Sweet Beginnings

Ever since our family got burdened with diabetes and dairy/soy intolerance (different members, different ailments) I've been on a hunt for good, wholesome recipes that do not contain artificial sweeteners and other additives and improvers. It was especially hard for cakes and cookies. I first tried stevia but I wasn't really impressed with the results. Finally I discovered raw blue agave juice and the experimenting fun could begin. Now, as great and low GI as raw blue agave juice is, it is not a "free" food, so if you do have diabetes or liver issues, don't over-indulge (actually, even if you do not have any digestive problems, sweets are sweets, LOL).

So, curtesy of multiple recipes tweaked to meet our needs, here comes a spicy chocolate cake that my husband hailed as the best cake I've ever made. Not sure about this but it is delicious :)

Sugar- and dairy-free spicy chocolate cake

• 3 cups + 1tbs all-purpose flour (I usually mix all-purpose with kamut or spelt flour)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups of agave juice (can be replaced with maple syrup or honey for non-diabetic)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup apple purée
• 1/4 cup spicy tea (or coffee, juice or simply water)
• 1 cup walnuts (optional)
• 4-5 apples, diced (not too small)

I used a 9"x13" sheet cake pan that I lined with parchment paper.

Preheat the oven to 350F/175C degrees. Lightly grease pan(s).  Have ready doubled up baking sheets with a piece of parchment on top.

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda,  cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Make a well in the centre. Add oil, agave juice, eggs, tea, apple purée. Using an electric mixer on slow speed, stir together well to make a well-blended batter, making sure that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom. The batter will be quite thick.
2. Add walnuts and diced apples.
3. Spoon batter into prepared pan. You can decorate with walnuts on top. Place cake pan on two baking sheets stacked together. (This will ensure that cake doesn't burn.)
4. Bake until cake springs back when you gently touch the cake centre, for 40-50 minutes (depends on your oven), turn off the oven and let it stand without opening for another 10 minutes (optional but works for me and my old gas oven). Take cake out of the oven and let it cool before removing from the pan.
5. Enjoy!