For Cream Cheese Sauce:

• 1/2 cup margarine
• 16 ounces soya cream cheese substitute
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• icing sugar - to taste
• soya milk - for consistency

For the Cake:

Fill kettle with fresh water and bring to a boil

Place raisins in bowl and cover with boiling water

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Grease a 10" bundt pan - if you don't have a bundt pan use a 9" x 13" cake pan

In a large mixing bowl add flour, soda, cinnamon and salt and mix well

In another mixing bowl add eggs, margarine, soya milk, sugar and vanilla extract and beat together

Drain water from raisins using a sieve

Add egg mixture to dry ingredients and mix well

Stir in pineapple, grated carrots, chopped pecans or walnuts, coconuts and raisins and mix well

Pour into pan and bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean

Remove from oven, allow to cool for 20 minutes and remove from pan

For the Cream Cheese Sauce (can be made in advance)

Beat butter and cream cheese substitute together until smooth

Add vanilla extract and beat

Add a ½ cup of icing sugar and beat. Taste and add ¼ cup of icing sugar at a time until the desired sweetness is reached.

Depending on the brand of cream cheese substitute you use the mixture should now be pourable. If it is too stiff, add milk slowly until the desired consistency is achieved. The sauce should be thick and only slowly pour out.

For serving, cut a piece of cake and pour cream cheese sauce over the top.

By the way, the cream cheese sauce also makes a really good spread on a toasted bagel.

Enjoy!

© Copyright 2004, The Maitre D. All rights reserved. Email: mailto:maitred@thousandsof.com