Tag Archives: Cake

Apricot Bread

25 Sunday May 2014

Posted by in Bread, Cake, Traditional, Vegan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

This Apricot Bread was inspired by a couple of my Nana’s recipes. Her “Granny cake” which is an Irish style bread cake a bit like a big sweet scone that has sultana’s in it. The other recipe was her light Soda bread that was made with a sweet milk as opposed to a normal buttermilk/ sour milk one. I am not a huge sultana fan but don’t mind the less sweet dried apricot.

Apricot Bread 

  • Two thirds of a cup of chopped organic unsulphered apricots approx. seventeen apricots
  • One and a half cups of wholemeal spelt flour
  • Half a cup of oat bran. I actually made it with half a cup of buckwheat flour this time but it wasn’t as nice.
  • Three rounded teaspoons of baking powder
  • Two dessertspoons of rapadura sugar
  • Two dessertspoons of caster sugar
  • One generous teaspoon of vanilla powder/ vanilla extract in with the wet ingredients
  • Zest of an unwaxed orange
  • A pinch of sea salt
The dry stuff!

The dry stuff!

  • A quarter cup of dark agave
  • A quarter cup of sunflower oil (one suitable for frying)
  • Two thirds of a cup of soya/ almond milk (you could put a little orange juice in and reduce the milk a bit)
  • Seven drops of an orange oil suitable for food use/ A teaspoon of a good orange extract
  • A few dessertspoons of fine maize meal for sprinkling on top
The wet stuff!

The wet stuff!

Preheat your oven to 200C / 390F. Prepare a loaf tin. I use a normal pound loaf tin though the measurements may seem small for that. It will not expand like a ballon to the top of the tin, but don’t worry it isn’t meant to.

Chop your apricots and put them to soak in a cereal bowl of water.

Soaked apricots

Soaked apricots

Grab a mixing bowl and start putting in your dry ingredients, pausing to sieve the baking powder.

In another bowl (or jar in my case) put in your wet ingredients.

Pour the wet into the dry. Gently mix everything together, be carefully not to overwork. Once your ingredients are combined fold in the soaked apricots.

Dark Battter! Haha bad pun ;-)

Dark Battter! Haha bad pun 😉

Pour the batter into the cake tin, making sure it is even.Sprinkle the coarse maize meal onto. The maize meal will prevent it from burning. Put a few diagonal slashes on top to help with the rise.

Place in the centre of your oven. After five minutes turn the oven down to 180C / 350F.

It is done when it is coming away from the sides and a golden brown colour. It will take a minimum of thirty minutes, do not be tempted to take it out before then. I have a fan oven and it takes thirty five minutes , it could take forty five in a non fan. While writing this I forgot about the aforementioned Apricot bread and nearly burnt it. When you take it out leave it sit for five minutes. Wrap it in a clean towel and leave it to cool for another fifteen minutes. I leave mine cool on the windowsill. If you cut it while it is warm the texture can turn gummy. This is what will probably happen mine, since I cut it so I could take a photo!

Apricot Bread

Apricot Bread

Try it toasted with coconut oil. It is reaaaally good. Xs Aissa

Gluten Free Lemon Cake

20 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by in Cake, Cupcakes, Gluten Free, Uncategorized, Vegan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

So my lovely” detox healthier me” plan went a little astray over the weekend. I was away with my sister and much fun was had, but a few alcoholic beverages were also had. 🙂 I had some superfood powders with me and took lots of spirulina so I was quite good really. In my holistic approach it is not healthy to be too strict either and it is rare I get too spend time with my big sis! So I am back on track again I will preparing myself a wheatgrass shot shortly.

For all you guys not detoxing here is a Lemon Cake! It is vegan (obviously), gluten free and sweetened with agave. The icing/frosting is made with icing/ confectioner’s sugar. But there are some alternative options as the bottom of the post in regards to sugariness.

Gluten free Lemon Cake 

  • Two thirds of a cup of soya/ coconut yogurt. Some coconut yogurts are very set so feel free so add a little coconut milk if nessacary.
  • One teaspoon of apple cyder vinegar
  • Juice and zest of one and a half organic unwaxed lemons

Mix these ingredients together and leave to sit and curdle while you prepare the other bits.

