I've been playing around with a white cake version of this for cupcakes. It's bake sale season around here and cupcakes are always a big seller. The problem I kept running into was texture. My 15 yr old said it tasted like cornbread, meaning a coarse texture. I ended up using cake flour and superfine sugar and that seemed to do the trick. The original recipe calls for all purpose flour so I got out my scale and weighed an equal amount of cake flour (125g/cup). I'm not sure on the substitution ratio in cups of cake flour for all- purpose. I also added in about 1/3 c of sprinkles to make them funfetti:) This is my version of the recipe Vegan Cupcakes from allrecipes. This is definitely not vegan anymore. 2c all purpose flour (I used 250g cake flour) 1 1/2 c buttermilk 1 c superfine sugar 2 t baking powder 1/2 t baking soda 1/2 t salt 1/2 c oil 1/2 t vanilla 1/2 t almond extract Preheat oven to 350�. Line 18 muffin cups with liners. In large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt. In separate bowl whisk together buttermilk, oil, and extracts. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix just until blended. Spoon into muffin cups and bake 15-20 minutes.

Here is the part of the thread I saved: # 1 HUMMINGBIRD CAKE Serves: 16 Time: about an hour for the cake + bake time Source: Southern Living Magazine 3 cups or 7dl all-purpose flour  2 cups or 4,75dl sugar  1 teaspoon baking soda  1/2 teaspoon salt  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon  3 large eggs, lightly beaten  3/4 cup or 1,75dl vegetable or sunflower oil  1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla/vanilla sugar  1 8oz or 225g can crushed pineapple, undrained  1 cup chopped pecans  1 3/4 cups or 4,25dl mashed/pureed ripe bananas  cream cheese frosting (recipe below)  dried pineapple flowers (directions below) 1. Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Grease and flour 2 or 3 9-inch/23cm cake pans. Mash ripe bananas in a bowl with a fork and chop pecans into small, but not fine, pieces. Set aside. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add eggs and oil until dry ingredients are just moistened. Add vanilla, pineapple, pecans and bananas, stirring until combined. 3. Pour batter evenly into 2 or 3 round cake pans. 4. Bake at 350F/175C for 23 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes, remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack lined with baking paper. 5. Spread cream cheese frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Decorate with dried pineapple flowers. Store in refrigerator. CREAM CHEESE FROSTING Makes: 3 1/4 cups or 7.5dl  1/2 cup or 113g butter, room temperature  8oz or 225g cream cheese, room temperature  16oz or 455g powdered sugar  1 teaspoon vanilla  1/2 cup or 1,2dl chopped pecans (sprinkle between cake layers) Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended. Beat at high speed until smooth; stir in vanilla. DRIED PINEAPPLE FLOWERS Makes: about 2 dozen Time: about 3 hours - prepare 1-3 days in advance  2 large pineapples (about 1kg) (the recipe works best if the pineapples are not quite ripe). Heat oven to 225F/110C. Line a couple baking sheets with Silpat or parchment paper. Peel pineapples with a serrated knife (Remove "eyes" using a very tiny melonballer, or paring knife if you don't plan to use a flower cookie cutter for shaping them.) Cut crosswise into very thin slices and place in a single layer on prepared baking sheets. Bake until tops look dry, anywhere from 1 to 2 hours. Using tongs, flip slices over and continue to cook until reasonably dry, about an hour or so. Arrange on a wire rack and leave to cool and dry a bit more for a few hours. (note: A convection oven is an advantage for faster drying so use it if you have it.) When slices are cool and dry, take a small metal flower-shaped cookie cutter and press into dried pineapple. Use a rolling pin on top of the cookie cutter to press firmly. Set cut flowers aside on the wire rack. When the flowers are dry, but still a bit pliable, hold the center of the flower between your thumb and forefinger in one hand and pull the petals of the flower upwards with your other hand to give them a more realistic look. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. #2 Hummingbird Cake Ingredients 3 cup All purpose flour 3 large Egg well beaten 2 cup Sugar 3 medium Bananas chopped 1 teaspoon Cinnamon ground 1 cup Walnuts or pecans, finely chopped 1 teaspoon Baking soda 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla 1/2 teaspoon Salt GLAZE 1 can (8 oz) Pineapple crushed, with juice 1 tablespoon Butter or margarine, melted 1 cup Oil 1 cup Powdered sugar sifted Instructions for Hummingbird Cake Preheat oven to 325F / 160C / Gas Mark3. Generously grease a 10" tube or a fluted tube pan. To make the cake: In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Next remove 2 Tablespoons of juice from the can of pinapple. Set this juice aside for the glaze To the flour mixture, add the can of pinapple, the oil, eggs, banana, nuts, and vanilla. Stir until just blended. Do not beat. