A spin on the traditional spicy treat for All Hallows Eve!
I first heard about soul cakes was about four years ago. A friend of the family's from the UK had baked a whole batch of them for the Halloween season. I immediately loved the spicy kick that these cakes gave. Our friend kept the recipe to themselves, but I was determined to recreate it.
The traditional texture is a little more scone-like. However, using gluten free flour, I think this has turned out a treat with a similar texture. These cakes are delicious served with tea.
Ingredients:
Butter, softened
Monk Fruit Sweetener
Gluten Free flour
Eggs, at room temperature
Coriander
Cinnamon
Ginger
Clove
Nutmeg
Making the Soul Cakes:
In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and sweetener together using a hand mixer. This step can require patience depending on how soft your butter is. you know the butter is ready when it is fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time to the creamed butter, mixing with the hand mixer making sure that the eggs are well incorporated before adding the second one. If your eggs are too cold, it will cause the butter to form little pearls. If this happens, don't panic. I usually use a spatula and work the butter back into the mixture.
Add the flour and spices to the mixture, and mix well. If your flour is lumpy, it is best to sift it before adding it to the mixture. My gluten free flour is really nice and isn't lumpy. The consistency should be similar to cookies.
Using a cookie scoop or a spoon, drop the cookies onto a lined tray about 1 inch apart, making sure they are fairly round. While these cakes don't really spread out in the oven since they don't contain any leavening, the heat from the oven can slightly melt the butter, causing them to spread a little.
Gently press down the tops of the cakes to create a flat top and press a cross shape into them before brushing them lightly with the milk.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the edges of the cake turn golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and serve with tea.
While these are not exactly traditional as far as should cakes go, I believe they capture the spirit (pun intended) of the traditional recipes.
Recipe notes:
As always, feel free to try this recipe to whatever sweetener you prefer. I used a monk fruit and erythritol sweetener for this recipe, which I find pretty sweet. you may find that you would like to make it sweeter if you are using a different sweetener. Also, as a side note, if you are using a liquid sweetener, the texture of the butter will be different. I find that it doesn't get quite as fluffy, but you should still make sure that the butter is fully incorporated.
In when this is made in the UK, they would traditionally use a spice mix instead of all the spices I have added. The spices listed are my interpretation of the spice mix, but feel free to substitute with 2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice instead.
The traditional recipes often add raisins to the recipe. However, we did not have raisins on hand (and quite frankly, aside for bread, I don't like raisins in baked goods). Feel free to add a quarter cup of raisins to your own soul cakes!
Gluten Free Soul Cakes:
Makes 13 soul cakes.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of butter, softened
2 Tbsp of sugar substitute (you can also use the same amount of regular sugar)
2 eggs
1 ¼ cup of gluten-free flour
¼ tsp coriander
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
⅛ tsp clove½ tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp Milk
Directions:
1.Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a pan with parchment or a slip mat.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar substitute. This takes time, so the key is to be patient. You know it is done when the butter and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs one at a time to the creamed butter, making sure that the eggs are well incorporated before adding the second one.
4. Add the flour and spices to the mixture, and mix well. The consistency should be similar to cookies.
5. Drop the dough onto a cookie sheet by the tablespoon, leaving about an inch between them.
6. Gently press down, creating a flat top and then, using the back of the knife press a cross shape into them before brushing them with milk.
7. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges turn brown. Cool on a wire rack before serving with tea.
Please share this recipe with your friends! I look forward to seeing you next week!
Rebecca!