Alternative Baking

Over the past year I have become a bit of a specialty/ alternative baker. Not really intentionally, it kinda just happened. From previous blog posts you may or may not know, but I have dabbled in gluten free baking. This past weekend I had a bride that requested a small sugar free cake for her wedding. Her father is a diabetic, but he loves his cake. She also had some vegans at the wedding, so I also made vegan cupcakes also.

I have made vegan cupcakes before and they were good, but the ones I made this weekend were GREAT. There are so many substitutes for eggs; chia seeds and water, flax seeds, banana purée, unsweetened applesauce, agar agar, the list goes on and on.

Im giving away my secrets here, but whenever I make my cakes or cupcakes I use vegetable oil instead of butter, its a personal preference. I prefer the consistency of the cake batter this way. That being said, butter is already out of the equation. There are so many substitutes for eggs; chia seeds and water, flax seeds, banana purée, unsweetened applesauce, agar agar, the list goes on and on.

When the recipe calls for milk you can use any non dairy substitute you’d like; almond milk, rice milk, coconut milk, I went with soy milk because that’s what I drink, and have on hand.
The first time I made these cupcakes I used the ground chia seeds and water substitute. I mixed the ground chia seeds with water and it instantly began to thicken. I added it to my batter and you could see the little specks of chia in it. When I baked them I noticed the batter didn’t rise as much as I would have liked, and again, you could see the black specks. Taste wise they got a 10/10 and the client was happy with the product!

This weekend when I made the cupcakes I decided to try making them with unsweetened apple sauce. The batter had a good constancy and it looked ” normal” When they were done baking they bounced back just like any other cake would. They tasted AMAZING. You would have no idea that they were vegan and hey, that’s the point right.

Here is my adapted recipe for vegan cupcakes and vegan frosting. Enjoy 🙂
Vegan Cupcakes
Cake Flour 12oz

Baking powder .75 oz

Salt .25 oz

Oil 6oz
Sugar 15 oz

Milk alternative 6oz

Vanilla 1tsp
Milk alternative 6oz

Egg 4 eggs ( 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce)
Method: Take the first four ingredients and mix in the stand mixer. Then add the next three ingredients, mix, then add the remainder of the ingredients. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again.

Bake as two 8 in cakes or cupcakes.

Bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick comes out clean.

Vegan Frosting