Did I ever tell you about the day that I was appointed chief of detectives of the egg police? No? It was a several years ago before the blog, on Mr NQN's birthday and we were having dinner with the Elliotts (cue the music to Jaws please Mr Music). I had organised his birthday at a Japanese restaurant and I was busy trying to negotiate a second language which I barely speak and people were asking me all sorts of questions about the cake, the food they were eating and just general daftness. Then,there was a loud, dramatic gasp and then a cry from Mr NQN's mother Tuulikki who was sitting next to me. I had apparently let her eat a piece of okonomiyaki, an egg omelette. "Lorraine! How could you let me do that?" she asked me looking at me accusingly and hurt.
"But, but it looks like a pancake or an omelette ... and they are two things that you can't eat as they both have eggs!" I spluttered, my energy completely sapped from the whole experience. Apparently, unbeknownst to me, I had been appointed the chief of detectives of the "Egg Police" and was expected to watch what she would eat and warn her accordingly. From that day on I resigned my position and she was on her own. It was up to her to ask whether an item had egg in it and if she ate it, it washer responsibility.
I know she and I have our moments where the vegan clashes with omnivore but we do get along well as long as we aren't talking about food. And apart from being an entertaining and charmingly eccentric artist, she also created Mr NQN who is the most wonderful specimen of humandom.Anyway it was Tuulikki's birthday and I decided to make her an eggless, vegan chocolate cake.
Except I wanted people to have no idea that it was a vegan, egg-less or dairy-less cake. I wanted it to be moist, gooey and rich with an "eat me" texture to it - not like some vegan cakes that I had eaten which would err towards hard and dry. I baked the cake and decided the best way to keep it moist would either be to poke holes in it while it was still warm and pour a rich chocolate syrup on top or spread the syrup once cooled as a thick icing. Either way I think after much experimentation, wefinally had a vegan chocolate cake that could pass as a regular chocolate cake. It was rich and it had a moist, tender crumb - everything you could want in a cake yet this one had no eggs or dairy in it.
So it came to serving the cake. I asked Tuulikki if there were forks for people to eat the cake. Her brow wrinkled and she put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "I haven't been able to find my forks...." she mused before pausing for a second and then her hands sprung up into the air. "Eureka!" her expression said.
"Oh yes, the forks must be in the bedroom!!!" she said before scurrying off to look for them.
So tell me Dear Reader, do you have a good repertoire of vegetarian, vegan or allergy friendly recipes? And are there certain topics that you just can't discuss with some people like politics, relligion or food?
75g/2.5oz dark chocolate (dairy free) finely chopped
Chocolate syrup or icing
1/2 cup/125ml/4flozs water
1/2 cup/75g/2.7ozs icing or confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon cocoa
100g/3.5ozs dark chocolate, roughly chopped
Step 1 - Line a 20cm round baking tin with parchment and preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix together. In a jug mix the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla and then add to dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate and and then pour into the prepared tin. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Step 2 - While it is baking, prepare the syrup. Heat the water, icing or confectioners sugar and cocoa until boiling and syrup - this may take a few minutes but you do want this syrupy. When thick add the chocolate and then whisk to remove any lumps and melt the chocolate.
Step 3 - When the cake is ready, take out of the oven and leaving it in the tin, poke tiny holes with a skewer. While it is still warm, gently pour the syrup over the cake and allow to cool completely before taking it out of the tin. Alternatively, if you allow this to cool and partially set, it takes on the consistency of icing and you can spread it out over the top which is what I did (who knew that inattentiveness would pay off? ;) ).
Coconut oil. Coconut oil is widely used as an egg replacement in vegan baking and it's easy to see why. Once melted, this delicious oil will mix well into most batters, brownies and bakes. And it can be used to replace eggs when you're breading foods, such as tofu, before baking or frying.
Vegan cake is cake made without eggs, dairy butter or dairy milk. Each of these standard ingredients is easily replaced by plant-based substitutes, such as banana or flaxseed for eggs, non-trans fat margarine or oils for butters and plant milks for milk.
While some may worry about taste and texture when it comes to plant-based baking, rest assured vegan cakes can be just as moist and flavourful as conventional recipes – plus, they come with all the benefits of being cruelty-free.
If you add too much liquid to your cake batter, it may seem like a good idea to thicken it up again by adding extra flour. Usually, this will only make the problem worse and you'll end up with a gummy, dense vegan cake. To ensure best results, always follow the recipe as closely as possible.
Combine a tablespoon of ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of water, stir to combine, and let stand for 5 minutes to thicken. Ground flaxseed emulates eggs' binding qualities in breads, cakes, muffins, cookies, burgers, and vegan meatballs.
Flax Egg's are probably my FAVORITE egg substitute. They are made by combining ground flaxseed (must be ground) with water and letting it sit about 5 minutes until thickened. Using a Flax egg really replicates the consistency and texture of an egg and acts as a great binding ingredient.
Coconut oil is also a go-to for vegan baking. It doesn't have the ethical considerations of palm oil and can be used as a butter or shortening substitute for pastry. With a smoke point of 350 degrees or higher if refined, it's suitable for most baking temperatures too.
Lack of Eggs: Eggs provide structure, moisture, and leavening in traditional cakes. Vegan cakes typically replace eggs with alternatives like flax eggs, applesauce, or mashed bananas, which may not provide the same lightness and binding properties.
Vegan baking, on the other hand, omits all animal products. While baking without eggs and butter can seem daunting, it's not impossible. All it takes is getting familiar with the right substitutions, and you'll be whipping up cakes, cookies, cupcakes, and more in no time.
Why does an eggless cake turn bitter? (It is mostly the overuse of baking powder/soda, but it has happened twice, even after reducing the baking powder.) Yes , usually its because of baking soda , but if you are making a chocolate cake and using cocoa powder , excess of same could cause the bitterness to occur.
Just as with traditional cakes, vegan cakes still contain sugar and fat, which are key ingredients for creating that oh-so-satisfying indulgent treat. But they don't usually contain any more or any less of these ingredients than regular cakes.
I know it may seem strange to add vinegar to baked goods, but just think of it as a chemical reaction. The baking soda in your recipe needs a little acid to help it start reacting (bubbling). That's why recipes will call for things like lemon juice or buttermilk.
The mixture of vinegar and baking soda creates a foamy reaction, which happens to be perfect for more delicate vegan baking. I use this replacer in cakes (like the lemon wedding shower cake I made last month), delicate cookies, and when I need to make an egg replacer much less detectable in a baked good.
Because the ingredients of vegan cakes contain fewer calories than those of regular cakes, you have a lower tendency to gain weight while eating them. However, this depends on your amount of consumption. Like any other thing, eat vegan cakes in moderation.
Substitutes like vinegar and baking soda, plain yogurt or buttermilk can help keep cake light, airy and structurally sound. Replace each egg with 1 teaspoon of baking soda combined with 1 tablespoon of vinegar, ¼ cup of plain yogurt or ¼ cup of buttermilk.
Both yogurt and buttermilk are good substitutes for eggs. It's best to use plain yogurt, as flavored and sweetened varieties may alter the flavor of your recipe. You can use 1/4 cup (60 g) of yogurt or buttermilk for each egg that needs to be replaced. This substitution works best for muffins, cakes, and cupcakes.
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