Vegan "Peanut Butter" Quinoa Chocolate Cake

A sinfully delicious chocolate cake.

Chocolate. Oh, chocolate. How I love and adore you so. You are the peanut butter to my jelly. The vegan butter to my gluten-free bread. You light up my day and bring joy to my life. There really isn't much better.

Are you a chocolate lover like me? Care to admit that you might even be obsessed? Don't be shy...let it out and share your passion with the world. Chocolate is amazing. It's worthy of our love and should be celebrated.

Moist, rich, and totally decadent.

In my mind, there are few things better than chocolate and peanut butter. The combination is flawless, effortless, and delicious. It's like heaven in a spoonful. If I could eat some form of chocolate and peanut butter everyday and never get sick of it, I would.  It's that good.

So when I set out to make this cake, I knew I wanted to incorporate that peanut butter flavor. But I didn't feel like adding the extra fat and calories that peanut butter brings to the table. I needed an alternative. Little did I know that alternative would be quinoa.

Did you know that when you toast quinoa and then grind it to make a flour it takes on the smell and flavor of peanut butter? I didn't either, but when I heard this rumor, I had to try it out for myself. 

Let me tell you, the rumors are true. Toasted quinoa flour brings an amazing, nutty quality to baked goods that is unparalleled. It has the flavor of peanut butter without the added calories and fat. It's astonishing. It's just another reason why this little seed is the most amazing food on earth.

Vegan "Peanut Butter" Quinoa Chocolate Cake

This cake is a total winner in my book. It's super easy to make, is fairly low in calories, it's vegan and gluten-free, and still has that rich, moist texture that you crave in a chocolate cake. It's totally worthy of any chocolate celebration.

Vegan "Peanut Butter" Quinoa Chocolate Cake

adapted from Veggie Grettie

serves 4 small pieces

ingredients:

• 1/4 cup raw carob chips (or chocolate chips if you prefer)
• 1 tablespoon coconut palm sugar
• 3 tablespoons coconut milk (or any other kind of milk)
• 2 tablespoons organic unsweetened Vermont applesauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 6 tablespoons toasted quinoa flour (see notes below)
• 1 tablespoon raw cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon stevia (more if you like sweeter cakes)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon guar gum
• Unsweetened shredded coconut for dusting

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the inside of a small, round springform pan (I used a 4" pan) with cooking spray and set aside.

Whisk together all the dry ingredients in small bowl and set aside.

Melt the carob chips and coconut sugar together in a double boiler. Once the chocolate is melted, remove it from the heat and add the remaining wet ingredients, whisking them all together until you have a uniform chocolatey liquid. 

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until you have a brownie batter-like consistency. It will be thick and kind of fluffy.

Pour the chocolate batter into the greased springform pan and bake in the center of a warm oven for 11 minutes. The less cook time, the more gooey the center of the cake will be. If you're looking for a molten type cake, try baking this for 9 - 10 minutes. 

Let the cake cool for about 5 minutes, release from the pan, cut into quarters, sprinkle with coconut and enjoy with a delicious side of ice cream!

how to make toasted quinoa flour:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Add 1 or 2 cups (depending how much flour you would like) onto a baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 20 minutes. Continue to check the quinoa throughout the process, moving it around the sheet so it doesn't burn. You want it to be nice and golden brown when you're done.

Once the quinoa is nicely toasted, grind it in a spice grinder, blender or food processor, until you have a fine flour. If you notice that the flour still seems kind of gritty and not all the quinoa was ground, put it through a fine mesh strainer. Keep the extra quinoa grits - I'm planning to experiment using them like cornmeal!

Store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to two months.

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