Search This Blog

Search This Blog

Translate

Saturday, January 30, 2016

Decadent Paleo Chocolate Cake

I know it has been several weeks since my last post, I apologize. A lot has happened in the past three weeks. I started a new job, was extremely sick and my husband stole me away for an anniversary trip. Needless to say this post is past due. 

Right before I became ill, Matthew and I hosted some friends over to our house for a Paleo dinner. We were also celebrating the retirement of one of our good friends. 




We have also just purchased a beautiful table for our morning room and I was dying to break it in, since Matthew and I treat the table as a work of art and don't use it on a regular basis. 




For this particular get together I decided to make a Paleo Chocolate cake. I made one before which reminded me more of a brownie then a chocolate cake. I want this one to have more of that moist cake texture and a sweeter chocolate flavor. 



I had a few difficulties with the cake. I could not find the right size spring form pan. Instead, I found small little spring board pans to make little individual cakes. They came out beautifully and everyone seemed to enjoy them. My favorite part was the middle layer of chocolate gnash, it took a little time to make but it was very delicious and I think it really put the cake on a whole other level. Next time I think I will double that part of the cake so there is more ganache in the middle layer. 





The whole evening was wonderful. It was full of great conversation, good food, and fabulous company. After dinner we settled in the living room for espresso drinks and games. We played a game I got for Christmas called "Heads Up". It was a very fun filled evening. 


Decadent Paleo Chocolate Layer Cake


Cake:
  • 3 cups blanched almond flour
  • ¼ cup coconut flour
  • ¾ cup raw cacao powder
  • ½ cup raw coconut palm sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1 cup coconut milk, full fat
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons raw honey
Middle Layer Chocolate Ganache*:
  • 1 can (13.5 ounces) full fat coconut milk
  • 2 tablespoons raw honey
  • 4 tablespoons raw cacao powder
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate Frosting:
  • 6 tablespoons coconut milk, full fat
Instructions
Cake:

  1. preheat oven at 350°F
  1. grease the bottom and sides of a 7-inch spring form pan with coconut oil and line the bottom with parchment paper
  1. in a large bowl mix together the almond flour, coconut flour, raw cacao powder, raw coconut palm sugar, baking soda and salt
  1. in a separate bowl whisk together the coconut oil, coconut milk, eggs, vanilla and honey
  1. using a rubber spatula, gently mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients to form a batter. Do not over mix.
  1. pour batter into prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, approximately 45-50 minutes. If you feel you need to cook it longer, cover cake with aluminum foil to prevent burning the top and lower the heat to 325°F. Cook until toothpick comes out clean.
  1. let cake cool completely then cut horizontally in the middle
  1. spread the chocolate ganache over the bottom half of the cake and refrigerate for 30 minutes
  1. top with other half of cake, then spread the chocolate frosting over the top and sides of the cake
  1. sprinkle top with shaved dark chocolate if desired
Middle Layer Chocolate Ganache:
  1. in a medium saucepan, bring the coconut milk and honey to a light boil
  1. simmer on low heat for two hours, stirring occasionally. Do not cover the pan. You will know you cooked it long enough when the coconut milk is reduced to half and has a thicker consistency and darker color, similar to sweetened condensed milk.
  1. mix in the raw cacao powder and vanilla extract and stir until all is combined and smooth
  1. let it cool and refrigerate until cake is ready
Chocolate Frosting:
  1. melt the chocolate chips in a bowl over simmering water (double boiler)
  1. mix coconut milk with melted chocolate until all is combined and smooth
  1. let cool for 5 minutes before icing the cake
*The middle layer chocolate ganache takes a long time to make. Please plan ahead and have this ready before you bake the cake.
If you make this cake with almond flour by Bob's Red Mill your cake may turn out oily, dense and it may sink in the middle. Be sure to use finely ground almond flour with the skin removed to get a light and fluffy consistency out of your cake. I suggest blanched almond flour by Honeyville. I am not affiliated with them. Their almond flour just works the best for baking.
Recipe serves about 10 people.






No comments:

Post a Comment