Toasted Walnut Cake

Apparently I'm not done with my Company's Coming "Baking: Simple to Sensational" cookbook. I've been using it to adapt recipes for gluten and dairy free desserts lately. This Toasted Walnut Cake turned out beautifully! I might add raisins to it next time, since my Other Half doesn't like walnuts and didn't help me eat this. I did a half batch of the original recipe and used my bundt pan for baking. I used the full glaze recipe, but I'll convert it here. (feel free to double the glaze recipe here.) I did find the glaze a bit thick, so I added hot water to make it a little more runny. I think it would work in an 8 or 9 inch square pan; you might have to bake it a little longer, but it should work. Just drizzle the glaze all over the top. Enjoy!


1 cup all-purpose gluten free flour blend
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup non-dairy milk
1/3 cup Canola oil
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted*

Maple Glaze
1/2 cup icing sugar
1 tsp Becel Vegan margarine
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/8 cup maple (or maple flavoured) syrup

1-2 Tbsp chopped walnuts, toasted

In medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt and sugars. Add milk, oil, eggs and vanilla. Whisk together really well, until thoroughly blended and your arm starts to get a little tired. Stir in walnuts. Let stand for 30 minutes.

While batter is standing, grease  a bundt or small angel food tube pan and preheat the oven to 350*F.

After 30 minutes, spread batter evenly in pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let stand in pan on wire until the pan is cool,  then gently ease cake out of pan onto wire rack to continue to cool.

Mix up all glaze ingredients together until smooth. (If too thick, add a little hot water. ) Drizzle glaze over top of cake, allowing some to drip down sides. Immediately sprinkle with second amount of walnuts. Let stand until glaze is set.

*You can toast the walnuts in the oven, spread evenly in ungreased shallow pan at 350*F for 5-10 minutes, stirring or shaking often, until lightly browned and fragrant, OR you can toast them on the stove in a skillet/frying pan or saucepan, likewise stirring and/or shaking them. Toast all 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp together, reserving out the smaller amount for garnish.

The "Minus 1/3" Gluten Free Baking Solution, or "The 30% Solution"

I've discovered a four-part trick to easily convert regular muffin, quick bread and cake recipes:

1. Remove 1/3 of the required amount of regular all-purpose flour and substitute an all-purpose gluten free flour blend.
2. Add 1/4-1/2 tsp xanthan gum, if it's not already in your flour blend (I generally do 1/2 tsp per cup of flour)
3. Beat the batter to death (opposite of normal quick breads and muffins)
4. Let the batter stand for 30 minutes before filling muffin tins/cake pans

Mixing the batter up and letting it stand for half an hour allows the gluten free flours to absorb the liquid. As the flours are absorbing the liquid, the batter gets thicker, so it makes sense to reduce the amount of flour used. I've had success with this formula for numerous muffin recipes, for banana bread, pancakes and waffles. Also a chiffon cake, surprisingly. The baked food is noticeably less "dry/ grainy" than previously, and it doesn't dry out as quickly- lasting several days longer than usual.

These pancakes worked, these Cranberry Orange Muffins, (using 2/3 cup + 1/4 cup GF flour blend) and Blueberry or Chocolate Chip Muffins, (2/3 cup GF flour).

The secret seems to be reducing the flour, really beating the batter and then letting it rest for half an hour.

Gluten, Diary, Soy Free Banana Cake With Cream Cheese Icing

This is the Banana Cake recipe from the Purity Cook Book- mine is a lovely copy I found at a second hand bookstore a few years back. I've employed the "normal recipe minus 1/3 of the flour" technique, increased the amount of mashed banana so the oil and sugar can be reduced a bit, and discovered the glories of Daiya non-dairy cheese! It's a delicious cake and it keeps well in the fridge for about a week. No one will know it's gluten and dairy free. Enjoy!

Dry Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups gluten-free flour blend
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum

Wet Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas
1/3 cup oil
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 well beaten eggs
1/4 cup non-dairy milk soured with 1 tsp vinegar/cider vinegar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Whisk dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk/beat together the wet ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry, and beat together until completely incorporated and very well mixed. Let stand for 30 minutes, (batter may seem runny, but as it stands the flours will absorb the liquid and it will get thicker).

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350*F and lightly grease or line with parchment paper, one 9" square pan or two 8"round layer pans. (I found the 9" square pan made a very high cake. I preferred the height I got using a 9 x 13" baking pan.).

