Double-Corn Gluten-Free Vegan Tea Cake

There are so much going on in the double-corn gluten-free vegan tea cake, let’s start with the most confounding aspect of it. We have posted double-corn gluten-free tea cake and easy skillet corn bread recipes on this blog. These are the easy ones, relatively speaking. Without a doubt, they are the corn tea cakes I love to eat. However, making them vegan is a formidable challenge.

How do you make vegan tea cakes without eggs, milk or butter?

The quick answer is: aquafaba, nut milk, canola oil and apple cider.

Aquafaba, for those who are not familiar with it, comes from a can of chickpea. Drain out the chickpea, what’s left is the aquafaba liquid or brine. It can be used as the egg white replacement. More than that, it is a game-changing spectacular ingredient; we made aquafaba meringues with it. It’s worth revisiting some of the aquafaba posts to see how the chickpea liquid works.

The apple cider vinegar provides the necessary acidity for leavening, very much like baking powder and baking soda. All three of these ingredients are used to leaven the vegan tea cakes.

The substitutes for milk and butter are nut milk and canola oil. Furthermore, I believe any kind of nut milk will work. Almond milk, coconut milk, cashew milk are all good. When I don’t have nut milk, oat milk can fill in easily. The convenient part is that you can produce oat milk in 30 seconds in the Vitamix. There’s no waiting and soaking overnight like you’d with nut milk.

To make gluten-free cornbread or tea cakes, the approach is to use corn meal. 100% corn flour can be used; they make very flavorful and tender tea cakes. Some recipes use a combination of gluten-free flour and corn meal. I prefer the former, just because we can do it and without compromising taste nor texture. So why not?

The gluten-free plus vegan version here calls for a combination of the gluten-free alternative flour and cornmeal.

How does the process work?

Step one involves what looks like making a meringue or a sponge cake. It starts with a foaming method by whipping the aquafaba and, later adding the granulated sugar, until tripled in volume. The process produces lots and lots of bubbles, making the final cakes lighter and fluffier. Meanwhile, it’s also constructing the scaffolding structure. An electric mixer can be helpful, since it takes at least 5-10 minutes for the aquafaba to hold semi-firm peaks.

Next, build the batter by mixing the remaining wet (nut milk and oil) and dry ingredients. Then add the meringue mixture to the batter. Mix well; there is no such thing as overmixing using gluten-free ingredients. However, do pay special attention to the hydration level of the batter. The ratio of liquid (milk) to flour (flour and cornmeal combined) is roughly 100% or 1-to-1 in weight. It’s OK to add more milk when it looks dry. The final batter should be barely runny, like a cross between a muffin and pancake batter.

Fresh corn kernels, if you have them, are there to impart moisture, texture, flavor and bite to the cakes. (Frozen corns are reasonable substitute, but fresh corn kernels are the best.) When I bite into a corn cake, it’s pleasing to actually eat and see some real corn.

How much oven time is best?

Roughly 45 minutes in a 350°F oven for a 7-inch pan, 35 minutes for muffin tins. Cakes baked with the muffin tins as well as the vintage cast iron cake pans turn out to be more open in texture. That’s the result of their higher crust to crumb ratio than that of a larger round pan.

Vary baking time according to its doneness, rather than by the time on the clock. One of the valuable tips in baking with gluten-free ingredients is: bake and bake some more — to ensure the cake is thoroughly cooked, to drive off the extra moisture, and to avoid gumminess. Don’t be afraid to extend baking beyond the time it takes for the toothpick to come out clean.

Notes:

This recipe works. But I have concern about the gluten-free flour weighing down on the texture of the cake. I haven’t really come across any gluten-free flour I like best. Xanthan gum, one of the flour ingredients, provides a sticky consistency. In my next attempt, I want to do away with the gluten-free flour while using a combination of cornmeal, cornflour or almond flour entirely. Stay tuned.

Print Recipe

Double-Corn Gluten-Free Vegan Tea Cake

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 100 g aquafaba, AKA chickpea brine from a can of chickpea
• 100 g granulated sugar
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
• 60 ml canola oil
• 200-240 ml unsweetened almond milk
• 120 g gluten-free flour
• 120 g fine cornmeal
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 100 g fresh corn kernels

Instructions

1

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a standard 9-inch round cake pan (I use a preheated 7-inch medium cast iron skillet)

2

Drain a can of chickpea. Reserve the liquid and set aside.

3

PREPARE THE AQUAFABA MERINGUE: Add chickpea liquid to a medium mixing bowl. Using a electric mixer, whip until loose peaks form. Then add sugar, a little at a time. Whip until the aquafaba meringue is glossy and white, holding semi-firm peaks.

4

COMBINE DRY AND WET INGREDIENTS: Add dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix to combine. Then add almond milk and oil and whisk to combine.

5

MAKE THE FINAL BATTER: Add the aquafaba meringue to the batter. Gently fold in until a thick and barely runny batter forms. The batter should be thick but loose enough to pour into the pan. Adjust hydration accordingly. Add flour if it's too wet or almond milk if it's too thick. It's hard to tell how much is needed since every brand works differently.

6

FOLD IN THE FRESH CORN: Fold the corn kernels in the batter.

7

BAKE THE TEA CAKES: Fill batter in the prepared cake pan. Bake on a center rack for about 45 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center comes out completely clean. Err on the side of overbaking.

8

Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

9

Serve with maple syrup.