Mini Almond Butter & Jam Layer Cakes

While on our way to my friend’s annual lobster boil (possibly the best event of the year) the other day, Erik asked something to the effect of whether I had “best blogger friends.” Babe, let me tell you. I started rattling off a list of my favorites, but had to stop close to the top to explain about NORA.

I am such a big fan of Nora (of A Clean Bake) for so many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that she graduated from business school fairly recently and doles out b-school advice whenever I ask like it’s her JOB. She is a hero for all non-gluten/dairy/refined sugar eaters everywhere and had the major cojones to ditch her former, very successful blog in favor of a brand-new one once she realized her old premise didn’t fit any longer.

Since Nora’s getting married in a few short weeks, the joyous occasion obviously calls for cake and a virtual wedding shower! I can’t wait to see what kind of amazing wedding dessert(s) she ends up with on her big day, but my contribution to her virtual wedding shower are these little mini chickpea/coconut flour cakes layered with almond butter, jam, and chocolate. In honor of her dietary restrictions, there’s no gluten or dairy in the cake, and traditional refined sugar is omitted in favor of coconut sugar. (I can’t take credit for this genius; the original recipe on Power Hungry and I adapted it to make these mini cakes.)

This is one of those posts where I tell you what I did to adapt the recipe and what I might suggest for you since I didn’t develop the recipe myself. The only alterations I made to the recipe was to use almond milk instead of coconut milk and cornstarch instead of potato starch. I used all coconut sugar and my cake turned out darker than the recipe photos with strong undertones of an earthy sweetness. For these reasons, I would suggest using raw sugar next time, or perhaps a mix of coconut and raw sugar. Though I wasn’t bowled over by the taste straight out of the oven, I was IN LOVE with the texture. The moist, soft crumb is not at all spongy or gluten-free-ish, and after layering cake rounds with almond butter, jam and chocolate, my roommate and I declared them delicious and I proceeded to eat two.

I made super-thin cake layers that were kind of reminiscent of pancake stacks, which I actually really liked (surprise surprise). But feel free to make them thicker to enjoy more of the luscious cake crumb.

Congratulations, Nora! Wish you were here to eat these with me, and I wish you all the best (and no stress!) on your special day <33

Check out these other beautiful eats in celebration of Nora’s wedding!

Paleo Lemon Cupcakes with Coconut Whipped Cream from Culinary Couture

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies from Pass The Cocoa

Pumpkin Maple Crème Brulee from Blahnik Baker

{Gluten and Dairy Free} Mocha Almond Cookie Cups from The Sweet Tooth Life

Pavlova Petit Fours {Gluten and Dairy Free) from Club Narwhal

Toasted Almond Granola Bars from Chez Catey Lou

Best Granola Recipe for Fall and GF, DF, Apple “Pie” from Baking A Moment

Vanilla Dark Chocolate Macarons from Bethcakes

Vegan Oatmeal Cookie Milkshakes from ImmaEatThat

Chocolate Coconut Macaroons from Gotta Get Baked

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Mini ABJ Layer Cakes (GF, V)

Ingredients

1 recipe this cake see subs in notes
1/2 recipe easy chocolate icing from the same post
almond butter
sour cherry preserves

Instructions

Line a small baking sheet with greased parchment paper. Spread the cake batter evenly across the baking sheet to your desired thickness (the batter is extremely thick, so even if the baking sheet is too large for the amount of batter, you can simply spread it as far as you like to achieve your desired thickness of cake layers. Cake will rise just barely during baking). Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. Test for doneness with a fork, your finger or a toothpick--depending on thickness, the cake may not be done at this point. Continue baking for 5-10 minute increments until the cake is done.
Let cool completely. Cut out circles using a biscuit cutter or, if you're lacking in biscuit cutters, you can use a sheet of acetate (flexible plastic sheets or transparencies) rolled up and stapled into a makeshift cutter (my ghetto cutter is pictured in the second photo). Not quite as accurate as a biscuit cutter, but it will work. I don't recommend using an upside-down glass as a cutter because the edges are not sharp enough to get a clean cut.
Layer a cake round with a smear of almond butter, a smear of preserves, and repeat as desired, finishing with a smear of chocolate icing and sprinkles.

Notes

Substitutions: You can sub almond milk for coconut milk and cornstarch for potato starch. I recommend using at least half raw sugar instead of all coconut sugar.

Adapated from here.

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