Strawberry Cake

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

pinch of salt

2 tablespoons ground flax seed meal

3/4 cup lukewarm water

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup oil

3/4 cup sugar

10 strawberries, hulled and halved

Method

• Spray an 8" x 8" pan with baking spray and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  Combine the flax seeds with the water and stir for at least 30 seconds.
• Mix in the extract and oil, then beat in the sugar until everything is well combined.
• Stir in the flour with the baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
• Spread the batter into the prepared pan, and scatter the strawberries, skin-side up, over the batter.
• Bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Orange Banana Bundt Cake

Ingredients
2 1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 large orange (zested and juiced)
1/2 - 2/3 cup rice milk
Ener-G Egg Replacer equivalent to 2 eggs (2 Tb replacer + 1/4 cup boiling water)
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup apple sauce, unsweetened
1 large banana, sliced thin
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 F.
• Spray bundt pan with pam.
• In mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg.
• Add shortening, cut until mix is full of crumbs. Add orange zest.
• Add orange juice to a 1-cup measuring cup and fill it with the rice milk, to make 1 cup.
• Add juice/milk mix to the flour mix and applesauce. Mix it well.
• Add egg replacer and vanilla and mix.
• Add banana slices and stir gently.
• Pout into pan.
• Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Let it cool for 15 minutes before inverting.
  
  
  

Upside-Down Pineapple Cake

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup canola oil (can use 1/4 cup to make it lighter)
1 Tb white vinegar
1 (20 oz) can pineapple slices (in unsweetened juice)
7 cherries
1/4 cup brown sugar (not packed)

Method

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Arrange pineapple slices on the bottom of a 12-inch spring form pan. Place a cherry in the middle of each pineapple ring. Sprinkle with the brown sugar.
• Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
• Pour juice off pineapple can into a measuring cup, add water to make 1 cup. Add to the pineapple juice mix, oil and vinegar.
• Mix wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (don't overmix). Dump the mix into the spring form.
• Bake for 38-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
• Let cool for 20 minutes, loosen sides of ring using a knife or a spatula. Remove ring. Flip cake onto a serving plate and remove bottom.

Easy Marble Cake with Rich Ganache Frosting

I admit it, I do use sometimes cake mixes, I apologize to the universe for that, but hey it makes my life easier.

This cake is very rich and the frosting is decadent. Save it for a special occasion.

Ingredients
Cake
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (18 ounce) box yellow cake mix
4 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter (I use I can't Believe it is not butter light)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups powdered sugar

Method
Cake

• Preheat oven to 375.
• Spray Bundt cake with non-stick.
• Microwave chocolate with 20-30 sec intervals. Stir and repeat until most of the chocolate is melt but not all (usually takes 1 minute). I usually do not let it melt completely, which creates a nice effect in the cake.
• Combine cake mix, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, vegetable oil, sugar and water. Beat on high for around 3 minutes.
• Stir third of the batter into the melted chocolate, mix well.
• Spread half of the vanilla batter in the pan, then the chocolate batter and then the rest of the vanilla batter. Swirl the batters with a butter knife to create the marble effect.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes, cool for 20 minutes in pan, remove from pan and cool completely.

Icing

• Melt the chocolate and butter (you can do this in the microwave as well, but be careful).
• Cool the mix for 5-10 minutes, add sour cream and then the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. Spread the icing on the cake when it has cooled completely.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

This tastes better the second day

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup white sugar
1/4 unsweetened cocoa powder
5 Tb vegetable oil
1 Tb white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup cold water

Method

• Preheat oven to 350F, grease an 8x8 inch baking pan
• In a bowl, mix flour, salt, sugar cocoa powder, and baking soda. Add oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Mix until dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Pour cold water and mix for 3 to 4 minutes (do not skimp on this mixing otherwise the cake will be weird and crumbly).
• Pour batter in pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on rack.
• This tastes better the second day.

Dad's Banana Cake

My dad was a wonderful cook but not much of a baker. Yet, he often made me this cake, sometimes for my birthday :). If you are looking for a fluffy rich cake, then this one is not for you. The actual layers are more like banana bread, in the sense that they are dense. However, the cake screams BANANAAAA!

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided

1/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

3 large eggs

1 cup mashed bananas (2 medium)

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 non-fat plain yogurt

2 large bananas, sliced

1 small frozen container of whipped cream (feel free to whip cream instead, if you want to)

Method

• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Sift flour with baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• Beat butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat after each addition.
• In a separate bowl, mix mashed bananas, vanilla and yogurt. Mix well.
• Add flour mix to the butter mix in 3 parts, alternating with the banana mix.
• Divide batter in 2 prepared pans, bake for 25 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.
• Cool completely on a wire rack.
• Put first layer on a cake stand, add a layer of whipped cream on top, and layer banana slices. Top with second cake layer, frost the top and sides of the cake.
• Enjoy, and oh don't forget to turn your oven off.