Recipe: Enjoy gluten-free Christmas, New Year with homemade vegan pineapple cake

A vegan diet means giving up on consuming animal products including meat, eggs and even dairy and other animal-derived substances. Vegan dishes come packed with benefits of a plant-based diet. 

According to a study published in the ‘Journal of the American College of Nutrition’, it was found that a low-fat vegan diet has better outcomes for weight, body composition, insulin sensitivity and cholesterol levels as compared to a Mediterranean diet. As per another clinical study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, postmenopausal ladies who consumed plant-based diet had lower risks of sudden death, cardiovascular infection and dementia-related demise as compared with ladies who ate fewer plant proteins.

Veganism is a growing trend across the world with individuals becoming more conscious and concerned about their eating habits over a period of time and if you are one of them, continue enjoying a gluten-free holiday season by binging on this recipe of homemade Vegan Pineapple Upside Down Cake this Christmas or New Year.

​​Ingredients for the topping:

¼ cup vegan butter (56g) melted

½ cup brown sugar (100g)

10-12 thin slices pineapple

Ingredients for the cake:

1 ¾ cups maida (all-purpose flour) (220g)

1 cup caster sugar (200g)

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

¾ cup soy milk (180ml) or other non-dairy milk (oat, almond, rice)

¼ cup pineapple juice (60ml)

1 tbsp vanilla extract

⅓ cup canola oil (80ml) or other vegetable oil

1 tbsp white vinegar or apple cider vinegar

Method:

Lightly coat a 9-inch round cake pan with oil. Melt the vegan butter and then pour it out into the bottom of the cake pan and spread it around so it lines the bottom evenly. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the melted butter and spread it around evenly.

Then layer the fresh pineapple slices along the bottom/on top of the sugar and butter. Set the prepared cake pan aside and preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the white sugar, baking soda and salt and mix together with a spoon.

Then add in the soy milk, pineapple juice, vanilla, oil and vinegar and whisk together with a hand whisk until just combined. Do NOT overmix- it will make the cake too dense. Pour out over the pineapple slices in your prepared cake pain, and smooth down with the back of a spoon.

Place into the oven and bake for 55 minutes. Bring it out at the 30 minute mark and cover loosely with foil and return to the oven for another 25 minutes. The foil will prevent it from over-browning. It’s ready when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Let the cake cool for 10 minutes before inverting it onto a plate or cake stand. To flip it, place a plate or cake stand against the cake pan and then flip it so that the cake pan is upside down on top of the plate or cake stand. Let it sit for a few seconds for the caramelized brown sugar to run down over the sides of the cake, and then lift the cake pan off. Enjoy!

(Recipe: Dr. Jennifer Prabhu, Co-Founder & CEO, Circee Health Pvt Ltd)

Benefits:

Pineapples are loaded with nutrients and contain disease-fighting antioxidants along with enzymes that can ease digestion. Their consumption may help reduce the risk of cancer, boost immunity, ease the symptoms of arthritis, suppress inflammation and speed up recovery after a surgery or strenuous exercise.

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