After 30 minutes, pour/divide batter into pan(s). Bake for 50-55 minutes for a square/rectangle cake, 30-35 minutes for a layer cake. Test for doneness with a toothpick inserted in the middle. Cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean, cake bounces back when lightly touched and is nicely browned.

Let cool completely before removing from pans and frosting.

Faux Cream Cheese Frosting:

3 oz (which is 125g/@1/2 cup)  Daiya Plain Cream Cheese Style Spread
1/4 cup  Becel Vegan Margarine (or other non-dairy butter-like spread)
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups icing sugar

Beat together until smooth, creamy and of spreadable consistency. Spread evenly over cake, or between layers and on top.

Gluten, Dairy and Egg Free Brownie Bites

I am still in love with the Babycakes cookbooks. They have brought some joy back to this diabetic, gluten, dairy and soy-free woman's life. One of my favourite recipes has been adapted from "Brownies", in Erin McKenna's first cookbook. This is a smaller version of the original, with a few modifications. They are completely delicious, and as they are very quick to mix up and only take about 15 minutes to bake, it's super easy to whip up a batch while Brownies for everyone else are baking. Bonus: they freeze well, and even taste good before they thaw... 

1/3 cup garbanzo-fava bean flour

4 teaspoons potato starch

2 teaspoons arrowroot or tapioca starch

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup granulated sugar (*A combination of 3 Tbsp sugar + 2 Tbsp Splenda works)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum

3 Tablespoons Canola oil

3 Tablespoons unsweetened applesauce

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3 Tablespoons hot water

1/3 cup vegan* mini chocolate chips (I used "Enjoy Life Mini Chips" that I purchased at Nutter's Bulk & Natural Foods) OPTIONAL

Preheat oven to 350* F. Lightly grease a 12-cup mini muffin tin. (have a second tin ready to grease and fill as needed)

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, potato starch, arrowroot, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum (or guar gum) and coffee granules. Add the oil, applesauce, vanilla and hot water, and stir until the batter is smooth. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the chocolate chips, just until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter. 

Divide the batter into prepared muffin cups. Fill to the top of each cup; grease additional cups as needed. I generally get 14-16 brownies per batch. 

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the center brownie comes out clean, and the tops have a firm edge with a softer center. Let stand in pans 10 minutes, then remove to wire rack. Fabulously, decadently delicious when served warm. Equally delicious any time. Store in airtight container in the fridge, or freeze. 

Serve iced (making a dairy-free frosting with Becel Vegan Margarine), dusted with confectioner's sugar or plain. The chocolate chips give them a "frosted" taste. 

Have I mentioned that these are delicious?

Makes 14-16 brownie bites.

Pineapple, Upside Down Oatmeal Cake

It's MOPS time again, and for our Tropical Beach Party theme we thought an upside-down pineapple cake might be fun. I had a vision of a kind of pineapple-oatmeal cake, and so I went looking. In one of my favourite cookbooks (Cooking From Quilt Country by Marcia Adams) I found both an upside-down pineapple cake and an oatmeal cake. I envisioned a mash-up of sorts and so putting them together, came up with this. The first trial was pretty good, but deemed a little too sweet, and since I had added ground flax I thought I might be able to leave out the egg. The second trial turned out nicely; with a few maraschino cherries sprinkled in for a festive colour and the egg replaced with a flaxseed substitute, either regular or gluten-free it's a delightful breakfast or dessert treat. In place of crushed pineapple I used pineapple tidbits the second time around, breaking up the chunks with the sharp edge of a plastic spatula. It worked just fine.

Pineapple Upside-Down Oatmeal Cake

1 -14oz can crushed pineapple

5 maraschino cherries, finely chopped (optional)

1 cup Gluten-Free Oatmeal  (or regular, but not instant, rolled oats)

2 Tablespoons ground flax* (or 1 egg/egg substitute)

pineapple juice + water to make 1 cup

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup Canola oil

1 cup all-purpose flour or Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (if using gluten-free flour)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground mace or nutmeg

1/3 cup Canola oil

1/2 cup Agave nectar OR 1/4 cup brown sugar+1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla

Preheat oven to 350*F. Line a 9inch square pan with parchment paper or lightly grease with spray oil.

Drain pineapple through a sieve into a microwave safe bowl or glass measure.

Add water to pineapple juice to make 1 cup. Microwave 2-3 minutes on high heat. Stir in oatmeal and flax, and let stand for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix first amount of brown sugar and canola oil together and spread over bottom of prepared pan. Spread drained pineapple over brown sugar mixture, sprinkle maraschino cherry pieces (if used) over pineapple, and set aside.

