One of the best things about Simply Divine Eating is that it teaches you how to take your favorite not-so-good-for-you foods and tweak them so that they keep their yumminess while supporting your health.

To celebrate Valentines Day, all our blogs in February will focus purely on chocolate!  Yes, you can have your chocolate and still eat in harmony with your divinely designed body, as long as you are willing to whip out a pan and a spatula and take a little time to lick your fingers.

My mom has an amazing chocolate cake recipe that’s stood the test of time.  Here I have taken that recipe, tweaked the sugars and kept all the awesomeness of the original.  And as a bonus it is now gluten-free.

This luscious cake tastes like something from the fancy bakery down the street.   Paired with Angie’s Chocolate Frosting you can’t miss! Or to celebrate Valentines day, frost with lightly sweetened whipped cream and strawberries!

Ingredients:

• ½ c. coconut oil, ghee, pasture-raised butter
• 18 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in hot water 15 min.
• 2 Tbl raw honey or real maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• ½ c. cocoa
• 2 c. oat flour
• 1 c. sour milk (or add 1 tsp lemon juice or vinegar to regular milk or coconut milk)
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 c. warm water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 375’.
• Measure lard, butter, ghee or coconut oil into large bowl, set aside.
• Drain dates and squeeze water from them. Combine dates, syrup and eggs in blender and blend till very smooth.
• Add date mixture to lard or butter and mix well.
• In separate bowl measure flour and cocoa and set aside.
• Measure sour milk and set aside.
• Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the date mixture. Add ¼ c.- ⅓ c. of the flour to dates and mix well, then add ¼ c. to ⅓ c. of milk to date mixture and mix well. Keep alternating until both milk and flour are incorporated.
• Measure baking soda into 1 c. warm water and stir well. Add soda water to cake and beat to combine. Add vanilla to batter and beat.
• Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan and pour batter into pan. Bake at 375’ for 30 min or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. This makes a yummy dense cake that disappeared even without being frosted. Add Angie’s Chocolate Frosting recipe and wow them!

Mellonee