Where the Wildly Good, Dairy-Free Baked Things Are.

I'm not sure what exactly sparked my desire to bake this week, but it was some combination of the following:

• The birthdays of Nicole, her roommate Morgan, and Morgan's sister, Adrianne
  
• The onset of fall and the desire to fill the house with the smell of baked goods


• There was no room in the freezer for my ice cream maker


• I just really like baking.

Whatever the reason, I did some Internet searching and finally decided on this recipe for vegan pumpkin spice cake!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup soy margarine, softened to room temperature (myself and most vegan recipes recommend Earth Balance)


• 1 cup brown sugar


• 2 egg replacers (Ener-G works the best, but a 1/2 cup of apple sauce works, too)


• 1 cup plain pumpkin (canned or fresh)


• 1 tsp vanilla extract


• 2 cups unbleached flour


• 2 tsp baking powder (reduce to 1tsp if using Ener-G)


• 1 tsp baking soda


• 1/2 tsp salt


• 1 tsp ground cinnamon


• 1 tsp ground ginger


• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg


• 1/4 tsp ground cloves


• 1/2 cup soy buttermilk (add 2tsp vinegar to 1/2 cup soy milk, stir to curdle)

Instructions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350*


• In a large bowl cream together margarine and sugar, about 2-3 minutes


• Add egg replacer and mix well


• Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla until well incorporated


• In a separate bowl sift together flour, baking soda, baking flour, salt, and spices


• Alternate mixing in dry ingredients and milk until well incorporated


• Pour into cake pans and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few crumbs

Frosting:

• 1 cup tofu cream cheese (Tofutti's Better-Than-Cream-Cheese is the easiest to find)


• 1/3 cup vegan margarine


• 3 cups powdered (confectioner's) sugar


• 1 tsp vanilla extract


• Beat together until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes

Notes:

• Brown sugar brings a lot of extra moisture, for a slightly drier cake use 1/2 cup brown and 1/2 cup white.


• Using Ener-G will ensure your cake will rise correctly. Apple sauce works great, but egg replacer is better.


• Buy good canned pumpkin. Opening, cleaning, steaming, and pureeing fresh pumpkin is not worth the extra two hours of work.


• If you use unbleached all-purpose flour, which is likely, be careful not to over mix the batter


• Other spices are welcome in the mix, or up the quantities of the four above for a spicier cake


• I added in about 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips at the end. Chocolate, pumpkin, and spices are a great fall taste.


• Orange food coloring in the frosting is definitely encouraged


• I was able to make 18 cupcakes from this recipe, they baked in 15 minutes


• I topped each cupcake with a sliver of candied ginger

I've baked a few things in my time and I'm also hyper critical of everything I make, but these cupcakes turned out capital-A-mazing! Moist and rich with a hint of pumpkin and flavor and the chocolate chips took these from great to super-great! And for any non-believers, the taste and texture of this cake should convince vegan skeptics of the potential of dairy and animal free baked goods.

... wish I'd taken pictures.