In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, xanthan gum (if used), salt and mace. When pineapple juice is cooled to lukewarm, add second amount of oil, agave nectar or sugars, and vanilla. *Mix in egg or egg substitute if ground flax wasn't added to the oatmeal.  Stir together until well blended. Add to flour mixture, and fold together until fairly smooth and well blended. Pour over pineapple in pan and bake for 25-40 minutes until cake is browned, springs back when lightly touched, and a toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean.

Let stand for 15 minutes, then invert onto large serving plate. Peel off parchment. 

Strawberry Surprise Cupcakes

As if being diabetic wasn't bad enough, I had to go and decide to give gluten and dairy free eating a try. The good news? I feel 100% better. The bad news? I feel 100% better. At least, after two months without the gluten and dairy, I have the energy and imagination to feel like baking again. I discovered Erin McKenna's cookbooks, "Babycakes" and "Babycakes Covers The Classics". If you're living in a gluten-dairy-egg free world you MUST investigate these cookbooks. Life changing. At least you'll be able to make some pretty awesome snacks and goodies. This recipe is half of the Vanilla Cupcakes recipe in the first Babycakes cookbook. I've added a little strawberry jam goodness. These were a delightful Canada Day treat (strawberries = red + vanilla cupcakes for the white) but they'd be good any time and I guarantee they'll turn any day into a celebration. All the "strange" ingredients (agave nectar, coconut oil, xanthan gum) and the flours can be found at Nutters. In a pinch you can try Canola oil instead of coconut oil.

1 cup garbanzo-fava bean flour

1/2 cup potato starch

1/4 cup arrowroot

2 teaspoons + 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup coconut oil (melted before measuring, and measured in dry ingredient measures not liquid)

2/3 cup agave nectar (again, use dry ingredient measuring cups to measure the liquid ingredients)

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 1/2 Tablespoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup (or so) Strawberry jam

Strawberry-vanilla frosting: (Mix together 2 cups icing sugar+2 Tablespoons Becel Vegan margarine + 2 Tablespoons strawberry jam+ boiling water to make spreadable.)

Preheat oven to 325*F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. (I got 14 cupcakes out of my batch)

In a medium bowl whisk together flour, potato starch, arrowroot, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt. Add the oil, agave nectar, applesauce and vanilla to the dry ingredients and combine. Stir in the hot water and mix until the batter is smooth.

Spoon 2 Tablespoons of batter into each prepared cup. Drop a generous teaspoon of jam into the centre of each cup on top of the batter. Cover with another spoonful of batter.

Bake on the centre rack for 22 minutes, rotating the tins 180 degrees after 15 minutes. The finished cupcakes will be golden brown and will bounce back when pressure is applied gently to the centre.

Let the cupcakes stand in the the tins for 20 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and cool completely. Frost with the strawberry-vanilla frosting. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Makes 12-14 cupcakes.

Easy New York Style Cheesecake

I've been hungry for cheesecake for awhile. Cherry cheesecake, to be specific. Problem is, the cheesecake at your typical restaurant is worth nearly two whole meals, carb-wise. (Swiss Chalet and Boston Pizza's  nutritional information indicates their cheesecakes have about 75 g of carbohydrates per serving) Also, no one makes Cherry Cheesecake anymore; not that I have anything against strawberry topping, but my favourite has always been cherry. Yes. Since the '80's. SO. Not wanting to fuss with my most excellent graham wafer crust, and finding a New York Cheesecake recipe in the new Splenda cookbook I have become possessed of, I put 2 & 2 together and came up with this quick, smaller, delicious cheesecake. I popped open a can of E.D. Smith Light Cherry Pie Filling, and even The Husband approved. 

1 pre-made graham wafer crust

500 g (2 x 250 g/8 oz packages) light cream cheese

1/2 cup Splenda granular

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1/4 cup fat free sour cream

Preheat oven to 325*F. 

Mix all remaining ingredients together, blending until smooth and creamy. Spread in graham wafer crust,  (for added stability, I set the pie crust tin on a cookie sheet) then bake for 30-45 minutes, until filling is firm to the touch and just lightly browned. 

Serve with fresh fruit or pie filling.

Per Serving: (1/8th before topping) *Check the nutrient guide on the pie filling. Serving size=about 1/3 cup; half of that gives you a good 2.5 Tablespoons topping. Add calories and carbs to your totals accordingly. The E.D. Smith Light Cherry Pie Filling I used adds 30 calories & 10 g carbs per serving. 1/4 cup of fresh, chopped strawberries adds about 12 g carbohydrates. Add 5 g of carbs for each teaspoon of sugar you mix with them.

