I know what you are thinking….quinoa and avocado have no place in a chocolate cake, but having tasted this moist gluten free chocolate cake on a shoot last year, I’m now a convert. I was lucky enough to tag along for a day during the shooting of Donal Skehan’s latest book Eat. Live. Go. and this was one of the many lovely recipes that day. It’s got a big chocolate hit without so much sugar. Although, I couldn’t find coconut sugar locally and didn’t have time to order it online so subbed in 180g light brown sugar instead.
Quinoa Chocolate Cake with Avocado Frosting
Ingredients
150g cooked quinoa
4 large free-range eggs
50ml milk
150g butter, cubed
1tsp vanilla extract
200g coconut sugar (available in good supermarkets)
100g cocoa powder
1tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
For the chocolate avocado frosting:
2 ripe avocados, stoned and flesh scooped out
75g cocoa powder
1tsp espresso powder
75g maple syrup
1tsp vanilla extract
1/2tsp sea salt
Preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan) and grease and line a 20cm spring-form cake tin with parchment paper.
Place the quinoa, eggs, milk, butter and vanilla extract in a food processor and blitz until smooth. Add the coconut sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and blitz again to combine.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin and setting on a wire rack to cool completely.
For the frosting, place the avocados, cocoa powder, espresso powder, maple syrup, vanilla extract and sea salt in a food processor and blitz until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Use a spatula to spread over the top of the cooled cake and dig in.
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