This delightfully moist cardamom carrot cake is infused with bright spices and citrus flavors: it’s the perfect combination of comforting and refreshing.
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It comes to me regularly: the feeling I need to bake something. It usually happens when I pop open all doors in my kitchen—fridge, freezer, and pantry—looking for something sweet to eat, only to find that my homemade baked treat stocks are depleted. I close all doors, hoping a chocolate square will appease my craving. I eat the chocolate, then usually take out flour, sugar, butter, and eggs to start baking because a square of chocolate never appeases me when what I really want is a baked treat.
Last week, I was going through Allison Day’s gorgeous cookbook, Whole Bowls: Complete Gluten-Free and Vegetarian Meals to Power Through Your Day, sticking Post-its on all of the recipes I wanted to try, like I always do when I read a cookbook for the first time. Her recipes are colorful and mouthwatering, and I was getting hungrier by the minute. As I was reading further into the book, I started to wonder how she would treat desserts—would there only be puddings and other dishes you usually eat with a spoon? I found myself flipping quickly to get to the sweets, and boy, was I enchanted by Day’s take on desserts. There’s a crisp—the quintessential in-a-bowl dessert—but also an easy avocado and chocolate pudding punctuated with cayenne pepper, a deconstructed pie topped with elegant discs of butter pastry, a rice pudding with a Danish twist, and roasted pears served with an addictive-looking maple and pine nut brittle. There’s a bowl of cookie dough—a treat that sounds incredibly indulgent but is in fact made with wholesome ingredients like chickpeas (so creative!). And then, there’s carrot cake.
I can’t resist carrot cake, even in the heart of summer. And the fact that Day served it so casually, in a bowl with a dollop of cream cheese and sprinkled garnishes, tempted me even more. Because the recipes in Whole Bowls are gluten-free, I adapted the dessert to make it with whole wheat bread flour, which gives cakes a fantastic crumb and a complex taste. I used maple syrup, instead of sugar, because I love the slight smokiness it provides. For simplicity’s sake, I decided that I would serve it with my new favorite vanilla Greek yogurt, which is so rich and delicious that it can act as icing. Then I worked in Middle Eastern flavors to match: cardamom, orange (or, in this case, clementine), and pistachios. The result is a delightfully moist cake infused with bright spices and citrus flavors: it’s the perfect combination of comforting and refreshing.
My version of the cake is quite different from Day’s, but what I got from her recipe—and her book as a whole—is that food is more fun in bowls! And that, from now on, includes carrot cake.
Tell me how you liked it! Leave a comment or take a picture and tag it with @foodnouveau on Instagram.
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Author: Marie Asselin
Gelato :D
Crème brulé for me. Yum.
My favorite dessert to eat whit a spoon is lemon pudding with whipped cream. Humm!
Ice cream! Pistachio ice cream is the best <3
My fave dessert to eat with a spoon has to be some form of a fruit crisp or crumble. Pure comfort!
I’m super excited about Alison’s book. I LOVE eating basically everything in bowls, and grain bowls are my go-to lunches! Can’t wait to get my hands on a copy of her book!
chocolate mousse
That would have to be rice pudding!
I’m a huge fan of mousse and classic chocolate pudding with a spoon. :) By the way, this recipe is GORGEOUS, lady! The photography too is top notch!
Thank you Cassie! <3
I’ve really been into chia pudding with full fat coconut milk
With a spoon ? Gelato definitely! ❤️
You and I think alike! :D