In No Substitutions, Meals Editor Emily Ziemski goes on a private journey in a multiverse-of-madness-level quantity of chaos with herself (a struggling of her personal making) to be able to deliver you THREE completely different Check-Kitchen-Permitted riffs on one unique recipe. On this episode: A vegan model, an “I-am-so-out-of-baking-powder” swap, and a cornmeal swap.

My favourite citrus was the star of my Plus One column at the beginning of the 12 months, after I devised a cake that harkens again to my favourite 90s meals development: bruléed, halved grapefruit.

With tarragon for a be aware of candy licorice, demerara sugar on prime for that brulée vibe, plus cornmeal within the batter, my Grapefruit & Tarragon Upside-Down Cake hits that trifecta of candy, tart, and crunchy that I like.

However I couldn’t simply depart it there, in its most scrumptious and ideal state. As a famously dairy-free particular person, I do know the true ache of discovering a recipe I like after which disappointingly closing out the tab when realizing the proper recipe has dairy. Boo.

So, for everybody who wants a substitution—or is simply searching for out one thing completely different—and in addition needs that additional safety of seeing the Check Kitchen-Permitted checkmark, that is for you.

First up, the vegan model. My private favourite model (shh, do not inform the others) swaps out the same old makings of a cake and swaps in olive oil and flax “eggs,” a trick utilizing rehydrated, floor flax that provides a gelatinous texture much like hydrated gelatin. For this cake, anticipate a tighter crumb—you lose some aeration from the dearth of eggs—however an excellent moist inside that invokes an virtually flourless cake-like high quality.

Grapefruit & Tarragon Upside Down Cake—Vegan Variation

Serves: 5 to six
Cook dinner Time: 40 minutes
Prep Time: 7 minutes

Elements:
1 grapefruit, zested then peeled, de-seeded, and sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
⅓ cup demerara sugar
½ cup butter, melted, plus extra for greasing pan
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup gentle brown sugar
2 massive eggs
2 tablespoons floor flaxseed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 cup cake flour
¾ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ small bunch tarragon, de-stemmed and finely chopped

Directions:

Warmth the oven to 350°F. Flippantly grease an 8-inch cake pan, then line the underside with parchment. Sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over parchment. Preserving an excellent layer, line the underside with the grapefruit slices, attempting to not overlap.

Hydrate the flaxseed in ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons water. Let sit till gelatinous. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the oil and brown sugar collectively till totally mixed and barely ethereal.

Add the flax eggs, zest, 2 teaspoons of water, and vanilla and beat on medium velocity till totally mixed. Sift in dry elements and mix on medium-low velocity till included. Fold in tarragon. Pour combination over assembled grapefruit slices.

Bake, rotating the pan midway by means of, 30 to 40 minutes, or till a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clear. Take away from oven and switch to a cooling rack. After resting no less than quarter-hour, gently invert cake onto a serving stand. Serve as soon as cooled, or tightly wrap (or place in an hermetic container) and retailer within the fridge for as much as 4 days.

Opening up your pantry cupboards to discover a lack of chemical leaveners is usually a critical bummer. A straightforward swap right here would have been including cornstarch to baking soda, however this one’s for the actual determined bakers who’re missing all leaveners, or for the oldsters who like a problem (hello, its me). On this variation, baking powder is eliminated, and we’re utilizing the powder of whipped egg whites to behave as an aerator. Including a 3rd egg provides us a little bit additional oomph within the carry, and the additional egg yolk brings much more golden coloration to the already yellow-hued cake.

Grapefruit & Tarragon Upside Down Cake—No Baking Powder Variation

Serves: 5 to six
Cook dinner Time: 40 minutes
Prep Time: 7 minutes

Elements:
1 grapefruit, zested then peeled, de-seeded, and sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
⅓ cup demerara sugar
½ cup butter, melted, plus extra for greasing pan
1 cup gentle brown sugar
3 massive eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 cup cake flour
¾ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ small bunch tarragon, de-stemmed and finely chopped

Directions:

Warmth the oven to 350°F. Flippantly grease an 8-inch cake pan, then line the underside with parchment. Sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over parchment. Preserving an excellent layer, line the underside with the grapefruit slices, attempting to not overlap.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and brown sugar collectively till totally mixed and barely ethereal. Add the egg yolks, zest, and vanilla and beat on medium velocity till totally mixed. Sift in dry elements and add tarragon; mix on medium-low velocity till included.

In a separate bowl, utilizing a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or a hand mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar till stiff peaks type. Utilizing half at a time, gently fold the egg whites into the batter till simply barely mixed. Pour combination over assembled grapefruit slices.

Bake, rotating the pan midway by means of, 30 to 40 minutes, or till a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clear. Take away from oven and switch to a cooling rack. After resting no less than quarter-hour, gently invert cake onto a serving stand. Serve as soon as cooled, or tightly wrap (or place in an hermetic container) and retailer within the fridge for as much as 4 days.

In our last swap (phew), I’d be remiss to not embrace a dry ingredient change. Although I subbed out the cornmeal right here, this may be an acceptable swap to have millet flour rather than the cake flour, relying in your dietary wants or needs. The ultimate product right here was a much-fluffier cake, due to the sunshine airiness of millet versus the dense cornmeal, however one that also supplied the welcome texture the unique cake was cherished for.

Grapefruit & Tarragon Upside Down Cake—No Cornmeal Variation

Serves: 5 to six
Cook dinner Time: 40 minutes
Prep Time: 7 minutes

Elements:
1 grapefruit, zested then peeled, de-seeded, and sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
⅓ cup demerara sugar
½ cup butter, melted, plus extra for greasing pan
1 cup gentle brown sugar
2 massive eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 cup cake flour
¾ cup yellow cornmeal
¾ cup millet flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ small bunch tarragon, de-stemmed and finely chopped

Directions:

Warmth the oven to 350°F. Flippantly grease an 8-inch cake pan, then line the underside with parchment. Sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over parchment. Preserving an excellent layer, line the underside with the grapefruit slices, attempting to not overlap.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and brown sugar collectively till totally mixed and barely ethereal. Add the eggs, zest, and vanilla and beat on medium velocity till totally mixed. Sift in dry elements and mix on medium-low velocity till included. Fold in tarragon. Pour combination over assembled grapefruit slices.

Bake, rotating the pan midway by means of, 30 to 40 minutes, or till a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clear. Take away from oven and switch to a cooling rack. After resting no less than quarter-hour, gently invert cake onto a serving stand. Serve as soon as cooled, or tightly wrap (or place in an hermetic container) and retailer within the fridge for as much as 4 days.

Extra from Meals Editor Emily Ziemski

Extra from Food52