Pinapple Upside Down Cake and Vegan Fruit and Nut Cake - Last Bakes of 2009

There was a time when I used to bake every second day or so. In the last couple of years all that butter, sugar and flour have started showing at all the wrong places and on top of that we realized that Manoj's cholesterol was a little high. It was time to change our eating habits and I must say its been really difficult. Both of us are crazy about junk and fast food and could happily have just that all day. Some changes we made were giving up eating out, no fried foods (except when visiting friends), its all about simple home made meals now. I bake only on special occasions, when visiting friends or when I'm having friends over. We are getting results and we feel so much better now.

Anyways, here are the two cakes I baked last month.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

I made the Pineapple Up-side Down Cake to take along to a friends place. I've had this recipe bookmarked for a while, it's from My Kitchen Snippets. See the recipe here. Just substituted pineapple and cherries instead of peaches.

The cake came out beautifully and was perfect. The sponge by itself was moist and buttery and delicious. I made two mini cakes, so I could taste it before I took it to my friends place. This recipe is definitely a keeper, can't wait to try it with peaches.

Vegan Fruit and Nut Cake

Whats Christmas without a fruit cake! I had a tough time selecting a recipe as the ones I had used alcohol and that's off limits for me. I also wanted an eggless cake and one that was not loaded with calories. After a lot of hunting I finally saw this recipe at Jugalbandi and it was perfect for my needs. That's a blog u can trust and there were so many people vouching for the recipe, I had no doubts what so ever.

I followed the recipe as is. I did not soak the fruits, used half orange juice and half water and totally left out the alcohol. The cake was fabulous, I could not believe that its vegan and was better than any fruit cake I ever baked. Manoj is already asking me to bake another one, guess he won't have to wait long.

This is a must try!!

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Both the cakes are going to Sara's Cakes and Cookies event and to Divya's Show Me Your Cake event.

Pineapple Cream Cake

I was at Hyderabad for a year after marriage where I took a baking class conducted by Radhika Mandala. I enjoyed the class and learned some great recipes.

I baked this cake for Valentine's Day. This was my first attempt at making a pastry and it came out really well. Everyone loved it and I hope you will too...

Ingredients:

50 gms Flour

50 gms Cornflour

3 Eggs, separated

1 tsp Baking Powder

100 gms Superfine Sugar

1/2 tsp Pineapple Essence

1 can Crushed Pineapple

1 1/2 cups whipped cream

1 cup Pineapple Syrup

Method:

For the cake :

Pre-heat the oven to 385˚F/ 200˚C ). Grease and line an 8" round tin.

Sieve the flours and the baking powder together 3 times.

Using an electric blender beat the egg whites to form soft peaks. Gradually add sugar and beat till thick. Add the yolks one at a time and beat well at low speed till well blended.

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the sieved flours. Do not stir or over-mix.

Add the essence to a corner of the bowl and fold it in gently.

Bake for about 20-25mins till firm.

Once done remove the cake from the tin and cool completely. Slice the cake into two.

For the filling and icing :

Drain the pineapple can and reserve the syrup. Add water to the syrup if necessary to make a cup and add enough sugar to sweeten. Add a few drops of pineapple essence.

Whip the cream to stiff peaks.

To assemble the cake :

Using a spray bottle or spoon soak one slice of cake in the pineapple syrup. The cake should be moist but still firm.

Top with a layer of whipped cream and pineapple pieces. Top with the second slice, also soaked in syrup. Cover the top and sides with a thick layer of whipped cream. Decorate with pineapple pieces and whipped cream.

Refrigerate for 2-3 hrs so it sets well.

Notes:

I doubled the recipe so I could have more layers. The cake was huge so everyone had a big portion.

I used Non-dairy ready to whip topping instead of the cream. If using heavy whipping cream, you will have to add 2-3tbs confectioners sugar to the cream half way through whipping.

Vanilla ice-cream is also a great option, but then the cake will have to kept in the freezer. Transfer to the refrigerator for sometime before serving.