Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook (91 page)

Read Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook Online

Authors: Isa Chandra Moskowitz,Terry Hope Romero

Tags: #food.cookbooks

½ cup vanilla soy yogurt
½ cup blended silken tofu (blend the tofu first, then
measure it out)
¾ cup vanilla or plain soy milk
1¼ cups sugar
½ cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon lemon extract, or ½ teaspoon grated
lemon zest
½ teaspoon orange extract, or ½ teaspoon grated
orange zest
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
 
PREHEAT THE oven to 325°F. Lightly grease and flour a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan. A metal pan with a dark finish is the best choice for this cake.
In a large bowl, combine the soy yogurt, blended silken tofu, soy milk, sugar, oil, and extracts. Use an electric mixture to beat until everything is smooth, about 2 minutes.
Sift in the flour, arrowroot powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir with a rubber spatula to combine, then beat with electric beaters for 1½ to 2 minutes, until a very thick batter forms. Don’t overmix.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Use the rubber spatula to scrape all of the batter out of the bowl and smooth the top of the loaf. Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick or thin sharp knife inserted into the center comes out clean (a little moisture is okay). Don’t open the oven to peek for at least the first 45 minutes of baking!
 
➣
This cake has a very thick batter and requires a well-preheated oven at just the right temp to rise properly. Allow the oven to heat for at least 20 minutes and, as always, use an oven thermometer.
 
➣
For best results, use a pan that’s no bigger than 9 x 5-inches. Using an 8 x 4-inch pan also works great.
Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then carefully transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing. Store the cake in an airtight container.
 
Variations:
Nut, Chocolate Chip, and/or Fruited Pound Cake:
Stir in ½ to 1 cup of any of the following: toasted chopped walnuts, chocolate chips, raisins, dried sweetened cranberries, dried chopped cherries (if using cherries, omit the citrus extracts and use 1 teaspoon of almond extract instead).
 
 
Lemon Pound Cake:
Use lemon yogurt and up the lemon extract to a full teaspoon. Reduce the vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon.
 
Rose Water Pound Cake:
Omit the orange and lemon extracts. Reduce the vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon. Add 1½ teaspoons of rose water.
PUMPKIN CRUMB CAKE WITH PECAN STREUSEL
 
MAKES 16 SQUARES
TIME:
1 HOUR 10 MINUTES
 
 
How does moist, sublime, spiced pumpkin cake get better? A crummy mess of pecan streusel topping would get our vote any day. Perfect for autumn high tea.
 
Pecan streusel:
¼ cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
(granulated sugar is okay, too)
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
 
Cake:
1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie
mix)
¾ cups soy milk
¾ cups canola oil
1½ cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons light molasses
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2⅔ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground allspice
⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
 
PREHEAT THE oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9 × 13-inch baking pan.
 
 
Prepare the streusel:
 
In a small bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, and spices. Drizzle in the canola oil and mix with your fingertips until crumbs form. Add the chopped pecans and mix.
 
 
Prepare the cake:
 
In a large mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, soy milk, oil, granulated sugar, molasses and vanilla. Mix well. Add roughly half the flour, the baking powder, salt, and spices, and use a fork to fold everything together. Add the remaining flour and mix gently until combined. Don’t use a hand blender for this, as pumpkin can get gummy if it’s mixed too aggressively. Blending with a fork helps maintain the texture.
Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it out with a spatula. Scatter the streusel on top as evenly as possible. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a knife inserted through the center comes out clean.
Remove from the oven, let cool, and cut into squares.
COCONUT-LEMON BUNDT CAKE
 
SERVES 10
TIME:
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES
 
 
Bundt
is a hilarious name for this variety of cake. Get past the silliness with the enticing combination of tangy, bright lemon and irresistible chewy shredded coconut, made extra moist with plenty of coconut milk. No need for an icing on this cake, which is bursting with extreme flavor. It’s so simple and good—just “slice and go”—but sprinkle with a little powdered sugar to dress it up.
1⅔ cups granulated sugar
⅔ cup canola oil
1 (14-ounce can) coconut milk
¼ cup rice or soy milk
¼ cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1½ cups shredded unsweetened coconut
A few tablespoons confectioners’ sugar for sprinkling
 
PREHEAT THE oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 8- or 10-inch Bundt pan.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the granulated sugar, oil, coconut milk, rice milk, lemon juice and zest, and vanilla. Stir to combine.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the wet ingredients in batches, mixing well after each addition. Fold in the coconut.
Pour the batter into the Bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until a knife inserted through the cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes, then place a cutting board over the cake pan, gently flip over, and release the cake from the pan. Let cool completely. One cooled, sift a sprinkling of confectioners’ sugar over the top. Slice and serve.
LOWER-FAT DEEP CHOCOLATE BUNDT CAKE
 
SERVES 12
TIME:
70 MINUTES
 
 
This is a wonderfully rich chocolate Bundt with a delicate crumb. And it delivers big chocolate flavor without a whole lot of fat. Fresh brewed coffee and almond extract heighten all that chocolate, and applesauce stands in beautifully for most of the oil. This cake doesn’t need a glaze or frosting, just a simple sprinkling of confectioners’ sugar.
 
➣
Whole wheat pastry flour leaves the fiber of the wheat intact without sacrificing any of the texture, but if you can’t find whole wheat pastry flour then regular all-purpose flour will do the trick. But don’t substitute
regular
whole wheat flour, it is different from pastry flour and will result in a rough and chewy texture.

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