easy desserts Archives - Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Easy Goat’s Cheesecake (Low-Sugar) – Cacao and Protein

Goat’s cheesecake is one that’s so easy to make! And you win body points with a more gut healthy cheesecake, using goat cheese. Oh, plus the healthy probiotic piped topping. See the full notes and recipe below…

…And I’d be remiss if I didn’t share the skinny on the healthy ingredients that make a healthy cheesecake difference.

…That’ll benefit your body and also help you be happy, feeding healthy vibes to your gut (where most happy hormones are made) and mouth (stirring up glee). 😋

With this cheesecake recipe, it starts with the ingredient choice of chevre or goat cheese, that’s higher in protein, calcium, and lower calories (about 25% less than regular cream cheese). Plus, healthy prebiotic notes as fermented cheese.

Despite a French name, chèvre is not to be confused with cheval that means horse in French. 🐐 Fun fact: Horses make milk too. 🐎

And goat cheese has a texture closer to cream cheese so it works great in a cheesecake.

Its calories and fat content is more like a Neufchâtel cheese, a reduced cream cheese, which is what I used to use for cheesecakes before I knew better. It’s French named after the town it comes from in Normandy…

But today, we have other available healthier options, like goat cheese…

And the Mediterranean region was one area of the world that put healthier (the real-deal) prebiotic goat cheese on the map 🗺️ straight from the farms, while cow’s cheese is still what dominates cheeses.

And we benefit with the arrival of goat cheese makers. Montchèvre is one organic brand made in the USA. Specific to Wisconsin, that’s also home to the Cheese Heads (America’s Dairyland).

Montchevre is the organic goat cheese used in this cheesecake recipe. It looks like a packaged small cheese log.

You can find it in many grocery stores that has a premium or specialty cheese section, like Harris Teeter or Trader Joe’s. So it’s easier to source.

…And even easier to find is a thick Greek yogurt for additional healthy probiotics (gut health), protein and B12 vitamins (good for energy), to name a few healthy body benefits.

All for the sake of being healthy (that’s a good cause)… and a tasty, nice textured smooth cheesecake.

Sheep’s cheese is another type of healthy protein cheese, like goat cheese, that is growing in common availability, thanks to places like Sardinia, Italy. The rural green pastures are known for the rustic and healthy cheese tradition.

And for cheesecakes, you can also make a delicious, high protein Basque-style sheep’s cheesecake. Keep in mind: sheep’s cheese 🐑 is generally more firm than goat’s cheese 🐐, so the sheep’s way makes a better rustic cheesecake shape.

But with Montchevre goat cheese in this recipe, you should get a smooth batter like mousse that makes a rounder shape. And this means you can use one piece of baking paper effectively (instead of cutting scrapbook strips like I did with sheep’s cheese in a cheesecake).

💡An idea for if you don’t have baking paper: if you use a small half-size 4″ springform pan where the cake pan sides pop off, then you can use one cupcake paper holder and it will fit perfectly at the bottom.🧁Flatten it out and that can be the baking paper you use.

And then to complete the goat’s cheesecake batter to pour into the cake pan:

Bring in the egg yolk that helps the structure in the recipe, and will add more protein/B12 healthy notes. But instead of probiotics (like in yogurt), it’s prebiotic to feed the healthy bacteria probiotics.

And for some FUN batter flavor variety, you can add easy flavors to your goat’s cheesecake like chocolate (via cacao powder).

…Or cherries and chocolate for a delightful pairing. That’s where the HAPPY dials up for me, but your flavors are up to you. You can also add in chocolate chip morsel bits for a little added crunch.

Then when you’re good with your batter in your pan, bake your cheesecake in the oven. It’s a timed event (and not one where you have to keep checking the oven).

After it’s well-baked, the goat’s cheesecake should come out of the cake pan pretty easily in one cake piece, after it’s cooled. The sides will shrink a little to help that effort, because a cheesecake usually sticks to the sides.

Tip: I have tested butter and oil directly on the bottom and sides of the pan before, and nothing seems to have worked better than baking paper and oil. Since this will be a smoother, less dense, and almost pudding-like batter you pour into the circle pan, you can use one piece of baking paper instead of little strips and pieces, and the shape of the cheese cake will remain close to a circle (without weird geometric angles for a rustic look).

