I’ve hesitated in adding this to the website, but also understand that many families need a quick option to make diet changes more obtainable. The last thing I want is for families to be too overwhelmed even to attempt lowering sources of glutamate, but also have to disclose that not everyone will be able to tolerate something like this. Sensitivity to free glutamate will vary from person to person. In my opinion, this cake is far better than a typical processed gluten-free/casein-free cake loaded with xanthan gum and other additives. We had a situation recently, where I needed to make a last-minute birthday cake, and this Simple Mills Mix came to the rescue. I am grateful that our son is finally able to tolerate a cake that doesn’t require a day worth of work.
Ingredients
1 Box Simple Mills Chocolate Cake Mix (prepared according to the package directions for cake)
(Simple Mills Vanilla Cake Mix may also be used if preferred)
2 Containers Simple Mills Vanilla Frosting
(Simple Mills Chocolate Frosting may also be used if preferred)
1 Package Hu Chocolate Covered Almond Hunks
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare cake mix according to directions. Pour half of the batter into a round 9 1/2″ cake pan, bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the center runs cleanly with a toothpick. Repeat process with the remaining half of the cake batter. Allow cakes to cool for 10 minutes and loosen edges from the sides of the pan. Line a cake plate with small 5-6″ pieces of wax paper, covering all exposed areas to allow for a clean workspace to frost the cake. Place the inverted cake pan on top of wax paper, and tap the bottom of the pan to remove the first cake from the pan gently.
Over a double broiler at low to medium heat, slightly warm frosting until it reaches a consistency easily able to smooth. Using a serrated/smooth knife, frost the edges and top of the first/bottom layer of the cake. Add, the second layer of the cake, frost accordingly, and set aside. Using a small cutting board and chop Hu chocolates until they resemble finely chopped pieces.
Tidbits
There is minimal glutamate risk with the processing of these packaged cake mixes, but slightly more so with the frosting. The extracts, tapioca starch, powdered sugar, etc. added to the frosting can be inflammatory and feed bad gut bugs. There is also oxalate risk with a large number of nuts (which can be constipating), not to mention, the sugar content alone can be inflammatory. Since I’m already listing disclaimers, chocolate can be problematic for some as it is high in oxalate, histamine, phenol, and glutamate (to a lesser extent). I don’t want to scare anyone too much, but know that we have multiple families struggling with several food sensitivities and feel compelled to share some of the disclaimers. For a random last-minute birthday party or a rare* occasion, our son was recently able to tolerate this.