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Gluten Free Flourless Chocolate Cake

January 24, 2023

Gluten free flourless chocolate cake is the easiest prep in less than 10 minutes, and the most rich, decadent chocolate cake for any occasion!

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“Just enjoy it…”

I know they said that these days would go fast. You know what I’m talking about – you’re the completely exhausted newborn momma with a toddler pulling on the yoga pants you haven’t changed in who knows how many days…and the well meaning relative or neighbor says, “Just enjoy it! It goes by so fast!” I know from experience that the comment barely computes on your two hours of sleep, but it stores away somewhere in your tired stupor. And they are right. It really does fly, even though your days feel endless. But if there are young moms reading this today, I also want to tell you it’s ok to tell someone you’re exhausted without the guilt. You can both enjoy your little ones, and admit that you are hanging by a thread!

Create nostalgia and childhood memories in a simple way

I’m one of those “jump in with both feet” kind of people. So I remember when that well meaning person told me to “just enjoy it” and man did I jump in. I remember panicking that I wasn’t making enough memories, or creating enough joy. There is nothing wrong with planning a fun day with your littles, but expecting to do it all the time will most definitely end in one burned out momma! There are super simple things that you can make a part of your kids’ childhood that they will never forget, and you don’t have to spend days planning it. One of those simple things can be the tradition of Sunday dinner and dessert. (Or whatever day of the week works for your family!). I started this years ago when the girls were too little to understand, and now my 13, 11, and 9 year old’s, ask what Sunday dinner and their beloved treat will be almost every weekend. My husband and I often talk about how we hope that they will want to come home for Sunday dinner even after they have left the nest, and even if they don’t, or live far away, hopefully the memory of our Sunday hikes and Sunday dinner will be a sweet one for them.

One of our favorite (fast!) Sunday dinner desserts

Sunday dessert looks different depending on the time of year. Most of the time, I am *not* making something fancy or time consuming. In fact, in the summer, it looks a lot like summer berries and whipped cream! In the fall, I like to make apple crisp often, and sometimes in the winter it’s a quick batch of vanilla bean pudding (this recipe is actually in the Treats section of my cookbook, Nourished Beginnings!), or an oatmeal raisin cookie. I just love this flourless chocolate cake, though, and I think you’ll see that the effort it takes to make is super fast. It can really become one of those recipes to fall back on when you need to have a treat made for just about any occasion!

The Method :: Melting the butter and chocolate

You’ll start your cake by melting some butter in a sauce pan, and then letting that hot butter melt your chocolate. I have used both the Trader Joe’s dark chocolate chips and the Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips/Chunks for this recipe, and both work. If you don’t tolerate butter, a sustainable palm shortening works. Coconut oil would work too, but it will change the flavor of the cake, so keep that in mind.

The Method :: Finishing the batter

Once the chocolate is melted, the rest of the ingredients get whisked in, and you’re ready to bake! Under 10 minutes to prep?! Yes please!

Let’s talk about cake pan sizes!

You can bake your cake in just about any cake size or shape. I have made the cake in a 7-inch cake round (pictured in this post to fit the size cake plate and cake stand I used!), and also 8-inch and 9-inch cake rounds. The cake will obviously be thinner the larger the cake round, but the cake is very rich and brownie like, so it really fits the kind of cake it is!

The Method :: The ganache topping

Once your cake has cooled completely, you can add the simple ganache to the top. Ganache is just a fancy name for chocolate that has been melted in cream. In this case, I used butter. If you are dairy free, sustainable palm shortening works. Just like with the cake, coconut oil would work too, but will change the flavor. Simply melt the butter, and then pour the chocolate in to melt. You can spread it right on the top of the cake and let it set.

Dairy free friends, this part is for you!

If you do not tolerate butter, you can use sustainable palm shortening. I have made this recipe with it once and it worked just the same. You will also want to be careful with your choice of chocolate chips if you have to avoid dairy, since some of them do contain milk. The Trader Joe’s dark chocolate chips and the Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips/Chunks are both good choices, though I have seen other dairy free chocolate chips in the store.

Let’s dress it up for Valentine’s Day!

Chocolate and Valentine’s Day are pretty much BFF’s, so this is a great treat for the little sweethearts in your home, or that night in with your spouse that you planned! If you like sprinkles, you can find dye free Valentine’s Day sprinkles here and here.

Let’s dress it up for a birthday!

This is the *perfect* opportunity for your kids to work on following a very simple recipe to either make their own cake, OR make YOU a cake for your birthday! If you ask them, I’m willing to bet they would love the chance to make something for you! You can find dye free rainbow sprinkles here!

Print Recipe

Gluten Free Flourless Chocolate Cake

Author: Renee Kohley – Raising Generation Nourished

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Cake ::

1/2 cup butter
1 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup pure cane sugar or coconut sugar
Pinch of sea salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup cocoa powder

For the Chocolate Ganache ::

3 Tbsp butter
2/3 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter and line a round 7″, 8″, or 9″cake pan with parchment paper. I have made this cake with all 3 of those sizes and they all work. In this post, the pictures have a 7″ cake to fit the cake stand and cake plate used.
Melt butter in medium sauce pan. Turn the heat off, and add the chocolate chips. Let the chocolate sit for a minute in the hot butter, then whisk together until the chocolate is smooth.
Add the sugar, salt, and vanilla into the chocolate mixture, and whisk to combine. Then, add the three eggs, and whisk until the egg is incorporated fully.
Stir in the cocoa powder completely, and scoop the batter into the prepared cake pan. Spread the cake evenly.
Bake at 375° for 25 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean. I feel like I have to let the cake bake an extra few minutes when I use the smaller, 7" cake pan, so use the toothpick method and make sure it is set. Let cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Melt the butter for the glaze in a small sauce pan, turn off the heat, and then pour in the chocolate chips. Let the chocolate melt for a minute before stirring it smooth. Pour the ganache over the cooled cake, and let it set.

