Vanilla Cake with Banana-Coconut Frosting (Sugar-Free)

Well, it's been almost two weeks since 2013 started, and I still haven't eaten any (refined) sugar. I don't really agree with the concept of "new years resolutions", however, I have been making several decisions lately for my physical and mental health, and one of them has been to cut back on sugar. As you can probably tell, I not only have a major sweet tooth, but I also love to bake. That puts me in a bad situation as I've realized cane sugar has some pretty noticeable side effects for me; it gives me terrible migraines, heartburn, mood swings, and fatigue. Also I'm sure it's not particularly beneficial for my psoriasis (or Crohn's!). So I'm trying to stop eating refined sugar, or cane sugar, except maybe the occasional treat on a birthday or holiday. I've been hearing a lot of nasty stuff about agave nectar lately, so I doubt I'll be using that much either (which is such a bummer considering it's so much cheaper than the other alternative sweeteners). I still eat maple syrup and brown rice syrup, but hopefully some day I will cut back significantly on my intake of those too; I'm taking this one step at a time.

This cake is pretty fantastic, if I do say so myself. Not only does it taste great, but it's the perfect consistency (not even a sugar-eating omnivore would be able to guess it's sugar-, egg-, and dairy-free!). Even if you choose to use a different frosting, this cake a fabulous base. It can easily be doubled (or tripled!) to make a layer cake. This recipe is modified from the book More Great Good Dairy-Free Desserts Naturally, but I changed it enough that I feel okay posting it. The frosting recipe was inspired by this recipe by Chocolate Covered Katie, only I changed it somewhat, mostly because coconut butter is definitely not sold near me and my food processor is not cooperative when I try to make my own. It's not exactly the prettiest color in the world, and I would recommend decorating the top with coconut. Of course, if you're not so strict about avoiding sugar, you could use a different frosting, but this stuff really does have a good flavor and I would recommend trying it. 

Vanilla Cake

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons canola oil, or other mild-tasting oil
• 5 tablespoons pure maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1/2 cup non-dairy milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1) Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly oil a circular 8-inch cake pan.

2) In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

3) In another medium bowl, mix together oil, syrup, milk, vanilla, almond extract, lemon zest, and vinegar until completely combined. 

4) Add liquids to flour mixture and stir until combined and no lumps remain.

5) Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

6) Cool on a wire rack in pan for 10 minutes, then carefully remove from pan and let cake rest on rack until completely cool.

Meanwhile, prepare frosting:

Banana-Coconut Frosting

• 1 overripe banana
• 2/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (okay I have to admit I didn't measure this at all, so have at least 1 cup available, but you might not need it all)
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup, or more, to taste
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• dash of cinnamon
• dash of salt

1) In a blender or food processor, blend banana until smooth. 

2) Add 2/3 cup coconut flakes and combine. At this point, it should be about the consistency of frosting (not smooth, obviously, because of the coconut, but the same thickness); if it seems too liquidy to be spread on cake, add a bit more coconut. 

3) Add maple syrup, extracts, lemon zest, and salt and mix until combined. 

4) Refrigerate until ready to use (it tastes best cold).

To assemble cake, frost with banana frosting, then sprinkle on some extra coconut flakes and lemon zest. 

Enjoy immediately or refrigerate until serving.

 

Pumpkin Muffins (Refined Sugar-Free)

 
So this morning - a Saturday - I woke up early without meaning to, and randomly had too much energy to fall back asleep. And this is weird because 1) I don't wake up early on Saturdays and 2) I don't have energy when I wake up early on Saturdays. But I thought I'd make the most of my time, so I baked these muffins, then cleaned the kitchen and some of the house, and painted a picture, and basically just had a productive morning. The muffins are really good. I'll admit it's pretty much the pumpkin muffin recipe in Vegan With A Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, just with a bit of tweaking to make it with unrefined sugars. The turbinado sugar is optional, so feel free to omit it and the molasses if you don't eat sugarcane products at all. I think if you wanted to add some chocolate chips or carob chips to the batter, it definitely wouldn't hurt.

