King Carrot Cake pour Gigi
One of my favorite activities is walking on the railroad tracks in Bayou. There’s something about those rutted industrial tracks raised above the wilds, the shimmering canal, and the ancient trees beside those humble, rickety old ties. Come to think of it, I haven’t seen anybody maintaining those tracks in almost forty cat years. And if you’re wondering, I’m anything but a cat.
I’m closer to a rabbit, I guess, but only by virtue of my relationship with our neighbor Miss Lapin. Speaking of whom, I’ve been seriously worried about her over the past few weeks. Ever since the publication of a certain vegan fettuccine recipe, that rabbit seems to be suffering a nutritional deficiency due to a diet consisting almost solely of alligator pears.
Of course, aside from being concerned about her well-being and girth, I’m also feeling a bit responsible. After all, not everyone has common sense when it comes to sound nutrition, plus rabbits are delicate creatures; too many sweets, and they’re down for the count. Too much fat, and they look more like hedgehogs than hares.
So I consider it my duty to influence a change in regimen, and what better time to do it than just before Mardi Gras?
Please note: this recipe is not only vegan, but it also glutenless, since I can’t bear to use or hear the term “gluten-free” again. AAAAGH.
Glazed Carrot KING CAKE
(adapted from a recipe on theveganscreen.blogspot.com)
1 cup oats
1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
1 1/2 cups date sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup cooked and peeled sweet potato
1 cup vanilla soy milk or vanilla almond milk
3/4 cup olive oil
1 cup water
1 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup currants or raisins (optional)
2/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 baby
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a regular-sized bundt pan and set aside.
In a food processor, grind the oats into a fine meal. Transfer the oats to a large mixing bowl, and set the food processor aside. Add the buckwheat flour, date sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the bowl, and stir until combined. In the food processor, add the sweet potato and “milk”; combine until smooth, and add it to the dry ingredients, along with the olive oil and water. Fold in the carrot, and stir until the batter is combined. Fold in the raisins and walnuts. Transfer the mixture to the bundt pan, and smooth out the batter with the back of a spoon. Bake the cake for approximately 35 minutes, or until a knife or toothpick comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for about 30 minutes, then carefully flip the cake out onto a plate. Allow it to cool for about an hour.
Tuck the baby into the cake so that it is hidden.
For the glaze, combine:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup refined coconut oil
2 tablespoons non-dairy milk
1 pinch salt
Split the glaze into thirds, and add a drop of purple, green, or yellow food coloring to the individual portions. Drizzle the glaze over the cake, and cover the cake until ready to serve; refrigerate any leftovers.
Once a Bayou bait shop owner serving the best leeches and pie, these days Miss RMarie Beedit can be found in the St. Louis Cemetery, looking for night crawlers and shiny pennies.