Dairy-Free Sweet Potato Buttercream Frosting (refined sugar-free, vegan)

It's not easy coming up with a whole food-based frosting that is as nutritious as it is tasty, but way back in 2010 I came up a sweet potato icing recipe based off of the ingredients I was using in the liquids for this Buckwheat Cinnamon Roll Recipe. I've made a number of different variations on this theme and included some in my cookbooks. I have even made this into a chocolate sweet potato frosting! Below you will find a delicious dairy-free sweet potato buttercream that you can use to frost your cakes or cookies.

Use this frosting to make sandwich cookies using my Gluten-Free Shortbread Cookie Recipe, or use it to frost your favorite cupcakes. Using orange-fleshed sweet potatoes will create a beautiful orange frosting (perfect for fall holidays), while using white-fleshed sweet potatoes will create a gorgeous white frosting (to replace those sugary vanilla frostings).

Cranberry Orange Upside Down Cake (grain-free)

I adore cranberries as you probably already know if you've been reading my blog. This healthy cranberry orange upside down cake recipe isn't very rich or sweet. In fact I sweeten it with just a few tablespoons of maple syrup. It's plenty sweet for my family though. Once you cut sugar out of your diet your taste buds become very sensitive to the sweet flavor and you just don't crave or desire sugar. In fact, you might even become repulsed by it!

This cake uses high-fiber coconut flour with the addition of arrowroot powder. The combination of the two flours creates a fantastic texture. This recipe is very simple to make, in fact, you can put it together in minutes! I posted a recipe very similar to this last summer, remember? You can go back and check out my Apricot-Cherry Upside Down Cake post for more photos on assembling the cake.

Apricot-Cherry Upside Down Cake (gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free)

Summer's bounty is here and needs to be preserved or used right away! What do you do to preserve the summer harvest of fruits and vegetables? For fruit, we freeze it, dehydrate it into fruit roll-ups or small pieces, make jam, make fun cakes or crisps, and just enjoy it fresh.

This cake recipe evolved after creating a grain-free apple cobbler (with those yummy early season baking apples). I thought if my ingredient combinations worked as a topping for cobbler, they might work (with a few tweaks) as a base for an upside down cake! I'll share the cobbler recipe later in the season when more varieties of apples are available.

If you are looking for more healthy gluten-free dessert recipes like this one, then check out my new book, Nourishing Meals. I think the dessert chapter has about 50 new recipes ranging from Sweet Potato Custard and Dark Chocolate Coconut Custard to Frozen Banana Coconut Cream Pie and Lime Avocado Tart with a Macadamia Nut Crust to Cashew Ginger Cookies, Carrot Orange Spice Cupcakes, and Gingerbread! All of these recipes I just listed are also free of grain flours and sweetened with a minimal amount of natural sweeteners. Some of them are vegan and some contain eggs. My new book is due out at the end of this month and can be found on our website (with a free e-book) or on amazon.com.

The Accidental Chocolate Cake (grain-free, dairy-free)

A few weeks ago, the night before Valentine's Day, my daughters asked me to make cupcakes and frosting to give out to their friends at school. I had an idea to make a healthy frosting using almond butter and coconut oil. Thinking that I needed to chill the frosting for a while before spreading it onto the cupcakes, I made it first. A few hours later I took it out of the refrigerator to whip up into what I thought would be this beautiful, light, and fluffy frosting. For a second it did look like that, and then the oil began separating. My girls tried it and said it tasted good, like brownies, and that I should bake it! I was so busy that night that I didn't have time so I got to it the next morning, Valentine's Day. I decided to add 2 eggs and put it in the oven....and voila....a beautiful, moist, tender chocolate cake emerged!

I took photos of it that day, what you see here, and planned on testing it one more time before posting it. We then took a trip to visit family for nearly two weeks. I tested it there and everyone loved it. My dad said I should call it "the accidental chocolate cake!" I've been so busy finishing the new cookbook that I have not had much time to post to my blog. Over the next month I have a few guest posts scheduled. After the book is done, I'll be back. In the meantime, enjoy this yummy cake!