Pumpkin Muffins (Refined Sugar-Free)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• dash of salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 5/6 cup agave nectar or maple syrup (okay, weird measurement, I know...just do your best)
• 1 cup pureed pumpkin (fresh or canned)
• 1/3 cup non-dairy milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil or other mild-tasting oil
• 2 tbsp molasses
• 1/4 cup turbinado sugar, optional

1) Preheat oven to 375° and lightly oil a twelve-muffin tin.

2) In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and spices. Set aside.

3) In a medium bowl, mix together the agave, pumpkin, non-dairy milk, oil, and molasses.

4) Add pumpkin mixture to flour and mix until completely combined and batter is smooth.

5) Pour batter into muffin tins (fill each tin about 3/4 full). If using turbinado sugar, sprinkle about 1/2 to 1 tsp on each muffin.

6) Bake for 20-24 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center of muffin comes out clean. 

Serves 12

an update + a fabulous granola recipe

Well I am very disappointed that it's been so long since I've posted a recipe here, and that I was unable to finish the Vegan Month of Food. I'm actually pretty surprised that I managed to stick with it as long as I did. Hurricane Sandy hit Maine last Monday afternoon, and we lost electricity almost immediately. Obviously I couldn't cook anything until it came back on Wednesday. 

I made these on Tuesday when there was still enough daylight (still had the help of some candles though). Basically I chopped the apple into slices and cut out a chunk on the peel side for a mouth. Then I filled some of the mouths with peanut butter and some with jelly. I added some almond slivers for teeth and raisins for eyes (glued on with a bit of peanut butter). I made these with the general idea of this recipe, only I didn't have internet so I couldn't actually use the post as a reference, so mine turned out much differently (but I'm glad they did because they're much cuter than they are spooky). It was a nice Halloween snack.

On Thursday my parents and I left for a road trip to North Carolina, to go to my cousin's wedding. It was such a good week! The weather was perfect, I got to see all my cousins, and the wedding was absolutely beautiful. I met his bride at the wedding for the first time and she was so sweet, I'm very glad she's now a part of our family.

When I go on long car rides, I tend to get hungrier than usual and bring lots of energy-filled snacks to keep me going. I never travel without Clif Bars, or any energy bar, because you never know when one might come in handy (I'm not even joking though. When I went to Europe last summer I brought like 5 boxes of Clif Bars and my friends made fun of me at first, but eventually they were jealous). I also bring fruit and veggies, peanut butter, granola, and herbal popcorn (or whatever flavor popcorn is currently my favorite). I've found that at hotels, the breakfasts aren't usually vegan-friendly (or whole food-friendly), but if you know what to do, it's more than satisfactory. There's almost always oatmeal you could eat - add a little more water instead of adding milk and stir in some peanut butter (best to use your own since the hotel's PB will be filled with HFCS and other mystery ingredients) or syrup (if it's good syrup). Sometimes I bring a cooler with me with almond milk, which I use with the oatmeal or cereal (which, by the way, you can eat with orange juice if you really want). The hotel will also have toast or bagels, which you can eat with PB or jelly. Another idea is just to slice up an apple or a banana and eat it with peanut butter. I obviously like peanut butter a little too much.

On this trip though, I ate granola with orange juice for breakfast pretty much every day, and it was such a great way to start the day. Now that I'm looking at the ingredients, I realize it's actually pretty loaded with sugar, but oh well, that's probably why it tastes so fantastic. Haha, at least it doesn't have refined sugar! If you're gluten-free, just make sure the oats are too! :)

Energy-Packed Granola

• 2 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 1/4 cup chopped or sliced nuts (I used 3/4 cup sliced almonds + 1/2 cup chopped walnuts)
• 1/3 cup seeds (I used a mixture of sunflower and sesame seeds)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup canola oil or other mild tasting oil - or melted coconut oil if you want that flavor
• 3/4 cup liquid sweetener (I used 1/2 cup maple syrup + 1/4 cup agave nectar)
• 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips, optional

1) Preheat the oven to 300°. 

2) In a large baking dish or a 9 by 12" baking pan, stir together oats, nuts, seeds, coconut flakes, and salt. Add oil and sweetener and stir until completely combined.

3) Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Return to oven and bake for another 10 minutes. Again, remove from oven and stir.

4) Add raisins and stir in (the granola will still seem sticky but don't worry, it will get crispy when it cools!). Once the granola is completely cool, you may mix in the chocolate chips, if using.

Makes about 6 cups