Vegan peanut butter and jam crumble cake
A moist and rich peanut butter cake, layered with blackberry jam, topped with a peanut butter crumble.
It's made with everyday ingredients for both vegans and non-vegans, so if you're a non-vegan like myself then you won't have to worry about buying ingredients that you're not as likely to use in your everyday cooking and baking.
I was actually planning on making a lemon and blueberry version of this because we have a few lemons to use, but I also realised that we had a bunch of peanut butter that was nearing its best before date. I also saw blackberry jam at the supermarket, which I didn't think I had tried before. Thus, this creation.
Gonna be honest, the thing that had put me off from trying to make vegan cakes all this time was the fact that I couldn't use eggs. I know, silly reason, but I really like the effect that eggs have on cakes. I know there are egg substitutes like flax eggs, but I a) don't know how similar it'd be and b) I like to make recipes that use more everyday ingredients as their base. Flax is not something I'd use generally. Neither is vegan butter, coconut oil (though I love coconut, so maybe I should jump on the coconut oil train, huh), or a lot of other vegan staples. Although I as a non-vegan love to try out vegan things, I don't think I'm ready to change my entire pantry. Besides, I like that it makes the recipe more accessible to a wider range of people.
Thus, I made sure that the ingredients used in this recipe are common ingredients for both vegans and non-vegans.
Ingredient notes:
The two key flavour ingredients are jam and peanut butter.
I used and tested the recipe with natural peanut butter (just peanuts and a lil' salt), so I would not recommend using regular peanut butter unless you're looking for a bit of fun experimentation with your baking (I'm not being sarcastic - experimental baking is fun, ok). Besides, I honestly don't think I can go back to regular peanut butter anymore because the taste of natural pb is so peanutty and delicious. I prefer the flavour of a dark roasted one, but any natural peanut butter should work.
For the jam, feel free to use any jam flavour you prefer. Most jams are vegan, but it's best to check the ingredients. Also, the mother is a berry seed hater, so if you are too then I'd recommend straining the jam to get the seeds out first. Otherwise, just use the jam as is.
I used 150g of jam for my 20cm cake, but use more if you're using a larger cake tin. Also, I personally would've liked way more jam, but the mother enjoyed it as is, hence the very wide jam quantity range I've put in the recipe. Keep in mind that the larger the pan you use, the thinner the cake, but also the wider the cake, so adjust your jam amount according to preference.
This recipe calls for using a 23cm or 25cm round cake pan, but I actually used a 20cm pan, simply because I wanted to photograph it with a small, 20cm cake stand I recently got. Using a larger pan will ensure the cake bakes a little more evenly and avoids the middle sinking as much (which is not an issue as the texture is still the same all around (not gummy) and because we're not stacking layers), but if you only have a 20cm pan, it will work fine.
This is a super simple recipe - you don't need any special equipment like standmixers or handmixers. You just need a couple of bowls, a spoon, maybe a spatula if you prefer, and your baking tin.
This is also essentially just a dry + wet recipe - sift dry, mix wet, then combine. Also, if you just want to bake the cake portion without the crumble or jam, you absolutely can. I've baked just the cake part in a loaf tin before, and it turned out just as delicious, and so quick.
Recipe
For the peanut butter crumble
INGREDIENTS:
70g plain flour
40g traditional rolled oats
40g castor or brown sugar
40g neutral flavoured oil
25g natural peanut butter
METHOD:
1. Combine the flour, oats, and sugar. Mix until evenly distributed.
2. Stir in roughly 2/3 of the oil and all of the peanut butter and mix until fully combined. Stir in more oil if mixture does not hold up when you squeeze it in your hand. This may depend on how much oil your peanut butter already has.
3. Store covered, in the fridge, until ready to use.
For the cake
INGREDIENTS:
400g self-raising flour
1/2tsp baking soda
1tsp baking powder
1tsp vanilla extract
130g natural peanut butter*
300g brown sugar
100g neutral flavoured oil
250g milk of choice (either dairy or dairy-free)
150-300g jam, depending on preference and size of pan
1 batch peanut butter crumble
Icing sugar to dust (optional)
*Add a pinch of salt if your natural peanut butter does not have salt
METHOD:
1. Preheat oven to 170°C and line and grease a 20cm, 23cm, or 25cm round cake pan. I used a springform pan.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder (plus optional salt*). Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, oil, and peanut butter until thoroughly and evenly combined. Mix in the milk.
4. Add in the flour mixture and fold until just combined. It's fine if there are still lumps, as long as there aren't any flour or liquid streaks or patches.
5. Pour half of the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth it out. Spoon half of the jam on top and smooth it out. Pour the rest of the batter on top and smooth it out. Spoon the rest of the jam on top and smooth it out. Finally, crumble the crumble mixture on top.
6. Bake for 60-65 minutes or until a skewer or cake tester comes out clean, rotating if necessary for your oven. Remove from the oven and leave to cool at room temperature, either waiting 15 minutes before removing from the pan or cooling in the pan.
7. Dust with icing sugar if desired.
That's it!
Enjoy at room temperature with extra jam or peanut butter if desired.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature. If weather is warm and/ or humid, transfer to fridge after a day or two. Otherwise, it can remain at room temperature for 5 days or to your discretion.
