As a Health Coach, many clients, friends and family members want to know . . . what EXACTLY do I EAT?! So on this 'on-going' blog post series, I intend to highlight some of my go to meals as I adapt through the various circumstances of living on the road and at home in Bloemendaal, Netherlands. In a nut-shell I am a foodie at heart and always on the hunt for Organic (Bio), Seasonal and the best Quality ingredients I can find! Sometimes I get REALLY lucky and strike gold finding artisanal products made with all of the above characteristics plus my favourite criteria of all, made with lots of LOVE!!!
Close friends and family can certify I am a diva in the kitchen BUT never ask me to make the same recipe twice. This Gluten-Free "Healthy" Chocolate Cake and Buttercream Chocolate Frosting post is my first attempt at documenting my first recipe ever! My strengths come from taking whatever ingredients we already have on hand, applying basic cooking principles and letting the creative process run rampant. Baking is no exception to my audacity in the kitchen. The secret with cooking and specially with baking is the quality of the ingredients. Pretty much when it comes to baking, quality grass-fed butter, pastured eggs, chocolate, vanilla and walnuts are guaranteed to deliver something scrumptious. And yes, I consider pastured butter and eggs extremely healthy! The parts you’ll need to navigate through are the sweeteners of choice and the flour that you use. In our household on these special occasions, we tend to lean on natural whole and unrefined sweeteners like unrefined raw sugar cane, dates, honey, bananas, molasses and maple syrup. As for flour, we gravitate to coconut and almond flour for gluten-free baking.
This birthday I decided to go with a Gluten-Free “Healthy” Chocolate Cake and Buttercream Chocolate Frosting. For starters, what makes it "healthier" is that it only has a small fraction of “Sweeteners” when compared to most other online Chocolate Cake Recipes and an even smaller fraction when compared to cakes purchased from a supermarket. Additionally this Chocolate cake is Gluten-Free, made only with REAL ingredients and has ZERO nasty oils which is not the case with most packaged cakes in supermarkets and sometimes even high-end bakeries! BEWARE! Despite its “Healthy” label, this cake will definitely satisfy as a delicious chocolate cake treat.
GLUTEN-FREE “HEALTHY” CHOCOLATE CAKE &
BUTTERCREAM CHOCOLATE FROSTING
QUICK SHOPPING LIST
Pastured Eggs
Grass-Fed Organic Butter
Organic Bananas
Organic Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
Organic Coconut Milk
Organic Coconut Flour
Organic Walnuts
Organic Raw Sugar Cane
REAL Organic Vanilla
Organic Baking Powder
Organic Baking Soda
Organic Himalayan Pink Salt
Organic Ground Black Pepper
Organic Coffee
Organic Seasonal Berries (Optional)
GLUTEN-FREE “HEALTHY” CHOCOLATE CAKE
INGREDIENTS
4 Pastured Organic Eggs (Pastured Eggs = Eggs which come from chickens which were allowed to roam free and forage for food in open pastures, thus eating worms, insects and grass)…YES Chickens are by true nature omnivores.
125 Grams Grass-Fed Organic Butter
250 Grams Organic Walnuts
2 Organic Ripe Bananas - Yellow and beyond, just not green
1 Can (400ML) Organic Coconut Milk (Check the ingredients label which should read a minimum of 98% actual Coconut vs, a product diluted with “fillers and additives”or simply watered down. You basically want an entire coconut squeezed into a can, anything less will disappoint. Trust me, it is worth it! TIP: I wait until quality, organic coconut milk goes on sale and I stock up like nobody’s business…. This is one of the few shelve stable items I stock up in our home because its great to bake with, awesome as a dairy substitute for smoothies and granola bowls but also essential for a good curry!!!
1 Cup Organic Coconut Flour (you can also use Almond Flour, which will have a more moist and brownie-like effect)
¾ Cup Organic Raw Unrefined Sugar Cane (most recipes will ask for 2 Cups, so we are definitely taking it down…
¾ Cup Organic Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1-Tablespoon REAL Organic Vanilla (Watch out for “imitation”vanilla. Yes, you heard me correctly there is such a thing and believe me nothing can substitute the REAL thing! Splurge and go all the way!
