Tried this vegan recipe from the Washington Post
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cold water or cold brewed coffee
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Sift together dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt
and sugar) into an ungreased 8-inch-square or 9-inch-round cake pan. In
a small bowl, mix the oil, water or coffee, and vanilla extract. Gently
shake the pan to level the dry ingredients. Pour the liquid ingredients
into the baking pan with the dry ingredients and mix together until the
batter is smooth. Add the vinegar, which will create pale streaks in
the batter. Stir until the streaks are evenly distributed. Bake for
25-30 minutes and set aside to cool.
Damn tasty, for a vegan cake. So?
One problem with this recipe is the absence of eggs to bind the cake
together makes the cake looser and crumblier than I would like. So,
figuring the gluten in bread flour would toughen it up a little, I
substituted bread flour. That did indeed firm it up to my satisfaction.
The problem is, I can't keep the damn thing from falling. The first
time, it seemed to rise a little less, then collapse rather
dramatically. The edges are okay (pan is 8" square). It's the center
that falls...too much to cover up with frosting. The center still
tastes okay, but it's embarassing.
I thought it might be overrising, so I remade it with LESS baking
powder and vinegar (3/4 tsp. baking powder and 1 1/2 tbsp. vinegar).
Took it out of the oven 10 minutes ago....looks flatter, but not
perfect. I might settle for this recipe, if the taste and texture is
right. But what's going on here? Chemists, get out your Sherlock Holmes
hats!
One issue: the bread flour is old (ummm....maybe 5 - 10 years old). It
was stored in an airtight container. The all purpose flour used the
first time was fresh, however. Thoughts?
Art