Grain-Free, Dairy-Free Coffee Cake

This scrumptious gluten-free, grain-free, sugar-free, and dairy-free coffee cake recipe comes from Kelly Brozyna's new cookbook, Grain-Free Baked Goods and Desserts! It is one of those recipes that is nutritious enough to stand alone at breakfast time, though I prefer to serve it with a Green Smoothie! It is filled with cooked white beans, coconut flour, eggs, and a little honey and stevia! My children love this recipe and as the neighbor girl who was visiting today said, "I can't believe this is gluten-free, it is so good!"

As a kick-off to the giving season, I have one signed copy of her book that I am giving away today! In fact, every post in the next three weeks will have a book or product being given away to one of you! All you need to do is leave a comment below to enter.

Last year I reviewed Kelly's first book, The Spunky Coconut Cookbook. A year later, I am back with more praise for her second book! I love how nutritious and kid-friendly all of Kelly's recipes are. As the title describes, this book is grain-free, but also completely casein-free, soy-free, and refined sugar-free. Many of the recipes are also egg-free. If you are vegan or are sensitive to eating eggs then you will still find plenty of recipes in this book to suit your needs. This book also works well for diabetics and others with blood sugar metabolism issues.

Both of Kelly's books are filled with beautiful, color photos. My children like to sit down with the new book and page through it picking out all of the recipes they want me to make! They also think it's pretty neat that I wrote the foreword for her book. Below is one of our favorite recipes from her book, enjoy!

Milk Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Agave Frosting (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

Welcome to day three of our Gluten-Free Progressive Dinner Party! Today's theme is chocolate! I am sharing a favorite allergy-free cupcake recipe amongst the younger crowd. This chocolate cupcake is light, moist, easy to make, and has a mild chocolate flavor. The great thing about this recipe is the fact that all children love it, gluten-free or not. I also have another fun giveaway for you, read on to find out....

My 5-year old nephew was just in town visiting. I made these cupcakes for a bake sale at my children's school this past weekend. Of course I had to save a few of them! My nephew, who isn't gluten-free, loved them and asked me to send the recipe to his mom (along with a number of other recipes I made)!

Like my Soft Molasses Cookie recipe, I use either Sucanat or Coconut Sugar for the sweetener in these cupcakes. I have tested it with organic cane sugar and the overall flavor lacked the depth that only a dark, rich sugar can give. Sucanat or Coconut Sugar work beautifully. If you haven't yet entered the giveaway for the 2-pound bag of Coconut Sugar, you still have time, go to my last post to enter.

If you are interested in baking gluten-free cakes or cupcakes from a mix then I have just the thing! Authentic Foods has offered 6 Vanilla Bean Cake Mixes for a giveaway here. I love using their superfine flours in baking. You'll see a number of recipes on this blog using their flours and arrowroot powder. To be entered in the giveaway just leave a comment. To be entered twice you can share this on twitter or facebook, just be sure to come back and leave a second comment! The giveawy will remain open until 9pm PST on December 11th. I will choose 6 names using Random Number Generator so please check back to see if you won and then email me with your contact info!

Chocolate Pumpkin Seed Flour Cake

Last week I received an email from the President of Omega Nutrition. You all know of this company right? They are most well-known for their flax seed and coconut oils.

I was offered free samples of their coconut flour, flax flour, and pumpkin seed flour. These wonderful flours can be used as gluten-free, grain-free, and nut-free baking alternatives. I was excited to try the pumpkin seed flour. It just sounds so exotic and new. I have never seen or made anything with this type of grain-free flour. Immediately after I read his email an image of a rich chocolate cake was beginning to take shape in my mind, right down to the minute details of the sliced strawberries and mint leaves for garnish!

This fine, pale green flour is perfect for those following a grain-free diet and for those also allergic to nuts. What about the nutrient profile you ask? Well, we certainly can't complain! 100 grams of this flour offers about 7 grams of fat, 7 grams of carbohydrates, and a whopping 64 grams of protein!

