A Chocolate Cake Made out of Chickpeas & Sweet Potatoes? Seriously?

Yes, seriously. Chickpeas and sweet potatoes. And I am very serious when it comes to chocolate and cakes.

This is an amazing recipe discovered and tested by my lovely friend and health-food pusher, Jo. It comes with chocolate-sweet potato frosting.

I am making this today for my son's 3rd birthday and it fits with the way we try to eat - sugar and gluten free and properly yummy.

Here's how mine turned out (which is a miracle because, quite often, my cakes do not turn out to be edible.)

OK, so first the cake.

This bit is really easy.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups dark chocolate chips (or broken up bar)

570g washed, drained chick peas (approx 1.5 tins)

4 eggs

1/3 cup coconut sugar (you can also use normal - this is my substitute)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

First butter and flour a medium-sized cake tin and preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Then follow these instructions:

1. Place chocolate into bain-marie ie a bowl over a saucepan. You can use a microwave but I never use them for anything because we are not friends, so this is my preferred method. Stir until melted and smooth. Set aside.

2. Get your food processor

3. Throw in the chickpeas

4. Throw in the eggs

5. Blend til smooth

6. Add sugar and baking powder to this mixture

7. More blending-til-smooth action

8. Add in melted chocolate

9. Yes, you guessed it, blend til smooth again.

Then pour into your cake tin and cook for 40 minutes, or until a knife comes out smooth when poked in to test.

Leave to cool.

You can leave it here and serve with cream and berries OR you can keep going down a more adventurous path and make healthy chocolate frosting to smother all over the cake. This is what I chose to do and it is ridiculously delicious.

Here is the Healthy Chocolate Fudge Frosting recipe:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp sweet potato purée (boil or roast and then purée)

3 tbsp coconut sugar

2.5 oz dark chocolate

1/4 cup raw cacao (or regular cocoa powder)

1/4 cup nut or seed butter (I used almond butter)

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 tbs milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Pinch salt

The instructions:

1. Sweet potato, coconut sugar, vanilla & salt get blended to lovely smoothness.

2. Add cacao powder. Blend again.

3. Melt the chocolate, nut butter and coconut oil in the bain-marie until smooth. Keep stirring and remove from heat once done.

4. Allow to cool slightly, then throw it into the food processor with the other ingredients.

5. One last time, blend til smooth.

And there you have it.

Smother onto cake and decorate with berries. Serve with cream or ice cream or just by itself.

Proper YUM and, because there is no sugar or gluten it leaves you feeling light and happy.