Food

BUKHANYE’S 1ST BIRTHDAY CAKE – NO MILK, NO NUTS, NO DAIRY, NO EGGS||RECIPE

I’VE dreaded this moment since Bukhanye was six months old and I found out he had allergies. What was my son going to do on his birthday? No scrap that, what would happen when he was invited to other children’s birthdays? I’ve been toying with the idea of going back to a grand passion of mine – cooking and baking. With being busy over the years I let it fall by the wayside. I remember telling Bukhanye’s dad waay before we even had him that my ideal family set up is a home that smells of baked goods every Sunday. Where we as a family get to enjoy tea time together over some magazines, board games, books and laughter. I also mentioned that I want my children to know what good, healthy, home cooked food tastes like. Most of all I want my family to know what my cooking tastes and feels like. So with Bukhanye turning 1, this love and passion was reignited. Over the coming months, as my confidence resurfaces, you guys will see more and more original dishes, but for now I will stick to tried and tested remixed versions. LOL.

When I came across BakeLikeAPro’s mini vegan chocolate cake on YouTube I knew this was what I was going to make for my little prince as he turned one.

Here is the recipe, adapted just a little:

SERVES: 8-12

INGREDIENTS:
6TB Vegetable Oil
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Water –
at room temperature
3/4 tsp White Vinegar
3/8 tsp Salt
34 tsp Vanilla Essence
3/8 cup Cocoa Powder
1 1/4 cup Flour
3/4 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

ICING & DECO
2 (or more) slabs of dark chocolate – I used Lindt 70% and 85% dark chocolate
4-5 Strawberries (or any other fruit) – optional
1 Kiwi Fruit (or any other fruit) – optional

METHOD:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Mix first 2 ingredients together thoroughly.
3. Add the water and mix well.
4. Add the vinegar and mix.
5. Add the salt and mix.
6. Add the vanilla essence and mix well.
7. Sift in the dry ingredients separately, first the cocoa powder, then the flour and lastly the bicarbonate of soda.
8. Transfer into an already greased, sprayed or lined round baking pan (I used a 22x6cm cylinder pan).
9. Bake for 35 minutes (set a timer).

**If you will be doing a double layer like me then you will want to repeat steps 2-9**

10. Let the baked cake cool on a rack.
11. If you are doing two layers, once the cake has cooled you will need to ensure the surface is flat and not curved, do that by thinly cutting off the domed/curved top of the cake.

12. Break the chocolate slabs into small pieces and melt in a glass dish over a pot of boiling water.
13. Slice your fruit and add some fresh lemon juice as a preservation measure.
14. Spread a small layer of melted chocolate on the flat surface created on the cooled cake.
15. Place the second layer of cake on top and pour the rest of the chocolate (there is not structure or method here, be as playful or creative as you would like).
16. Randomly place fruit bits (if you chose to include them) as desired.

**Ignore steps 11 and 14 if you’ve only opted to do one layer**

ENJOY!

Hi!!! My name is Vuvu Vena. I used to live in the coastal town of East London in South Africa, now I live in Johannesburg and I’m a blogger. I believe life is about archiving your experiences, sharing them with the world and developing oneself, always challenging the better you within. I do this on my YouTube channel as well as this blog. I honestly think we make the most out of life when we share it and this site is really about that. I am a word fanatic, I love words and the power they have to create and change situations, as well as how they can never be erased. I am passionate about sharing life as I believe this is how we learn and grow, from other people’s experiences not just our own. I am also a woman through and through and I plan to show case my femininity on this platform with pride and hopefully some grace LOL. Vuvu Vena will therefore be a medley of the things that make me. Hopefully you will find something you like. Please like, subscribe and all that beautiful stuff :D.

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