VGF Lemon Cake

I rarely meet my own expectations when it comes to cooking. Sure, the things I make taste good, but they almost never taste exactly as I had imagined. This cake is one of those exceptions. I can't do it justice in words, so you'll just have to try it yourself to see what I mean. This recipe makes two dozen cupcakes or two 10in rounds.

Vegan Gluten-Free Lemon Cake (adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World)

1 can coconut milk (not light)

2t apple cider vinegar

1c vegan butter (you could also use canola oil)

1 1/2c sugar

1t vanilla

zest of 1 lemon

juice from 1 lemon

3T tapioca starch (you could use cornstarch or potato starch)

1 1/2t baking powder

1t baking soda

/2 t salt

1c oat flour

1c sorghum flour

1/2c white rice flour

water (1/2cish)

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 350.

2)Pour the milk into a bowl and add the apple cider vinegar. Mix and let sit for a few minutes.

3) Melt the butter and mix it, the sugar and the vanilla into the coconut milk mixture. Add the lemon zest and juice.

4) Add the dry ingredients and mix. I usually add everything but the flour and mix, then add the flours.

5) Mix in water until the batter is decently thin - I find thinner batter rises better.

6) Bake for 20 minutes (I didn't actually time it) - when it looks done and a toothpick comes out clean, leave it in for a few more minutes. It's a very moist cake, so if you want it drier leave it in longer.

7) Let it cool, then top with lemon glaze (recipe below). Wait for the glaze to set before serving.

Lemon Glaze

2c powdered sugar

1T non-dairy milk

1T lemon juice

2T corn syrup (next time I'll try agave)

Mix all the ingredients together. These measurements are guesses - taste it and see if it needs more of anything. It shouldn't be too runny, but too thick and it's impossible to spread. Just play around with it until it works.

Rainbow Cake Roll

I got the idea for this cake roll here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBvo7RVSEvk
Unfortunately that roll is extremely not vegan (5 eggs and 3 types of dairy), but I was determined! My biggest worry was that the cake needs to be very sturdy, and vegan, gluten-free things sometimes have difficulty with staying together. Not to worry - chia seeds to the rescue! I actually think I used too many (3tbsp), so this recipe has fewer, but feel free to experiment. Also, be warned, this recipe uses quite a few dishes.

Vegan Gluten-free Rainbow Cake Roll Recipe
2tbsp chia seeds in 1/2c water (I used whole chia seeds, you could also use ground)

3tbsp other egg replacer (I used 1tbsp each of potato starch, arrowroot and tapioca starch) in 6tbsp water

1c vegan butter, room temperature
1 1/2c sugar
1c almond milk plus extra
1tsp vanilla extract
1/4tsp almond extract

1c tapioca flour
1/2c corn flour
1/2c white rice flour
1/2c sorghum flour
2t xanthum gum
salt
1tsp baking powder
1tsp baking soda

Rainbow food coloring

Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
1/4c vegan cream cheese
1/4c vegan butter, room temperature
1/4tsp vanilla extract
3c powdered sugar (this is a guess, I just add until it's a good consistency

Directions 
Preheat the oven to 375.

Soak the chia seeds in the water. In a food processor, blend the other egg replacer ingredients with water; ideally it should start to look foamy, but it might not. Cream the butter and sugar with a hand mixer. Add the almond milk and extracts and cream some more. Add both the egg replacer mixtures and mix with a spoon. Mix together the flours, xanthum gum, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl, then add them to the batter and mix. You might need to add more almond milk to get a thinner batter; the chia seeds seem to soak up quite a bit of liquid.

Once you have a good consistency, separate the batter into 6 different bowls and color them. Using plastic bags, pipe the colors in order onto a pan lined with parchment paper in rainbow order. You can do straight stripes like in the video, or diagonals like mine. I made a 9x12 cake, and had enough extra batter to make 7 rainbow cupcakes.

Bake at 375 for 15ish minutes, until it looks solid and a toothpick comes out clean. The cake might puff up a lot, but it will shrink a bit while cooling. Flip the cake onto another piece of parchment paper and roll it up while it's still warm, then make the frosting.

Cream together the butter, cream cheese and vanilla with a hand mixer. Add powdered sugar until the frosting is the consistency you want; you can add more cream cheese, butter, or even nondairy milk if necessary.

When the cake is cool, unroll it, then frost the inside, and roll it back up. I cut mine in half so it would more easily fit on a plate. Enjoy!

Super Bowl Cake

I know it's been forever, but I did want to share this Super Bowl cake. I made three thin layers, stacked them on top of each other, and frosted with green and yellow frosting. The goal posts are made from straws. Delish!