Cake News
Austin chef launches cottage bakery devoted to vegan olive oil cake
Hooniecakes centers on a Mediterranean tradition.
An Austin chef has launched a cottage bakery and now it's vegan cakes for everyone. Called Hooniecakes, the enterprise is by chef Hannah Nichols, who founded it as a side project in July.
Austin has plenty of vegan baked goods, but Nichols has created a unique niche by specializing in olive oil cake, a recipe whose origins are said to date back centuries in Mediterranean countries.
More recently, olive oil cake has become a foodie trend, found on menus of upscale restaurants such as Flower Child and Tillie's in Dripping Springs.
Nichols is doing three cakes: original lemon, plus two seasonal flavors, currently cherry and green Chartreuse meringue. Following a popular model observed by cottage bakers, she hosts the business on Instagram where customers can place orders by sending her a message. Prices range from $40 to $50 per cake, depending on variety, and are available for delivery in Austin only with a 1- to 3-day turnaround; no shipping for now.
Olive oil cake is revered by bakers and diners alike because of its sophisticated, not-too-sweet take on dessert. Most olive oil cakes, Nichols' included, are served unadorned — no gobs of frosting to distract from the pristine pleasure of the cake on its own.
Nichols began baking olive oil cakes on the side while working as a sous chef at restaurants such as BBQ Tatsu-Ya and Tiki Tatsu-Ya.
"I'd bring them in for family meals and everyone loved them — it was a way to bring happiness," she says. "Eventually I made a vegan version for a friend who's vegan, and found the vegan version was actually better than the non-vegan."
Conventional bakers rely on butter, cream, and eggs for making pastries and desserts, but one thing that vegan bakers have found is that those ingredients are not required to make a great vegan treat — especially vegan cake. Despite the lack of dairy or egg, vegan cakes often have a nicer, springier texture than non-vegan cakes.
Nichols uses favorite vegan tricks like applesauce in place of eggs; the olive oil replaces the dairy. Her cakes are 9-inch rounds, about 2 to 3 inches high, with the trademark subtle fruity flavor that olive oil cakes have, as well as a moister "crumb" that gives the cake a longer shelf life. You can have one sitting around for a few days and, unlike regular cake, it won't dry out.
One thing her cakes are not is gluten-free; her recipe relies on the inclusion of flour.
"You do get gluten-free requests, but my operation is so small that I'm staying focused on one niche for now," she says.
That niche: a simple, sophisticated cake that appeals to people who don't like icing and also happens to be vegan.
"I wanted to make a cake that is great for any occasion," she says. "It's not a birthday cake — it's a cake that can be enjoyed casually any time of the day."
