Recipe: Grain-Free Carrot Cake
Plus A Discount Code
Because of some recent changes in our house, I’m focusing on Treat Yourself’s grain-free and dairy-free Recipes.
And they are awesome.
Carrot Cake (I)
*1-1/2 cups almond flour (*See note below.)
*2 tsp. cinnamon
*1/2 tsp. cardamom (You could use more cinnamon, or even allspice, if you don’t have cardamom but… you should get it. Really.)
*1/2 tsp. nutmeg
*1 tsp. sea salt
*3/4 tsp. baking powder
*2 Tbsp. coconut oil
*1 egg
*1/4 cup honey
*1 medium carrot, shredded (about 1/4 cup)
*1/4 cup coconut milk (You could use raw, whole milk.)OK, this could not be easier. Stir to combine the first six ingredients (through baking powder). Then add in the rest and stir until smooth (about half a second).
I poured this into a seven-inch round glass dish and baked at 350 degrees. At 35 minutes it probably would have been a perfectly done cake. I pulled it out at 30 minutes and it was this amazing cross between the moistest cake you’ve ever had, and some kind of glorious bread pudding. YUM.
(In Kate’s recipe, she made this into seven cupcakes and baked them for 20 minutes at 350.)
With my little girl being dairy-free, we are eating this plain (and amazingly, not missing a thing), but you could top this with either Whipped Cream or Cream Cheese Frosting (recipes included in Treat Yourself).
A quick note about almond flour: Almond flour is basically finely ground almonds. It is available in most stores that have a gluten-free section. Now, I know it always seems like I just want to give you extra work… but you really should make your own. Here’s why: Anti-nutrients, most notably phytic acid, are bound up in nuts, legumes and grains. These can be greatly reduced by soaking and drying. (See this post for more details on the how-to.) If at all possible, you want to use almond flour made from properly prepared almonds, and until manufacturers catch-up, that means making it yourself. The tricky part is getting it fine enough without turning it into almond butter. The best tool that I’ve found for this is the Ultimate Chopper. It is no longer available new, but they are always available on eBay (sometimes really cheap!). If you have something that you use that works well, please comment below and let us know!
Bonus Entry
If you’d like to try out any of the other 30+ recipes in Treat Yourself: Real Food Desserts, you’ll have to buy it. Or better yet, WIN IT! Click here to enter the giveaway. And to receive a bonus entry, pick any Dishrag Diaries post and use the Share button (on the bottom right) to share it on Facebook, Twitter, via email or any other manner you wish. Just remember to leave me a comment below and let me know that you did.
Discount Code
If you just can’t wait, you can buy Treat Yourself: Real Food Desserts for 25% off the already-a-steal price of $7.95. Just use the discount code DISHRAGTREAT. (This code will expire on 9/19/2011.)
Now go make this carrot cake. Immediately. (Happy baking!)
next post »
Winner: Treat Youself....
Congratulations to Jenna Z.! Kate will be sending you your free copy of Treat Yourself...
Leave a Reply
No trackbacks yet.
![IMG_4622[1] Carrot Cake Recipe](http://dishragdiaries.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/IMG_46221-150x150.jpg)
Hello, again, faithful readers! It's been a while, huh? Sometimes life is just like that. ...
Hopefully you've seen my posts on Facebook about the Healthy Life Summit. This collection of presentations by 35 different speakers was streaming live FOR FREE for seven days. I hope some of you were able to take advantage of that amazing learning opportunity!
If not, I am begging you to consider purchasing the download package to...
Here are some goodies from Dishrag Diaries on Facebook, in case you missed it! (Since I'm catching up from the past TWO weeks, I won't post about every little thing. Please visit the Facebook page to catch up!)
First and foremost, I've been talking about the Healthy Life Summit. I could NOT be more excited about...
OK. I'm not going to win any food photography awards. I've accepted this, and now you need to.
In fact, I'm probably never going to remember to take pictures when something has finished baking, or is plated nicely, or otherwise looks perfect. I'm going to always be hopping up in the middle of dinner shouting mild...
One of the best ways to ensure success with your grain-free meal planning is to learn a few key substitutions. This is especially important for those of you doing the Whole Life Challenge. You may find you like these replacements even better than the originals!
