Avocado, highly regarded as a superfood in recent years, is native to the tropical highland regions of the Americas, particularly in Mexico and Guatemala. Due to the high price tag and the high nutrition value of the avocados, they are now widely grown in home gardens throughout the tropics and as a valuable cash crop in certain parts of Sri Lanka and India.
Avocados are nutrient dense foods. 100g of avocado contains up to 15g of fat, nearly 7g of fiber, 2g of protein and up to 485mg of potassium! It is also high in Vitamin B, folate and magnesium. All these minerals and nutrients are important to maintain our critical body functions, including blood pressure regulation and nervous system function.
I love a rich creamy chocolate cake, full of chocolate flavour. Avocado, due to its high healthy fat content, can be a great substitute to dairy cream for anyone who wishes to venture into healthy baking. Here is one of my easy and delicious chocolate cake recipes that you can try at home.
The frosting is made with coconut milk, cream or some healthy nuts. This just adds another layer of creaminess to this dessert. Have a try and I’m sure you will love it.
Preparation time: 10 minutes (frosting), 10 minutes (cake)
Cook time: 40 minutes
Serving size: 1 rectangular loaf
To make the cake, I like to make the frosting first and let it chill overnight in the fridge before I make the cake.
The easiest way to make the frosting is to chill a can of full fat coconut milk in the fridge overnight. The next day, once you open the can, there will be a layer of coconut cream floating on top of the coconut water. Gently scoop that out and that can become the creamy coconut frosting.
Another way is using some soaked nuts or seeds. You can make a lot and the leftovers can be used like a yogurt or cream which you can have with some berries, nuts or seeds as a muesli for breakfast in the morning.
Ingredients for the frosting:
1 cup sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts or ethically sourced cashew nuts
2 tablespoons of honey
2 tablespoons of coconut oil or coconut butter or coconut cream
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
A pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
½ cup dry unsweetened coconut flakes
1 tablespoon lemon zest (grate the lemon to get the zest first before juicing the lemon for the juice)
Instructions:
- Soak the seeds or nuts in warm water for 4 hours or more. You can also soak overnight.
- Add the plump, soaked seeds or nuts to your blender and whizz them with a couple tablespoons of water and 1 tsp of lemon juice until smooth paste forms.
- Pour in 2 tablespoons of honey (depending on how sweet a tooth you have, sometimes I skip this), the coconut cream or coconut butter or coconut oil and a pinch of salt then blend again for a short time. Don’t over-blend.
- Finally add the vanilla (optional) and blend, whipping everything into a smooth icing.
- Use a spatula to pour the frosting out into a bowl. Then add dry unsweetened coconut flakes and mix in gently. You can mix in the lemon zest at this step (optional).
- Chill in the fridge for a few hours to harden a bit before serving. I prefer to chill overnight. Stir them before serving or spreading on cake.
- The leftover frosting is good in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Ingredients for the cake:
3 medium sized avocados (around 1¼ cups), roughly chopped (use medium-ripe avocados)
4 eggs
1 cup honey or ½ cup of honey with ½ cup of pitted dates (I like to use medjool dates)
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup almond flour
1½ teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
Small sprinkle of cacao nibs (optional)
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180℃.
- Blend all cake ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
- Lightly brush a 9-inch cake pan with some coconut oil. If you are using a silicone bake pan, you can skip this step.
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. To test if the cake is cooked, insert a skewer or a small knife. If it comes out clean, the cake is cooked.
- Cool completely before adding frosting.
Images: © Pooh Ling E
