Friday, December 14, 2012

Orange Spice Cake (vegan, gluten-free)

This cake recipe was adapted from a recipe found in Cooking Light magazine, by Marge Perry. I've adapted to be vegan and gluten free, and I must say, it adapted very well. If you want a more dense cake, just increase the flax 'eggs' by one.

Remember to choose organic ingredients wherever available. It's worth paying the farmer for safe produce rather than the doctor for the side effects of GMOs down the road.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prep a square or round 8x8 cake pan (use a safe pan, we like DANNYSEO's eco pan) by coating it lightly with a vegan butter (like Earth Balance Soy Free) and dusting it with rice flour.

Spoon measure dry ingredients and combine well with a whisk:
1 cup organic brown rice flour
1 cup organic quinoa flour
1 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup raw organic cane sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 3/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp salt

In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients:
3/4 cup organic orange juice
2/3 cup organic coconut oil (warm lightly if solid)
1 Tbsp zest of organic orange rind
1 tsp zest of organic lemon rind
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 flax 'eggs'*

*Flax 'eggs' (egg replacement, incredible binder!) are made by combining 1 Tbsp ground flax seed with 3 Tbsp warm water and processing in the food processor for about 2 minutes. So for this recipe, you will need 3 Tbsp ground flax and 12 Tbsp water.

Combine wet and dry ingredients, mixing until smooth. Pour batter in prepared cake pan and bake in the center of the preheated oven for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes and remove from pan and place on a wire rack to complete cooling.

Glaze as follows when completely cool:
1/2 cup sifted organic powdered sugar
2 Tbsp organic orange juice (or to desired glaze consistency)
1/4 tsp organic lemon juice
Whisk together and drizzle over cake. Ready to serve!

*gluten free, soy free (when using a soy free vegan butter)