Monthly Archives: October 2019

Chocolate Chip Banana Cake Pan Cake

Chocolate Chip Banana Cake Pan Cake

Chocolate Chip Banana Cake Pan Cake

The very ripe bananas on my counter were calling my name. Although I do love my Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, I wanted something more decadent and more banana-y. A banana cake seemed appropriate. With plenty of mashed bananas in an easy cake pan form, the recipe I found sounded perfect. I just had to make it vegan and high altitude friendly.

To veganize it, I used whipped aquafaba instead of eggs. I also traded butter with Earth Balance Original Buttery Spread. (Note: I did not use the sticks because I wanted the lighter texture of the spread.) To help counter the affects at altitude I added more liquid and flour. However, vegan banana baked goods can be heavy so I added apple cider vinegar and a smidgen of baking powder to boost the lift.

Chocolate Chip Banana Cake Pan Cake adapted from Banana–Chocolate Chip Snack Cake

1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup non-dairy milk
1/3 cup aquafaba, cold (the liquid from canned chickpeas)
2 cups + 1 TBS all purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
scant 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup vegan buttery spread (see note above)
1 cup + 3 TBS vegan sugar
1 cup mashed bananas (2 to 3 bananas, very ripe)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup vegan chocolate chips

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350F. Grease and flour an 8 x 8” baking pan. Stir apple cider vinegar into the non-dairy milk and set aside. Add aquafaba to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk for 5 minutes. Place whipped aquafaba in a separate bowl, and replace the whisk attachment on the stand mixer with the paddle.

Whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder together in bowl. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat the buttery spread on medium-high speed for a minute. Add the sugar and beat for 2 more minutes. Fold in whipped aquafaba. Add bananas and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk in 2 additions, scraping down bowl as needed. Stir in half of the chocolate chips with a rubber spatula.

choose very ripe bananas

choose very ripe bananas

Transfer the batter to prepared pan and smooth top with the spatula. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips evenly over top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Let cake cool completely in pan on wire rack. The cooled cake can be wrapped in plastic and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Until next time, happy baking!

Crispy Apple-Pear Crisp

Crispy Apple Pear Crisp

Crispy Apple Pear Crisp

Happy National Dessert Day, everyone! Although I often feel that every day should celebrate dessert. And when the leaves are starting to change, as they are near my home right now, I think we should celebrate fall as well. In addition, it’s apple season and I procured local apples for my creations. So, where am I going with all of this? Apple crisps – my inspiration for today’s recipe.

It seems that everyone has a recipe for apple crisps, including me (see my Ginger Apple Crisp). But I wanted to take the recipe in a different, crispy-er direction. To achieve this, I scoured the internet and all of my many cookbooks. Ultimately I ended up at America’s Test Kitchen, the resource who does hours after hours after hours of testing for you. They found that if the topping is added after an initial apple cooking, then the top stays crispy. I took this hint, and my 20 pounds of apples (yes, you read that right), and crisped away.

When I decided to make a very large tray of the treat to make a dent in my crate of apples, my hubby’s reply was, “Apple crisp for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!” That required peeling a lot of apples. (Maybe I should have had him peel them). If you don’t want to do quite that much work, or if the recipe seems too large for you, then you can halve the ingredient amounts and make your crisp in an 8 x 8” pan.

Crispy Apple-Pear Crisp adapted from “Naturally Sweet” by America’s Test Kitchen

Topping
1 cup slivered almonds, chopped
1 cup vegan sugar
1/2 cup + 2 TBS vegan margarine, melted
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
Filling
5.5 pounds mixture of apples and pears, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/2” wedges
1/4 cup vegan sugar
1 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 TBS arrowroot powder
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
Vegan Ice cream, optional

For the topping: Place oven rack in middle position and heat oven to 400F. Toast almonds until lightly browned, then place on a wire rack to cool slightly. Leave oven on for filling. Working in batches, grind topping sugar in a spice grinder until fine and powdery. Whisk ground sugar, melted margarine, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Using a rubber spatula, fold in flour and oats until mixture resembles a cohesive dough. Add in almonds and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

For the filling: Toss fruit, filling sugar, lemon juice, arrowroot, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl. Transfer to a 9 x 13” baking pan, cover with foil, and set on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake until apples are juicy and tender, about 1.25 hours, rotating sheet halfway through baking.

lots of peeled apples and pears

lots and lots of peeled apples and pears

To assemble: Remove filling from oven and stir to redistribute juices. Take topping from the fridge and crumble it over the filling, leaving a few 1/2” topping pieces. Bake uncovered until filling is bubbling and topping is a deep golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool 20 minutes before serving. Top with vegan ice cream, if desired.

Until next time, happy baking!