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Author:
Franco Salzillo
Vanilla cakes are not only a classic; they’re also blank canvases for many other types of cake.
Top a vanilla cake with buttermilk frosting and fresh strawberries, and you’ve got yourself an entirely different cake.
Cover it with fondant and make your dreams come true with the wildest shapes.
Vanilla cakes, though, are made with white flour or all-purpose flour, which is made with wheat, which means gluten.
And although most people don’t think twice about gluten, others avoid it at all costs, sometimes for health reasons!
And then there’s the eggs; not everyone eats those. That means learning to make a vegan, gluten-free vanilla cake is paramount.
The critical ingredients in this recipe are almond flour, which will substitute the all-purpose flour, the margarine, instead of butter, and the xanthan gum, a natural binding agent that sort of works like eggs. We’re also using almond milk instead of regular milk.
The rest of the ingredients are easy — sugar, vanilla extract, baking powder, salt and a tasty vanilla frosting. Make sure the frosting meets your dietary requirements.
For me, vanilla cakes are deliciously compatible with fresh fruit. Peaches, red or black berries, and even kiwi taste beautiful over a vanilla cake.
You can also drizzle chocolate sauce or syrup over the cake for a contrasting touch. Vanilla and chocolate are meant to be together.
Turn your vanilla cake into a birthday cake with rainbow sprinkles. Top the cake with them and also add a fist-full to the cake batter. This one looks as good as it tastes.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9″ cake pan with margarine.
In a stand mixer, combine the margarine and the sugar until frothy.
Incorporate the canola oil, almond milk and vanilla extract.
In a mixing bowl, combine the xanthan gum, almond flour, baking powder and salt.
Stir in the dry ingredients into the stand mixer until a smooth cake batter forms.
Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for 35 minutes or until cooked through.
Cool down before unmolding and spread the vanilla frosting over the cake.