The pumpkin seeds are processed and ground at a low temperature and packaged according to the omegaflo process. This special process protects the nutrients from damaging light, heat, and oxygen exposure. This gluten-free, organic, and kosher flour will not disappoint!

This evening I made a chocolate cake. I used eggs, sorry to those of you who follow me because of my egg-free baking. This was just what my mind had conjured up last week so I wanted to stick with it. For an egg-free version, you may try substituting the almond flour for pumpkin seed flour in my Grain-Free, Vegan Chocolate Brownie Cupcakes. I prefer the flavor of egg-free baked treats, so the next time I bake with pumpkin seed flour it will be egg-free.


Chocolate Pumpkin Seed Flour Cake

This rich, dark chocolate cake is high in protein and nutrients like zinc and essential fatty acids (linoleic and oleic fatty acids). Because of its richness, serve it with a light, fruity sauce or sliced fresh strawberries. Watch the baking time closely. Test for doneness after about 35 minutes. If the top of the cake feels jiggly to the touch it needs more time, if not, pull it out.

2 cups pumpkin seed flour
3/4 cup organic cocoa powder
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1 1/5 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 large organic eggs
2/3 cup honey (or maple syrup)
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
1 1/4 cups coconut milk
2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Oil a 9-inch round cake pan.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the pumpkin seed flour, cocoa powder, arrowroot powder, baking soda, and sea salt.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, honey, oil, coconut milk, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk together well.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Place pan on the center rack in the oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes.

Cool for about 10 minutes in the pan, then run a knife around the edge of the pan and flip cake onto a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. It is delicious served with fresh berries and coconut whipped cream!


The FREE Pumpkin Seed Flour Giveaway!

Since this flour is not actually on the market yet, Omega Nutrition has offered to send the winner a package of this lovely flour.

To enter:

Leave a comment in the comment section below with your name and a reason why you would like to try out this new flour.

To enter twice:

If you have your own blog, then post something about this flour and giveaway with a link back here. Then leave a comment with a link to your blog. I will enter you twice.

My girls will pick a name and I will announce the winner in my next post. I will close the drawing on Tuesday, June 9th at 10pm.

Good Luck!

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Gluten-Free + Vegan + Sugar-Free Cake

Sound too good to be true?

Here I present to you a fabulous-tasting chocolate layer cake. Moist and delicious. Tender and rich. Chocolate at its best. Allergen-free. No gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, corn, or sugar!

Seriously, you just can't go wrong here.

I modified my Decadent Chocolate Bundt Cake on page 342 of our cookbook to be made into a layer cake. Really with only slight changes. I took out the cup of beets and the one cup of water and replaced them with 1 cup of prunes in which you soak in 1 1/2 cups of boiling water and then puree into a smooth paste.

Don't get me wrong I still love this cake made with the beets. I am a lover of beets prepared any and all ways. Though the prunes in this version add moisture, sweetness, and a certain binding action that makes it work very well in a layered cake.

Still, if you don't want to fuss with layers then just pour the batter into a greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish and bake away. You can add the sugar-free frosting below if desired. I am not the biggest fan of frosting, never have been. Though this recipe is nice, not too sweet, and helps keep the cake moist for days. Frosted or not this cake is a winner!

Giving Thanks Recipes: Pumpkin Desserts

When it comes time for dessert how about celebrating the day with what's perfectly in season....pumpkins! I have a relatively new recipe to share with you that is super easy to prepare and always a crowd pleaser. A Pumpkin Spice Cake, cooked to perfection in a bundt pan.

Other great recipe ideas from the Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook include, my delicious vegan, gluten-free, soy-free Pumpkin Pie. Also, a simple Pumpkin Pudding made from tapioca pearls, maple syrup, and cashews (and a few spices). Or how about my Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies, those also have pumpkin in them. Mmm delicious, I just love pumpkin anything!

I normally don't bake things with a lot of sugar, but when creating this recipe my gut feeling was that it needed this amount. Be sure to have all of your ingredients at room temperature. If your shortening is too cold it won't cream with the sugar and pumpkin puree. And last but not least, please use an electric mixer. It will whip air into the batter resulting in a lighter cake.