And then for the final zhugh and topping (fun), I saved the best for last… where it’s thick Greek yogurt again!

Pipe away guilt-free. 💕 And add coconut oil melted chocolate on to your adult delight.

This chocolate cheesecake won’t last!

Easy Goat's Cheesecake - Protein and Low-Sugar Cacao Healthy

This will make a 4" size cheesecake about 2" high. Double the ingredient amounts for an 8" cake pan.

Course Breakfast, brunch, Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 55

Total Time 1

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

springform or cake pan
baking paper

Ingredients

3/4 cup Greek yogurt, thicker portions (2% or higher/reduced fat milk)
1/4 cup chevre goat cheese
1 large egg yolk
1 Tbsp cacao, unsweetened or cocoa powder (for chocolate cheesecake)
1 Tbsp cherries, halves (optional)
1-2 tsp mini chocolate chips (optional)
1 Tbsp additional Greek yogurt (for piping on top)
1 Tbsp melted chocolate (optional)

Instructions

Make the cheesecake batter: combine goat cheese, yogurt, and egg yolk ingredients in a bowl. Add in any flavors like cacao powder.
Coat neutral oil to the bottom and sides of a springform pan. Add a rectangular cut piece of baking paper to the middle. Two opposing sides should reach the top. Tip: if you don't have baking paper, an easy trick is you can use paper cupcake holders. Flatten out and add to the bottom of your springform cake pan.
Pour-spoon cheesecake batter to the pan.
Bake at 350°F/180°C in the bottom oven rack for 55-60 minutes. The cheesecake sides should be a little darker and slightly pull away from the pan that will help you to pull out of the pan.
Let the cheesecake fully cool (and firm up) before removing from pan.
Pipe Greek yogurt and melted chocolate if desired. Rounded star tips work best to make a "diner whipped cream" topping look.

Easy Berry Tea Scone – Low-Sugar

An easy berry tea scone can be a low-sugar healthy dessert. When I don’t know what to bake, and have a sweet craving, it’s a scone!

Whether you pronounce it sgonn or scone, it’s a score that will be gone soon!

…Like this raspberry lavender scone plate that’s irresistible during heart month and for a Galentine’s dessert 💕

Pair heart healthy raspberries and dark chocolate (with flavanols that improve blood flow) for a tasty anti-inflammatory effect.

And if you’re wondering what separates a scone apart, here’s my take…

A scone is a breakfast pastry, a sweet snack like a cookie, and more elevated than a bar. It’s also an EASY bake you can make low-sugar and healthier with your delicious flavors!

Cut round like a pie, but looks flat like a pancake (before the oven)… a scone comes out of the oven wedge heel-raised elevated, puffs up in the center, and crunchy inside and around in all the right places.

You can be creative and dream up your own easy scone flavors to life. This is the new food wheel… with berry and white chocolate. 😊

And if you cut the wedges before it goes in the oven, like this…

…You’ll have less crumbs on the baking board and more in your mouth.

Plus with cut wedges, whether you share or not, you’ll know how many wedges are left… before it’s sgonn. 😋

That I’m sure is fast. It’s a good idea to go ahead and make 2 scones side-by-side to anticipate its appeal.

And if you have an event you need or want to bring a dessert to, a scone is a smart, foolproof one!

You can’t mess it up, and it will be a hit 🙌

On that note, the reason I really like a scone is you don’t have to do any prep work.

For starters, the few, small pats of butter you use can be straight from the fridge or freezer and works better.

Because cold keeps the fat separate with small pieces in the dough, so that when it goes into the magical oven, steam happens and creates air pockets so you get an airier scone like you expect in breakfast pastries.

That’s the fascinating baking science part.

And with the texture working for your easy berry tea scone, you can add almost any sweet food ingredient that inspires you.

Think of the variety of tasty, healthy anti-inflammatory flavors (aka flavanols).

…Like spices, healthy smoothie powders, extracts, berries, honey, tea, and fruit. And for the wet ingredients, you can use tea like Early Grey bergamot or lavender that I added.

Perfect pairings for weekend Sunday brunch or afternoon tea! 🫖

A technique I like: in a mug, add warm tea water to honey to liquefy, plus the tea all together. Let it cool and then add to the dough mixture.

You can also shredded coconut or zest like in a low-sugar orange scone (that’s like confetti 🎉).

Think also of healthy cake ingredients you can use.

…But without any egg or milk (if you choose).

Which means a easy berry tea scone can live longer if you want it to last on a room temperature plate.

All in all, this is a delicious dessert for any occasion that no one will know there is very little sugar (and no table sugar) if you choose.

Shhh!… unless you tell ’em.

Because honey and butter alone are a delicious pairing that is enough for a delicate and decadent pastry.

But why leave it there? Healthy tea and fruit in an easy berry tea scone adds an elevated taste.

And while I pulled 13 pantry and fridge ingredients in total (in the recipe), you can make this with half as many ingredients or less if you want to keep it simple… starting with some flour, butter, liquid, and sweet.

And to keep it healthier, use a healthier flour blend (e.g. almond or gluten-free flour), less butter, honey, and brewed tea. Up to you!

One thing in common is your easy berry tea scone will be delicious. See what you can come up with using my recipe as inspiration. 🍥

Enjoy your berry scone tea tasting!

Easy berry scone with raspberries for heart healthy.

Easy Berry Tea Scone

This is a berry tea scone that you can make your own flavors and ingredients with the instructions provided

Course afternoon tea, Breakfast

Cuisine American, british

Servings 8 pieces

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

3/4 cup almond flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 Tbsp butter, cold small pieces
1 tsp lavender tea (brewed and cooled)
1-2 tsp raw honey
1 Tbsp blueberries
1 Tbsp raspberries, dried or fresh
additional berries for tops
1/4 tsp cinnamon spice
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp white chocolate (optional)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Fully hand mix ingredients into a 4" dough disc. If you find that the scone dough is too dry (and won't stick together), add a little inspiring liquid that can be water, or flavored teas to get a dough that sticks together and slightly moist to the touch. If you find the scone is too wet or sticky, add some dry ingredients like spices, almond flour, and/or healthy powders.
Press additional sweet ingredients like berries randomly to the tops.
Cut 4" scone into 8 pie wedges.
Bake at 325°F/165°C for about 35 minutes (or until browned all around).

Cottage Cheese Cheesecake – High Protein (and Surprisingly Good)

Cottage cheese in a cheesecake sounds like a lot of cheese, like this oozing over cake you can see below. But it’s actually a healthy way to get protein.

And a way to hide the cottage-y cheese texture (especially if you’re not a natural cottage cheese fan). And in this dish, you’ll get a smooth texture you’ll love!

Use your Magic Bullet or food processor and add 1/2 cup of cottage cheese and one egg.

Pulse the blender with cottage cheese and egg a few times to smoothly blend. This will make enough for an individual portion.

You can bake into an oven-safe mug if you don’t have a baking vessel that’s the exact right size.

Anyone can make this! 😊

It’s a quick (quiche?) way to get protein that’s sweet or savory delicious and healthy.

You decide!

And this is where it gets fun because you get to decide if you want a sweeter cheesecake (dessert) or savory cheesecake with healthy veggies or more proteins, like that you would add to a quiche.

Either way, it’s about 14 grams of cottage cheese protein and much lower in calories and fat… in case that’s important to you. And the egg adds another 6 grams, so this one individual portion has 20 grams of protein, plus any other proteins you add.

The Breakstone’s 2% milk fat cottage cheese I used had 13 grams of protein, but was only 100 calories. Some creamy cheese can be more than double or triple those calories.

I went sweet (the blueberries are a hint) and I added 1 tsp of maple syrup and some berries and surprise-inside cherries. That’s it.

The bottom was brushed with coconut oil. And if you go the savory route, you can make this a Mediterranean diet olive oil serving as an option.

Oil helps for a non-stick bottom that’s baking-desirable and improves the overall bake texture.

And since I used an under 2-inch low baking vessel (that’s shorter in height than a drinking mug), I got the anticipated dramatic spillover effect that’s fun and adds a lava effect.

Like an oozing fall “lava” cake or a French Onion soup that’s baked in another baking pan to catch the flow. I used a cake pan and carried over the spill to the plate (that was scrumptious too 😋).

And you can simply cut off the baked lava or leave on for an ahhh…

After exiting the oven, you would think this dish is made with fancy cheese like Gruyere (or other fondue cheeses) that are usually more expensive per ounce and higher fat calories. You’d never think it was easy-to-source cottage cheese.

And you may at first think that using cottage cheese as the main ingredient doesn’t give a delicious bake… but not here in this cottage cheese cheesecake where it’s controversially satisfying.

Give it a try yourself. Your friends will never guess it’s cottage cheese… unless you tell them. 🧀

Cottage Cheese Cheesecake - Healthy and Easy

This is a health conscious cheesecake that is delicious and easy, and can be made into a sweet dessert or savory quiche.

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

Magic bullet or similar blender
oven-safe mug or shallow baking vessel

Ingredients

1/2 cup cottage cheese
1 egg
coconut oil (liquid) for bottom of baking vessel or mug
1 tsp maple syrup
berries

Instructions

Add a thin layer of liquid coconut oil to bottom of baking vessel.
Blend cottage cheese with egg in Magic Bullet blender.
Pour in mug or small baking vessel. Drizzle in maple syrup and add berries.
Put mug ontop a larger baking pan (or cake pan). Bake at 350°F for 40-45 minutes or until cheesecake sides on the top brown.

Sheep’s Cheesecake (Basque-Style) – Protein Healthy and Low-Sugar

Sheep’s cheesecake can be made into a protein-filled dessert that tastes like your favorite cheesecake desserts. I know because that’s what’s in this recipe. And the sheep’s cheese cake is lower fat and sugar, for a healthier cheesecake. It’s easy to find in stores (see below tips).

This sheep’s cheese cake plate has cranberries that are also mixed into the cake batter. Cranberries are high in Vitamin C and are good for an anti-inflammatory diet during the holidays (and year-round).

Cranberries are uniquely good for preventing UTIs and seasonally they add a red pop of festive color – that ranges from the bright fire engine red to burgundy shades.🚒 ♥️

You can buy whole cranberries and freeze them for when you want to use them. So the shiny and red fruit berry jewels are hard to turn down.

As is this protein cheese cake.

What makes this cheese cake protein-rich are the ingredients that include sheep’s cheese.

You can expect to easily find 5 grams of protein per sheep’s cheese ounce. At many stores, you can find packaged grocery sheep’s cheese logs, that come in smaller 4 oz size packaging these days. And that will make this regular size 8″ shareable cheesecake.

Or you can use 2 ounces per individual 4″ cheesecake. Doing the math, that’s 10 grams of protein for an individual cake (or 20 grams per 8″ cake).

If you compare the protein in regular cream cheese (commonly used in cheesecake recipes), sheep’s cheese is more than double the protein.

Regular cream cheese has about 1.7 grams per ounce. That’s about 1/3 of the protein as ordinary sheep’s cheese in national grocery store chains.

I found pre-packaged sheep’s cheese in the cheese section at national grocery store chains like Aldi’s and Trader Joe’s.

So that’s a good start (in case you didn’t think it was easy to source).

…And of course, sheep’s cheese comes in all shapes, sizes, pasteurization types, etc.

We’re not talking Blue Zones’ (100 years) healthy living sheep cheese here… which is where this all began for me when I studied up, researched, and wrote about the superfood cheese.

Since then, the idea has wildly grown in popularity and you can find all kinds with the label. Sheep’s cheese is easy to find like pre-packaged Brie or buffalo mozzarella cheeses in stores.

Because otherwise you’d have to pay a pretty penny (or accepted currency) to source sheep’s milk cheese, and/or fly to rural areas like the Sardinian regions to find high-quality, grass-fed sheep’s pecorino cheese.

But the kind you bring home, you can pair with Greek yogurt to get probiotics added back. And even more protein added.

The healthy idea that works in a sheep’s cheese cheesecake like this, is to find a thicker Greek yogurt that has no additional sugar. You can also find a lower fat content yogurt.

And then when you bake the sheep’s milk cheese and yogurt into your desserts like this holiday cheesecake, this helps support a happy and healthy lifestyle.

In an hour, you can have a nice Greek yogurt healthier cake ready.

Since this cheesecake has no crust (like a graham crust on a New York-style cheesecake) and has no flour baked in, you can get baked Basque-style sides that are more decadently burnished-brown without using high baking temps.

This happens when you use a metal spring form cake pan where you can release the sides after the baked cheesecake is cooled.

If you cover the sides entirely with parchment paper (that you may have learned to do with Basque cheesecakes), the cake will be more easy to pull out, but it won’t be connected directly to the cake pan heat. So you compromise the end result bake.

The better way I suggest is to brush neutral/light olive oil (or butter) on the sides. And after baked, don’t release the cake from the spring form until it’s completely cooled when the cake is more stable, and will more easily stay together in one piece, as it firms up.

For interest (I have a catering background), I also added softened ripe pears to the bottom of the cake pan for additional sweet flavors and textures. It helped release the cake and gave a burnished look to the bottom (similar to poached pears 🍐). But that part is optional, as you’ll get the Basque-inspired cheesecake style either way.

But surprisingly by using regular 350°F/180°C temperatures and not the higher Basque cheesecake temperatures, to save energy (but also low and slow is easier to not burn in the oven).

But if you leave it in these lower oven temps for 55 minutes, I think you’ll be happy with your bake’s doneness.

Your cheesecake will have an Old World charm look.

And when you bite into the sweet and tart cheesecake (made even tart-er with cranberries), it’ll be a delight. With a rustic crumbly feel on the tongue as a satisfying texture that’s distinctly baked (no half-bake here 😊).

But if you prefer a more creamy cheesecake with less small cheese-yogurt chunks, then add more milk (liquid) to your batter, or use a less thick sheep’s cheese and/or yogurt.

You have so many options to make your (maybe?) NEW favorite cheesecake 😋

But no matter what you choose as actual ingredients and final texture intent for your high-protein cheesecake, this is a daily cheesecake you’ll have no regrets making. Ready to try?

If you like this, you may also like a cranberry pumpkin trifle, blueberry-peach cheesecake smoothie, and other low-sugar dessert bites.

Basque-Style (No Crust) Cheesecake - High Protein and Low-Sugar

This is an individual-size 4" protein cheesecake made with healthier cheese and lower fat. To make a shareable 8" cake, double the ingredient amounts.

Course Dessert

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

spring form cake pan

Ingredients

2 oz sheep's cheese
2 oz Greek yogurt (no-fat and no-sugar added)
1 Tbsp milk of choice
1 Tbsp raw honey
1/4 cup seasonal fruit (or jam) of choice or cranberries
cranberry sauce or fruit jam as spread on top (optional)

Instructions

Brush neutral olive oil or baking spray on bottom and sides of (spring form) cake pan.
Combine ingredients in one bowl. Reserve some fruit for the top, so they don't all fall to the bottom of the cake pan. Option: add softened pears to the bottom of the pan.
Bake at 350°F/180°C for about 55 minutes. This will give a Basque-cheesecake feel as the sides turn a darkened brown (pleasantly burnt-ish) color.

Fruit Cake – Low-Sugar (and Using Healthy Coconut Flour Lessons)

Fruit cake is a special dessert. It makes for a great Christmas, year-round, and holiday cake (…when done right that is). It’s a fruity, sweet cake. And this one is all healthy, and low-sugar without added sugar. Recipe below.

…And ok, I know what you may be thinking off the bat… is this fruit cake more on the healthy tasting side (like inedible cardboard where you’d rather eat an oatmeal bowl)?

Oh and btw, is it enjoyable like a chocolate cake? ..because that’s what you’re after!

And I agree.

My thinking, what’s the point of making a sweet treat if it doesn’t taste good?

That weighs on my conscience.

Because I’m a food lover who wore a 10-year food belt planning hundreds of parties in nice hotels and restaurants before I started baking regularly at home.

And my childhood sweet food dreams are daily reminders. 💭

But a fruit cake isn’t one of those dreams that’s usually on my mind (but today is its lucky day).

…Because from what I remember, the durable (fruit cake) ones don’t have the best passed-down reputation (from holiday gifts of the past I think)… I never got one as a house gift but I saw them on store shelves wrapped tightly in the thick plastic wrap 🥮.

