Vegan Baltimore Peach Cake

Peaches. Fresh, ripe, juicy peaches are my favorite food in the whole world. I buy 5 pounds of them every single week during the summer at the farmer's market and I eat almost every single one before time to go back to the farmer's market a week later. Sam probably doesn't even realize this, but it is one of the most sacrificial acts of love when I offer him one of my sweet, juicy, golden balls of pure joy and deliciousness!

Lately I've been having a hankering for a recipe my mom-mom used to make. The trouble is, I didn't know what it was called, and even if I did, I don't have her recipe and sadly my mom-mom isn't around anymore to ask. (Although I did send a message to my Aunt to see if she has the recipe… which I now notice she replied to after I already made my own version... next time!)

Here's the thing, my mom-mom is a great cook! It is a wonder that her four children didn't weigh 500 pounds while living in her house. I remember making the drive up to mom-mom's house in Towson, just outside of Baltimore, MD, as a kid. It seemed like the 3-4 hour drive from my childhood home in VA took fooooorever, but I always knew that no matter what hour we arrived there would be delicious treats awaiting us- because that is what good grandmothers do!

And so, this week, staring at my pile of peaches wondering what to do with them all I was transported back to my mom-mom's Towson kitchen and all the wonderful memories I have associated with that kitchen and my mom-mom. The memories and emotions we attach to food are so incredible, aren't they? I remember not only the peach cake thing-y, but standing on a stool so I could reach the counter with a giant apron on sifting flour for whatever delicious concoction my mom-mom was cooking up. One thing I do not remember is ever feeling like I was in the way, which I am sure that I was, but my mom-mom so delighted in her grandchildren that even if we were making a huge mess and slowing her down, she was always happy to have us in her kitchen "helping."

I think this emotional connection to food from my past is one of the more difficult things about transitioning to vegan cooking. It's one thing to give up meat, it's another to give up my mom-mom's roulade or Sam's grandm

om's german sour beef. So when I stumbled upon a recipe for "Baltimore Peach Cake" online that seemed quite similar to the "peach cake thing-y" I remember my Baltimorean mom-mom making, I decided to try my hand at converting it to vegan (as well as making a few other adjustments to suit my tastes). And I must say, I am delighted at the results! First of all, you'd never know it's vegan, and if you're an omnivore, feel free to use butter instead of vegan margarine and milk instead of almond milk if that is what you have on hand (though I doubt it will improve the results).

Molly's Vegan B-more Peach Cake

1 Tbsp vegan margarine (Earth Balance vegan buttery spread), softened

2 1/2 cups unbleached white whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups almond milk

1 cup sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbsp vegan margarine, melted

3-4 peaches, peeled and sliced

Preheat over to 350. Mix first 6 ingredients. Spread in a greased 15"x10" jelly roll pan. Sprinkle with half the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Arrange peach slices in rows. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture and drizzle melted margarine over all. Bake 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy!