Louise Cake – Vegan version

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Wrapping Dough

1. 1
   Mix the flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl.

   Bowl
2. 2
   Add the cold margarine in cubes and rub it in with your fingertips, until coarse crumbs form.

   💡The margarine must stay cold: margarine that melts in your hands gives a hard dough instead of a crumbly one. Work quickly, and if the dough warms up, put it back in the fridge.
3. 3
   Add the eggs and quickly bring together with your hands, without kneading, just until the dough comes together.

   💡Knead as little as possible: long kneading develops gluten, and the dough comes out tough and shrinks in the oven.
4. 4
   Whip the soft margarine with the sugar, until pale and fluffy.

   ⚙ WhippingBowlHand mixerorStand mixerorWhisk

   💡Cream the margarine soft, at room temperature: cold margarine doesn't take in air, and melted margarine doesn't hold it.
5. 5
   Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least 15 minutes.

   ⚙ Wrapping and Chilling the DoughPlastic wrapRefrigerator

   💡Chilling firms the margarine and relaxes the gluten: the dough rolls out easily, doesn't stick to the counter and doesn't shrink in the oven.

To assemble

1. 6
   Grease a 25 ×30 cm pan and press the dough into it in an even layer over the bottom.

   Baking pan
2. 7
   Bake in an oven preheated to 170°C (340°F) 15 minutes, until the base is lightly golden.

   ⚙ BakingOvenBaking pan

   💡The base bakes alone before the jam: that way it stays crisp, and the jam doesn't make it soggy.

   💡Check by the cue (until…), not just the clock: every oven bakes a little differently.
3. 8
   Spread the jam in an even layer over the baked base.

   Silicone spatula
4. 9
   Whip' the aquafaba' on medium speed, until it starts to foam.

   ⚙ WhippingBowlHand mixerorStand mixer

   💡Whip aquafaba in a clean, dry bowl, without a drop of yolk.
5. 10
   Add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, without stopping the mixer, and whip about 5 more minutes, until the foam is white, glossy and very stiff.

   Hand mixerorStand mixer

   💡The sugar goes in slowly, only after the aquafaba are already foamy: sugar added all at once weighs down the foam, and the meringue never reaches full volume and gloss.
6. 11
   Fold' the coconut' into the meringue gently.

   ⚙ FoldingSilicone spatula

   💡Fold with a spatula, in broad strokes from the bottom up, and stop when there are no streaks: vigorous mixing knocks the air out of the foam. Add whipped mixtures in stages: a quarter first, to lighten the mixture.
7. 12
   Spread the meringue over the filling with a spoon, in swirls, until it is completely covered.
8. 13
   Bake for another 20 minutes, until the meringue turns golden.

   ⚙ BakingOvenBaking pan
9. 14
   Let cool completely before cutting.