Have Your Cake AND Eat It

You have been on track with your eating plan and you are seeing results. It feels good. Your scale is starting to agree that your progress is going in the right direction. Then comes a special occasion, a dinner out, a party. What do you do? Do you give up all control and pick up the pieces the morning after? You say to yourself, "I'll just have a little treat" and the next thing you know you are wiping cheesecake crust crumbs off your lips. How did that happen?

You know the deal, Christmas and Thanksgiving are for wearing your stretchy pants. And year after year we regret that extra piece or two of Pumpkin pie. Believe me I have been there, and am embarrassed to admit that one year I even wore maternity clothes in preparation for the Thanksgiving dinner feast and I wasn't even pregnant at the time. Part of the problem is that through the years of tradition we associate happy times and celebrations with certain foods. What would a birthday be without cake? What would Halloween be without Candy? So we link these things together. With it comes the 'morning after' guilt and telltale signs on the scale.

Take a step back, are these occasions really about the food? No. These times are really all about the calorie free experience of being together with the people you care about and love. Now don't beat yourself up too much, for those battling the lure of pumpkin pie and birthday cake, please know that it has been proven that sugar is more addictive than Heroin.

So how do you HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT? If you are a Raw Vegan then you'll also love this one.

Triple Decker frozen Banana and Carob Cake.

TIP: Click here for tips on how to have frozen bananas on hand anytime.

 

 "The birthday cake fell into the category of 'tastes so good it feels like it should be bad for you.' "- Igor Klibanov of Fitness Solutions Plus

Ingredients:

Frozen Banana (about 5 - 6)

4 Tbsp Carob Powder

1/2 Vanilla Pod  (sliced length ways and seeds scraped out- set aside both pod and seeds)

1 Tbsp Chia  Seeds

4 large dried prunes

Espresso powder (optional)

Frosting:

Almond milk to blend

1/2 cup soaked raw cashews

Strawberry and mint leaves for garnish

Frozen sliced banana in food processor

STEP 1

Place frozen sliced banana in food processor and add just enough almond milk to blend.  Add in the reserved Vanilla seeds.

Take out just enough puree to fill one layer of your cake. I used 5 inch round ceramic bowls.

 

 

STEP 2

To the remaining mixture add the rest of the ingredients and puree until smooth.

STEP 3

Stack up your 5 inch layers, and pop them in the freezer preferable overnight if you can wait that long?

In the meantime prepare the frosting. 

Here's HOW:

1. Soak the cashews in water with the scraped Vanilla pod for 3 -5 hours.
2. Drain the cashews and remove the Vanilla pod.
3. Puree or blend the cashews with enough unsweetened Almond milk to help it to blend. The more Almond milk you add the thinner the consistency of your frosting.
4. Refrigerate until it is time to assemble your little frozen creation.

FINALLY, TO ASSEMBLE:

1. Remove the frozen layers from their bowls and place one of the Carob/Banana layers at the bottom, add the Banana Vanilla layer in the middle and top with the remaining Carob and Banana layer.
2. Top with frosting and garnish with sliced berries and mint leaves or any garnish of your choice.
3. Return to the freezer for another hour if needed to solidify the cake. To serve it cut with non serrated sharp knife dipped in boiling water.

On the day we enjoyed our frozen treat it was a balmy 34 degrees Celsius and so our treat threatened to melt on us, but had I made it the day before, and not just the morning of, it would have withstood the heat a lot better.

Now, if you are NOT on a sugar free nutritional plan you could probably add Stevia or natural honey if you wish. I did not, it was WAY sweet enough without it.

Do note that bananas pack in the calories so don't overdo it. This cake is small enough to celebrate and share, but you will not have tons of leftovers left to tempt you into having more. To be honest, this "cake" is so healthy and packed with goodness that I had a slice for breakfast one day.

 What it all really comes down to is that there really is no reason for you to feel deprived if you use your creativity and think about using good, wholesome foods to create your own masterpiece.

The best part of this was that it was totally guilt free, without the sugary lure of addictive, artificial flavoring and additives.

Please let me know what you thought of this recipe.

Click here to email me.

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