How sweet it is—maple syrup that is! It has been a challenging season for collecting sap especially with the amount of snow in our bush. Some collecting was done with the tractor and some with snowshoes and a sled. I think this year I will think twice before being extra generous in the giving!
Upside-Down Pineapple Quinoa Cake
In the original recipe I switched all the sugar to maple syrup. You can change the pineapple to apple slices or peach slices. If you change the word “cake” to “big pancake” you can eat it for breakfast. Add some yogurt and if it’s not sweet enough you know where you can find the maple syrup!
Topping:
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 15 oz can pineapple slices, drained
Cake:
1 cup cooked quinoa
2 extra large eggs, separated into yolks and whites
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup plain, yogurt
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup spelt flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
Preheat oven to 350°F.
To prepare topping: stir together the maple syrup and the pineapple juice in a small saucepan. Boil until mixture is thick and syrupy. I do the cheat trick—mix about 1 tsp cornstarch with a little water and add it to the mixture when it comes to a boil. It will thicken right away.
Lightly grease a 8x8x2 in pan. Pour the boiled syrup into the bottom of pan and top the syrup with the pineapple slices. Set aside.
Mix together in a bowl the cooked quinoa, egg yolks, maple syrup, yogurt, applesauce and vanilla until smooth.
In a large bowl, whisk together spelt flour, cinnamon, cardamom, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In another bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.
Add quinoa mixture to flour mixture and stir together until no flour streaks remain. With spatula, gently fold egg whites into quinoa batter until just mixed. Gently spoon cake batter over pineapple.
Bake in oven for about 30 to 40 minutes, until skewer inserted in the cake’s centre comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes in cake pan before running a knife around the edges and inverting the cake onto a serving plate.
