Lovely Lemon Snack Cake -- Vegan, Gluten-free, and Allergen-free

As a dessert lover, I think it's a shame to keep cake for special occasions only.  I'm a big fan of snack cakes that you cut into squares and enjoy after dinner on any old Tuesday night.  This cake turned out exactly how I was hoping!  It's moist and lemony and has a nice texture.

The folks at Bob's Red Mill sent me samples of their new gluten-free oat flour and gluten-free quick cooking oats.  I used the GF oat flour for this recipe, and it really turned out great.  Is it completely fooling myself to think that I could serve this as a breakfast treat?  It does have whole-grain oat flour, healthy coconut oil, lemon juice and coconut yogurt.  I know ... it's a stretch, but it would be great as a sweet component of a brunch.

This cake tastes great on its own, or you could dress it up a little with a sprinkling of powdered sugar or a drizzle of lemon icing.

Lovely Lemon Snack Cake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups gluten-free oat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup applesauce
1 cup sugar (I used vegan cane sugar.)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup coconut milk yogurt (plain, vanilla or coconut flavor)
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon gluten-free vinegar (white or apple cider)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350.
Grease a 8- or 9-inch square pan with coconut oil.
In a medium bowl, whisk together oat flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder and salt.  Set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine applesauce with 1/2 teaspoon baking powder.
Add sugar, lemon juice, yogurt, coconut oil and vanilla to applesauce mixture.  Mix well.
Add dry ingredients to wet, being careful not to overstir.
Add vinegar to batter, stir to incorporate.
Pour batter into greased pan.
Bake 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, and the cake is a golden brown and set.
Let cool completely before cutting and serving.

Happy Cooking!
Kim

My new book,  Ancient Grains: A Guide to Cooking with Power-Packed Millet, Oats, Spelt, Farro, Sorghum & Teff (Superfoods for Life), is available for pre-order now. Super Seeds, is available now! You can also find tasty recipes in Welcoming Kitchen: 200 Delicious Allergen- & Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes.