Skinny Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache - Artistic Vegan Show 16

Hi beautiful friends! We are going to make a gorgeous cake today on the Artistic Vegan Show #16. Moist chocolate cake with chocolate chips inside makes our base, covered with a chocolate ganache. ​

You can stop there and enjoy a delicious slice or you can decorate it as your heart desires. I show a couple different variations, the last being covered in strawberries with a touch of chocolate shavings on top. It dawned on me during editing, this would be lovely for Valentine’s day or if you are like me, anytime is a good time to scratch that chocolate itch. 

The cake takes 38 minutes to bake, comes out perfectly, holds up well so you can layer it if you want, serve it will a little nice-cream and you are set. I was shocked at how wonderful it turned out each time. I hope you LOVE this new recipe!!! 

Note, it is certainly not traditional it has been modified significantly to remove oil, gluten, dairy and refined sugar so you will find applesauce and banana shining through, but to me, that is a-okay! Healthy and only a little over 300 calories for a very large slice or 158 calories for a smaller slice. We often do the smaller slice with nice-cream. :) I'd love it if you made this recipe and shared it with me and others on social media! Tag me and I'd be happy to re-post. Thanks everyone and happy baking!!! 

Chocolate Cake Recipe:

• 2 Ripe Bananas
• 1/3 Coconut Sugar (brown sugar/preferred sweetener)
• 1/2 Cup Sugar-Free Applesauce
• 1/3 Cup Coconut Milk 
• 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 1/4 Cup All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour 
• 1/3 Cup Cacao or Cocoa Powder
• ​1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/4 tsp Pink Himalayan Sea Salt (or regular)
• 1/2 tsp (+/- or not at all) Espresso Powder
• 1/2 Cup Vegan Chocolate Chips (Mine were 73% cacao)

Chocolate Ganache

• 1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips
• Opt: 2 tsp Maple Syrup
• Opt: 1 tsp Vanilla
• 1/2 Cup Coconut Cream (I used the Thai Heritage brand)

Decorate as you desire!
I used fresh strawberries and a small piece or chocolate for shavings. 

Directions:

1. Grease a cake pan lightly with coconut oil or spray. Cut a circle of parchment paper and place it in the bottom of the pan, ensuring it lays flat. Lightly coat with oil. This is just precautionary, it doesn't stick at all when you do this. :)
2. Mix the coconut milk and apple cider vinegar and set aside to sour for 5 minutes. It will act as our buttermilk. 
3. Mash or puree the banana, mix the wet ingredients together in a bowl. 
4. Mix the dry ingredients together, reserving the chocolate chips. Combine the wet to dry. Mix until combined and fold in the chocolate chips. 
5. Pour into the pan. Set aside for 10 minutes and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Once the oven is preheated, bake for 38 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. While the cake is baking, make your ganache by combining the chocolate, vanilla and maple syrup in a heat proof dish. 
8. Heat the dairy free milk until simmers but remove before it boils. Pour over the chocolate mixture. Cover for one minute. Stir with a fork until completely smooth. Place in the fridge to thicken. 
9. Once the cake is baked, cool completely and frost. You will have to whip up the frosting with a fork or you could use a mixer. Spread on top, eat as is or decorate as desired. I placed fresh strawberry slices on the outer layer and then kept making circles until it was filled. Sprinkled with chocolate shavings. Beautiful!

Notes:
If you don't frost the cake, just eat it as is, also great! 
Basic Nice-Cream recipe

Nutritional Information | Servings: 8 Big Slices or 16 Small, reflects 16 small
Serving Size: 1 Slice  |  Calories: 158 Calories  |  Total Fat: 6.5 grams
Saturated Fat: 5 g  |  Carbohydrates: 23.9 grams  |  Sugar: 12.3 grams
Sodium: 126 mg  |  Fiber: 2.1 grams  |  Protein: 2.6 grams

My husband said with all the dessert you make people probably wonder how you are not 250 lbs! I said we make them healthier. That is not where it ends though, we also enjoy yoga daily, try to get in a walk as well, sometimes include small hand weights, have had structural integration (our not so secret weapon of choice), and we've been consciously eating smaller portions this year and healthier more wholesome food. I cut refined sugar out years ago, we limit our gluten and oil to special occasions and usually try to cut it out, eat a lot of greens, we love salads, hummus, smoothies, soups. Anything that is easy to digest, fills us up, satisfies us and leaves us full but light on our feet and not ready for nap. Getting a good nights sleep is something we often underestimate but for me, I operate so much better with some sleep, healthy food, daily movement and laughter + love of course. What goals are you working on? Weight loss? To try more vegan cooking? To get outside each day? To meditate daily? Read more? To get off big-pharma and move to a more natural lifestyle? To walk each day? Consistency? For me it is to be more consistent vs. get rock solid abs, to just show up to my mat each day and go from there. I come out a better person not just physically, but mentally and spiritually. I thought I'd share that with you all, feel free to share your feedback with the community in the comments below!