The Best of Birthdays

A couple of Sundays ago, all my descendants except for the son who lives in China and one grandson who had to work, gathered to celebrate my birthday with shish-kabobs, watermelon, and birthday cake. A son-in-law whose birthday falls on the same day as mine helped blow out the candles, and be assured there were lots of them.

Most of us are gluten-sensitive or celiac, so—non-traditionally—I made my own birthday cake, a non-traditional, unfrosted almond meal torte that performed deliciously as the base for strawberry shortcake.

The recipe appears on page 12 of my cookbook, formerly titled Bake Gluten Free, and its more recipe-filled successor, Wholegrain and Gluten Free. Don’t be confused by the word "free" in the title, as a couple of readers evidently were since they walked off with the book without paying for it, the dawgs, building up a lot of bad karma for themselves. (If you are the person or persons who made that mistake, please admit your error and go back to Minglement and pay them the $12.50 per copy that book cost. Since the price was not stated on the back of the book, I assume you thought it an advertising ploy for the gluten-free flours. But no; the book was for sale alongside the flours.)

As stated in my column of July 7th, the book, Bake Gluten Free, existed not only to benefit people with celiac or sensitivity to gluten but also to benefit the Vashon Food Bank.

The new edition of the book, retitled Whole Grain and Gluten Free, with more recipes in it and a color-illustration cover, costs you $15.00. You can get it at the Minglement and at The Country Store. When you pay the money at the register, you can feel like a mini-philanthropist. All the money I get for that book, except for the basic cost of publishing it, goes to help support Vashon Island Food Bank. Rip me off for a copy and you also cheat the food bank. That would build up lot of bad karma for you, canceling out any benefit you get from baking sans gluten.

But getting back to my Almond Torte birthday cake, here’s that recipe.

High Protein Family Size

ALMOND MEAL CAKE

9-12 servings

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Bake in 9x9x2-inch pan or baking dish

Stir well in mixing bowl: (Break up lumps with fingers if necessary)

1 ½ cups almond meal

½ cup quinoa flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup brown sugar

or brown Splenda®

Separate, yolks one bowl, whites in another:

4 eggs

Combine and stir into egg yolks:

¼ cup water

¼ cup orange concentrate

1/3 cup brandy (cherry, apricot, or crème de banana), or Madeira

1 teaspoon vanilla

Start oven. Oil glass or ceramic baking dish. When oven heats, put baking dish in and heat it for 7 minutes.

In large bowl, beat egg whites to soft peaks. Add:

¼ teaspoon cream of tarter.

Continue beating to stiff peaks. Beat in 1 tablespoon sugar or Splenda®.

Stir egg yolk mix into dry ingredients. Stir brandy and vanilla into batter. Fold in egg whites. Pour batter into hot oiled baking dish. Bake in center of oven 35 minutes. Test with toothpick. If it comes out clean, remove cake from oven. Invert on rack. Cool 10 minutes. Lift off baking dish.

Serve warm or at room temperature with fresh berries, peaches, or nectarines. Top with whipped cream or vanilla yogurt.

For more recipes for delicious, gluten-free baked goods, look for the new edition of my baking recipes, Whole Grain and Gluten Free. Its price is $15.00

Remember that you will not only do yourself a favor by acquiring healthy, no-gluten recipes but also help to support Vashon Food Bank.

You’ll find more recipes on my blog at
http://island-epicure.blogspot.com