  • A generous half a cup of dark agave
  • A third of a cup of a light sunflower oil. I found I had run out of sunflower when I went to make this. I melted four scant dessertspoons of organic cold pressed coconut oil instead. The coconut oil changed the texture, it was more set than crumbly but tasted just as good.
  • A quarter cup of apple and strawberry puree. You could just use apple if you like.
  • One teaspoon of sieved cornstarch.

Mix these together in order, sieving in the cornstarch and then giving everything a quick whisk.

  • One and a half cups of fine maize meal
  • Half a cup of ground almonds- almond flour.
  • One teaspoon of vanilla powder. If you are using vanilla extract add it to the agave.
  • A pinch of sea salt
  • One teaspoon of baking powder
  • Half a teaspoon of bread soda/bicarbonate of soda/ baking soda. So many names for it!!

Preheat your oven to 170C / 340F if a fan oven, prob 180C/350F if not fan.

Prepare a 7.5 inch / 20cm cake tin. Put a square of baking paper in the centre and lightly grease.

Mix your soya yogurt, apple cyder vinegar and lemon juice. Leave to one side

Get a bowl and mix your agave, oil and fruit puree. Sieve in your cornstarch and give it a whisk for a minute.

In another bowl put in your maize meal, add your ground almonds and press out any big lumps. Add your vanilla powder and salt and give the ingredients a mix. Sieve in the baking powder and baking soda- I always sieve these as it is pretty horrid to come across a lump of them in your lovely cake. Now mix everything again!

Add your yogurt mix to your agave mix and give it a quick whisk. Quickly yet gently add your dry ingredients to the wet. Lightly fold the dry in, just until they are combined. NO OVER MIXING and leave your worries and tension to one side so you do not beat the cake batter up! Pour the batter into your cake tin and put it straight into your oven. Heed the advise, if you over mix the cake will be dense and will not rise.

It takes 30 minutes in my fan oven but it could take 35 in a normal one. It is done when it starts to come away from the sides, there are little cracks on the top and it is going a light golden colour. If it looks good take it out and stick a skewer in it, if it comes out dry then your cake is done. Leave it in the tin for 10 minutes to cool. Gluten free goodies can be a bit delicate and crumbly while warm. Treat it kindly when you turn it out to cool on wire rack.

delicately balanced on my windowsill!

delicately balanced on my windowsill!

If you were to serve it as little lemon fingers I think you could get away with just squeezing a little lemon juice on top. This was a birthday cake for one of the guys I work with. He doesn’t mind a bit of sugar so I made a Lemony icing!

  • Two and a half dessertspoons of coconut oil- mashed
  • Half a cup of icing / confectioner’s sugar – seived
  • Half a teaspoon of vanilla powder or the scraped insides of a vanilla pod
  • Juice and zest of half an organic unwaxed lemon
  • One dessertspoon of warm water – cold water would make the coconut oil re-solidify.

Mash the coconut oil, sieve in the icing sugar and vanilla, mush mash and press so the fat is taken up by the sugar. Add your lemon juice and zest and give it another good mix. If it is still not forming a smooth spreadable mix you can add a dessertspoon of warm water. Make sure your cake is completely cooled before putting your icing on. I put a few little bits of lemon skin on a decoration.

Iced- in a slightly untidy manner and sitting in the morning sunshine. :-)

Iced- in a slightly untidy manner and sitting in the morning sunshine. 🙂

If you prefer your sugar in the agave fructose form I have made an icing with agave and coconut oil and arrowroot in the past. Elena’s pantry has one almost exactly like mine. The only adjustment I would make for this cake is reduce the coconut milk by a few dessertspoons and add the juice of half a lemon instead. http://www.elanaspantry.com/coconut-cream-frosting/

Hope you try it out. Xs Aissa

Nana’s Coffee Cake turned Vegan

21 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by in Cake, Cupcakes, Gluten Free, Traditional, Vegan

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

So there’s a style of coffee cake that seems to be particular to Ireland ( though I’m open to correction on this ) anyhooow my Grandmother made a rockin’ coffee cake and I really wanted to veganize it. I also made it moderately healthier. The Irel Coffee essence mentioned here has been around in Ireland for donkey’s years and is a mixture of coffee, chicory and sugar you can use a good strong coffee extract instead. So here is what you will need…
A mug or cup measures. I tend to just use the one mug for everything, like I’ve said before as long as you use the same mug it will all be in proportion.
A 20cm/ 7.5 inch cake tin and some baking paper to line it.