Calories: 300

Fat: 22 g

   Saturated Fat: 11g

Cholesterol: 94 mg

Sodium: 92 mg

Carbohydrates: 19g

   Sugars: 8.5 g

   Protein: 9 g

 

Trifle

I had some loaves left over after an event a few months ago, so I froze them for later. With another event looming at the beginning of next week, "Trifles" came up, and so I'm going to convert the leftover loaves into a couple of trifles.  I think the beauty of "trifle" is that, with a little imagination, you have limitless possibilities.  Kraft Canada has a great Trifle "formula" style recipe; they've made a chart and the 3 main components have been broken down, giving you ideas for mixing and matching what you have on hand. It's a good place to start if you're a first time Trifle maker.

To make a Basic Trifle, you need:
A clear/glass bowl
A cake/cookie layer
A fruit/jam layer
A pudding/custard layer
Whipped topping
A garnish

Start with a layer of cake on the bottom of the bowl.Traditional English Trifles have liqueur or sherry sprinkled over the cake. The older and drier the cake, the more liquid (whether alcohol or fruit juice) it will soak up. If you are using frozen or tinned fruit, you could drain the juice and sprinkle it over the cake. If you're using fresh fruit, you might spread the cake with a complimentary jam. Layer the fruit over the cake, followed by a layer of pudding or custard. A few inches of whipped cream is next.

I like at least 2 layers of everything, so I would try to use half of each item, and then layer it all again. If you have a tall trifle bowl, you might like to do 3 or 4 layers of everything. Top off the last layer of whipped cream with your garnish.

Trifle Ideas:

Tropical Trifle- banana bread/cake with crushed pineapple and coconut custard (Bird's Custard made with coconut milk), whipped cream with a toasted coconut garnish.

Banana Split Trifle- banana bread/cake with strawberries on one layer and crushed pineapple on another, chocolate pudding and whipped cream, garnished with fresh sliced strawberries & shaved chocolate, or chocolate sundae sauce drizzled over the whipped cream.

Leftover Waffle Trifle- Breakfast waffles, any kind of frozen fruit or jam, vanilla custard or pudding, and whipped cream with coloured candy sprinkles on top.

Leftover Loaf Trifle- how about Orange-Cranberry loaf with tinned mandarin orange segments, vanilla custard or pudding, whipped cream and orange sugar sprinkles, grated orange rind or maraschino cherries on top? 
Lemon-Poppyseed loaf or muffins with peaches or mandarin orange segments, lemon pudding, whipped cream and grated lemon peel on top.

Chocolate Trifle- chocolate cake, cherry pie filling, raspberries or strawberries, chocolate pudding, whipped cream with crushed Oreo cookies for a garnish.

Vanilla Trifle- white cake, strawberries or raspberries, vanilla pudding or custard, whipped cream with fruit to garnish.

*Use your imagination and share your trifle ideas in the comments.

Banana Cake

A nice, light little cake. I've kicked up the fibre and taken the sugar down a notch. If you don't like/use Splenda, just replace it with granulated sugar. This is an adapted Purity Cook Book recipe. I mixed it up in the standing mixer, and it worked a treat. Since our family has been shrinking, I opted for two 8 inch round cakes. One for dessert and one for the freezer.

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Grease a 9 inch square cake pan or two 8 inch round layer pans.

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup Splenda

2 eggs

1 cup (3 medium) ripe bananas

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup buttermilk or sour milk

In large mixing bowl, or large Standing Mixer bowl, cream margarine. Gradually blend in sugar and Splenda. Beat until light and fluffy. Add well beaten eggs (just toss them in if you're using the Standing Mixer). Beat until well combined. Blend in bananas and vanilla. Mix in wheat germ.

In another bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture alternately with sour/buttermilk. Blend well after each addition. *(when using the Standing Mixer I put half the dry ingredients- 1 cup flour & half the other dry ingredients, then half the milk, followed by 3/4 cup flour with the rest of the dry ingredients then the rest of the milk)

Pour batter into prepared pan(s). Bake in preheated oven 50-55 minutes for square cake, 30-35 minutes for a layer cake.

