My mother is in town. Among the numerous changes she has made to my lifestyle in the span of a week, one welcoming change is to give me hot, steaming tea the moment I wake up (so that I REALLY wake up). Left to myself, I am too lazy to make even the minimum effort to make a hot beverage. But I am always enthused enough to bake. So as a return gift, I have been coming up with (mostly finding on Google) recipes for accompaniments to the morning/evening tea. Other than the Lemon Cream-Cheese Pound Cake that we enjoy, I decided to make an easy and healthy tea-time snack for Mom. The result was this Mini Chocolate Bundt Cakes. It checks her boxes for healthy food, and she is also super happy that I have found a way to eat dates. I would say that’s a win-win, no?
The amount of time I spent in the photoshoot of these cakes is actually double the amount of time it takes to make these. So if you don’t care about food photography, it’s easy-peasy and did I mention healthy?
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup pitted dates
- 3/4 cup milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cup almond flour
- 3 tablespoon butter (or 4 tablespoon coconut oil), melted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoon honey (optional)
- Chopped walnuts/pecans/hazelnuts for garnish
- Dark chocolate chunks (optional)
- Icing sugar/molten chocolate (optional)
Note: The instructions may seem to consists of unusually long sentences if you’re one of those who just skim articles to find the actual recipe (I am one of those too). But have a little patience, and I promise to humour you! In case you’re still not convinced, the words in bold should be an easy way out.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Step 1
Dates are a wonderful way to add natural sweetness to your desserts. My previous experiments with banana (check my Banana Oat Waffles or Healthy Banana Bread recipes) and applesauce have mostly gone well and they also prevent the guilt-trips I get from over-indulging in desserts. So with the new box of Mejdool dates that I brought home from the Indian store, I was ready to make another healthy dessert tasty again! Since dates are usually stiff and won’t blend well in the mixture, first soften them by soaking them in warm milk or water (milk of course lends some flavor too). For 1 cup of pitted dates, 3/4 cup of milk should do.
Step 2
Once done, blend this mixture with 1/2 cup cocoa powder and 1 teaspoon vanilla essence. Since we are using only dates to impart sweetness, you may be dissatisfied with the lack of sugar. In that case, add in some honey or maple syrup (or refined sugar, duh!) to your liking. If the mixture becomes too liquidy, add in more almond flour later.
Step 3
A lot of bakers love to use coconut oil to keep it dairy-free, but I am not particularly fond of the product. So I stick to butter. If you want your baked good to have more volume and expand by capturing the air bubbles, you can cream softened butter instead of using melted butter. Add the butter to the blended mixture and then add 3 eggs, one at a time. Make sure the eggs are at room temperature.
Step 4
Once you have the wet ingredients in place, fold in the almond flour along with 1 teaspoon baking powder. Why not baking soda, you ask? Read on.
Did you know the difference between baking soda and baking powder?
The primary difference between baking soda and baking powder is that baking powder already contains an acid (cream of tartar – a dry acid) in the chemical mixture, whereas baking soda needs an acidic ingredient to create the rising reaction. They are both leaveners but act in different ways. For example, baking soda in contact with the acid creates carbon dioxide which causes the baked goods to rise. Baking powder on the other hand reacts in a two-step process – the first leavening occurs in the wet state when the dry and wet ingredients are combined, and the second occurs when it is heated.
So when to use baking soda, and when to use baking powder, and when to use both or neither?
- Baking soda – When there is some sort of acid in your recipe – lemon juice, buttermilk, vinegar etc.
- Baking powder – For recipes that do not need acidic ingredients, say pancakes.
- Both – When the acid isn’t strong enough and only neutralizes the baking soda (this will not create enough carbon dioxide to leave the batter, so you need additional baking powder), when you want extra acid for the flavor like tanginess from a lemon juice, or when you want to brown your baked goods by creating a more alkaline environment.
- Neither – When you don’t want your baked goods to rise much.
Tip: As a beginning baker, just try to replicate recipes till you understand what proportions to use.
Step 5
Whew! A lot of chemical reactions later, time to have some fun with the food! So pour in as much dark chocolate chips as you wish. You can add in some walnuts too, but I prefer to use them for the topping. Meanwhile, grease the mini bundt pans with some butter or cooking spray.
Step 6
Chop up your walnuts into tiny pieces and put them at the bottom of the bundt pans. Pour the batter on top of it carefully to not displace the walnuts much. You can use other kinds of nuts too – pecans, hazelnuts etc. Just make sure they taste well toasted. Pop the cakes in a preheated oven at 180C or 350F and bake for 40-45 minutes. You know the rule – till the toothpick comes out clean.
Take a slice and enjoy!