Recipe Collection: Orange Vanilla Cake (GF DF)

This cake was sort of an accident.

I say ‘sort of’ because we were intending to get a cake.  But honestly, I’d been out to create a pound cake.  I weighed out all the ingredients for that purpose.  If you’ve had pound cake – and who hasn’t? – it’s a dense cake with a fine crumb.  That’s what I was expecting.

That is not what I got.  Although technically, I didn’t bake it.  I wrote it down and handed it to my 12-year-old son, who intends to be a chef someday.  He baked it and brought it to me and…well, it’s not a pound cake.

It’s far too light and spongy for that.  But it is delicious.  We made it a few more times, including on the day of a video shoot with other team members from Earthley, and they were all impressed by it, too, and wanted the recipe.  I’ve been promising to get this post up for weeks, and time has simply gotten away from me.

At any rate, it’s finally here.  Orange-vanilla cake – gluten and dairy-free (and you would never know it was ‘free’ of anything!).

(Speaking of my son wanting to be a chef, it’s fabulous to have someone who loves to make great food daily.  I rarely have to cook anymore – unless I want to – and we eat so well!)

Recipe Collection: Orange Vanilla Cake (GF DF)

In America, we don’t usually weigh ingredients.  But since my original intention was pound cake, I did.  And honestly it will come out more consistently if you do.  Volume is impacted by how fine the grain is, whether or not you sift, the humidity and moisture content, and more.  Weight is much less impacted by these factors (although moisture content could affect weight).

You’ll need a small kitchen scale for this.  They are available most anywhere and are inexpensive.  (I use this one.)

This cake is gluten-free and uses a custom blend of flours.  These are some of my favorites to use – brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca starch, and sorghum flours are my most-used options.  Blends really are necessary when baking gluten-free so that you can get the right balance of starch and protein.  I don’t use xanthan gum, both because it can cause gut irritation and because it isn’t needed in quick breads, where we’d try to avoid developing the gluten anyway.  That’s what makes cakes tough, and in this case, it would make it gummy.

Because of the oil and orange juice, no milk or milk substitute is needed.  The orange juice lends sweetness and softness to the cake.  Avocado oil is a monounsaturated fat (not a seed oil) and has a neutral flavor.  It’s also good for high heat.  It works great in baked goods.

If you need a sub for eggs, 1 tbsp. ground flax seed + 3 tbsp. water (per egg) or 3 tbsp. applesauce (per egg) would probably work well – although I haven’t tried it in this specific recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1.3 oz brown rice flour (weight) (I use this brand)
• 1.3 oz tapioca starch (weight) (I use this brand)
• 1 part white rice flour (weight) (I use this brand)
• 1/4 lb. coconut sugar (I use this brand)
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt (I use this brand)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup avocado oil (I use this brand)
• 1 tsp. vanilla (make your own)
• Zest from 1 orange
• Juice from 1 orange

Glaze:

• Juice from 1 orange
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

Step 1: Weigh out each flour and sift them together in a large bowl.

Step 2: Add the remaining ingredients (except the glaze) and stir together until just combined.

Step 3: Pour the cake batter into a greased Bundt cake pan.

Step 4: Bake at 350 for 30 – 40 minutes, or until the outside is golden brown and a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

Step 5: Let the cake stand for 5 – 10 minutes, then invert carefully onto a plate.

Step 6: After the cake is cooled completely, combine the glaze ingredients and mix well.

Step 7: Pour the glaze over the finished cake.  Top with additional zest if desired.

The cake is not at all hard to make, and it is delicious!  Feel free to skip the glaze if you’d like it to be lower in sugar.

What’s your favorite way to serve this cake?