Chai spice, pear and buckwheat cake

Let them eat cake. Wholefood cake. Cake that nourishes the body as it delights the senses. I was recently chatting to a friend about the pervasiveness of sugar in our culture. From such a young age we are taught to mark the significant events in our life with cake, which is really just dead food, totally devoid of any nutritional value. It doesn’t have to be that way.

The burgeoning health industry has offered us so many great alternatives. I love the idea that we can celebrate our lives with raw and wholefood cakes which deliver on the treat scale but are jam-packed with nutrients.

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I like to experiment with buckwheat flour in recipes. Buckwheat flour is a great source of fibre and protein and contains all of the essential amino acids. Replacing the sugar content with rice malt syrup and bananas helps to avoid the big blood sugar spike. Anyone who has hosted or attended a children’s party does not need to be told why this might be a good idea.

Any blood sugar spike means an insulin spike. In very basic terms, insulin helps our body to store fat. I love the fact that I have lost weight (11kg and counting thanks) and can still enjoy a slice of cake smothered in organic butter. When I eat nutrient-dense treat food like this I always wonder, How did we get it so wrong?

A lonely stretch of coastal perfection makes a rather lovely picnic spot

I am delighted with this recipe, which I have been developing for a while . I created a successful vegan loaf by omitting the eggs. The bananas, psyllium and chia work as binding agents. While the vegan version isn’t quite as light and fluffy, it is still a gorgeous thing.

The chai spices smell amazing as it’s baking. The cardamom and pepper take balletic leaps around the kitchen. I recently made it to take away on a camping trip. Nature provided her boundless backdrop of Beauty. We nibbled cake sitting on the white-teeth sand of an isolated beach. A delight for all of our senses.

The gorgeous South West – our picnic spot for the day

As it is the season of gifts, I really can not think of a better gift than a wholefood cake  wrapped in cheesecloth and brown string. Handmade gifts nourish our souls.

This is cake devoid of refined sugars and flours, packed with nutrient dense goodness. Let them eat it!

Chai spice, pear & buckwheat loaf

Chai Spice, Pear & Buckwheat loaf

Wet
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Dry
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Serve with great quality organic butter or nut butter. Keeps in the fridge for up to a week (good luck with that!).