This healthy chocolate cake will take care of those sweet cravings

How are the aul’ new year’s resolutions going, guys?

Look, we know – January is hard.

From the gluttony that is December (really, if we are being honest, from Halloween-time on our diets sort of fell into an abyss of “ah, sure; it’s almost Christmas recklessness…) then straight into the hell that is detox and no sugar, no treats, no fun. Is it any wonder so many of us fall of the wagon before the know it.

But fear not, we have found a treat that not only is easy to whip up when you desperately need something sweet, but that is also healthy enough to not break your good intentions and hard-core resolutions completely.

You’re welcome.

Vegan Chocolate Cake with Avocado Frosting

Ingredients

Chocolate Cake:

• 2 cups spelt flour, organic
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp chia or flax seeds (ground or whole)
• 1 cup raw cane sugar, organic
• 1/2 cup vegan butter
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup HOT coffee, freshly brewed (or half espresso half water) – use your Nespresso machine if you have one
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup non-dairy milkChocolate Swirl
• 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
• 2 tsp vegan butter
• Avocado Frosting:
• 1 large avocado, ripe / pitted – flesh scooped
• 1 1/2 Tbsp vegan chocolate chips, melted
• 1 tsp vegan butter, melted
• 1 tsp virgin coconut oil, melted

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 or 10 inch round cake pan with a generous amount of coconut oil or vegan butter.
2. Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
3. Combine the 1/2 cup of vegan butter and 1/2 cup of vegan chocolate chips in a small bowl. Then pour in the HOT coffee. The coffee needs to be hot so that it melts the vegan butter and lightly melts the chips. Stir briskly for about 2-3 minutes, until a thick and melted mixture forms.
4. Fold the melted chocolate mixture into the dry bowl and add the remaining wet ingredients as well. Stir well. If desired, beat with a hand mixer for 1 minute, but this is optional.
5. Pour the batter into the cake pan and set aside while you melt the swirl chocolate mixture.
6. For the swirl: heat the chips and vegan butter in a mug for 30 seconds and stir briskly until melted. Drizzle this in a swirl over top the cake batter. This swirl will add chocolatey richness and also help to weigh down the cake center so that it stays rich and dense rather than too fluffy on top. You can watch in the oven as the cake rises how the chocolate weighs it down slightly – in a good way.
7. Add the cake to the 350 degree oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick test comes out clean. Pull cake from oven and set aside to cool for at least 20 minutes before attempting to remove from pan. When you remove the cake from the pan, transfer it to a cooling rack or to your serving plate. For faster cooling: place the cake in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
8. Frosting: Add the avocado flesh and melted oil, vegan butter and chocolate to a blender. Blend until smooth and fluffy, about 1 minute or so. A small or narrow-sized blender container works best.
9. When cake is warm (mostly cooled) you can spread the frosting on top in a thin yet buttery-rich layer.
10. Serve right away or store in the fridge until ready to serve. Cake stays delicious for up to 4-5 days when covered.

(Recipe via Healthy, Happy Life)