Norwitz Notions

This cake came from a mix:

Sylvan Border Farm
Gluten-Free Products
Lemon Cake Mix
1 lb, 10.7 oz (762.6 g)
Mendocino Gluten-Free Products, Inc.
P.O. Box 277, Willits, CA 95490
(800) 297-5399; Fax: (707) 459-1834
http://www.sylvanborderfarm.com/

INGREDIENTS: Sugar, Potato Starch, White Rice Flour, Brown Rice Flour*, Aluminum-free Baking Powder, Amaranth Flour, Quinoa Flour*, Xanthan Gum, Lemon Juice Powder, White Cornmeal*, Garbanzo Bean Flour*, Soy Flour*, Salt. *Organically Grown

The mix cost me a mere 99 cents, because it was being discontinued from the store where I got it. I finally used it the other day.

We made it for Miriam, as a cake to bring to other children’s birthday parties. It’s really hard on her to watch everyone else eat cake (and pizza and other special treats) and not be able to have any herself. So we bring her lunch and a sweet treat. We used this cake at her cousin’s birthday party and I froze the rest in single servings for future parties.

The recipe couldn’t be simpler: 1 bag mix, 3/4 cup orange juice (we used jarred lemon juice), 3/4 cup oil (we used sunflower), and 4 eggs (we used 4 tablespoons flaxseed meal nuked in 1 1/3 cups of water). Then you beat the heck out of it for two minutes. They recommend a big mixer with a dough hook but we don’t have one, so I used a stick blender with a whisk attachment, which worked well.

The mix includes a recipe for a lemon glaze but I made a cherry one instead, boiling sugar, cherry juice, dark cherries (chopped), and a pinch of salt. As recommended, we poured it hot over the hot finished cake (with some holes poked in it) and let it cool. The cake soaked up the sauce.

The cake is extremely dense. I don’t know if my not using eggs was a factor, or that we didn’t beat it with the recommended equipment. Or maybe it’s supposed to be that dense. It was good though, despite the fact that it was so carby (the mix prepared as suggested has 15 servings and each has a whopping 42 grams of carbs , with virtually no fiber) it made my teeth hurt. Miriam doesn’t eat much of it at a time, but she was satisfied with it. I think it would make a good base for an ice cream cake.