…Those are from Christmas past (and maybe still sitting in the back shelves 😀).

…Instead, bring in and out the fresh, new millennial fruit cake, pleeaaase! That’s a happy one to match its naturally sweet celebrational cake name.

And this particular homemade fruit cake is cocoa and cherry pairing, crumbly-soft-texture-cake divine.

If a tasty pairing is like a harmonious modern singing duo or two complementary colors on a wall, then this cake fits right in. 🩷🩵

…But don’t take my word for it, make it yourself and try it… I dare you! 😊

It’s coconut flour and cacao (or unsweetened cocoa) healthy. Another delicious pairing, btw.

And if you’ve not worked with coconut or gluten-free flours much with cake, I’ve got you… some quickie lesson tips below to take out the guesswork.

Gluten-free coconut flour is a smart one to add in, and that you can learn to use for healthy and tasty reasons!

And it’s in this fruit cake, that’s 5-minute prep and 3 one-bowl main ingredients EASY.

You can even mix the cake batter by hand.

…That’s what I did.

Or use your Magic Bullet blender to blend the egg yolk and dry ingredients.

Let the oven do the heavy lifting and magical baking work.

So to begin… pull out all your ingredients.

Nature’s fruit and cocoa is the main sweet needed.

You can also choose your favorite fruits, dried or fresh (if eaten within the week).

You can sub in dried cherries. And tart-tasting acerola cherries (not common) are known for their superfood anti-inflammatory properties.

But here I splurged with Maraschino (dessert) cherries because the amount is so little for such high tasting Christmas celebration holiday time impact, that I made this for.

The sweet cherries are also easy to find year-round at most grocery stores, so you can store in your fridge pantry.

And the glace shiny kind is easy to find and always a sweet crowd pleaser. They’re the classic cherry red on top that looks like an ornament. 🍒

One glace cherry has about 1.9 grams of sugar or about 6 cherries per tablespoon of sugar (12 cherries recipe total), and you can cut this down in your bake to less for lower sugar if you choose.

Whatever you decide, cherries are divine in and on top (as the cherry saying goes)… and definitely better after baked in.

Along with cocoa… or cacao used.

The difference is pure (💯) cacao is minimally processed and unsweetened cocoa that’s anti-inflammatory healthy.

You can use other cocoa powders, but they will likely have additives and sugar.

So there you have your two star flavors (cherry-chocolat-y 😋)for this fruit cake. And you’ll want to add more fruity forward vibes!

Fruit Cake Flavoring:

Getting the flavors to your liking will matter for this fruit cake as coconut flour can be overpowering in taste that is the dominant ingredient and only flour used.

…Unless you’re making a coconut cake where you want coconut to stand out, you’ll want to mask the coconut flour flavor somewhat. 🥥

Like in this cacao-cocoa fruit cake with coconut flour.

That’s easy to do when you follow the recipe and some taste pairing guidelines.

Like when you add almond extract and stronger baking extracts such as orange extract (or even orange zest), you will not taste the coco-nutty flavors.

It won’t be like the busy summer beach air that blows permeating coconut suntan lotion scents your way. 😀

Also when you use complementary flavors on the food wheel, to support the star ingredients and bring them forward, the coconut flavors will step back.

But avoid flavors that won’t work with this fruit cake. Like lemon… or peppermint (that’s not even in the fruit category). Let’s not get too crazy 🤪

You can also use coconut milk that will help support the subtle coconut flour come through a little like a budding flower, but not overpower.

The dried fruits you add also will be supporting.

I used dried apricots and even dried rose (not a fruit). But you can add any dried fruits (pineapple, more cherries, raisins, dates, coconut, etc.) that fancy you at prep time. And even add in chopped nuts and seeds if you want

So then now you’ve got the flavors, and can combine with the flour.

Two Coconut Flour lessons to keep in mind:

In my experience, gluten-free flour like coconut flour will not rise with common leaveners like baking powder and baking soda. So they are not used. And since no gluten-flours are added to this fruit cake, I expect little rise.

