Pina Colada Cake (Hella Vegan)

Ok, totally guilty. I casually skipped a month and didn't post ANYTHING in August. This is the first time I've behaved so badly with my blog since I started it. But I have a hell of an excuse. I've been really working hard on last edits for my forthcoming novel, THE BODY MYTH, that's out in the U.S by Unnamed Press in L.A  in February 2019.  I am so excited about the birth of this novel. It's taken more than a couple of years (and loads of rejections) to get here. Sneak peek at my Goodreads page here.

I'am also a Pitchwars mentor this year, so I am in the process of going through some lovely fiction submissions and making a call on finding that one mentee I think I can help the most. If you are a writer and don't know about Pitchwars please click here for more on that.

So, therefore,  catching up with my second passion had to be on the back burner. If you've read so far, thanks for spending the time on my writer self-promotion. I am sure you're over it.  Let's get back to VEGAN FOOD.

 Today, I made an epic Pina Colada cake with non-dairy whipping cream. You can try to get Rich's Whip topping (the blue one) at your local bake supply store if you're in Bangalore like me.

I  used coconut flavour for the cream when I whipped it. This classic cake has the tang and sweetness of pineapple rounded off with fresh coconut. What a delight. At least for me because I am a huge fan of pina colada. If coconut is not your jam, then this one is not for you.

 You're going to need some patience, not only for whipping the cream but to really let the cake cool so that you can cut it in half and add cream in the middle. Since this is homemade and I have very little patience, my cake is very uneven and wobbly. Oh well.

What You Need

2 cups vegan whipping cream base (cold and defrosted)
2.5 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup soy/almond/cashew mylk
3/4th cup chopped pineapple
3/4th cup fresh shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla
1.5 teaspoon coconut flavour/essence
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3/4th cup oil


How to Make

First, we'll make the cake. In a large bowl combine sugar, oil, soy mylk (or whatever plant-based mylk), salt, vanilla, and apple cider vinegar. Stir together well.

Then add flour, baking soda and baking powder and stir it up. You'll get a nice thick wet batter. Now add your pineapple and fresh coconut and mix it up again. Your batter is ready.

Pre-heat oven to 180c. In a thick (depthwise) cake pan, pour your batter. Make sure you line it with baking paper otherwise it will be a huge disaster when you try to take it out of the pan.

Pop the cake in the oven for 45 minutes. Let it cool for at least 90 minutes.

Meanwhile get out your chilled vegan whipping cream. In a large bowl start to whip with a motor whisk. Trust, you need this. Whip the cream in batches of 4 min otherwise, you'll burn your motor. You'll need to keep doing this until it thickens and forms soft peaks. I recommend popping the bowl back in the fridge everytime you take a whisking break so the cream remains cold. Keeping it cold allows it to become thick with more ease.

If you do this on and off for 30 min you should have a nice thick (but soft) cream to frost your cake with. Keep the whipped cream in the fridge.

When your cake is completely COOLED, gently take it out on a plate. Use a large knife to cut the cake into two from the middle.

 Then add a thick layer of cream to one side and sandwich the cake. Frost the entire cake with the remaining whipped cream. Decorate with fresh coconut and pineapple.

Eat for dessert! Share with your neighbours!

Till next time, keep it real. Keep it kind.