Here in the desert, our figs ripen long before autumn, and are gone pretty quickly. So, I often have exactly one week to eat my fill, make a cake, and get some jam sorted. Full disclosure here, below is a plum cake because of a recently learned valuable lesson in backing up photos… and the figs were gone already.
Having been unimpressed with various vegan “treats” shared with me long ago, I was hesitant to believe that I would end up with a cake-like cake. But in went the ingredients, and out came a not-too-sweet cake, with great flavor and texture. How can this be? Dunno, it just is.
I recently shared the recipe with a friend who was having a little dinner party that included a vegan couple. Word came back that it was a huge hit with all in attendance. I also put this recipe in the paper I write for as a “Summer Fruit Muffin” and got yet more good reviews. So, it’s official: This is a crowd pleasing cake. I haven’t tried it yet myself, but if you are skilled at making things GF, give it a go – then report back!
Even when I lived in more reliable fig territory back in the day, there were times when I’d get to the market in the fall, menu all planned for a gathering… and find myself fig-less. Yes, a first world problem, I know. Should you have such a situation, plums, apricots, peaches, apples, or even poached pears would all be good here. I say poached pears because they are always iffy. If you manage to find perfect pears, skip the poaching. Pears would actually be quite nice in this cake because you can halve and core them, then slice into little fans with their tops in tact, which would look gorgeous on this cake that’s technically an “upside down” cake.
If you are a doubting Thomas like me, do give this a whirl.
This cake is not too sweet, so it's perfect as an afternoon snack with tea. For a nice dinner, I like to serve it with a scoop of nice cream that makes sense, like caramel or cinnamon, and just saw a chocolate hazelnut fudge that I would definitely try with this!
Ingredients
- About 12 figs, halved
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 ½ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- Pinch salt
- A few grates of fresh nutmeg, optional - not really 🙂
- 5 Tbsp. melted "butter" or coconut oil
- ¾ cup nut milk
- Sliced almonds, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° and prepare a 9" cake pan.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix the remaining ingredients, except the fruit, in another bowl, then stir into dry ingredients until just combined.
- Arrange figs decoratively in the cake pan cut side down. Chop any remaining fruit and add to the batter. Gently pour the batter over the arranged figs.
- Bake about 40 minutes, or until golden brown and springs back when gently poked.
- Let cool and sprinkle with confectioners sugar just before serving.
Such a great cake! And super easy — thanks so much for providing a genuinely delicious cake that is vegan. Whoo hoo!
My pleasure. Thanks for reading and cooking!