Well-Dressed: The Salad Dressing Cake

The New Year is upon us, and with it comes that most dreaded, terrible custom: The New Year's Resolution. Proclamations of healthy eating and new gym memberships are as plentiful as the popping of champagne corks less than a week before. However, as we all know, few stick to those resolutions--so when you've given up, when you're ready to come back to the dark side, we present the Salad Dressing Cake.

Now, the name "Salad Dressing Cake" can be misleading--this is not some sort of exotic balsamic-glazed confection. No sir, the dressing we're talking about here is the one that dresses salads of the potato and macaroni varieties: mayonnaise. Now, for all those naysayers, a few points. If you're disgusted by this cake but you're one of the many who indulged in bacon-flavored baked goods in the past year, you take a long look at yourself in the mirror before you judge the mayo cake. Because what makes up mayonnaise--egg yolks, oil, vinegar--is all stuff that would go into a cake anyway. And as a note to vegan readers, the recipe works just fine with Vegenaise as well.

We were surprised by this cake. It's probably the most dense, moist, rich cake we've ever made--it has a slightly tangy flavor, not unlike a sour cream cake. In our version, instead of using 4 tbsp of cocoa powder as in the original recipe, we substituted the same amount of ground Callebaut chocolate--this not only gave the cake a nice added texture and color, but added a nice bittersweet flavor contrast. Topped with a simple buttercream frosting, it's actually quite a pleasant cake. 

Moreover, the biggest problem with this cake is not the flavor but the gross-out factor--no matter how you put it, no matter how many justifications you have, Salad Dressing Cake does not sound delicious or appetizing. Still, once you get past that hurdle, you might be pleasantly surprised. Our advice? Serve now, and tell the tasters what they ate later. 

Salad Dressing Cake (Via reliableanswers.com)

• 2 cups Flour
• 2 teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1 cup Sugar
• 4 tablespoons cocoa (we used ground chocolate--see above)
• 1 cup warm water
• 1 cup Miracle Whip or mayonnaise salad dressing (or vegenaise for a vegan option)
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla

1. Mix all ingredients together, beat until smooth. Grease a 13"x9" cake pan (we used a circular pan) and dust with flour. Bake at 350° for 30-minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
2. Frost when cool; we used this simple buttercream frosting:

• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

1. In a mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat on high speed 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.

If desired, serve on top of a real salad for a delightfully mischievous presentation.

Comments

[Banana-head Pancake]

while I appreciate the vegan option, I'm just not convinced...
:)

[Joie de vivre]

The mayo cake sounds yummy. It's just the pairing with real salad that grosses me out a little. Beautiful picture though.

[Sophie]

lol this has to be one of the funnest/quirkiest cake photos I've ever seen...salad dressing! Very impressive. Again, love the photo :). Happy New Year! :)

[How To Eat A Cupcake]

<3 your pictures! :D

[Rhonda]

Do you think this would this work with lite or fat-free mayo (and wheat flour??)

[lyndsay]

this post confused me beyond reason. i thought it was a trompe l'oeil and i was like GOOD GOD that lettuce and carrots looks INCREDIBLY REAL. the last picture with the fork and the eaten-into cake, i thought the cake was made of flaked tuna... oh the confusion. thankfully, being literate and able to read helped. MAYO CAKE!!!!