Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Vegan chocolate chip mint julep cake

vegan mint julep cake

A few weeks ago, on Kentucky Derby day, I cooked up—I mean, baked up—a certain cake that, you will see, was intended to be somewhat relevant to the event happening at the time. You will see that the mint julep, a cocktail composed of bourbon, mint, and sugar syrup, is the traditional drink consumed on the occasion. While I have never had a mint julep myself—cough, cough—I was interested in trying to replicate the flavors of the beverage through cake.

Worked pretty well if I do say so myself.

I used a bourbon-infused cake from Brown Eyed Baker and brushed it with a serious amount of bourbon (for flavor, you know) to really bring out the cocktail flavor; and, using some finely chopped fresh mint, I whipped up a very delightful minty buttercream to bring everything together. Oh yeah...and I added chocolate chips. Because why not.

I honestly have no idea.
The fresh mint in here is definitely essential. You get a really zingy flavor that extracts or otherwise can’t replicate. The mint leaves on top are for garnish, mainly, but they can be eaten if you are like me and are known to pluck leaves off of mint plants and chew on them at random. Because mint leaves are actually pretty good on their own. Weirdly enough.

Here’s the recipe.

__________

Vegan chocolate chip mint julep cake

Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

Makes one 2-layer 6-inch round cake

___________

Bourbon chocolate chip cake

Ingredients

204 grams • cake flour • 1 ½ cups

2 grams • baking powder • ½ teaspoon

1 gram • baking soda • ¼ teaspoon

2 grams • kosher salt • ½ teaspoon

122 grams • nondairy milk • ½ cup

4 grams • apple cider vinegar • 1 teaspoon

30 grams • bourbon • 2 tablespoons

112 grams • coconut oil, softened • ½ cup

150 grams • granulated sugar • ¾ cup

55 grams • light brown sugar • ¼ cup

110 grams • silken tofu, blended until smooth • ½ cup

80 grams • chocolate chips • ½ cup

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 6-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a measuring cup, combine nondairy milk, vinegar, and bourbon. Set aside.

Place coconut oil and sugars in the bowl of an electric stand mixer and cream until light and fluffy. Add tofu and beat until smooth. Add flour in three additions, alternating with milk mixture. Mix until just combined each time. Fold in chocolate chips.

Divide batter evenly between baking pans. Bake for about 28 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cakes cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

_________

Mint buttercream

Ingredients

224 grams • coconut oil, softened • 1 cup

240 grams • powdered sugar • 2 cups

4 grams • vanilla extract • 1 teaspoon

1 gram • peppermint extract • ¼ teaspoon

45 grams • coconut milk, full fat • 3 tablespoons

10 grams • fresh mint, finely chopped • 2 tablespoons

Directions

Place coconut oil in the bowl of an electric stand mixer; beat until smooth. With mixer on low speed, spoon in powdered sugar. Add remaining ingredients and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy.

_________

Assembly

Ingredients

Bourbon chocolate chip cake

Mint buttercream

Bourbon, to taste

Mint leaves, for decoration

Directions

Level off each cake layer with a serrated knife. Pour a shot or so of bourbon in a small bowl and lightly brush each cake with bourbon using a pastry brush. Layer cakes with mint buttercream. Place mint leaves on top of cake for decoration. Slice and eat.

___________

Frosted this naked style and left all the good stuff for the top.

For some other minty goodness, check out these recipes.

Peppermint mocha mousse cake. Like Christmas in...May!

Mint chocolate chip macarons. A miracle of modern culinary science.

Mint chocolate chip pancakes. The first recipe I ever posted! 

24 comments:

  1. This cake looks SO good! Mint and chocolate is one of my favorite combinations ever!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, you can't go wrong with mint and chocolate :)

      Delete
  2. Oh June this sounds wonderful! Who doesn't love a mint julep and in cake form it sounds wonderful. Have a great holiday weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much! You have a great weekend too :)

      Delete
  3. Ah stunning! I love when drinks are used in bakes :) Just gives them such nice and different flavours from the usual :D Well done miss! x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep, everything's better with a little booze! :D

      Delete
  4. Refreshing flavours and amazing cake! I love how unique it is!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! Mint and bourbon is a surprisingly great flavor combination :) Glad you stopped by!

      Delete
  5. What an awesome cake! Love the mint and chocolate combo!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love the flavors in this, very unique!

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is so creative!! I've never had a mint julep either, but I'd sure like a slice of this cake. I've never seen tofu used in a cake recipe before - how cool!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tofu is a great egg substitute, and usually you can't taste it. Works perfectly here! :)

      Delete
  8. I am obsessed (obsessed, I say) with using fresh mint in desserts. It makes such a difference! Adding some bourbon just seals the deal. This definitely looks like an anytime cake--Kentucky Derby time or not!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yeah, fresh mint is awesome--I really ought to use it more often. Glad you like the cake--and thanks for stopping by! :D

      Delete
  9. This cake looks so good! :) But tofu sounds as a strange ingredient for the cake.. Does it have any taste in the cake?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Have no fear! Tofu absorbs the flavor of whatever it is cooked with, and this is no exception. I just use tofu as a substitute for eggs, and it works pretty well in cakes like this.

      Delete