Cool, in pans, on wire racks until you can hold the pan in your hands, then loosen it around the edges with a knife or Tupperware orange peeler, bang it on the counter to loosen the bottom, and turn it out onto the cooling racks to finish cooling. Ice with White Butter Icing butter or
  Cream Cheese Frosting.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Mmm... coffee cake for breakfast. Company's Coming Muffins And More cookbook has a good recipe that I thought could be made better for you. I made it the night before so I wouldn't have to be up really early.

The night before you could mix the "topping" ingredients together in a small bowl, the dry ingredients together, and then the wet ingredients together- except for the baking soda. I would cover the butter/egg/sour cream mixture and put it in the fridge for the night. In the morning, the first thing I would do is add the baking soda to the sour cream mixture. Then I would turn on the oven and prep the baking pan. Now just mix the dry/flour ingredients into the wet, and follow the instructions for layering the batter and the topping in the pan and stick it in the oven. You've got about half an hour to shower now. Go!


1/2 cup hard margarine, softened
1/2 cup Splenda, artificial sweetener
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup fat free sour cream
1/4 cup low fat buttermilk

1/2 cup all purpose (white) flour
1 cup all purpose whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup Demerara sugar (beside the brown sugar at the store)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

Cream margarine, Splenda and first egg together in a large bowl. Add second egg. Beat well. Add baking soda, sour cream and buttermilk. Mix well.

In a smaller bowl, mix flours, baking powder and salt. Add to batter. Stir to mix. Put half the batter in a well greased Bundt cake pan*.

Stir Demerara sugar, cinnamon and walnuts together. Sprinkle half over the batter. Spoon the second half of the batter here and there over the top. Sprinkle the second half of the cinnamon mixture over all.

Bake at 350*F for half an hour, until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Serve warm. (or cold the next morning... or reheat for a few seconds in the microwave...)

*After I chose the Bundt pan and put it in the oven I realized that I might have trouble serving the cake. The pan was well greased, though, and it came out very well. The benefit of using the Bundt pan was even baking throughout, without the edges drying out before the centre was baked. The original recipe calls for a 9" square pan; If you use a square pan it should work, but it might take a little longer to bake. (45 minutes in the original recipe) Check it frequently after half an hour so you can catch it as soon as the centre of the cake is baked, before it gets too brown on the edges. You might find that an 8" square pan is big enough for this recipe, as replacing the sugar with Splenda reduces the volume of the batter quite a bit.

Per Serving:(1/8th)

Calories: 345
Fat: 19 g
Saturated Fats: 0.86 g
Cholesterol: 48 mg
Sodium: 415 mg (-74 mg if you omit the salt in the recipe)
Carbohydrates: 37 g, 1/16=19 g
Fibre: 2 g
Sugars: 29 g, 1/16=14 g
Protein: 9 g
Potassium: 15 mg

Per Serving: (1/12)

Calories: 230
Fat: 13 g
Saturated Fats: 0.57 g
Cholesterol: 32 mg
Sodium: 277 mg (-49 mg if you omit the salt in the recipe)
Carbohydrates: 25 g
Fibre: 1 g
Sugars: 19 g
Protein: 6 g
Potassium: 10 mg

(1/16th of the cake = 19 g carbohydrates, 14 g of those from sugars)

Fudge Brownies

This is from "Cooking With Cents" by Donna-Joy Halliday and Norma Bannerman. It was a wedding gift from my sisters, and some of my sanity savers originate in its pages! (the Master Mix and basic recipes like pancakes and muffins got me through babies and toddlerhood!)

It seems to be out of print, but was published in 1983 by Cooking With Cents Publishing Company Ltd., in Calgary Alberta. If you can get your hands on a copy of this one, I strongly encourage it! It's a great cookbook.

I've been expressly told to get the family's favourite brownie recipe posted so children far away can make them. Here we go!


1/2 cup (125 ml) hard margarine, melted
1 cup (250 ml) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) cocoa
2 eggs
2/3 cup (150 ml) flour

Combine melted margarine, sugar and cocoa. Stir in eggs and combine well. Add flour and mix until well blended.

Spread into greased 8" square pan. Bake at 350* F. for 30 minutes. Let stand about 5 minutes; ice while brownies are still very warm.

Icing:

3 Tablespoons margarine
2 Tablespoons cocoa
1 cup icing sugar
1 1/2- 2 Tablespoons boiling water

Mix margarine, cocoa and icing sugar together with enough water to make a spreadable icing.

Fresh Fruit Flan Trifle

Probably every time I'm at my Mom and Dad's I've had opportunity to help make dessert, and every time I think of this treasure. I always check this website, and I always find that although I've been meaning to post it, I haven't done so. Finally, here it is.

