I don’t know. You put carrots in a thing, and then call it dessert? What kind of bizarre talk is that?
And zucchini? ...That’s another vegetable.
SO many eggs? Are you sure this is a cake, and not a frittata?
...Well I do admit that the combination is maybe a little on the ‘innovative’ side. (I like that term better than 'weird'. It suggests 'genius' instead of the opposite).
And in my defense, I did add cinnamon, spices, and other sweet tasty stuff which overrides any resemblance to the frittata you may be imagining.
I like cake. I like dessert. I do abstain most days of the week, but I’ve got that foodie curse of feeling a compulsion to obey the desires of my tongue (more often than I’ll admit).
This cake is a compromise. Between what I want (dessert) and what I need (a few more green beans). But it doesn’t taste like a compromise. Promise. And it's gluten free (for those who require such things, or cook for ones who do). And it's even nearly considering being kind-of-sort-of-low-carb.
May I quote that nasty woman from back in the 1700’s? “Let them eat cake!” (But my take on the statement has got a nicer connotation than that other woman's).
Healthy Decadent Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
1/4 cup (25 gr) coconut flour
2 cups (180 gr) almond flour/meal
2 Tbsp oat bran (optional - makes it healthier)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp pure non-bitter stevia powder
1/2 cup (125 gr) butter softened
1/4 cup macadamia or coconut oil (or other mild flavour oil)
1/4 cup (75 gr) rice malt syrup
2 Tbsp (40 gr) glucose syrup
1 tsp vanilla
6 eggs
2 cups (250 gr) coarsely grate carrot
1 cup (150 gr) coarsely grated zucchini (I peeled mine to disguise it from my kids, who are suspicious of green flecks)
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts (you could use macadamias here instead)
1/2 cup (40 gr) fine desiccated coconut
Icing
150 gr unsalted butter softened
120 gr cream cheese softened
1 cup icing dextrose (see note below about how to make this)
1/8 tsp pure non-bitter stevia powder
1/4 tsp vanilla
Directions
Cake
1. Grate carrot and zucchini, place in a bowl, add coconut and walnuts. Set aside.
2. Combine coconut flour, almond flour, oat bran, baking powder, salt, stevia, and all spices, whisk together.
3. Add butter, oil, rice malt syrup, glucose syrup, vanilla and eggs to the dry ingredients, beat till combined.
4. Fold in carrot, zucchini, walnuts and coconut with a spoon or spatula.
5. Line two 20 cm (8 inch) round springform pans with baking/parchment paper, spoon half of the batter into each, and smooth with a spatula (the batter is very thick). Or you could use one 28 x 18 cm (11 x 7 inch) baking dish if you don't want a layer cake.
6. Bake at 160C (320F) for 30-40 minutes (or until the top of the cake springs back when touched gently in the middle) turning half way through.
Icing
1. Beat butter and cream cheese together.
2. Add icing dextrose, and vanilla. Beat till pale and smooth.
Note: Icing Dextrose - Add the dextrose to a food processor or blender and pulse/blend till very, very fine (like icing sugar!). You will need to stir it a few times, but let it settle before taking the lid off or you will have clouds of powdered dextrose floating around your kitchen! I like to blend a whole packet of dextrose at a time, and keep it in a container ready for the next icing episode.