And I use a frothy egg white that will be the small leavening lift (like from a ballet flat shoe to flats) in this fruit cake. It won’t be a high-heel like with gluten flours. 👠

And since there’s no table sugar, brown sugar, or any white sugar added, the egg white will not be meringue lifting whites.

That sounds deflating…

But the trick is to use a tall sided baking pan vessel. That way, the cake will be about as tall as you fill it, before it enters the oven. 😉

And, the second lesson is that coconut flour is dry in its properties. Like very dry!

So you will need about 3 cups of liquid to about 1 cup of coconut flour.

These days, you can find coconut flour any and everywhere. For pennies per ounces.

But since it’s a more advanced cake flour to work with (if you’ve never worked with), it’s good to know that it will take lots of liquid like a thirsty camel. 🐫

And that by adding more liquid, you’re not doing anything wrong.

And as you add in more liquid in the beginning, the coconut flour becomes drier (almost like a pasta dough).

It will come together on the other side of the batter.

For the batter, look for a mashed potato consistency with a little bit of lumpiness and grittiness that will be as close to the smooth cake batter as you can get.

And use grit to stick it out until it gets there.

You can measure out the liquid but your best bet is to eyeball it out as daily prep temperature, ovens, and conditions change.

And then you’ll now know what to look for, the next time you use coconut flour.

Soft and wet, the batter will be slowly pourable. And that will help make a fluffy-inside cake (and not a dense cake).

Last step for coconut flour fruit cake:

And then after you’ve got your cake batter and your flavor tastes in your mixing bowl (or easy blender)… 🎉

The last step is to gently fold in the egg whites to your batter (egg yolk, flour, and flavors) with a baking spatula or spoon.

And so… what will this fruit cake batter look like (you ask)?

When you add the cocoa and egg white, it will look like Rocky Road soft serve ice cream. The egg white especially helps smooth the batter some.

Grease cake pans, so the cake doesn’t stick to the pans. Some options: you can use coconut oil, a Silpat, and/or baking sprayed parchment.

Then bake your cake(s) at 350°F/180°C for about 55-60 minutes. You can insert a toothpick to see if it comes out clean. It’s better to over bake this cake a little vs. under bake (where it can fall apart).

And as a summary to using all coconut flour for this fruit cake (and most cake bakes), this is a common question asked…

Question: how will healthier, gluten-free coconut flour impact the cake?

Answer: You won’t get a regular cake rise.

Tip: use a tall sided baking vessel that you can fill with cake batter if you want a taller cake, or add an additional cake pan to compromise (e.g. 2-tiered cake).

With coconut flour, you also won’t end up with the same moist cake crumb that’s in a regular cake made with gluten flours, like all-purpose, cake, or whole wheat flour.

After baked, you can see the inside crumb looks a bit dry and wet. That’s the unique characteristic of coconut flour when nicely incorporated. And it’s perfect for a fruit cake! 🥮

Excited to make this? I’d love to see yours.

Cocoa Fruit Cake

This is a gluten-free delightful cake using coconut flour. This will make one 8" cake.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

1 cup coconut flour
3 cup coconut milk (or milk of choice), plus more
2 eggs, separated
1/4 cup coffee (optional)
2-1/2 Tbsp cacao powder
1 tsp almond extract
1/4 cup dried fruits (apricots, dates, coconut shavings)
2 Tbsp cherries, halved
coconut oil for baking pan/cake bottom (optional)

Instructions

Separate eggs when cold.
Line a cake pan with aluminum foil (or parchment paper) to easily pull out. Tip: Smear a little coconut oil (or brush a drop of neutral oil to the foil) on both foil sides so it doesn't stick to the pan and the cake bottom.
Mix all the other ingredients to make cake batter, except the egg whites and fruit in a bowl. This is the step where you can pulse your Magic Bullet blender (instead of using a bowl).
Whip up egg whites separately. (If you add table or granulated sugar, you will get more of an egg white rise, but none of those sugars are used in this recipe).
Add fruit to batter. Gently add/fold in egg whites.
Bake at 325°F/165°C for about 55 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

If you like this healthier cake, you may also want to try a low-sugar chocolate cake, apple cider vinegar cake, and/or cherry-chocolate-pistachio spumoni ice cream to go along with.