Allergy friendly. cupcake happy!

Cake for breakfast!

Lately, I’ve been experimenting with different recipes that I can make for the holidays. This cake can be the star of your breakfast table on Christmas morning. It would also be great as dessert, perhaps with a scoop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream or a dollop of Coconut Whipped Cream (see recipe here).

I got the original recipe for this cake from my mother-in-law. I’ve searched the internet for the original source, but I have been unable to find it. While I don’t know whose grandmother wrote this recipe, I figure that any recipe that has “Grandma’s” attached to the front of it has got to be pretty tasty…but not allergen-free. Step in Cupcake Love!

Allergen-free baking tests

I’ve done a few different tests with this recipe. The first time I made it, I got rid of the eggs by using EnerG Egg Replacer as directed on the package. Works just fine. But lately my favorite egg substitute to experiment with is coconut yogurt. Use 1/4 cup non-dairy yogurt for EACH egg. Works great! I like the coconut yogurt because it is easier (no pre-mixing required) and adds a subtle new dimension to the flavor.

For the gluten-free test, in addition to substituting the eggs with non-dairy yogurt, I used gluten-free flour in order to eliminate the wheat. Keep in mind when baking without eggs and gluten, non-dairy yogurt is going to be the better option for the egg substitute rather than EnerG Egg replacer since the non-dairy yogurt seems to bind the ingredients together better. In each test, the cakes turned out wonderful.

For me, baking has always been fun, and sometimes challenging, especially when eliminating allergens. But when you get delicious, show-stopping goodies as the end result, the challenge is definitely worth it. Enjoy!

Grandma’s Apple Cake
Adapted from Mary Ray’s recipe, original source currently unknown

1 c. canola oil
1/2 c. non-dairy yogurt (I used So Delicious vanilla coconut yogurt)
1 3/4 c. sugar, plus another 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
2 c. all purpose flour (see below for gluten-free option*)
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon, plus another 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3 peeled and chopped baking apples (I like Gala and Fuji, but this time I used apples from our Aunt Elaine’s tree!)
1/2 c. chopped pecans or walnuts, optional (I use NOW Foods brand, which are packaged in a peanut-free facility).

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 13×9 pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine canola oil, coconut yogurt, 1 3/4 c. sugar, vanilla and apple cider vinegar. Mix thoroughly and set aside.
3. In another bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and 1 tsp. cinnamon.
4. Stir dry mixture into wet mixture. Mix well. The batter will be very thick.
5. Add apples and nuts and mix thoroughly.
6. Spread mixture into prepared pan.
7. Combine remaining 1/2 c. sugar with remaining 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly on top of cake.
8. Bake one hour until tester inserted near center of the cake comes out clean.

Baker’s tip: At the time of an apple harvest, you can peel, core, and slice the apples ahead of time, then freeze in freezer bags. Before freezing, I coat the apples with lemon juice to prevent them from browning. Then, when it is time to bake, I take the prepared apples from the freezer, give them a quick chop, and add them to my batter.

* Gluten-free option: Substitute the all-purpose flour with 2 cups gluten-free flour blend, plus 1 tsp. Xanthan Gum (Check the label, as some GF flour blends already contain Xanthan Gum. In that case, do not add additional Xanthan Gum). I’ve found when I make gluten-free desserts, the kind of flour used definitely makes a difference! When I tried the gluten-free version of Grandma’s Apple Cake, I used King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi Purpose Flour, which does NOT contain xanthan gum. The gluten-free cake had a nice crumb, which was not too chewy or spongy. I’ve also used Better Batter brand gluten-free flour (the one in the pink box) with excellent results.