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake in the 325 degree oven for about 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto a wire rack and remove the pan from the cake. Cool completely. To make the glaze: In a small bowl combine the melted butter or margarine with the powdered sugar. Add enough of the reserved pinapple juice to make a glaze of drizzling consistancy. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. For a glaze with a whole new dimension, try substituting rum for the pinapple juice. #3 Ruby Throated Hummingbird Cake Ingredients 1 1/2 c Flour 3 tb Baking powder 1 pn Salt 1/3 c Sugar 1/2 c Vegetable oil 6 x Egg yolks 1 cn (8oz) crushed pineapple 2 tb Lemon juice 6 x Egg whites 1 pn Cream of tartar 1/2 c Sugar Filling: 1/2 c Water 1 1/2 tb Cornstarch 1/3 c Sugar 2 tb White rum 1 c Chopped strawberries Icing: 1/2 c Butter 1 pk (8oz) cream cheese 1 ts Vanilla Milk 1 md Sweet red grapefruit Fresh flowers (rose petals Instructions: Cake: In a mixer or food processor sift together the flour, baking powder, salt & sugar. Blend in oil, egg yolk, pineapple & lemon juice & mix well. In a separate bowl beat egg whites, cream of tartar & sugar until very stiff. Fold the cake mix into the egg white mixture & stir until well blended. Pour the mixture into an ungreased 10" tube pan & bake at 350 for 1 hour. Remove from oven & cool upside down on rack. When cooled remove to serving plate. Filling: Stir cornstarch into the cold water & heat gently in saucepan until it starts to thicken. Stir in the sugar & rum. Beat until smooth & shiny. Stir in the chopped strawberries. Icing: In a food processor combine butter, cream cheese, vanilla & confectioners sugar. Process to a smooth spreadable paste. Adjust the texture with a little milk if necessary. To assemble: Spoon strawberry filling into the hollow center of the cake. Spread the icing over the cake including the sides. Decorate the top with grapefruit sections & flowers. #4 Mrs. Wiggins' recipe [1978] "Hummingbird cake 3 cups all-pupose flour 2 cups sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon soda 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3 eggs, beaten 1 1/2 cups salad oil 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained 2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts, divided 2 cups chopped bananas Cream cheese frosting (recipe follows) Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl; add eggs and salad oil, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. Do not beat. Stir in vanilla, pineapple, 1 cup chopped pecans, and bananas. Spoon batter into 3 well-greased and floured 9-inch cakepans. Bake at 350 degrees F. For 25 to 30 minutes; remove from pans, and cool immediately. Spread frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Sprinkle with 1 cup chopped pecans. Yield: one 9-inch layer cake. Cream Cheese Frosting 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened 1 cup butter or margarine, softened 2 (16 ounce) packages powdered sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract Combine cream cheese and butter; cream until smooth. Add powdered sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla. Yield: enough for a 3 layer cake.--Mrs. L.H. Wiggins, Greesnboro, North Carolina" Notes disneyginger (My Page) on Sun, Apr 13, 08 at 13:19 I found a recipe that was excellent on the Nestle website that gave me the best hummingbird cake I have ever had. It is a recipe that someone submitted to their site, not a Nestle recipe. Mostly, I have had it in layers with a cream cheese frosting or a frosting like red velvet cake frosting. When I've made it for Bake Sales, I make them in the little tea cake tins and frost them with cream cheese frosting. I haven't done a bake sale in about a year or more, but would make this again. They are a BIG seller item, and were sold at two dollars for each little rectangle brick. The recipe gave me 8 tins and I make it three times for a grand total of 24 little tins. You can cut a bundt cake into layers too, and frost it. But, I think the cake is so rich, tasty and moist, that just a bundt and powdered sugar would be perfect too. Best made with really ripe bananas.

Thank you all for the responses. I did wait about 8 minutes even though the recipe says 5, so that was the problem. I know because I made it again (just had to see if I could do it! I will freeze a lot of it)(found a different recipe, but for the same size pan) and turned it out the instant it came out the oven. It came out perfectly! I have made it in a cast iron skillet when I was teenager at my grandmothers house... I don't own one, but maybe it's time to consider buying one! The ugly one tasted OK, but it was dry... I just pour milk over it when I want a piece. Gldno1, I also tried to stop baking (and stop attending this forum) in an effort to lose weight. I was still just as fat, just got sad on top of it. I'd rather be plump and happy than skinny and miserable! I enjoy baking (and this forum) and cannot stop!

