Friday, March 22, 2013

Plum Cake sounds better than Prune Cake

I made this spicily re-vamped version of a coffee cake recipe for my hubby today. He liked it, and I was pleased because and it's a  healthy dessert and moist enough for the lunchbox.

Yogurt-filled Plum Cake

Grease an 8x8 baking pan with butter

Combine filling ingredients, then set aside:
1 cup strained (Greek-style) yogurt (or plain yogurt mixed with 1/2 tsp xantham/guar gum to thicken)
1 egg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup raw/natural/brown sugar

Mix dry ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of flour (I used spelt flour)
1/2 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. ginger

Cut in:
1/4 cup soft butter
Stir in:
1/2 cup prunes, snipped

Mix wet ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk (or sour milk, or room temperature milk mixed with vinegar/lemon juice)
1 egg, beaten in
1/4 cup raw/natural sugar or honey

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix till combined. Pour half the batter into your greased pan. Sprinkle with additional cinnamon. Top evenly with yogurt filling. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle with walnuts, cinnamon or additional raw sugar crystals if desired. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or till puffy and golden brown.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Macobella

To eat Nutella with a spoon is one of the special pleasures of women in the free West - unless one happens to be allergic to chocolate and sugar, in which case she only imagines that it must be scrumptious to do so. Eating almond butter with a spoon is a pleasure less exquisite and can even tend to make one morose and non-conversant.


Enter maca-laced carob-infused almond butter, aka "Macobella". This buttery dark brown treat is not only free of sugar (and chocolate and peanuts and other troublesome things) but it is tremendously satisfying and energizing, full of protein and healthy fat. I would encourage anyone who does not usually like carob to give this a try, because the rich, buttery texture brings out the best of the carob flavor (more than many recipes in which carob is substituted for cocoa and ends up tasting like mildly sweetened dirt). The carob is used mostly for the natural sweetness it contributes.

This recipe is for one or two servings, because for some reason it seems more appetizing freshly made than if it were made in a big batch and dipped from a jar. It's a great healthy snack for those cravey times of the month, and an out-of-this-world dessert topped with frozen berries and coconut milk. I would post a picture, but that I just ate the photo subject again and am composing this post in the energy of it. 

Macobella

1 tablespoon almond butter
1 tablespoon sesame butter (or another of almond butter if you don't have sesame butter)
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 heaping teaspoon carob powder
1 heaping teaspoon maca powder 

Optional additions:
1 heaping teaspoon flaked coconut
1 teaspoon flax meal
Dash of coconut milk if your mixture is too dry.

Mix everything in a small glass dish until smooth and dough-like. Eat now or later. A handful of frozen blackberries or raspberries and coconut cream poured over top are a recommended indulgence.