Replace Rice with Cauli-Rice
This is probably my daughter's favorite side. We...
This week I'll be giving away a copy of Kate Tietje's new eBook, Wholesome Comfort. It contains over 40 recipes, with many of them suitable for those with food allergies. All of the recipes are soy and seafood-free, and an easy-to-read key indicates which are dairy, egg, nut and grain-free.
Now, I know most of us...
I got some good feedback on the previous recipe-share, so I thought I'd do another, particularly to help out my CrossFit Woodbridge Paleo Challenge peeps. Here are some great recipes to try, presented for free with my comments... You're welcome.
Curried Shrimps and Spinach
Ms. Anita brought this one to my attention, and I will be forever...
Aren't you always looking for great meal ideas? Here are some completely delicious recipes I've played around with lately. With the modifications below (if necessary) they are healthy, grain-free, dairy-free and Paleo. What more could you want?
Hungarian Chicken
Find the original recipe here. I simply omitted the milk, subbed homemade almond flour for the wheat flour,...
I've hinted at this a bit, but I thought I'd tell you where we are in our healthy eating journey.
Our absolutely fabulous MD/ Naturopath has helped us to discover that our five year old, Abigail, is sensitive to gluten and dairy (particularly cows' milk).
I have to tell you, I felt like I had been smacked...
I usually have my tiny one pick giveaway winners, but since today is my big one's birthday, I figured I'd give him the honors. He looks thrilled, doesn't he? :)
I am so excited to be able to give away a copy of Kate Tietje's Against the Grain. If you're just joining us and missed the...
You might remember me mentioning that I have a new favorite, favorite cookbook. I'm thrilled to announce that this week I'm going to be doing a review and GIVEAWAY!! (Well, I guess since I already said it's my favorite, I really stole my own thunder for the "review," which is basically: It's great. Get it.)
Against...
I'm sorry about the lateness of this post. It's just because... well, days don't always go as planned, do they?
Without further ado, congratulations to SHANNON (winner of the full size) and ASHLEY (travel size winner). I'll be sending out your Miessence toothpastes as soon as I get your mailing addresses (I'll email you both).
Thanks...
Do I have a great offer for you!
Kate Tietje of Modern Alternative Mama has put together another e-book, and this one is by far my favorite. Against the Grain is 55 pages of grain-free goodness.
Just because it's grain-free, don't think for one second that it's boring! Kate includes all kinds of interesting flavors, spices and...
Hampton Creek Inn is a newly opened Bed & Breakfast, founded by Michele, of Frugal Granola, and her husband, Cal.
Sustainable Hospitality & Distinctive Comfort
Nestled in the gorgeous volcano and waterfall country of the Big Bottom Valley in Washington State, Hampton Creek Inn serves as a destination and a gateway to further exploration of local hiking...
If you enjoyed last week's posts which contained sneak peeks at recipes from Kate Tietje's e-book In the Kitchen - Real Food Basics, please consider purchasing it for the ridiculously low price of $6.95!
What? You want it cheaper?! OK, how about 25% off? But that's my final offer!
Buy In the Kitchen - Real Food Basics...
I'm going to do things a little differently today. Let me jump right into the Chili recipe from Kate Tietje's In the Kitchen - Real Food Basics:
Chili
Ingredients:
1/2 lb. kidney beans, soaked overnight
1 lb. grass-fed ground beef
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 small onion, chopped
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. molasses
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. onion...
Welcome to day four of the In the Kitchen - Real Food Basics giveaway! I'm happy you're here!
As promised, today I'm going share a recipe for Caesar Dressing from the book. Adding cooked marinated chicken to it would make a fabulous lunch or dinner! (Of course, I am writing this at the last minute, and...
Welcome to all of my new subscribers! I'm so happy to have you!
Today is the second day of the promotion for In the Kitchen - Real Food Basics, and I have a great recipe to share with you. But first...
I want to share with you the Table of Contents from the e-book. Take a look...
Is it finally feeling like spring where you are? It is here! I'm so looking forward to this week of warm temperatures and soaking up some vitamin D. Oh, and eating some homemade ice cream!
You are so going to love me for this. So get your clicking finger ready for sharing, or pinning, or whatever...
