Have Your Cake and Vegan Too (28 page)

 

INGREDIENTS

CAKE

^¾
cup
all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon
ground cinnamon
1/2
teaspoon
baking powder
1/4
teaspoon
baking soda
1/4
teaspoon
ground ginger
a sprinkle
salt
^¾
cup
canned pumpkin puree
(not pumpkin pie filling)
2/3
cup
organic granulated sugar
3 tablespoons
canola or other mild vegetable oil
1/4
teaspoon
vanilla extract
1/4
cup
powdered sugar

 

CREAM CHEESE FILLING

1 (8-ounce) container
soy cream cheese, at room
temperature
3 tablespoons
margarine, at room temperature
1
1/2
cups
powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon
vanilla extract

 

DIRECTIONS

 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease the sides of an 11 x 15-inch jelly roll pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Parchment is a necessity for this recipe. If you don't have a jelly roll pan, you can still make this with a 9 x 13-inch pan, but you will need to increase the baking time by a few minutes because the cake will be thicker.

 

To make the cake, in a small bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, and salt. In a medium bowl, combine the pumpkin and sugar until creamy and well mixed. Add the oil and vanilla and mix until well blended. Incorporate half the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, blending until just mixed, then repeat with the other half. Carefully spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan (an offset spatula is great for this). If using the jelly roll pan, the batter will be spread very thin.

 

Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, a little longer for a 9 x 13-inch pan, until the cake is puffy and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. We are going to wrap this cake up in a towel directly from the oven to create the dense crumb and natural curve needed for a rolled cake. This is not hard, but to ensure success, read the next step a couple of times if you've never tried this technique before.

 

While the cake is baking, prepare a clean dish towel (that is at least the size of your pan) by sprinkling it with the powdered sugar. Once the cake is done, immediately loosen the edges of the cake with a butter knife and invert onto the prepared towel, near an edge. The top of the cake should be face down. Peel off the parchment. Carefully wrap up the cake in the towel, rolling from the long side (you want a longer, skinnier roll, rather than a shorter, fatter one). A large part of the towel will be wrapped inside the spiral of the cake. Let the towel-wrapped cake cool completely on a cooling rack.

While the cake is cooking, il a large bowl, preferably with an electric mixer, prepare the filling by creaming together the cream cheese and margarine. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until creamy. Store in the freezer to firm up, no longer than 1 hour, until ready to use. You want to make sure the creamis firm, but still easy to spread.

 

To assemble the cake, ready a piece of plastic wrap big enough to wrap around your roll. Carefully unroll the cooled cake and gently spread the filling along the inside (top) of the roll, all the way to the edge. Reroll the cake, without the towel, and carefully transfer to the plastic wrap. Roll the cake in wrap and then add a layer of tinfoil to help provide stability. Store the cake in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving. Serve cold. Store leftover cake, wrapped, in the refrigerator.

 

DIFFICULTY
:

SERVINGS
: 10 to 12 (2 slices per serving)

 

INGREDIENTS

3 cups
chopped fresh berries, such as
strawberries, blueberries, or
raspberries
1 tablespoon plus
1/4
cup
organic granulated sugar
1 cup
gluten-free oats, coarsely ground
1 cup
brown rice flour
1/4
cup
tapioca starch
1 teaspoon
baking powder
1 teaspoon
baking soda
1/4
teaspoon
salt
1/2
cup
cold margarine, cut into pieces
1/2
cup
nondairy milk
1 recipe
Coconut Cream Topping (page 136)

 

DIRECTIONS

 

In a medium bowl, combine the berries and the 1 tablespoon sugar. Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour to macerate.