Blueberry Walnut Coffee Cake

Karolinablueberry, cake, walnut Leave a comment

I received free samples of California walnuts mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by the California Walnut Commission and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

One of my favorite cakes is clafoutis because it’s simple to make and healthy enough to eat for breakfast if you use nutritious ingredients! Clafoutis is a cake made with fruit and pancake-like batter dusted with powdered sugar. Traditional French clafoutis features black cherries lined in a buttered dish topped with batter. Similar cakes that use different types pf fruit are technically called flaugnarde. In this blueberry walnut flaugnarde cake recipe, walnut meal elevates the flavor and nutrition profile of the recipe. Did you know that just an ounce of walnuts provides 2.5 grams of the essential plant-based omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), 4 grams of protein, and 2 grams of fiber to keep you feeling full? I was surprised, too! I was even more surprised to discover that walnuts are the ONLY nut that’s a significant source of omega-3 fatty acids. Each serving of this cake packs antioxidants from the blueberries and a full serving of walnuts. Enjoy!

Blueberry Walnut Coffee Cake

Servings: 6
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Print

A hearty, nutty variation of the traditional French clafoutis cake

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup walnut halves
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature, set aside 1 tablespoon
3 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour, set aside 2 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces fresh blueberries
Cooking spray
Powdered sugar, whipped cream, additional blueberries, and/or chopped walnuts for topping

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes, or until fragrant but not dark. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
Grease a 9-inch pie plate with 1 tablespoon of butter and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of flour and set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract.
Pulse the cooled walnuts in a food processor to make walnut meal. It should resemble sand. Whisk together the walnut meal, flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing bowl. With the mixer on low, slowly blend in the flour mixture. Do not overmix.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold all but 1/2 cup of the blueberries into the batter. Transfer the batter to the pie plate. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of blueberries. Bake at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes before topping with powdered sugar, etc. before serving.

I like this cake served lukewarm with a bit of powdered sugar and whipped cream on top! To store it, allow to cool completely at room temperature and then cover with plastic wrap. It will keep in the fridge for a few days. If you wrap each individual piece in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil, it will keep in the freezer for a couple of months.

If you like this recipe, you’ll love the other walnut recipes in the linkup at the bottom of this page!

August 30, 2013recipe, treats

Paleo Mocha Pound Cake

Karolinacake, GF, Paleo 4 Comments

Remember the watermelon cake I made a few days ago? The coconut whipped cream I frosted the cake with was sooo good! I didn’t want to throw the leftover whipped cream away, so I set my mind to baking a coconut flour cake to go with it! The inspiration came from Paleo Spirit. My cake is not nearly as beautiful or quite as “paleo.” The changes I made include swapping 2 eggs for egg whites, the maple syrup for stevia, and 1/2 cup coconut oil for applesauce and plain greek yogurt. I’m glad the cake still turned out rich, moist, and delicious!

Ingredients:
2/3 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
20 packets stevia
4 eggs
6 tbs egg whites
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 c coconut oil, melted
1/4 c plain greek yogurt
1/4 c unsweetened applesauce

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl.

2. Whisk eggs and egg whites in a stand mixer. Add remaining wet ingredients to the eggs and mix to combine.

3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and combine on low speed. Scrape down sides of the bowl. Whip the batter on high speed for 1 minute to make it fluffy.

4. Pour the batter into two greased loaf pans. Bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

5. Allow to cool and frost with coconut whipped cream.

It’s yummy unfrosted too!

Enjoy with a cup of coffee! 1/4 of a loaf (1/8 of total recipe) is 166 calories, 9 g protein, and 5 g fiber when served unfrosted.

August 23, 2013recipe, treats

Watermelon Birthday Cake

Karolinacake, Watermelon 1 Comment

One of my friends at work celebrated his 25th birthday this week! To celebrate, we had a potluck in his honor. As an avid Crossfitter, he follows a paleo diet pretty consistently. The paleo party we threw was pretty great! There were bowls of fruit, a veggie tray, rotisserie chicken, guacamole, butternut squash soup, and CAKE!

What would a birthday be without cake? Make this beautiful dessert for the healthy eater in your life.

Ingredients:
1 large seedless watermelon
Assorted fruits and nuts for decorating
1 can coconut milk, refrigerated overnight
2-3 tbs powdered sugar (powdered coconut sugar or maple syrup if you’re going for strict paleo)

1. Cut the top and bottom off the watermelon. Carve the remaining rind off to be left with a cylindrical birthday cake shape.

2. Pat the watermelon down with paper towels and place on a plate lined with additional paper towels to soak up excess moisture. Chill in fridge.

3. While the watermelon is chilling, make the frosting. Scoop the cream off the top of the refrigerated coconut milk and place in a stand mixer. Discard the liquid portion below the cream.

4. Whip the cream in the stand mixer until fluffy. Add sugar or maple syrup and mix again to incorporate. Begin with 1 tbs of sweetener and add more as needed.

5. Frost the top of the watermelon with a butter knife or rubber spatula and then the sides. Decorate with additional fruit and chill until it’s time to serve the cake!

July 17, 2013recipe, treats

Fresh Cherry Cake Recipe (Gluten Free)

Karolinacake, Cherry, GF, Paleo Leave a comment

I bought a big container of cherries at Costco. This is always how it starts… I have lots of something and need to figure out how to use it up! I knew I wanted to recreate my favorite cake, cherry clafoutis, which is a light and fluffy pancake style cake, but I wanted to make it gluten free. I also had to figure out how to pit fresh cherries without a cherry pitter (those gadgets are ridiculously overpriced).

First of all, if you’re going to use fresh cherries, pit them by pushing a straw through the bottom of the cherry until the pit comes out the stem end. It’s going to feel really gory. The juice gets everywhere, so do this over the trash can. If you’re using already pitted cherries, my favorite ones to use are the jarred cherries from Trader Joe’s.

Second of all, use a kitchen scale to measure the flour. It will be more precise than trying to use a measuring cup. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, get one! They’re $20 (sometimes less) and are a handy tool to have around for portion control.

Ingredients:
1-2 cups pitted cherries
50 g almond meal
50 g brown rice flour
60 g coconut flour
2 tbs arrowroot starch
1/4 c applesauce
1/4 c plain greek yogurt
1/2 stick butter, melted
2 droppers full of liquid stevia, or 1/4 c sugar
6 egg whites
1 tsp baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the egg whites in a stand mixer until frothy and fairly stiff.

2. Set the cherries aside. Sift together all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add wet ingredients to the egg whites. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients bowl gently to combine.

3. Pour the batter into a lightly greased 9×13 casserole dish. Carefully press the cherries into the batter.

4. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

5. Allow to cool before cutting and serve with powdered sugar (optional).

The almond flour in this cake complements the flavor of the cherries really well! This is a nutritious cake! You could eat it for breakfast. Here’s the nutrition breakdown for 1/8th of the cake (a generous slice!)

Let me know if you like having the nutrition info posted along with my recipes, I’m more than happy to include it!

Karolina's Kitchen

from the dietitian to your kitchen

Tag Archives: cake