Dry ingredients

  • A third of a cup of sunflower / rapeseed oil (canola)
  • Half a cup of apple and apricot puree – I buy an organic one by a brand called Clearspring, if you are amazing you can make your own. You could also use plain apple and use apricot yoghurt and just switch the measurement about.
  • A quarter cup of coconut/ soya yoghurt – you could use apricot flavour to intensify the fruitiness or I must insist on apricot flavour if you are using half a cup of this and a quarter cup of puree.
  • A third of a cup made up of 3 dsp of raw rapadura sugar (i.e. turninado ) and the rest Xylitol
  • 4 tsp of Irel Coffee essence or 4 tsp of good quality coffee extract use (use 3 if your coffee extract is strong)
  • One round teaspoon of cornstarch

Wet ingredients

  • A half a tsp of vanilla powder or a tsp of vanilla extract but if using extract put this in with the wet.
  • One cup of fine maize meal
  • One generous cup of ground almonds
  • Two round teaspoons of baking powder
  • A quarter teaspoon of baking soda
  •  A pinch of sea salt ( if full Irish granny mode throw a pinch of your left shoulder too )

Making it

Preheat your oven to 180C/ 350F. Prepare your 20cm / 7.5inch cake pan, this size pan makes a low cake. this is perfect if you want to make a two layered cake without the hassle of cutting through cake slices. If you prefer a higher rise just use a cake tin a size smaller.
First a get a bowl and put in your oil, fruit puree, yoghurt and coffee extract. Grab a sieve and sieve the cornstarch, now put your sugar and xylitol into it, I always sieve my rapadura sugar but is hard work sieving xylitol so even if you just sieve out the lumps in the sugar it should be sufficient. If using vanilla extract add it now. Give it all a good whisk.

Get another bowl and put all the dry ingredients into it. Make a well in the centre and pour your wet mixture into this. Gently fold the mixtures together, be nice to it, you just want to get rid of any floury lumpy bits. If you are too rough or over mix you will knock the air out and end up with a dense cake.

Pour (or push cos it’s thick) the batter into your cake tin making sure it is evenly spread. Place in the centre of the oven

After 5 mins turn down your oven to 170C/ 340F. It takes 23 minutes in my Uber fan oven it could take 25 or even 30 depending on your oven. You will know it is done when it is coming away from the sides maybe little cracks are starting to appear ontop, also when you stick with a skewer it should come out dry. You will get to know your oven, like I have to put everything on the right hand side cos the left is too hot.

So you could leave it like this, slice it into fingers and have it with tea or coffee. But to really finish it off it needs to be iced (frosting). Just make sure it has cooled down first!

Icing

This is like a soft royal icing or a butter-cream.

  • Two dsp of organic raw coconut oil
  • 1 tsp of Irel coffee essence or good quality coffee extract
  • Half a cup of icing sugar ( confectioner’s sugar )
  • Two dsp of hot water
  • Eight walnuts for decoration

Get a bowl and add your coconut oil and mash it until soft. Add your coffee essence/ extract and mash again. Now add your icing sugar, really get in there to make sure really mixed together, use the back of your spoon to press out any lumps. Now add your hot water, it is important that it is warm, cold water will make the coconut oil re-solidify. Mix to a nice smooth spreadable texture.

Put on your cake and arrange the walnuts to decorate.

Pre- icing, a certain someone had some while I was waiting for it to cool

Pre- icing, someone had some while I was waiting for it to cool

Here is the finished thing!

So much nicer iced

So much nicer iced