Am I a fan of healthy cakes? No, not really. I don't eat cake often, so when I do, I don't feel guilty about indulging a little. Another reason why I am rather unenthusiastic about healthy desserts is that I am yet to try a vegan (or raw or similarly healthy) cake that doesn't evoke the „It's good... for a vegan cake“ reaction.
But even as a less than progressive thinker (at least when it comes to food), I have to admit that there is a time and place for adjusting your approach to baking. What do you bake when a friend or a family member is gluten and/or lactose intolerant? What about when someone is on a diet – should it really mean they can't have cake at all?
A while ago I stumbled upon this recipe by Laura Fuentes and decided to give it a try. Seeing as this is a paleo (and not a vegan) cake, it does use eggs but is low in carbs and contains no gluten or lactose. While it can't be compared to decadent chocolate cakes with ganache and buttercream and what not, I was both surprised and excited to find that this is a delicious cake, full of flavour and with an incredibly fluffy yet moist texture. It's also SO easy to make. Most of my family members actually prefer this to a traditional cake, because it's so light that even the third slice doesn't leave you gasping for air and cursing your lack of self control.
Another thing that I especially like about it is that decoration is completely up to you. The original recipe suggests sprinkling it with coconut flour, but I like to go a little overboard and also drizzle it with melted dark chocolate and top it off with coarsely chopped almonds and sour cherries. (Note that once you add chocolate this is no longer a strictly paleo cake.)
Give this beauty a try... you can thank me later!