The cake for the flan started life as "Almond Roll with Fresh Cherries" in the "Simply Splenda Cookbook" put out by my hero, Graham Kerr, back in 2004. This little cookbook has served as a "springboard" for many great cooking, baking and preserving ideas. I hesitate to confess that I've tweaked a Graham Kerr recipe, but honesty compels me to tell you where the original recipe came from. I wanted to add a little fibre, and I reduced the amount of Splenda. The technique is all Kerr, and the resultant sponge is a wonderfully versatile little cake.

For a Fruit Flan "Trifle" I bake the cake in my 10" tart/ flan pan. I've also baked it in a 9 X 13 inch pan to cut into squares for a real trifle, and divided the batter into 2- 8 inch round pans for a shortcake. I haven't tried it as a jelly roll, but I believe it would work really well for that too.

Cake:
4 large eggs
4 Tablespoons sugar (divided)
1 Tablespoon olive or vegetable/ Canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup Splenda, artificial sweetener
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Divide the eggs as follows:

In large mixing bowl place 1 whole egg + yolk of 2nd egg.

In another mixing bowl place whites of 3 eggs, reserving the 2 extra yolks for the custard.

Whip the 3 egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar. Beat until soft peaks form. Add 2 Tablespoons of the sugar and continue to beat until stiff, but not dry. Set aside.

To the whole egg and egg yolk, add the remaining 2 Tablespoons of sugar, the oil and the vanilla. Beat until ribbons form when you lift the beater, (about 5 minutes).

In a 3rd bowl, combine flour, wheat germ, baking powder, salt and Splenda. Fold into the egg yolk mixture.

Fold the beaten egg whites into the batter. Pour into well greased 10" flan pan. Bake at 350* for 12-15 minutes, until golden.

When cake is cooled, loosen edges of pan and invert onto serving plate. Fill with custard, then top with sliced/diced fresh fruit that has been tossed with a little sugar or Splenda (either one kind, like strawberries or peaches, or a variety of fruit in a pleasing arrangement) and low fat whipped topping. Well drained canned fruit could be used if fresh fruit is not available.

Custard:
1/2 cup Splenda, artificial sweetener
3 Tablespoons corn starch
2 cups skim milk
2 egg yolks in a bowl, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

In medium sized saucepan, combine Splenda and cornstarch. Gradually add milk, whisking to blend.

Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils. Cook 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat.

Whisk small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks. (use a small measuring cup or a soup ladle to transfer the hot milk) Immediately pour heated egg yolks back into the pot with the hot milk mixture. Whisk egg yolks in, until well blended.

Return pot to heat, cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add vanilla.

Stir occasionally while pudding cools to prevent skin from forming on top.

Cream Cheese Icing

1/4 cup (50 ml) margarine or butteer
4 oz (125 g) cream cheese
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla
2 cups icing sugar
1 Tablespoon milk or water (if needed)

Cream together margarine and cream cheese. Add vanilla. Mix in icing sugar. Add water or milk if needed to make a smooth, creamy, spreadable frosting.

Should be enough for a 9" cake.

Carrot Cake

Or, "Have my Birthday cake and eat it too." For a long time now I've been thinking that Carrot Cake would be a good one for tweaking. I decided to work on it for my Birthday, and it came out pretty well. Porridge oats increases the fibre, the sugar is replaced with Splenda, and I've cut out 1/4 cup of the fat, and then replaced half of the remaining amount with unsweetened apple sauce. The cake didn't really smooth out during baking, so I'd advise making the top as smooth as possible before putting it in the oven. Give it a try, then let me know how yours turned out!


1 cup orange juice
1 cup Roger's Porridge Oats
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup Splenda, artificial sweetener
2 cups all-purpose white flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins
2 cups grated carrots*

*If using commercially shredded carrots, (which I did, and which are fairly thick and coarse) measure them into a microwaveable bowl, add 2 Tablespoons of orange juice, and microwave 2-5 minutes, until carrots are slightly tender. Let cool while you mix up the rest of the batter.

Heat orange juice to just before boiling point.

Measure oats into large mixing bowl. Pour orange juice over oats. Let stand about 5 minutes, until cooled to lukewarm. Add eggs, oil, applesauce and vanilla. Mix well.

Add coconut and walnuts, stirring to mix well.

Stir together flour, Splenda, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add to wet ingredients. Mix gently until well combined.

Add carrots and raisins.

