Another dose of ‘have your cake and eat it’ with this delicious and healthy gluten free carrot cake.
Once you pass the age of 12 and no longer favour chocolate and multicoloured sprinkles my studies show (as in my very scientific studies involving asking the Mums at toddler group) that adults prefer the more sophisticated tastes of coffee and walnut, lemon drizzle, and carrot cake (my personal favourite).
As a child I couldn’t think of anything more ridiculous than putting carrots in a cake, likewise cheese in a cheesecake. I love the way kids think so literally – I didn’t want my pudding to taste like my sandwich!
Tell a child that life is a rollercoaster and they think you’re taking them to a theme park.
And don’t YOU take the title Healthy Gluten Free Carrot Cake to extremes either. Healthy doesn’t mean calorie free, you can’t eat half a cake in one go and expect to lose weight.
But rather when you do eat nutritious versions of tasty treats you’re genuinely contributing to your body’s nutritional needs, feeding it nourishing foods, vitamins, minerals, fibre, protein and fats. There’s sugar here in the form of dates and honey, but less than a ‘regular’ cake and these also contain nutrients unlike empty-calorie processed table sugar. There’s links to a few of the ingredients to make shopping easier for you.
Does this picture look like a pile of junk food? I don’t think so!
INGREDIENTS – Serves 8-10
2 large carrots
4 egg whites
180g pumpkin puree
3 medjool dates, fresh, pitted
1 tbsp cinnamon
60g cashew butter
85g maple syrup or honey
150g Protein Pow Pea Cooking Mix (see below for discount)
TOPPING
1 batch Citrus Cashew Icing, to decorate (click here for the recipe)
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180˚c.
Wash and roughly chop the carrots, then place in a food processor along with all the other ingredients, and blend until smooth.
Grease and Line a 20cm round springform cake tin and pour in the batter.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.
Allow to cool completely before removing from the tin and decorating with the icing.
Enjoy!
xxx