#double layer cake

[Gift] How about a double layer cake, Ruby?

Meringue Cake with Pecans and Chocolate

  So many times I have eaten this kind of cake and never tried to make it myself. The time has come and the ingredients were all here. I was a little afraid that it wouldn’t bake good or an hour in the oven seamed to me like an eternity. Trust me, it is not complicated at all. I have made this gorgeous Meringue Cake with Pecans, creamed with egg yolk filling and chocolate ganache and covered…

This is my first attempt at a double layer cake.  Oh and those are the bottom of Patrick's feet. His feet were unaware this was the food styling/photo station as well as the ottoman.  I will spare you the VAST details as to why it is far less than perfect but hey, it was a first attempt.  I will post details once I have completed a more successful, second try.  Nonetheless, this thing tasted great.  I took it to the office and everyone happily played the role of 'guinea pigs' for my first double layer cake.  The texture with the cornmeal was awesome in my opinion but I'm a big cornmeal fan.  The frosting, although I think I let it get a little too thin, was decadent.  DECADENT.  In the photo below you can get a better visual of the 'what went wrong' side of the story...  (and I'm not referring to the foil smushing the frosting issue due to unavoidable commuting hazards)

Double Layer Vegan Pineapple Upside Down Cake with Pecans

Ingredients:

1/4 cup grape seed oil

3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 cup Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread, softened, plus 1/2 cup, melted

2 1/4 cups vegan refined sugar

1 1/4 cups unsweetened apple sauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/4 cups plain soy milk

2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

1 1/2 cups vegan brown sugar

16 pineapple slices, either fresh or canned

16 pecans

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

Coat two round cake pans with grape seed oil and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour.

Divide the brown sugar evenly between each pan, coating the bottoms.

Pour the 1/2 cup of melted Earth Balance over the brown sugar. Not all of the sugar will be coated with Earth Balance, but that’s okay. It will spread out as it bakes.

Place one pineapple slice in the center of each pan.

Place the remaining pineapple slices in a circle around the edges of the pans, and place one pecan inside of each pineapple slice.

In a small bowl, stir together the soy milk and 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar and set aside.

In a separate bowl, use a hand mixer to beat the Earth Balance until creamy, around 20 seconds.

Add in the refined sugar and mix on low-medium speed for 30 seconds.

Add the apple sauce and vanilla to the sugar mixture and stir until combined.

In a large bowl, whisk together the 3 cups of all-purpose flour, baking powder and sea salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, also adding in the soy milk (it should be thick now with a consistency similar to buttermilk), and mix on low-medium speed until combined.

Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar.

Pour the cake batter over top of the pineapples, distributing the batter evenly between the two pans.

Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted into the center of each cake and removed cleanly.

Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes.

Invert the cakes onto a wire rack until they are completely cool.