Making Healthy Cake: How To + My 4 Favorite Recipes

You are quite well on track with your new healthy habits. You figured out all kinds of healthy substitutes for your daily diet. Now it’s time to show your family and friends how indulgent healthy can be! In this article you’ll find tips for making healthier cake. Additionally, I share my 4 favorite recipes for healthy cake.

Healthy birthday cake

[dropcap]Y[/dropcap]our birthday is a great opportunity learn your family and friends how indulgent healthy can be. Can you think of anything better than serving them a deliscious cake, to obviously see them enjoy it and watch their faces when you tell them afterwards that the ingredients in the cake were actually much healthier and nutrient-richer than they would have thought?

Healthy cake, or healthier cake?

Let me be clear about the concept ‘health’ before I continue. Why do I say healthier instead of healthy? I can make my explanation long or short. To keep it short: ‘health’ is an ambiguous concept. For instance: when you are allergic to one of the ingredients of a cake, that cake is not healthy for you. Furthermore, if you eat too much of a cake and do so just a little too often, you might grow fat and develop obesity. That’s not healthy either.

Pie crust: dates and nuts instead of dough

Most of the pie crusts consist of a dough that contains gluten and refined sugars. To make your pie crust gluten free (not necessarily healthier, unless you are intolerant or sensitive to gluten) and free of refined sugars, use Medjool dates and nuts, such as almonds. Mix the dates in a food processor with the almonds and press the ‘dough’ flat in a springform pan.

Filling: soaked nuts instead of lactose and sugary cream

For the filling, I often use a base of soaked cashews. After I have soaked them in warm water for at least an hour, I mix them in my food processor with for example cooked pumpkin (or canned pumpkin puree), coconut cream or strawberries. I bring this mixture to boil with vegan, natural stiffening agent agar agar (a water plant; follow the instructions on the packaging), then pour the mixture into a springform pan on top of the date-almond layer. Let it stiffen in the fridge et voilà!

Topping: fresh fruit or nuts

Very simple, but effective, healthy and delicious: fresh fruit or nuts! You can for example choose a mixture of hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts and pecans or sliced strawberries. The possibilities are endless; what do you think of banana slices on top of an almond paste cake? Yum!

4 favo cake recipes

Strawberry-coconut cake | gluten free, lactose free, egg-free, refined sugar-free, vegan. Contains nuts.

This is my all time favorite! My mom’s also; she often asks me if I want to make this cake for her.

Raspberry ‘cheese’ cake without cheese | gluten free, lactose free, egg-free, refined sugar-free, vegan. Contains nuts.

This cake resembles a cream cheese (monchou in Dutch) cake.

Oven baked oatmeal cake with ‘vanilla’ sauce | gluten (submitted their you use gluten-free oats), lactose free, egg-free, refined sugar-free, vegan. Contains nuts.

Great for breakfast!

Pumpkin ‘cheese’ cake without cheese, with ‘caramel’ | gluten (submitted their you use gluten-free oats), lactose free, egg-free, refined sugar-free, vegan. Contains nuts.