Oatmeal Snacking Cake with Nutty Topping

Moist, nutty, and not as dense as you might think!  Another great recipe from Lottie + Doof, and if you need justifying you can say, “It’s good for me, it’s got oatmeal in it.” The cake is good, but for me it’s a vehicle for the topping, a German chocolate cake-style topping, all nutty and buttery – you can’t go wrong.

This one is pretty easy to make.

What you need:

1 cup quick cooking oats

3/4 cup water at room temperature

3/4 cup unbleached flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 large egg at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Icing:

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3 tablespoons milk (I used soy creamer because it’s what I had)

3/4 cup sweetened, shredded coconut (I used unsweetened and it worked great!)

3/4 cup chopped pecans

What you do:

1.  Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a bit extra to stick up around the edges so you can grab onto it later. Preheat the oven to 350F.

2. Stir the oats and water together in a small bowl and let sit for about 15 minutes, until the water has been absorbed.

3. Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon together in a bowl.

4. Beat the butter and sugars for a few minutes until it is “the consistency of damp sand.” (not my words, but that’s the way you want it to be)  Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

5. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, stirring just until combined, then add the moist oats, and stir again until just combined.  Pour into the lined baking pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

6.  When the cake it baked, take it out of the oven to cool for about 10 minutes.  While you are doing this you can prepare the broiled topping.  It’s a good idea to melt the butter ahead of time, though, so you can do this while the cake is baking.

7. Add the milk, sugar and nuts to the butter and mix it all together.  Sprinkle it on top of the cake and press it down a little.  Put it under the broiler for 2-3 minutes.  Watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn!

8.  Let it cool for about an hour, then you can take it out of the pan by pulling on the parchment paper.