Norsk versjon av denne blogposten finnes her.
Sponge is among the greatest challenges for those who bake without eggs and gluten. Gluten-free sponge with egg is perhaps even more impressive than the usual sponge cake, but in the absence of the eggs as well as gluten it is challenging to make an airy and light sponge suitable for cream cake. I have previously examined what lecithin can do for a sponge without eggs. Here I have used vegan meringue, which the past two months has emerged as an interesting substitute for eggs in many (but not all) baking contexts. A problem with vegan meringue made of chick pea brine (or aquafaba) is that it does not solidify upon heating as egg white does. I have therefore for some time been thinking that it would be a good idea to supplement the vegan meringue with protein powder, to make it behave more like regular egg white when baked. The assumption seems to hold. Here is a first report of my fresh experience.
The recipe is enough for two layers of sponge of 18 cm in diameter. It is probably wise to bake the layers individually, instead of making one cake and divide it afterwards. Regarding the proportions I have used the recipe for sponge that Karolina Tegelaar has developed for aquafaba and wheat flour. I have not tried with baking powder. It is probably enough air in the dough via the aquafaba meringue.
100 g aquafaba (strained brine from canned chickpeas)
a pinch of citric acid
10 g protein powder (here 90% soy protein from Pulsin’)
100 g sugar
100 g finely ground rice flour or gluten free flour mix for cakes
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
30 g of oil
Preheat oven to 170 gC. Place a clean baking paper on a baking tray and put two cakes rings of 18 cm in diameter on the tray. Grease the inside of the cake rings with oil.
Whisk together aquafaba and citric acid until frothy and stiff. Whisk in the protein powder. Add the sugar gradually and continue whisking until it becomes a rather stiff, airy dough. Gently mix in rice flour and vanilla together with oil. Spread the dough in the bottom of the two cake rings. Bake the cakes at 170 gC for about 20 minutes.
Layer the two sponge cakes on top of each other with cream, jam, fruit in between and on the top as desired.
This cake is gluten free, egg-free and milk-free and therefore also vegan.
Blogpost translated from Norwegian, by Anne Spurkland, published 14th May 2015