Notes

I have used both the Trader Joe’s dark chocolate chips and the Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips/Chunks for this recipe, and both work.
I have used palm shortening in place of the butter in the cake and the ganache, and it works great, so if you do not tolerate butter, this is a good swap. Coconut oil would work as well, but will change the flavor.

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Breakfast Ideas Healthy Kids and Teens Holiday Recipes Occasional Treats Real Food 101 Real Food Tips School Holidays

Strawberry Valentine’s Day Waffles :: Gluten & Dairy Free and Naturally Flavored!

February 8, 2022

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with super yummy naturally flavored strawberry waffles that are gluten free, dairy free, and packed with protein!

Strawberry Valentine's Day Waffles :: Gluten & Dairy Free and Naturally Flavored!

A fun, new kitchen toy, and a special Valentine’s Day treat

Earlier this winter, I noticed these adorable mini heart waffle makers on sale right around the same time that I created the Hot Cocoa Waffles with my mini snowflake waffle maker. I enjoyed creating that recipe so much, that I decided I needed to come up with a Valentine’s day flavor for the heart shape, and it has been fun to play around with!

One of my favorite ways to naturally flavor and naturally dye!

I just love using freeze dried fruit for naturally flavoring and dying food! The process for freeze drying is very simple, and does not ruin the integrity of the fruit. The fruit is place in a freezer, untouched, until it dries out – it’s that simple! The result is a super dry, crispy fruit, that blends into a fine powder or crumbles into a fun sprinkle topping. I get my freeze dried fruit at Trader Joe’s typically, but you can get them online and price compare, and they are in many grocery stores now. I have also freeze dried my own in the summer when berries are in season, and it is so easy!

Let’s talk about waffle color!

So my first attempt at making these waffles made me a little disappointed – I really wanted them to turn red – or at least pink! I do think that freeze dried raspberries might turn them a bit more of a color, but in order to have bright color, you’ll have to use a natural dye. All of my natural dyes are still packed away in storage (yes, we are still waiting for our house to be finished!), so I just stuck with the freeze dried fruit, and also used it crumbled on top for color!

The Method :: The Fluffy Egg Whites

If you are familiar with my other waffle recipes, you know this is a part we don’t skip! Yes it’s an extra bowl, and a few extra minutes, but the secret to fluffy waffles is those whipped egg whites, and it is so worth it! Separate your eggs and blend until fluffy!

The Method :: Finishing the Waffle Batter

Once you whip your egg whites, you can blend the wet ingredients, and add that into your dry ingredients. The dry ingredients include your blended freeze dried strawberries, so don’t forget to add those! Then, you will fold the fluffy egg whites into the batter, and you’re ready to make your pretty waffles.

The Method :: Making the Waffles

If you are using the little mini waffle maker, I found that a couple of tablespoons is all you need to fill it up. Of course you can use a regular waffle maker, and use more to make bigger ones – in fact, before this little mini maker, I use to just make big ones and cut hearts out with a cookie cutter, and that absoluetely works too!

Now let’s dress them up for the occasion!

My favorite way to dress Valentine’s Day waffles is with a drizzle of coconut butter and little heart strawberries. My coconut butter was packed away (no, we were not planning on the house taking this long!), so I grabbed the canned coconut whipped cream from Aldi to make a pretty topping. A little crumble of more freeze dried strawberries makes a pretty “sprinkle” and some heart strawberries made the plate even prettier! The coconut butter really is my favorite though, and it looks like a little “frosting” touch – if you have little ones in the house, I would really recommend trying this on waffles and pancakes because it is such a great, low sugar, good fats way to dress them up. My girls still love it to this day!

Strawberry hearts…help!

As simple as this is, I knew there might be someone that might not know how, so here is a little visual for you! I remember looking up this method a long time ago when my girls were toddlers and I wanted to give them a special Valentine’s Day treat without the sugar, and I hope this helps you too! Just slice the green stem off, and then hull the strawberry – there are special hulling tools for this, but I just use a paring knife. Once you slice the strawberry in half, you can cut a little “V” into the top and voila! A strawberry heart!

Freezer tips

Listen, if I’m going to spend the time next to my little mini heart waffle maker to make a dozen little mini heart waffles, I’m gonna get some use out of them, amiright?! Double up and freeze them, dear momma. You can do this days in advance from Valentine’s Day, and it is one less thing to make on the special day.

Other ideas for your heart waffles!

Other than breakfast, these waffles will make a super cute heart “sandwich” in lunchboxes if Valentine’s Day lands on a school day. I froze mine and plan to pull them out the day before to make PBJ’s, but you could totally make coconut butter and jam waffle sandwiches too. I also think that the heart waffles could be so cute using my hot cocoa waffle recipe made into a dessert of sorts. I’m thinking a drizzle of dark chocolate and the heart strawberries! Chocolate and Valentine’s day go hand in hand!