Apple Honey Cake

Serves 8

MY MOM was never one to give us anything like cake for breakfast. She believed you needed to start the day healthy, and cake to her was not healthy. Instead, she would make my sister and me the very worst oatmeal imaginable: dry, sticky, and lumpy—yuck. (Sorry, Mom.) My sister would fake being ill just to get out of eating it. Of course, it wasn’t quite so traumatic for me, since I loved basically all food, but still, I longed for a Danish, a donut, or even some sugary cereal. I knew there was no chance, but I did dream of the day when I was an adult and could eat whatever I wanted for breakfast.

The joke was on me, since I grew up and found out I was unable to eat any of that stuff… until I learned to make them myself. Now I am finally in a place where, as an adult with celiac disease, I can actually have cake for breakfast! Hooray!

Of course, this cake is nutrient dense: It is packed with fiber and resistant starch from the green banana flour, good fats from the coconut that make it satisfying, and soluble fiber from the apple. The cake is sweetened with just a touch of raw honey and some raisins, so there is no sugar crash to worry about, either. I think it makes a perfect breakfast or anytime snack.

1 tablespoon palm shortening, nondairy butter (such as Earth Balance), or coconut oil, for greasing the pan

1 cup cassava flour (plus more to sprinkle on the greased pan)

¼ cup coconut flour

¼ cup green banana flour (also called plantain flour)

½ cup arrowroot starch

1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon Himalayan salt

⅓ cup coconut oil

⅓ cup raw honey

¼ cup unsweetened applesauce

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon ground vanilla bean (or 2 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla extract)

¾ cup coconut milk (or nondairy milk of choice)

1½ cups chopped apple

½ cup golden raisins (with no added sugars)

GLAZE

Juice of ½ lemon

1 tablespoon whipped raw honey

Optional: For a thicker glaze, add 1 tablespoon Homemade Powdered Sugar (here), but only if your digestion is ready for a bit more sweetener

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a loaf pan with the shortening and sprinkle with a little cassava flour

In a large bowl, combine the cassava flour, coconut flour, green banana flour, arrowroot starch, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and salt. Use a whisk to break up any lumps.

In another bowl, combine the coconut oil, honey, applesauce, vinegar, and vanilla. Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to beat until combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little at a time, alternating with the coconut milk and beating after each addition. Add the apple and beat on high speed for 1 minute. When fully combined, fold in the raisins.

Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake for 25 to 35 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, prepare the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and honey.

Place the cake on a cooling rack and let cool. Drizzle with the glaze and serve warm or at room temperature. The cake will keep in an airtight container for about 24 hours, or freeze individual slices for breakfast, snack, or dessert, so you have it whenever you crave it.

RESISTANT STARCH IS YOUR FRIEND

Resistant starch is a kind of starch that doesn’t get digested, and this is a good thing. Because it stays undigested in your stomach, it feeds all the good gut bacteria in your colon (this is why it is also called a prebiotic). And because it is not digested, it doesn’t make your blood sugar spike and crash, so it helps improve blood sugar and insulin balance.

Green banana flour (also called plantain flour) is one of my favorite sources for resistant starch, so you will see it in several recipes throughout this book.