1/4 cup brown rice flour ( or whole wheat pastry flour)
2 Tbs cornstarch
2 tsp baking soda
11/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 /2 tsp EACH nutmeg, cloves, allspice
1 /2 tsp fine sea salt or equivalent table salt
3/4 cup pure maple syrup, room temp
1 cup unsweetened applesauce, room temp
1 /4 cup unsulphured molasses ( do not use blackstrap or sub!)
2 Tbs HOT water
NOTE: You will need a whisk for this cake to ensure a perfectly smooth batter. The molasses and applesauce are magical for flavor and moisture here and cannot be substituted, or the cake will not be moist.
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350° F and line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper strips going in each direction, cut to fit and with overhang (not bunched in the corners). If you want to make muffins, use 14 parchment liners.
To a large bowl, add the whole wheat pastry flour, rice flour, cornstarch, baking soda, spices and salt and whisk very well.
Make sure none of your liquids are cold before proceeding, otherwise your batter will not be smooth or mix well. To the same bowl, add the syrup, applesauce, molasses, and hot water. Whisk gently in large circles until everything is combined and smooth, making sure to get the flour at the bottom, but DO NOT over-mix.
As soon as it's smooth, stop mixing. Over-mixing the batter can make the cake dense and the center SINK.
Now, taste that batter and tell me it's not out of this world!
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top and evenly to the corners. Bake on the middle rack for 25 minutes or when a toothpick is completely clean. If making muffins, divide the batter between 14 liners, this will yield the perfect size. Bake the muffins closer to 20-22 minutes, being careful not to overbake.
Cool the cake completely in the pan for a minimum of 1 hour, no exception. This allows the cake to completely cook through. There is a lot of applesauce and moisture in this cake, so you do not want to cut too soon, or it will be wet.
Once ready to serve, lift the cake out with the parchment flaps. Use a very sharp knife to cut carefully into slices.
Sprinkle with powdered SWERVE (erythritol--sugar substitute. Available at most grocery stores and Amazon}, right before serving. The cake is so moist that you don't want to do the sugar substitute on until right before serving or else it just melts into the cake.
