Chocolate Prune Cakes

Featured Ingredient: Tofu

Here’s the secret to dairy free chocolate baked goods: Tofu. Yep, that once hippy food works as a wonderful binder in lieu of eggs. If you’re thinking, “Eww, tofu” don’t fret, I promise you or any one else won’t have any idea it’s included in the ingredient list as the other flavors overpower it.

Of course, any chocolate cake I make is most likely to be bejeweled with luscious cashew cream. It always amazes me just how easy it is to make – a perfect substitute for dairy cream.

To up the  health ante of these chocolate cakes, I decided to work in some wrongly maligned prunes.

Prunes add some natural sweetness and a healthy dose of antioxidants. For this recipe, I used the prunes from Sun-Maid. I am always happy with the quality of the dried fruits from this company. 

Anyone else sneaking tofu into their baked goodies?  

Vegan Chocolate Prune Cakes

1/2 cup prunes

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or light spelt flour

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 ounces silken (soft) tofu

1/3 cup coconut palm sugar or other sugar of choice

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup oil of choice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Pour 1/2 cup boiled water into a bowl with the prunes. Set aside for about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix together whole wheat pastry flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Place soaked prunes and the soaking liquid, tofu, sugar, maple syrup, oil, and vanilla in a blender container and blend until smooth. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until all the flour is incorporated. Divide among 12 medium sized muffin cups and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Let cool several minutes before unmolding.

Cashew cream

2/3 cup unsalted raw cashews

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Place cashews in a bowl, cover with water and let soak for at least 2 hours. Drain cashews and place in a blender container with maple syrup, nutmeg and 1/2 cup water; blend until very smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve over cakes.

Switch hits

• Use dates instead of prunes
• Replace almond flour with more of the whole wheat or spelt flour