Pour into greased 9" square pan. Bake at 350*F for 30-40 minutes, until brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Cool, in pan, on wire rack until completely cool. Ice with cream cheese icing as desired.

The cake is good without icing, too, so for an easier conscience, try just a dusting of icing sugar over the cooled cake, or a very thin layer of frosting.

Upside Down Peach- Mango Cake

It was a whim; turns out it was a tasty whim! Pretty quick and easy.

1 Added Touch (or other) Golden Cake Mix
1/3 cup Canola oil
1 cup water
3 large eggs
1 -14 oz (398 ml) tin Tosca sliced mango
1- 14 oz (398 ml) tin Del Monte Peach slice in fruit juice
1 Tablespoon corn starch


Preheat oven to 350* F.

Line a muffin pan with 12 paper cupcake liners (or lightly grease cups). Set aside.

Lightly grease a 1.8 L baking dish. (mine is a "French White" dish, about 10.5 " X 8") or large casserole. Set aside.

Empty cake mix packet into large mixing bowl. Add Canola oil, water and eggs. (the oil and water amounts will be different than the package directions.)

Mix according to package directions, (about 3 minutes, until batter is smooth). Set aside.

Drain peaches and mango, reserving juice.

In medium sized saucepan, whisk reserved juices and cornstarch together. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until clear and thickened. Remove from heat and gently stir fruit into thickened syrup.

Arrange fruit and juice in bottom of prepared baking dish. Spoon 2 cups of the batter over fruit, spreading it evenly over the whole top right to the edge.

Divide the remaining batter between the 12 muffin cups.

Bake the cake for about 30 minutes, until cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Bake cupcakes for about 20- 25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown, and they also test done with a toothpick.

Serve cake warm with cream or ice-cream. Ice/ decorate cupcakes as desired.

Yield: 9 or 12 servings + 12 cupcakes

Nutritional Analysis for cake: (not including cream/ toppings)

Per serving (1/9th of) Upside Down Cake alone:

Calories: 163.8
Fat: 5.25 g
Carbohydrates: 26.8 g
Fibre: .11 g
Sugars: 14 g
Protein: 1.72 g
Cholesterol: 32 mg
Sodium: 263 mg

Per serving (1/12th of) Upside Down Cake alone:

Calories: 122.92
Fat: 4 g
Carbohydrates: 20.2 g
Fibre: .08 g
Sugars: 10.42 g
Protein: 1.3 g
Cholesterol: 23.75 mg
Sodium: 197.5 mg

Basic Pancakes

A good, basic scratch batter. You can kick it up by replacing the oil with applesauce and adding a half teaspoon of cinnamon and a finely chopped apple, or make blueberry pancakes by adding a cup of blueberries, or- use your imagination!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups milk
2 Tablespoons oil

Preheat your griddle, skillet or frying pan. (I use a flat griddle- one that lays across 2 burners on the electric stove, or a 10 inch skillet, and I turn the stove to setting "3" or "4" out of 10.)

In a medium sized mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a small mixing bowl, beat together egg, milk and oil.

Gently mix the milk mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir just to combine. Mixture may be a little lumpy, and that's alright.

Lightly grease the griddle/ skillet and spoon batter onto hot cooking surface. (I use a gravy ladle for spooning the batter, at about 1/4 cup batter per pancake)

Cook on first side until bubbles form on the uncooked surface of the pancake and the top gets dull looking, and loses it's shine. Then flip pancakes over and cook until the second side is brown. (just give them about 3 minutes , then check the bottom by flipping one over to see how brown it is getting.)

Serve hot with butter/ margarine and syrup or jam.

Makes about 12 - 4 inch pancakes.

Bake Sale Butter Icing

Do you have a ton of cupcakes to frost? Several cakes to decorate? Say no more! This mega-batch of icing easily decorated 8 dozen cupcakes, with a bit to spare. It stores well in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or you could freeze the leftovers (thaw in the fridge) for next time.

1 cup hard margarine, softened
1 bag (kg) confectioner's (icing) sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat all ingredients together until smooth. Store in an airtight container.

Rhubarb Spice Crunch Cake

This, as adapted, is like a coffee cake. It turned out moist and nicely spiced, with pieces of tart rhubarb throughout. A nice summer dessert for your fresh rhubarb. I don't think it would work well with frozen rhubarb, but you could try it and let me know how it goes!


1/2 cup margarine, softened
2 eggs
1/4 cup fat free, plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup Splenda, artificial sweetener
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon each cloves, allspice, nutmeg, and salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 cups raw rhubarb, cubed
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts

In large bowl, mix margarine, eggs and yogurt together.

