Luvin’ from the Oven! Or in this case the Ninja!

Earlier this year I attended the International Food Bloggers Conferences (IFBC) in Portland, Oregon.  It was a fantastic event where bloggers from all over gather to network, learn new techniques and meet new friends.  On Saturday of the conference, a luncheon and presentation was held by the Ninja Cooking System.  What is a Ninja Cooking System you ask?  Well, it is an appliance for the kitchen that can sear foods, bake and slow cook, all in ONE device! It is amazing!  I have browned, slow cooked and now have tried to steam bake in it.  So far, I have made soup, spaghetti sauce, carnitas and now cake!  One of the perks of steam baking is that you can use 1/2 the fat in a recipe and it will still be extremely moist. Oh, I forgot to mention by attending the conference we all had the privilege of having one delivered to our home to try out.  Sweet!

Showing the oven setting on the Ninja Cooking System

I used a recipe from Bob’s Red Mill called Magically Moist Almond Cake.  The recipe called for a 9 x 13 pan, but I used the pan provided by Ninja for the Cooking System which is 7 x 9.5 inches.  Per the recipe, the cake was to bake for 30 minutes.  The insturction booklet said for steam baking add 1  cup of water for every 10 minutes of baking time.  In this case, I added 3 cups of water for the 30 minute baking time.  I checked the cake at 30 minutes and low & behold it was done!

Ready for the Ninja!

The adjustments I made to the recipe was to use 1/2 the fat, in this case butter, added a little almond flavoring and sprinkled some sliced almonds on top.  I took a class on how to make butter last week, so I had some fresh buttermilk and replaced the milk called for in the recipe with that.  I also swapped out the sugar for a natural, no calorie sweetener for dietary reasons.

Let me talk about the cake.  It was utterly moist and remember, I used half of the amount of butter!  It was a little crumbly, but I cut it while still warm.  I would say to let the cake cool thoroughly before serving.  A very light almond flavor was a lovely touch.  I was very impressed with the way this cake turned out and  will absolutely try this method again. This cake would be an enjoyable treat whether for dessert or with a cup of coffee in the morning.  I think serving it with some fresh local fruit would be a tasty addition.

Local Notes:  Buttermilk – Cindi’s Kitchen, Almonds & Butter – California

Equipment:  Ninja Cooking System