A few weeks ago I made cinnamon rolls for my family. They were luscious, fluffy, and delicious…but they were also full of gluten. Sometimes I do forget that as versatile as my four mix is, it still is very far from behaving like regular flour, especially when instant yeast is involved and gluten development is required. Breads, brioches, croissants, danishes are all baked good that I miss dearly, and that I always try to replicate. So, this week was no different. One day, in the late afternoon, I set up my experiment. I used the same recipe used for the regular cinnamon rolls, halved it, added some extra Xanthan gum, and put it in the bread machine. HA! It was a complete disaster. The taste was passable, but the dough didn’t rise much to begin with – and it should have been my first clue. Once I cut the rolls and put them in the muffin tin to let them rise a second time, they didn’t budge… as you can see from the picture, they look like stoic rounds of hard dough and cinnamon.

The defeat needed to be avenged. So I looked among the recipes I have collected in the last few years and I found something that looked promising, for which I had all the ingredients. Many years ago, when my younger son was still little and he came with me to the grocery store, I needed something to motivate him. The bribe was usually a jelly donut. So when I saw the recipe for a Sugared Jam Cake with the description “if you love jelly donuts, this cake will blow your mind,” I thought I found a winner. In all honesty, it does not taste like a donut, but I assure you that it’s pretty darn good. ENJOY!

Gluten-free Sugared Jam Cake

• Simona’s Flour Mix  2 cups (312 gr)
• granulated sugar 1 1/4 cups (250 gr) 
• baking powder 1 1/2 tsp
• salt 1 tsp
• nutmeg 1 tsp
• whole milk 3/4 cup (6 oz)
• unsalted butter, melted 1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons (141 gr)
• 2 large eggs
• vanilla extract 2 tsps 
• food grade vegetable glycerin 2 Tablespoons
• Jam 3/4 cup – I used Bon Maman Mixed Berries

Topping

• granulated sugar 1/2 cup (100 gr)
• cinnamon 2 tsps
• salt 1 tsp
• unsalted butter, melted 1/4 cup (57 gr)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease an 8″ round cake pan and line it’s bottom with parchment paper.

In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. In a medium bowl whisk together milk, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and glycerin, then add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing until smooth.

Pour half of the batter in the pan, then use some of the remaining batter to create a ring in the inside edge of the pan – a piping bag would do the trick. Spoon the jam into the center of the ring. Spread the remaining batter on top of the jam and smooth with an offset spatula.

Bake until a wooden pick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, around one hour, covering with foil for the last 15/20 minutes of baking to prevent excess browning, if necessary. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

For topping: in a small bowl stir together sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Un-mold the cake and brush its top and sides with melted butter. Sprinkle top with sugar mixture and press into the sides of the cake.