The Cake Merchant

Vegan Key Lime Pie Bars

Key Lime Pie Bars

I’ve never been much of a pie person. I rarely eat it and I make it even less often, mostly because of how I feel after I eat a slice. I’m not saying that cake is light or healthy, but even with a strong tolerance for rich desserts, a slice of pie (especially cream pie) can put me down like nothing else. Case in point: a few weeks ago, I ate a slice of coconut cream pie and immediately wanted to take off my pants and lay down on the floor for the rest of the afternoon. Totally not worth it, especially for mediocre pie.

My outlook on pie changed a few weeks ago when I went to Oregon. I had heard about these raw vegan pies that were sold at the Portland Farmer’s Market on Saturday, but I was in Portland for only a couple of hours on a Friday night (you can read about the road trip debacle here). After some research, I was able to locate a key lime pie at a Whole Foods, and have been completely infatuated with recreating them ever since. The texture was so creamy, and not at all what I expected from a raw vegan dessert.  Did I mention that they are mini? Even better.

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Portable Chocolate Olive Oil Cakes and a Road Trip West

Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

I’m bringing you more jar food today! This time, the jars actually serve a purpose- PORTABLE CAKE! Ok, I’ll stop yelling now, but you get the picture. Cakes in jars excite me.

My friend Jon moved to Oregon last week, and even though I still haven’t quite forgiven him for leaving, I thought I would be a supportive friend and do the drive from Dallas to Eugene with him. I’m fairly certain that any good road trip needs to include portable cakes, just in case of emergencies. You may think this is a little extreme, but we did actually have an emergency, which I’ll get to in a bit.

Ever since I made these cookies a few weeks ago, I’ve been fixated on combining chocolate and olive oil in cake form. The flavors really go well together, and this time I added a little almond to the mix as well. This recipe is another super simple one- a one bowl cake with no mixer required, not even for the frosting! It’s a small batch recipe that makes only 2 cakes, which are baked directly in the mason jars that you will later be spooning them out of. This recipe is also egg and dairy free.

Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

The frosting is a chocolate ganache made with coconut milk, cooled to room temperature, and then piped onto the cakes. If you’re not a fan of coconut, don’t worry. I couldn’t taste it at all, especially after adding a little bit of amaretto liquor to the ganache. I topped my cakes with chocolate sprinkles and some honey roasted almonds that I got at Trader Joe’s, but if you’re vegan, maple roasted almonds would be a good substitute.

Now on to the road trip. We drove though Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Oregon.

Oklahoma always surprises me with their restaurants. We found a place in Norman called Local with lots of veggie options and a great green chili chowder.

I continued my love/hate relationship with Colorado. It was beautiful, as always, but I swear I’m allergic to everything that blooms there, and the altitude drives me bonkers. Also, just as we were crossing into the Colorado border, we got caught in a terrible hail storm and Jon’s windshield got smashed. After getting pummeled for about 15 minutes, we managed to take cover at a gas station and ate cake out of a jar while waiting out the storm. I told you it came in handy!

Oregon

We waited at a lovely little coffee shop while getting the windshield fixed in Idaho, but it set us back several hours in our trip, so the time that we had planned to stop in Portland got cut short. We did, however, get to stop at Salt and Straw (best ice cream ever!) which was recommended to me by Erika (check out her blog post all about Portland). There was a line out the door, which made me feel as though I was among kindred spirits. Anyone willing to wait in line for 30 minutes for ice cream understands me.

I also got to have Divine Pie! I saw these raw vegan pies on the Cooking Channel last year, and I’ve been dying to try them ever since. They sell them at the Portland Farmer’s Market on Saturdays, and even though we were there on Friday, I was able to locate one at a Whole Foods. They lived up to every expectation, and now I’m obsessed with raw vegan pie. You can see my experiments on Instagram.

Oregon

Even though we missed the Portland market, we did get to see a little bit of the Saturday Market in Eugene. Highlights included cherries for miles, rhubarb (which I have yet to find in Dallas), every flavor of goat cheese imaginable, teeny tiny potted plants, and more dreadlocks than I have ever seen in my life. I feel like Oregon is my food soul mate and I can’t wait to go back!

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Portable Chocolate Olive Oil Cakes

Yield: 2 mason jar cakes or 3 cupcakes

Ingredients

    For the Cake:
  • 4 tablespoons non-dairy milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (I used Dutch process)
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt
    • For the Ganache:
  • 1/3 cup full fat canned coconut milk
  • 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
  • 1 tablespoon amaretto liquor (optional)
    • Toppings:
  • Chocolate sprinkles
  • Honey roasted almonds

Instructions

    For the Cake:
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
  2. Grease and flour 2 half-pint sized mason jars (I used Bake Easy non-stick spray) and place them on a baking sheet for easier handling.
  3. In a small bowl, combine the non-dairy milk and vinegar. Set aside for a couple of minutes to curdle.
  4. Add the vanilla extract, sugar and olive oil and whisk until frothy.
  5. Add the all purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  6. Whisk until combined.
  7. Divide the batter between the mason jars and bake for 20-23 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the cake comes out clean.
  8. Cool on wire racks for about 15 minutes.
  9. Run a knife around the sides of the cakes and turn them out of the mason jars to cool completely.
    10. For the Ganache:
  10. In a small sauce pan, heat the coconut milk over medium heat until it just beings to boil.
  11. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chocolate and liquor until the mixture is smooth.
  12. Let the mixture come to room temperature.
    13. To Assemble the Cakes:
  13. Place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a star tip
  14. If your cake has domed up on the top, slice it off to make the cake flat (the dome is perfect for taste testing).
  15. Slice the cake horizontally into 2 even layers.
  16. Place one layer of the cake in the bottom of the jar.
  17. Pipe a layer of frosting over the cake.
  18. Add an additional layer of cake and pipe an additional layer of frosting.
  19. Top with sprinkles and/or honey roasted almonds.
https://cakemerchant.com/2014/06/13/portable-chocolate-olive-oil-cakes-road-trip-west/

Vegan Chocolate Pudding with Peanut Butter Whipped Cream

Vegan Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate + peanut butter = total comfort food, and I really need some of that right now because I’m getting married in just about a month. There’s just a certain amount of stress that goes along with impending nuptials on a large scale. Since I have family that’s coming in from all over the world, I’ve been experimenting a lot with vegan recipes. Most of my foreign family members are strict vegetarians who don’t eat eggs, and vegan desserts fit nicely with their dietary restrictions.

I usually make my pudding with egg yolks, but I know it’s possible to make it egg free since my non-egg eating grandma used to make me chocolate pudding all the time when I went to India. She did not, however, top it with piles of peanut butter coconut whipped cream, but you should because it’s awesome. Coconut whipped cream doesn’t have the exact same texture as regular whipped cream, but I found that I could get it to pipe a little better if I added some agar powder (my new favorite thing). If you’re just going to dollop your coconut whipped cream on your pudding, you can most definitely leave it out.

Vegan Chocolate PuddingVegan Chocolate PuddingVegan Chocolate PuddingVegan Chocolate Pudding

I served these in 5 ounce mason jars for no other reason than I’m a food blogger and therefore think that it’s totally normal to eat pretty much anything out of a jar. That, and found myself unable to leave Sur la Table last week without purchasing them last week. Aaron thinks jar food is weird, and now anytime I make him something, his first question is, “Is it in a jar?” And then he rolls his eyes, because boys just don’t get it sometimes.

You can divide them amongst any containers you see fit. I won’t judge. The peanut butter whipped cream makes enough for a medium sized dollop on each serving. For a giant pile of it (like you see in the picture), double the whipped cream recipe.

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Vegan Chocolate Pudding with Peanut Butter Whipped Cream

Serving Size: serves 3-4

Ingredients

    For the Chocolate Pudding:
  • 2 tablespoons (15 grams) cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup (50 grams) sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) non-dairy milk
  • 4 ounces or about 3/4 cup (113 grams) vegan bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • For the Peanut Butter Coconut Whipped Cream
  • 1 can of coconut milk (full fat), chilled overnight
  • 2-3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (If you're using natural, the no stir variety works best)
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon vegan powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon agar agar powder (optional, for thickening)

Instructions

    For the Chocolate Pudding:
  1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cornstarch, sugar, and salt.
  2. Pour the non-dairy milk into the saucepan in a steady stream and whisk until no clumps remain.
  3. Place the saucepan over medium heat until steam starts to rise off of the mixture, stirring occasionally.
  4. Turn the heat down to medium low, stirring constantly just until you see bubbles start to form and the mixture thickens (it should coat the back of a spoon).
  5. Add the chocolate chips and stir constantly for an additional 2-3 minutes, until the mixture becomes thick.
  6. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
  7. Pour into one large container or individual containers and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. If you don't like pudding skin, place a layer of plastic wrap over the pudding to prevent it from forming.
    8. For the Peanut Butter Coconut Whipped Cream:
  8. Open the can of chilled coconut milk and scoop of the hardened white layer into a bowl.
  9. Add the peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until it becomes smooth and thick.
  10. Add the powdered sugar and agar agar and beat until combined.
  11. Pipe or dollop onto the chocolate pudding.
https://cakemerchant.com/2014/06/08/vegan-chocolate-pudding-peanut-butter-whipped-cream/

Chocolate Pudding adapted from Smitted Kitchen
Peanut Butter Coconut Whipped Cream adapted from Oh, ladycakes