I have started to grasp the un-starched collar of grain-free baking. Baking can be really fickle, so I think that having more baking experience under your belt will really help wrap your head around its principles. What makes grain free baking so difficult to nail, is the lack of gluten, which is why gluten free cakes or breads are notoriously dry and crumbly. For the longest time, I’ve been working on clearing grain-free baking’s bad name. I’ve made plenty of almond meal cakes which are wonderfully moist, but I find that they don’t have the light and airy texture that we all love in a classic sponge. I also try my best to steer clear from ‘gluten free’ flours or cake mixes because of their highly processed nature and low nutritional value. Recently, my research into the health benefits of coconut has lead me to experiment with coconut flour in my cakes and desserts. What a great find it has been! Now I have a moorish cake in my repertoire that won’t leaving you feeling slow, sluggish, and plain yucky.

Vanilla & Honey Cake with a Raspberry White Chocolate Ganache

You will need:
3/4 cup coconut flour
1 tsp salt
9 eggs (I always use free range)
3/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
1tsp white vinegar

1/3 cup cream (I use grass fed cream)
1 cup of white chocolate, chopped into small shards
1/4 cup fresh or frozen raspberries (thawed)
2 tbsp unsalted butter (i use grass fed butter)

Preheat your oven to 180C. Butter and line a a donut shaped cake tin, making sure there are no gaps in between the strips of baking paper (this cake sticks to the pan easily). In a bowl, combine the coconut flour and salt, whisking to break up any lumps. In a separate bowl or the jug of a blender, combine the eggs, honey, coconut oil, and vanilla, then beat on high speed or blend on medium speed for 45sec until everything is light in colour and there are no lumps. Add the dry mixture and continue to beat or blend until everything is well combined. Mix together the bicarbonate of soda and vinegar in a small cup, then mix into the batter with a wooden spoon. Pour into the cake tin, then slide it into the centre of your oven (on the middle rack). Bake for 35-40mins until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the thickest part comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10mins before turning out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the ganache, heat the cream in a heavy-bottomed saucepan on a low heat, watching to make sure it never boils. When it starts to gently simmer, remove from the heat then add your white chocolate and butter, stirring constantly until the chocolate melts and everything combines. Beat with a whisk or beater and add the raspberries. Beat until the raspberries have dissolved into the ganache, leaving the seeds dotted throughout the mixture. Cool until it is thick enough to be spread onto the cake.

Serve with fresh strawberries or more raspberries on the side.