St Louis, Missouri is famous for Gooey Butter Cake and there are any number of competing varieties. The recipe below is based on one from Helfer's Bakery in St Louis. It veganized beautifully into a gooey, tender, delicious cake.
Note on imitation butter flavoring: The most common brand in US grocery stores is McCormick. If you call the company, they will tell you that the "artificial flavoring" does not contain any animal ingredients. If that isn't good enough, there are other brands like Nature's Flavors which are specifically labeled and marketed as vegan. If you don't want to use an artificial flavor, use almond extract instead.
Make the crumb mixture:
Mix 1/4 c. unbleached sugar, 1/4 c. vegan margarine, 1/4 t salt, 1/4 t. vanilla, 1/4 t. imitation butter flavoring, and 1/2 c. all purpose flour. Set aside in refrigerator.
Grease and flour an 8 inch square pan. Preheat the oven to 350F.
Make the cake batter:
Beat 6 T nondairy milk and 2 T ground golden flaxseed until it forms a gooey, egg-like texture. Add 1 1/3 c. unbleached sugar, 1 c vegan margarine, and 1/2 t salt. Beat on high speed until very light and fluffy.
In a small bowl, combine 2/3 c nondairy milk with 1/2 t vanilla and 1/2 t imitation butter flavoring. In another bowl, combine 1 3/4 c cake flour (measured gently) and 1 t baking powder. Gradually add these wet and dry mixtures to the fluffy margarine-milk-flax combo, alternating between them. Mix on low speed only until just barely combined. The batter should be very light and fluffy.
Retrieve the crumb mix from the fridge. Break it up and spread evenly across the bottom of the cake pan. Pour the batter over the top, and spread gently until even. Place the cake in the preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes until it a toothpick comes out clean. (For me, this took 50 minutes.) Allow to cool for 5 minutes, and then flip onto a large cake plate. (It will be upside down, so the crumb layer is now on top.) Dust with powdered sugar, and try not to eat the whole thing. Really.
4 comments:
Thank you!! I am originally from STL and I've never believed that our beloved gooey butter coffee cake could be veganized - so you are awesome and have done the world a great service. Thank yoU!
Sarah, it worked really well! If making again, I might cut the salt amount in half due to the salt in the Earth Balance.
holy cakes! that looks crazy decadent, and soooo good. Also, I've never thought of getting artificial butter flavor for my pantry. Of course, now I feel I must have it.
Next year's MoFo: 30 days of butter flavouring.
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