Has anyone tried the Diabetic White Cake recipe on CC in the recipes? I recently had an order for a sugar free cake but the recipe I used was not one that I would use again. I've found that most sugar free or diabetic cakes recipes are full of raisins, cinnamon, dates, etc., and I just need a plain cake recipe. I'm going to give this one a try in anticipation of future requests, but was curious if anyone here had tried it or if anyone had a recipe they were very pleased with?
I had a "good" recipe for a cake and icing. The icing had powdered milk in it. It was for a wedding cake and they said it was good. IF you would like it pm and I will find it for you. The cake was ok, I used splenda in it, the regular kind, my friend said I should have used the kind made for baking. The icing was a little hard to decorate with. You can see it in my pics it is the wedding cake with the colorful flowers on it. I did that lace at the last minute cause I couldn't get the icing smooth enough. It does have a yellow tint
Just an FYI, splenda for baking is 50/50 splenda/sugar so it wouldn't be qualified for use in a 'sugar free' cake.
I haven't made it myself but the diabetic white cake recipe probably works well because of the sugary texture provided by the sorbitol. Granular splenda only provides sweetness, not texture. If you do make the diabetic white cake for your client, check and see if they are okay with sorbitol. Sorbitol can be laxating for a few people. If this is a big event, you probably wouldn't want to use potentially laxating ingredients.
I would also find out from your client if they need the cake to be low fat or not. Some diabetics eat a low fat diet, but many don't. Cutting sugar and fat is a lot harder than just cutting sugar.
If your client is okay with some sorbitol, a 50/50 sorbitol/splenda blend might be a good compromise. If fat is not an issue, I would take a regular Betty Crocker white cake recipe, replace the sugar with a blend of 50/50 sorbitol/granular splenda and add a little xanthan gum for better volume. That should work nicely.
The icing is whole nother can of worms. Hopefully high fat is okay, as a non buttercream icing can be pretty horrible tasting. Sorbitol can be problematic with icing as well, as it tends to dissolve too easily. If you can track it down, isomalt (a different type of sugar alcohol) would be ideal for sugar free buttercream.
I just used the "Basic Yellow Cake - Splenda" recipe from CC, and it was popular with the three diabetics that had the cake. I iced it with the "Diabetic Icing", which has heavy cream, cream cheese, and sugar-free pudding in it. It was very easy to pipe. Two out of three of the diabetics and all of the non-diabetics liked the icing.
One thing I will do differently with the cake is add some yellow coloring. Mine looked more like a spice cake, probably from the vanilla extract.
RP
Baking for a diabetic is not that simple. It is important to talk to the diabetic person who the cake is for and not just the well meaning client that might be ordering the cake. My daughter is a diabetic and has to carefully monitor her food intake. All her food. Starch as well as sugar! So it isn't just the sugar/sugar free cake ingredients that count. Starch (flour especially white flour will change to a sugar in the body as it digests.) Fats are a whole issue in itself. Then they are on a strict schedule of when they can consume food. My daughter does not consume Splenda because it is made from sugar and isn't recommended by her doctor. It seems that every doctor has a different protocol for their patients and boy! do they vary. Some diabetics are taking insulin as shots and others are on an insulin pump-that changes what and when they can eat. Her doctor changed all the "rules" for diabetics last year when new research came out.
A few diabetics do not want a sugar free cake. My daughter knows she isn't going to eat the cake sugar free or not and wants a "real delicious" cake for others to enjoy.
Like everything else in life I guess one size does not fit all!
funcakes, thanks for that insight. I have a couple of friends who are diabetic and they help me with some info, but both of their situations are different and lots of times I get what appears to be conflicting advice. I guess it's not 'conflicting' since it pertains to each of their situations, which are different. One tells me to just use Splenda and the other says "oh, just use the low-carb cake mix!" (Which, by the way, is IMPOSSIBLE to find!)
The order I had that prompted this question was for a govt office function in which there were going to be a large number of older people, so the event coordinator wanted to have a sugar-free option for them. As I served the cake, I would tell each one, "The cake is sugar free, but the icing isn't" so they'd be aware.
Do you think it would be helpful or tacky to set up one of those acrylic stands next to the cake with an information sheet about the cake (i.e. "made with Splenda"; and fat/carb/ content, etc.), so they could make an informed decision about whether it fit in their diet requirements or not?
Indydebi-
I think it would be very considerate of you to let the guests know what is in the cake- for both the diabetics and the many people who are on a diet. I hope you first describe the delicious flavors and fillings you use and take credit for your work, and put the ingredients at the bottom.
Since the cake is for a group with older people most of them will be Type II diabetics-their bodies make insulin but doesn't use it efficiently-they do not have to be as restrictive of their food as Type I whose bodies do not make any insulin. Reducing or eliminating sugar for them is a very considerate thing to do. They can enjoy it without guilt!
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