1-Tablespoon Organic Coffee grounds (Freshly ground beans even better! Use your best coffee…this is the head turner secret ingredient of the Chocolate cake)
2 Teaspoon Organic Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Organic Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Organic Himalayan Pink Salt
1 Teaspoon Organic Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Organic Seasonal Berries (optional) – i.e. raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries etc.
GLUTEN-FREE “HEALTHY” CHOCOLATE CAKE
INSTRUCTIONS
Preparation
• Preheat oven to 350º F or 180º C. Prepare your cake pan (I prefer the type where you can unfasten the sides) by smothering with butter and lightly flouring with coconut flour.
• Ensure ALL ingredients are at room temperature specially butter and eggs.
For the chocolate cake:
• Add butter and sugar to a large bowl. Whisking by hand or with a hand-mixer until its nice and smoothly mixed. Then add eggs one by one until they too are nicely mixed and integrated into the batter.
• At this stage I like to add the vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pepper and coffee.
• Follow it up by adding the coconut milk (TIP if the liquid and solids have separated in the can, then mix the coconut milk until its smooth first in a separate bowl before integrating into the batter.
• Add the sifted coconut flour little by little while mixing. Note you can use a strainer to sift the coconut flour and unsweetened cacao powder.
• Add the sifted unsweetened cacao powder little by little while mixing until smooth and completely integrated into the batter.
• Add the walnuts and fold them into the batter.
• Pour the cake batter evenly into the pan. Take the bananas and slice long thin pieces. Put the pieces of sliced bananas right on top of the uncooked batter. This little trick of mine will add a layer of natural sweetness and flavor dimension to your chocolate cake.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the chocolate cake comes out clean.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Then remove from the pan and cool completely. See instructions below for Gluten-Free “Healthy” Buttercream Chocolate Frosting Recipe.
GLUTEN-FREE “HEALTHY” BUTTERCREAM CHOCOLATE FROSTING
INGREDIENTS
125 (+/-) Grams Grass-Fed Organic Butter
1 70% (or higher for a more intense flavor) Organic Chocolate Bar (100 gram)
1 Tablespoon Organic Coffee grounds (Freshly ground beans even better! Use your best coffee…this is the head turner secret ingredient of the Chocolate Frosting)
1-Tablespoon REAL Organic Vanilla (Watch out for “imitation”vanilla. Yes, you heard me correctly there is such a thing and believe me nothing can substitute the REAL thing! Splurge and go all the way!
½ Cup Maple Syrup – You will most likely get by with less…. Add in parts to taste
GLUTEN-FREE “HEALTHY” BUTTERCREAM CHOCOLATE FROSTING
INSTRUCTIONS
Melt the chocolate bar in a saucepan at very low heat while continuously stirring the chocolate to the assist with the melting process. Low heat is the key so have a little patience. Process will only take a few minutes. Once the chocolate is melted remove from heat and let stand for a bit.
Add the butter, vanilla and coffee
Mix in the maple syrup to taste.
TIP: If your frosting is too dry then add more butter. If the frosting is too liquid then add a bit of the unsweetened cacao powder.
Once you have the consistency and sweetness level to your liking, pop into the refrigerator for 1 to 3 minutes. This will gel and set the ingredients a bit and make it slightly easier to work with.
Remove frosting from the fridge, mixing once last time to make sure it is as smooth as you can get it and spread over your cake! Voila!
Optional. Top off with seasonal organic berries such as raspberries, blueberries, strawberries
A birthday cake is not a birthday cake without frosting. This Gluten-Free “Healthy” Buttercream Chocolate Frosting is healthier because it uses maple syrup (Vegan, comes straight out of a tree and has nutritional values like antioxidants and minerals ie zinc, magnesium, calcium and potassium) to sweeten the frosting instead of the typical confectionary powdered sugar which I equate to legal cocaine. This recipe uses REAL butter and not an oxidized oil or god forbid a hydrogenated oil (Shocking!) which is what most commercial cakes will have as an ingredient because it is simply cheaper than REAL butter.
So get inspired and make your own cake. Even if you doubled the sugar content of my recipe it will still be healthier than any industrialized cake made with nasty oxidized, hydrogenated oils, highly concentrated syrups from cheap sources like corn, and/or packed with artificial flavors, aromas and coloring. So make your own cake with REAL ingredients and have yourself a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
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