I cannot express how thrilled I am to be reviewing these products. Tessamae's All Natural has got it all: an awesome back-story (started by a mom and her three boys), clean ingredients (check 'em out - not a stinker among them), super cool wax-sealed bottles and most importantly, 100% delicious flavor. Here's why I love...
Last week my little one was sick. There are many stomach viruses going around, and I guess she finally picked one up. She started throwing up at about 2am one night, and although the total vomiting lasted less than 24 hours, her tummy wasn't quite right for a few days. She was also on and...
As I mentioned in my previous post, I'm going to be writing some short posts to provide tips for success to my fellow Whole Life Challengers. But these tips will be useful (and adaptable) to anyone, whether or not you're participating in the Challenge. First tip: Make a lot of smoothies!
Smoothies are a fast and...
When making mayo, ice cream, smoothies - and lots of other yummy treats - we often use egg yolks for texture and a creamy protein boost. But what to do with the leftover whites?
Should You Eat Egg Whites Raw?
While egg yolks (from healthy eggs) are just fine - and actually very nutritious - when eaten...
I still remember the first time I had hummus. I was sitting at an outdoor Mediterranean restaurant on a beautiful evening in Old Town Alexandria, and a friend said I just had to try it. I've been in love ever since.
Hummus is made from garbanzo beans (also called chickpeas), among the most nutritious of all...
The last day of summer seemed like an appropriate time to wrap up the Summer Bounty series, although those of us here in Virginia can expect delicious local corn well into the fall.
Don’t you love summer veggies? If you garden or belong to a CSA, or even shop at a Farmer’s Market and can’t resist...
Don’t you love summer veggies? If you garden or belong to a CSA, or even shop at a Farmer’s Market and can’t resist a good deal, your kitchen may be overflowing with some of summer’s most prolific producers. Here are some new ways to prepare them.
Is there anything more delicious than a garden-fresh tomato? No,...
Don't you love summer veggies? If you garden or belong to a CSA, or even shop at a Farmer's Market and can't resist a good deal, your kitchen may be overflowing with some of summer's most prolific producers. Here are some new ways to prepare them.
Today we're going to focus on one particular kind of...
Did you enjoy yesterday's post containing those super yummy good-for-you ice cream recipes? Well, I have a couple more to share!
I recently read about using dates as a replacement for sugar in sweet recipes. So I decided to tinker with my coconut milk creation, and the results were fantastic!
Now, although I call this sugar-free,...
I'm taking a break from some pretty research-intensive posts I'm working on to write this fun - and delicious - one. :P
My wonderful husband took our youngest off for a Daddy-Daughter Date at King's Dominion on Sunday - along with driving the teenager and his friends down - and so after some morning babysitting I...
It's a delicious time to live here in Virginia. Farm stands and CSA shares are overflowing with late-spring crops. In season right now are June-bearing strawberries, asparagus, snap and snow peas, and irresistible rhubarb!
Did You Know...
...that rhubarb leaves are poisonous to humans (and some animals)? It's true! Whether raw or cooked, the leaves contain such...
OK, I know what you're thinking: This post would have been helpful about a week and a half ago when I was trying to plan my Real Food Easter meal. At this point, I really don't care what you had for dinner two days ago!
Well, I understand you thinking that. But consider this a very...
Hopefully you remember when we began talking about anti-nutrients. Today we'll continue that discussion by focusing on how you can overcome the anti-nutrients in one of our favorite breakfast foods: Oats.
Oats, or Avena sativa, are a hardy cereal grain and are a concentrated source of fiber (in fact, they have the most soluble fiber of...
Nothing beats a fresh, juicy orange. My wonderful neighbor, Kerry, recently brought me back some fresh Florida oranges. Although we're just beginning our real growing season up here in Virginia, did you know that we're closer to the end of Florida's orange growing season? In fact, peak production is in December!
Why They Are So Good
You...
I have no idea what possessed me to make a smoothie on a day that is so cold that they actually closed the schools due to ice. Certainly no idea why I decided it should be a tropical smoothie...
But it came out so good!
Here's the recipe... or close to a recipe... I always guesstimate, but...









I shared your ice-cream post on Facebook. Mmm mmm mmm. Just got my own icecream maker (love freecycle). Can’t wait to try it out.