Here's one Sharon Cb shared last year-- perhaps she'll add her photos to this : Diane's Home Cookin Chapter: Heirlooms , Traditional & Ethnic English Christmas Cake (from SharonCb 2005 ) ====================== 1 pound flour (4 cup) 3/4 pound butter (1 3/4 cup) 1/2 pound soft brown or castor sugar 1 pound sultanas (2 2/3 cup) 1 pound currants (2 2/3 cup) 6 ounces chopped mixed peel (1 cup) 1/4 pound glac cherries chopped (2/3 cup) 6 large eggs 1/4 pound almonds (1 cup) 1 teaspoon grated orange rind 1 tablespoon black treacle (molasses) 1 level teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice 1 wineglass (or more) of brandy 1 Sieve the flour with the baking powder, spice and a pinch of salt 2 Blanch the almonds and finely chop; chop the peel or put through a mincer; quarter the cherries. 3 Put the butter into a bowl and warm it slightly; beat with a wooden spoon Add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, using a level dessertspoon of flour as each egg is added. Then stir in the treacle (molasses). 4 Add half the rest of the flour, all the fruit, almonds and orange rind Put the other half of the flour on top, stir and mix well but do not beat. Put in the brandy. If the mixture seems too stiff, add a little milk - the mixture should drop easily from a spoon. 5 Prepare a cake tin about 10 inches in diameter, grease the tin then line with buttered grease-proof paper high enough to come 2 to 3 inches above the top of the tin. 6 Put in the cake mixture, slightly press in the centre to make the cake rise evenly and stand the cake on a layer of coarse crushed salt on a baking tin (or cookie sheet). This will prevent the bottom becoming too brown before the cake is cooked. 7 Have the oven preheated at Gas 4, electricity 350F Put the cake not higher than the centre of the oven - just below if possible. Lower the heat at once to Gas 2, electricity 300F for one hour, then lower the heat to Gas 1, electricity 275 F The cake will take from 5 to 6 hours to cook Test with a warmed fine skewer or knitting needle after 5 hours. 8 After removing from the oven leave it in the tin for half an hour, then turn out onto wire rack, remove the paper. After about 12 hours, wrap in double sheets of greaseproof paper and store in a tin with tightly fitting lid until required for icing. If preferred, the cake can be baked at Gas 3, electricity 325F for 1 hour, then turned to Gas 1 electricity 275F for the rest of the time. Source: The Margaret Powell Cookery Book - London 1970. MY TIP: I made the cakes in mid-October and wrapped them in brandy-soaked cheesecloth in tightly closed containers, removing and resoaking the cloths (in brandy) and rewrapping them a couple of times before I did the marzipan and icing a few days before Christmas. . ICING THE CAKE: - in two stages --------------------------- ALMOND PASTE (Marzipan) 12 oz ground almonds (3 cups) 6 oz castor sugar (3/4 cup) (or fine fruit sugar) 6 oz sieved icing sugar (1 1/2 cups) 3 egg whites few drops almond essence 3 TBS apricot jam, sieved ROYAL ICING - (three days later) 4 egg whites 2 lbs icing sugar, sieved (7 to 8 cups) 4 teasp lemon juice 2 teasp glycerine 1. Mix almonds and sugar in a bowl, then blend in egg whites and almond essence to make a soft paste. Knead until it is smooth, then divide into three equal portions. 2. Roll one piece onto a sugared board to an 8-inch circle. Roll remaining two-thirds to a strip the same depth as cake, and long enough to go all the way around the edge.. 3. Brush the sides of cake with apricot jam. Press long strip around sides and press firmly to join. Place circle of paste on top of cake. Allow to dry for at least three days before icing. 4. Whisk egg whites for royal icing until they become frothy. Add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and beat well after each addition. Finally beat in lemon juice and glycerine. To prevent the icing hardening, cover bowl with a damp cloth 5. Spread icing thickly over top and round sides of cake and smooth flat. Leave for a day to set and then decorate with red ribbon around sides. Tip: Using glycerine in the icing ensures that it is not hard. The lemon juice adds flavour and helps tp make a softer icing. Source: Hamlyn All Colour Cook Book London - 1970. MY ADVICE: Buy ready made marzipan, apply it and then top with purchased rolled fondant icing. It's softer and easier than royal icing. SharonCb Notes from Delia Smith Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it's cold 'feed' it make small holes in the top and base of the cake with a cocktail stick or small skewer, then spoon over a few teaspoons of brandy, wrap it in double silicone paper secured with an elastic band and either wrap again in foil or store in an airtight container. You can now feed it at odd intervals until you need to ice or eat it. Also can soak the fruits 12 hrs in the brandy prior to mixing. Additional notes for English Christmas Cake =========================================== Mixed spice is a propriey product-common in England & Australia--make your own, grind together 1 small cinnamon stick and 1 tablespoon each clove , mace, ground nutmeg, coriander seeds, and allspice berries Some people add a little ginger for extra 'bite'. Or you can use pumpkin pie spice or allspice instead. Daisyduckworth . Diane, I would use a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves if you didn't want to grind them as Daisy has suggested. Here's an English website that sells that mixed spice and lists the ingredients they use. I've haven't seen this type of cake done in a loaf pan. It might not turn out as moist in that shaped pan. I made my smaller cakes in round tins as well - about 6 inches across. As I remember I did 6, 8 and 10 inch round cakes, not all on the same day and used springform cake tins with inserted paper sides higher than the pan as per the recipe. I'm sure the times should be shortened if you're using smaller cake tins.. Darn - I'm kicking myself for not making careful notes last time I made these cakes. I have a notebook where I keep all my Christmas recipes and cooking experiences from year to year but didn't think to make notes in it when I was making Christmas cakes. I know that I used a metal skewer to test for doneness. I have a fan oven so I normally reduce cooking times for most things. I guess you just have to try it once and keep an eye on them as you wouldn't want them too dry or underdone. SharonCb