper.
Serves 8 to 10
Six-Layer Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Preserves
Even though this cake is visually a stunner, it’s probably the easiest cake you will ever make. Don’t worry about putting too much filling between the layers; the messier the preserves and chocolate glaze get, the better.
1½ cups melted refined coconut oil or canola oil, plus more for brushing the pans
2 cups brown rice flour
1½ cups sorghum flour
2 cups vegan sugar
2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup potato starch
½ cup arrowroot
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 tablespoon salt
2½ cups unsweetened applesauce
1 cup agave nectar
½ cup vanilla extract
1 to 1½ cups hot water
2 batches
Sugar-Sweetened Chocolate Dipping Sauce
3 cups raspberry preserves
Line three 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper, brush with coconut
oil, and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, the sugar, cocoa powder, potato
starch, arrowroot, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt. Add the
1½ cups coconut oil, the applesauce, agave nectar, and vanilla and mix with a
rubber spatula until fully incorporated. Add 1 to 1½ cups hot water and mix
until a loose batter forms.
Divide the batter evenly among the pans and bake for 20 minutes, rotate, then
continue baking until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20
minutes more. Let cool in the pans on a rack for 45 minutes. Run a knife around the
edges of each cake pan and invert onto a cutting board.
To assemble, place one cake layer on a serving plate and cut it in half
horizontally. Separate the layers. With a palette knife, spread a thin layer of the
chocolate dipping sauce over the top, followed by ⅔ cup of the preserves.
Place the remaining half on top and repeat with the remaining layers. Pour the
remaining chocolate sauce over the top of the cake, allowing it to drizzle down the
sides.