In another bowl, mix flour, wheat germ, Splenda, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.

Add dry ingredients alternately with milk.

Stir in rhubarb, and spread into greased 9 X 13 " baking pan.

Mix brown sugar, second amount of cinnamon, and walnuts together; sprinkle evenly over the top.

Bake at 350 * F, for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned, and cake tests done in the center with a toothpick.

Orange Layer Cake

I started with the "Company's Coming: Baking; Simple to Sensational" recipe, then added some wheat germ, reduced the sugar and replaced the icing with an orange filling. This is a lovely, moist orange cake, and although I'd recommend half a piece at a time for those with sugar issues, I was able to: lower the calories from 570 to 350, reduce the fat from 21.1 g to 10.5 g, cut the cholesterol from 88 mg to 48 mg and take the total carbohydrates from 94 g to 60 g. As a bonus the protein increased from 6 g to 9 g. Any way you slice it, this cake was a winner and earned 6 thumbs up... 8, if you count mine!

1/2 cup hard margarine, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
2 large eggs
1/3 cup frozen concentrated orange juice, thawed
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup skim milk

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and creamy. Add orange zest. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add concentrated orange juice. Beat.

Combine flour, wheat germ, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.

Add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Spray 2 - 8 inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray. Divide and pour batter into pans. Spread evenly. Bake at 350* F., for about 35 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in centre comes out clean. Let stand in pans on wire racks to cool completely.

Place one cake on serving plate; cover with Orange Filling, and gently place second cake layer on top of filling. Serve as is, or with a light whipped topping and orange peel garnish.

Orange Filling:
1 1/4 cup prepared orange juice
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, well beaten

In small saucepan, combine cornstarch and sugar. Stir in orange juice. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, until liquid begins to thicken.

Temper the egg, by mixing it with a wire whisk to combine the yolk and white. Carefully whisk a steady stream of the hot boiling liquid into the beaten egg; (add liquid to about double the egg's volume). Next, carefully whisk the warmed egg mixture back into the liquid in the pot. Whisk together until filling gets thick and creamy.

Remove from heat. Stir occasionally to prevent a skin from forming. Cool completely before filling cake layers.

Cuts into 12 wedges.

Per serving; (1 wedge)
350 calories, 10.5 g fat, 48 mg cholesterol, 60 g carbohydrates, 2.1 g fibre, 9 g protein.

New York-Style Cheesecake

Someone besides me thought it was good, so I'll give you the recipe! Based on the Kraft Food's "What's Cooking" recipe (Spring 2007 edition) I used my fiber added crust, and Graham Kerr's Yogurt Cheese to lower fat and carbohydrates. This has a smooth, creamy texture, and isn't too heavy. I served it once with a homemade blueberry sauce made with Splenda, and once with fresh strawberries and whipped topping. Beautiful.


1 cup (250 ml) low-fat graham cracker crumbs (about 12 squares)
1/2 cup (125 ml) toasted wheat germ
1 Tablespoon (15 ml) Splenda
2 Tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
2 - 750 ml tubs of low-fat plain/ natural yogurt with NO gelatin listed in the ingredients (I used 1% fat yogurt)
1/4- 1/3 cup Splenda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
2 eggs

THE EVENING BEFORE: line a wire mesh sieve with paper towel, and empty the yogurt tubs into the sieve. Let stand over the sink or a large bowl overnight to let the liquid drain off the yogurt. In the morning- yogurt cheese!

Combine cracker crumbs, wheat germ and first amount of Splenda in food processor. While processor is on low speed, slowly add olive oil. When crumbs and oil are well combined, press firmly into bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate.Bake at 350* F., for about 10 minutes, til lightly browned and set.

Lower oven temperature to 325 * F.

Beat yogurt cheese, second amount of Splenda and vanilla in a large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over crust.

Bake 25- 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from oven. Cool. Cover and refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.

Top with fresh berries or pie filling, and garnish with dessert topping as you like. Store leftover cheesecake in the fridge.

For 8 servings, per serving:
219 calories
8.5 g fat
55 mg cholesterol
25.26 g carbohydrates
1.125 g fiber
8.3 g sugars
12.35 g protein
196.75 mg sodium

For 12 servings, per serving:
146 calories
5.6 g fat
37 mg cholesterol
16.8 g carbohydrates
.75 g fiber
5.55 g sugars
8.23 g protein
131 mg sodium