BLACK FOREST BIRTHDAY CAKE

I know it's probably pretty obvious, but I love to bake. I especially love to bake birthday cakes. People really love it when you bake them a birthday cake too. It's a win-win situation. It's also pretty obvious that I am no vegan, but when I make chocolate cake I always use this recipe, which just so happens to be vegan - and seriously moist and delicious. It adapts really well to a black forest theme too when you slather it with coconut whipped cream and cherries. Yum.

BLACK FOREST CAKE

(makes one 6” layer cake)

¾ cup organic whole wheat flour

1 cup organic unbleached white flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

¾ cup organic cocoa powder, sifted

½ tsp sea salt

1 cup organic unsweetened coconut beverage

½ cup avocado oil

1 ½ cups local maple syrup

1 tsp organic apple cider vinegar

2 tsp pure organic vanilla

Method: Preheat oven to 350*.  Prepare two 6” round cake pans by greasing them with some oil and then lining with parchment paper cut into rounds.  Sift the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a bowl.  Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat, and then stir in the cocoa powder until dissolved.  Whisk the oil, maple syrup, vinegar and vanilla into the cocoa mixture.  Stir the wet ingredients into to the dry.  Pour into prepared cake pans and bake in 350* oven for 45-60 minutes in cake pans and for 22 minutes in the cupcake pan.  Allow to cool on a  baking rack for 10 minutes before removing cakes from pans.  Cool completely before icing.

CHERRY FILLING

 5 cups frozen organic cherries

1/4-1/2 cup maple syrup

2-3 Tbsp organic corn starch

Method: Place the cherries and maple syrup in a saucepan over medium high heat. Dissolve the cornstarch in a bit of cold water and then stir into the hot cherries. Stir until it thickens to desired consistency. Cool and refrigerate.

WHIPPED COCONUT CREAM

1-2 14 oz cans full fat coconut milk

1/4-1/2 cup organic icing sugar or a bit of maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla

Method: Chill cans of coconut overnight in the fridge. Chill a large mixing bowl in freezer. Remove just the solid coconut cream on the top and leave the liquid behind for use in a smoothie or something. Beat for 30 seconds with a mixer then add sifted icing sugar and vanilla. Use immediately or refrigerate.

To assemble the cake: Use a serrated knife to trip the domed top off of each cake. Pour 3/4 of the cherry mixture on the bottom half and then top with some whipped cream. Place the second layer on top. Use the rest of the whipped cream to ice the cake, then pour the rest of the cherry mixture in the centre of the top of the cake. Sprinkle with shaved dark chocolate and gently press some on the sides of the cake too. Refrigerate to harden the icing a bit. 

 PRINT RECIPE

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE with Rhubarb Compote

     Seeing as this was the first week for fresh, local strawberries, I just had to make some strawberry shortcake.  Yesterday we enjoyed the first quart of strawberries on my husband's chocolate birthday cake.  Even though we still had leftovers of that, I had a craving for whipped cream and biscuits, loaded with strawberries.  Now the beauty of this recipe is it included using up some of that Rhubarb Compote I wrote about a few days ago.  I had a batch sitting in the fridge, and it was a yummy, sweet addition to the shortcake.  

It seems I've got strawberry fever.  Not only am I eating lots of strawberries, I'm planting them too!  I bought some strawberry plants the other day at Avery's Farm Market on my way home from the city.  So of course, then I needed somewhere to plant them.  That was when I decided a perennial vegetable garden would be perfect for planting not only these healthy strawberry plants, but the asparagus seeds I've been meaning to plant, and some rhubarb too.  Thanks to Scott's hard work today, we now have a new raised bed that's waiting for a soil delivery.  I can't wait!

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE with Rhubarb Compote

1 batch organic whole wheat biscuits http://prasada-eatingisdivine.blogspot.com/2009/09/best-biscuits-ever.html (you may want to add some more sweetener to this recipe)

1 batch rhubarb compote http://prasada-eatingisdivine.blogspot.com/2010/05/rhubarb-compote.html 

1 quart local unsprayed or organic strawberries, hulled and sliced

1/4 cup local maple syrup

1 carton organic whipping cream

Method:  Slice a biscuit in half with a serrated knife.  Drizzle the sliced strawberries with most of the maple syrup and let sit for 15 minutes.  Make the whipped cream by adding a drizzle of maple syrup to the bowl before you use an electric mixer to whip the cream for about 5 minutes.  Slather each side of the biscuit with some rhubarb compote, top the bottom half with whipped cream, followed by some strawberries and syrup.  Top with the other half of the biscuit.