This came because we were heading to a book club which has a lot of people who eat vegan, and having some ingredients to use up. This is loosely based on a method I came up with to make Black Bean Brownies (which I will post soon. Ish.). The texture is amazingly light and moist. While I made it as a loaf cake and topped it with some shaved coconut, it would also work well as a traditional frosted cake in whatever size pans you want—try a whipped coconut frosting. This recipe makes a 8×8″ cake/loaf cake, so I would double it for a tall stacked cake in three tiers, or for a sheet cake.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking tin with parchment, or grease with preferred oil/butter/etc. (If you are using a standard cake pan, I like to grease ONLY THE BOTTOM, line with parchment, then lightly grease ONLY THE BOTTOM again. By not greasing the sides of the cake pan, you are giving the batter something to hold onto as it rises, which will create a more even layer. Once it comes out of the oven and cools, run a butter knife along the edges to release easily.)
In large bowl, whisk dry ingredients until NO lumps remain:
– 260 g. flour
– 12 g. baking soda (2 t.)
– 8 g. fine salt (1 t.)
– 100 g. good unsweetened cocoa powder (vegan)
In high-powered blender (yes, really. If you don’t have one, use a hand mixer or whisk, but spend a LONG time making sure this is very well incorporated, smooth and light and fluffy.)
– 2 very ripe bananas
– 1 can unsweetened coconut milk (~13.5 oz./400 mL., anything in this range)
– 225 g. sugar
– 120 g. neutral oil (I used a mix of coconut & canola, because that is what I had, but any neutral oil is fine)
Blend wet until very well mixed. It should have a airy, entirely consistent texture. If coconut milk had separated, you may have to scrape down the sides to incorporate any chunks that remain and blend again.
Pour blended mixture into bowl of dry ingredients, and fold until no dry spots remain. Do not overmix! This should just come together, too much mixing once the flour in starts to develop gluten, and you won’t get that nice cake texture.
Pour into prepared pan (if using round pans, give them a spin to distribute batter evenly), and bake for 35–40 minutes. Cake tester should come out just barely clean.
Let cool completely before cutting or decorating. Top or frost as desired, or this is delicious on its own.
Enjoy!
Here's the Damn Recipe 