Got 10minutes to make an awesome Carob Cake?

Last month Brock and I celebrated our anniversary (remember my post here about our memorable evening lying in bed with him feeding me mango pieces as my exhaustion had hit rock bottom?), and as it was only a  week after his birthday (when we shared this amazingly delicious and super easy Coconut Cream Pie), we never celebrated our anniversary with a cake (and I'm not a cake-whore having to make one for every occasion... but I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy doing so because it's always a win-win-win; I win by getting to spend my time getting creative in the kitchen and having a ball doing so... the person who I am making a cake for win's obviously - they get a cake... and then everyone else wins by getting to share in the marvelous delectable creation made [and yes, that includes me again too])

So when B said "let's have a cake to celebrate our anniversary" I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it earlier! Wanting to come up with something super quick (I had assessments coming out my ears as usual, and some cakes can take a day or so; that and we wanted to eat cake pronto!) and something inexpensive using as much straight out of the pantry as I could (as these assessments come with hefty school fees), this is what I came up with!

4-Ingredient Carob Cake and 4-Ingredient Carob Frosting

In the cute shape of a little love heart, small enough to share, but big enough that half was plenty :)

You will need:

1 1/2 cups almond meal
3/4 cup raisins
1 tsp carob powder
2-3 Tbsp fresh orange juice

Blend using a small food processor until it is all combined and looks deliciously gooey enough to eat straight out the container (well you all know my rule by now - you gotta be taste testing!)

Then mould, push, poke and prod your mixture into a (coconut-oiled) small cake tin (this love heart was no bigger than the size of a CD; the plate in the picture is a tea cup plate). Alternatively, mould it into a square or a circle shaped cake straight onto a small plate.

For the frosting you will need:

2 small avocados (1 extra large one will also work)

2 medjool dates (chopped finely)

2 tsp carob powder

2 tsp honey (agave, maple syrup, stevia, etc)

Mash your avocado to speed up the process here. Then blend all ingredients into a small food processor (I find these work better than blender as the avo gets stuck easily). Keep blending until your frosting is smooth and creamy. You can add a drizzle of water if need be but be warned here; too much and you're then going to need to add more avo again. Start with 1/4tsp water and go from there if you find you need it.

Frost your cake and decorate as you wish. I only had cacao nibs and wanting something red to brighten it up, I chopped up a few dried cranberries. Goji berries would look cool also, or fresh strawberries! Yum!

 If you're sharing with a loved one, cut your heart in half and enjoy a delicious afternoon tea or dessert in the evening :)

Buon-appetit!

Live Coconut Cream Pie

This (totally nut free, dairy free, gluten free, sugar free, raw, paleo, [and in my case] 100% organic so bloody sensational) stunner of a cake tasted just as good a couple of weeks ago when I made it for my partner's birthday up here in Cairns. I wanted something delicious (obviously), but nothing super time consuming as I had assessments and other things coming out my ears, and we had both only arrived back in Cairns the day earlier from our travels - me to Sydney, he to China. So this is what I found! A simple coconut pie that I jazzed up a bit so it was a proper birthday cake; and not just a cake. I promised you all I'd share the recipe so promise me you'll all make it (your taste buds are shouting YES too).

You will need:
For the crust - 
2 1/2 cups coconut flakes/dessicated coconut
1/4 tsp vanilla (or the insides of one vanilla bean)
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup (heaped) finely chopped fresh medjool dates

For the filling -
1 1/4 cups coconut milk*
3/4 cup coconut flesh
3/4 cup (heaped) finely chopped fresh medjool dates
1/2 tsp vanilla (or the insides of one vanilla bean)
2 pinches of salt
3 Tbsp lecithin
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp coconut oil (Important note here - be sure you have an exceptionally good-tasting coconut oil as you will be able to taste it; shit oil makes your cake taste shit. My favourite is Nuigini)
Decorations; fresh fruit, coconut flakes, cacao...

* to make your own coconut milk, blend the flesh of a thai young coconut with the liquid, and uv got milk! One coconut is more than enough for the quantity of milk you need; but you will need more for the additional flesh. I had 4 to be super-over-organised. You'll likely only need 2 but an extra one is always advisable as you can sometimes luck out and open a dodgy one. 

Step 1 - Prepping
Make your coconut milk and put is aside.

Step 2 - Prepping
Prep all your ingredients on the bench. Start pitting and chopping your fresh dates and measuring out all your ingredients. Grab a 20cm cake tin or another flan dish you have, and either grease with coconut oil or line with non-stick paper.
Then in an S-blade food processor, put in coconut flakes, salt and vanilla and begin to process. Start adding small amounts of your chopped dates until it begins to stick together. Use more dates if need be (I did).

Step 3 - Base
Once it's sticky enough to hold together, press your mixture into your prepared cake tin. Use your fingers to work it up the sides of the dish to form more of a crust. Alternatively you can just have the crust as the base, but it might be a little messier getting the cake out.

Step 4 - Filling
Next up, get out your blender. Throw in your coconut milk, coconut flesh, dates, vanilla and salt. Blend all this until super smooth. Add the lecithin and coconut oil and blend again until all this is mixed through well. Dip your finger in to taste. Not optional. If you need something added (sweeter, cinnamon jazz, etc, add it now). And of course taste again :)

Step 5 - Pouring
You guessed it! Pour your delicious mixture straight into your crust. And voila! Easy as pie!

Step 6 - Decorating
You can get creative and decorate your pie any way you wish - the recipe used coconut flakes but as I was making this for Brock's birthday, I wanted something a little more spesh, so I got out the fresh fruit for splashes of colour!
Such an easy recipe. But it looks amazing! I LOVE a fool-proof recipe that always turns out looking a million bux!

Serve with tea if you please. Or have for brekkie like my man insisted (it was his birthday after all)

 Enjoy!



Recipe taken from I Am Grateful recipe book.