Lemon Cranberry Loaf

I was in a pinch one evening wanting to have some kind of loaf in the house for a friend's weekend visit, but had no more time to run to the grocery store for anything.  The bananas I had on hand weren't ripe enough for banana bread, but I did have plenty of lemons and fresh / frozen cranberries.  I was more than happy with how the loaf turned out, tangy and sweet with the fresh pop of the cranberries.  The texture would fool anyone into thinking there were eggs in the batter, soft, moist and bouncy without being wet and heavy.

Dry Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups white flour
• 3/4 cup cane sugar
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp xanthan gum
• 1/2 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/2 350gm (12oz) pack firm silken tofu (so 175gm or 6oz)
• 1/3 cup light oil of your choice
• 1 cup soy (or rice, almond, etc.) milk
• 3 lemons, zested and squeezed
• 1 - 2 tsp lemon extract
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• approx. 1 cup frozen / fresh cranberries (can use up to 1 1/2 cups)

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Prepare a loaf pan by lining it with parchment paper.

In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients.

Zest the lemons, placing the zest in a medium bowl.

In a blender or bullet, combine the silken tofu, oil, soy milk, and lemon juice.  Pour mixture into the medium bowl with the lemon zest, add the extracts and stir to combine.

Make a well in the flour mixture and pour the wet mixture into it.  Stir gently until well combined.  If the batter feels a bit too thick, add a little bit more soy milk.  Fold in the cranberries.

Pour into prepared loaf pan and bake 45 minutes before checking.  The top should be a little golden, and the loaf should feel 'bouncy' when tapped lightly on top.   

The Real Deal Pound Cake

If you love pound cake like I do, this one's the real deal! Pound cake was my favorite cake growing up and for years now I've been searching high and low for an authentic vegan pound cake recipe. Well, my search just ended!!

TIP: Make sure the oven is nice and hot and at temperature for a good 20 min. before you pop her in the oven to make sure she rises properly.

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sunflower oil
• 1/2 cup plain or vanilla soy yogurt
• 1/2 cup blended silken tofu (blend first, then measure)*
• 3/4 cup soy or rice milk (vanilla or plain)
• 1 1/4 cups cane sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla & 2 tsp lemon extract OR 4 tsp vanilla extract

* If you don't have silken tofu, replace with 1/4 cup vegan yogurt & 1/4 cup vegan milk

Dry Ingredients:

• 2 cups all purpose flour (ie; white. Sorry, if it's whole wheat it ain't pound cake)
• 3 Tbsp arrowroot powder (or corn starch)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Lemon Icing:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp lemon extract

Method:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Lightly oil a loaf pan

In a large bowl combine wet ingredients. Use an electric mixer to beat until smooth, about 2 min.

Sift dry ingredients into wet mixture. Stir to combine then beat with electric mixter for 1.5 to 2 minutes until a very thick batter forms. Do not overmix.

Pour into prepared loaf pan and bake 60 - 65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Make sure the top inside isn't still 'gooey'.  (depending on your oven, it may have to bake shorter or longer.  Since posting this recipe I've gotten a new oven and find I need to bake it about 70 min)

Combine ingredients for icing in a bowl, whisk to make smooth with a spoon or electric beater, and pour over cake once it has cooled.


Important: The following steps ensure a "moist" pound cake without a hard outer 'crust': Remove from oven and let rest in pan 10 minutes, then cover with foil and let rest another 15 minutes or so. Remove from pan, place on wire rack and loosely cover with foil, including as well as you can under the wire rack. Cake should cool a few more hours before slicing.