Recipe: Low fat Forest Cake with tofu icing

Low Fat Black Forest Cake with frosting:

1 cup Water
1 cup Honey
1/2 cup Applesauce
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 teaspoon Vinegar
2 cups Wholewheat pastry flour or -- - unbleached white flour
3/4 cup Cocoa powder
1 tablespoon Baking powder
1 teaspoon Baking soda

-----SYRUP-----

1/2 cup Water
1/4 cup Honey
2 each Thin lemon or orange slices
1/3 cup Kirsch

-----ICING-----

3/4 cup Raw cashews
3/4 cup Water
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1/2 cup Honey
10 ounces Firm tofu
3 ounces Semi-sweet chocolate -- melted
16 ounces Jar pitted cherries -- drained CAKE: Preheat oven to 350F. Combine liquid ingredients in a large bowl & whisk well. Sift dry ingredients together & whisk into liquid mixture.

Pour into greased & floured 9" cake tin & bake for 35 minutes or until springy.

Cool cake completely & remove from pan. With a serrated knife, cut cake horizontally to make 3 thin layers.

SYRUP: Combine first 3 ingredients in a small pot & boil for 3 minutes.

Let cool & then add kirsch.

ICING: In a blender, combine cashews, water & vanilla. Blend till smooth & creamy. Add honey & tofu & blend again. Set aside 2 c for the vanilla icing to go on top & sides of cake. To the rest of the mixture, add melted chocolate & 3 tb of syrup. Blend till smooth. Chill both icings before using.

TO ASSEMBLE: Carefully remove the top two layers of cake. Brush some syrup onto bottom layer & spread half of chocolate icing over it. Place the middle cake layer on top & brush with syrup & icing. Put down a layer of cherries & dot with a little vanilla icing to help the top layer stick.

Place the top layer on the cherries & brush again with syrup. Frost top & sides with vanilla icing. Decorate with cherries & pipe rosettes if desired.

Chill several hours before serving. The cake can be kept covered if not being served till the following day. However, the frosting may discolour after about 3 days.