Simple Spice Cake - Oil Free

I've been involved with theater for the past few years and I had the privilege to portray Mrs. Frank for a production of The Diary of Anne Frank earlier this year. Because of my interest in food, I volunteered to make the food that was part of our onstage scenes. There's a scene for New Year's Day 1944 celebrating with spice cake. Historically The Diary of Anne Frank is one of many stories of Jews hiding during the holocaust, and it takes place in Amsterdam, Holland.

I loved spice cake when I was young and hadn't had any for years until I was looking for a recipe for this play. I hope you enjoy this simple version. It isn't overly sweet and I like it that way.

Spice Cake - Oil Free

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (185 degrees Celsius). Prepare a large loaf pan or a square  (8"x 8") cake pan using parchment paper to line pan.

Mix and set aside:
1 Tablespoon ground flax seed (dark preferred)
1/4 cup water

Mix in separate bowl and whisk to mix (using a small sieve to sift any lumps):
1 1/2 cup whole grain flour (can be whole wheat pastry flour)
1/3 cup turbinado sugar or 3 Tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon Chinese five spice OR pumpkin spice

Mix in a separate 2 cup liquid measuring cup the following:
1 cup applesauce (can be part pumpkin puree)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons dark molasses (not blackstrap, unless you prefer it)
ground flax seed & water as directed above - add here to liquids

Mix the wet into the dry ingredients. It should be a fairly stiff batter. Pour and spread into your prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes (less for cupcakes*) or more until toothpick inserted comes out clean. After removing from the oven, let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then remove and cool.

You may add a bit of grated carrot, zucchini, etc before baking. If batter seems too moist and not stiff, add some more flour, a little at a time, before you bake. Some people like dried fruit or nuts (I added chopped dates to the one in the photo above).

Note on the spices: I really like to use Chinese five spice for this, as it tends to have star anise flavor and is like taking the cake up a notch from the pumpkin spice most people are used to. I also prefer Chinese five spice that does not include pepper, which might be hard to find, but you can use the pepper versions too. I plan to post my own spice blend recipe for Chinese five spice soon. Most people have a ready made pumpkin spice that can be used, otherwise you can follow my recipe for that here.

Optional sauce topping: I have used a simple strawberry sauce as a topping sometimes. You can make this by pureeing fresh or partly thawed frozen strawberries in a blender with a little water and your choice of sweetener if needed. It is a nice addition. I originally used strawberries because we also ate strawberries in the play in another scene. I never used it this way onstage, but it was a fun thing to have for the cast party! =) You could use another fruit for the same idea. You may frost instead if you like after it cools. I like it plain without any extra anything on top.

*Cupcake tip: You can use canning lid rings (no lid) on a cookie sheet if you don't have a muffin pan. It holds cupcake papers/liners nicely for cake batter. This is what I do, since I don't own a muffin pan. This was how I made spice cake cupcakes for our concession stand for snacks at intermission for the play.