A bakery-style millet cheesecake-brownie with salted caramel icing (gluten-free)
Lately, I was craving something like… an old-fashioned, but over the top, bakery-style cake. I see this type of baked goods more often in cake shops than in my oven, so the desire to make a vegan version of this was even greater! This cake is a mix of a very chocolate cake with a lemon-vanilla millet cheesecake, topped with caramel-like, sweet and salty icing. Oh my, I can’t believe I’m writing down this recipe! But I’m so happy with the result. This cake is delicious. Ladies and gentlemen, say hi to a gluten-free, vegan, millet cheesecake with salted caramel icing.
The ingredients below are for a small, 20 cm round form, or a 20 cm x 20 cm square form (if you are using a larger baking form, then the ingredients have to be multiplied by 1.5)
The cake can be prepared with either a gluten-free or wheat flour. So here you can find two different recipes for the chocolate part. Both variants are equally good.
The chocolate cake
Gluten-free version:
- 1/2 cup of rice flour
- 1 tbsp of potato / corn / tapioca flour
- 1/3 cup of sugar
- 1/3 cup of cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp of vanilla sugar
- 2 pinches of salt
- 1 flat tsp of baking soda
- 2/3 cup of plant-based milk
- 4 tbsps of rapeseed oil (or coconut oil)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or 2 tbsp lemon juice)
Gluten version:
- 1/2 cup of wheat flour
- 1/3 cup of sugar
- 1/3 cup of cocoa
- 1 tbsp of vanilla sugar
- 1 flat tsp of baking soda
- 2 pinches of salt
- 1/2 cup of plant-based milk
- 4 tbsp of rapeseed oil (or coconut oil)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or 2 tbsp lemon juice)
- Millet cheesecake
- 2/3 cup of raw millet
- 1/3 cup of plant-based milk (soy / rice / oat)
- 4 tbsp of rapeseed oil (or coconut oil)
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1 tbsp of vanilla sugar
- juice from 2 lemons and one lemon peel
- pinch of salt
Salted caramel pudding icing
- 1/3 cup of sugar
- half a can of coconut milk (the thick part)
- 1/2 tsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of potato / corn / tapioca starch and three tablespoons of water (leftover coconut water would be perfect)
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Use a strainer to rinse the millet thoroughly with hot water. Boil the millet in 3 portions of water to 1 portion of millet. Keep the pot covered with a lid. Cook it for about 15 minutes until the water is absorbed. The millet should be slightly overcooked.
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Heat the oven to 190 C and start preparing the chocolate part: In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients of the chocolate cake. Add all the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly until smooth.
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Line a baking form with baking paper, then pour in the chocolate batter and bake for 15 minutes.
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In the meantime, add all of the „cheesecake” ingredients, except for the oil, to the millet. Using a hand blender, mix everything until smooth. Then add the oil and blend it once again for another minute until it’s creamy and resembles a smooth “cheesy” batter. At this stage it is worth tasting it – if you like, you can make it sweeter, and add more vanilla, or an extra lemon for a more tangy taste.
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Take the chocolate cake out of the oven and gently pour the cheesecake-millet batter on top of it. Distribute the batter evenly and put in the oven for another 15 minutes.
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When the cake cools down a bit, I recommend preparing the salted caramel icing. Put the sugar in a hot frying pan, let it partially dissolve, and fry it for 3-4 minutes (please do not burn it!). Add the coconut milk and salt, immediately mix, and cook on low heat for another 3-4 minutes. In the meantime, combine the starch with water and pour it into the pan. Cook on low heat for another one or two minutes, stirring in circular motion.
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Pour the icing on top of the cake (keep the cake in the baking form).
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The cake is not ready at this point. It needs to cool down. Leave it in the fridge for a few hours, preferably overnight. After this time, all the layers of the cake will set and the consistency will be just right. It is worth decorating it with some nuts and serving with fresh fruit, for example, strawberries.
