I confess…sometimes there is a direct discrepancy between what I blog about and what is actually happening at my house. For example, one time my kids kept interrupting me while I was drafting a post about gentle parenting. Did I employ the gentle parenting approach I was writing about? Nope! I yelled at them to go outside and let me get my work done.  Or recently while I was busy writing this blog post about healthy eating, my kids were actually downstairs eating cupcakes (3 cupcakes a piece to be exact). I wasn’t thrilled about them eating cupcakes for breakfast, however I was happy to have them completely occupied for about 10 whole minutes.

The irony of my kids eating cupcakes while I posted about pomegranates, made me realize I need to share recipes for some of the sweet treats we eat. Surely you didn’t think we survive solely on quinoa and kale? Hardly! We enjoy sweets too.

I have experimented a lot with vegan baking and my conclusion is that baking without eggs is tricky, but not impossible. I have had great success with this particular recipe. I attribute it to the unusual, yet palatable ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/3 cup cocoa

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup coconut flakes

1/2 cup cocoa nibs

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup strong brewed coffee

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

The Secret Weapon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl mix coffee and oil. Add oil/coffee mixture to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Quickly stir in apple cider vinegar. Bake in an 8×8 greased baking pan for 30 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.

Now here’s the secret weapon for making this cake extra fantastic. It’s a sugar, chocolate, and coffee bean grinder from Trader Joe’s and it’s THE perfect compliment to this cake! Generously sprinkle it on top of the cake. If you don’t have a Trader Joe’s near you (then petition to get one! 😉 ), you can substitute with powdered sugar or cinnamon-sugar.

This cake is especially delicious when enjoyed with a hot cup of coffee while children are still asleep. 🙂

-Sarah