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One caveat to this recipe: you all know I am very strict with sugar. There is quite a bit of sugar in this recipe. Natural or not, sugar is sugar. It’s ok to use less than the recipe calls for. I know I prefer a less sweet cake. Remember, this is a special occasion treat!

​Cassava Chocolate Cake – by Erin Smith

Before I’d gotten on the real food bandwagon, someone at work brought a store-bought, gluten-free cake.

Most coworkers kept their distance, making snide remarks like “If I’m gonna eat the calories….”

I was among the brave who tried it, and I wish I hadn’t. Terrible, disgusting, flavorless. Contrary to popular belief, chocolate DOES NOT cover all else.

In other words, I know what a bad chocolate cake tastes like, and this ain’t it.

In order to achieve “gluten-free” status, I used cassava flour (it’s all the rage amongst the real foodies). It’s a starchy root, kind of like a potato. Just don’t imagine that it tastes like you’re adding potato flakes, because that would be gross.

Cassava flour has a slight earthy taste to it, but in a good way. It is extremely nutritious, containing good sources of potassium, vitamin C, fiber, and even some protein, iron, and magnesium.

The beautiful part is that you can trade it out in a 1:1 ratio with flour, and still keep a similar consistency. I’d say it’s slightly denser than normal cake, but it just makes it a little fudgier… so no complaints here.

A couple weeks ago, it was our Little Man’s 2nd birthday, which is crazy and insane. He’s not much of a dessert eater – he signs “grapes” or “strawberries” pretty much at every meal. He needed a little encouragement to dig into his chocolate cassava flour cake, but once he did, that stuff got ate.
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Along with the cassava flour, you’ll see that I’ve used sucanat, organic sugar, and other healthier ingredients. I wouldn’t call this a weight loss meal, but it sure beats processed, GMO ingredients that provide no nutritional benefit or even block other nutrients from entering your system.

In other words, it’s a dessert you can be confident your family will like, and you can sit back, arms crossed, smiling at your achievement. You can check out our date cake and brownie recipe too if those sound tasty to you.

Enjoy your cake!

For Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line bottom of 8-inch cake pan with parchment paper and butter.
2. Cream Sucanat, sugar, softened butter.
3. Add cacao, warm water, and vanilla.
4. Mix in eggs one at a time until combined. Do not over-mix or your cake will come out flat.
5. In separate bowl, sift together cacao, flour, soda, and salt. 
6. Slowly add flour mixture to wet mixture and mix until combined.
7. Pour half of the mixture into cake pan and bake for 20-25 minutes until edges look crisp and knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle.
8. Immediately after taking pan out of oven, run a knife around the edge of the pan. After about 10 minutes, remove from pan and let cool on a cooling rack.
9. Repeat baking process for second layer.

For Frosting:

1. Combine powdered sugar, butter, cacao, and vanilla.
2. Add small amounts of milk until desired consistency is reached, usually very fluffy and not runny or your cake will slide all over. You probably won’t need the entire 2/3 Cup just FYI!
3. After cake layers are cool, frost the top of one layer, add the top layer and frost the top then the sides. Store covered so the cake doesn’t dry out.

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Chicken Nuggets are such a fun finger food. Both kids and adults love them. 

Many of us adults grew up eating lots of chicken nuggets, usually from not-so-great sources. We’ve grown up in a generation or culture where everything is so processed. Cooking real food has become a lost art. 

Chicken nuggets are still as popular as ever. They’re jam packed in grocery store freezer isles and on almost every restaurant menu. Of course they’re on fast food menus too.
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The thought of that makes me cringe a little. I haven’t had any of those versions since I was a very young child. But I still love chicken nuggets. 

Skip the processed, packaged ones and make your own instead. Homemade chicken nuggets are so much healthier too!

This version is free of grains, uses a super healthy fat to cook the chicken in {avocado oil} and only has a few simple ingredients. Bonus … they taste so good too! My family goes crazy for these chicken nuggets. They disappear so fast, it seems like we never make enough. 

So grab yourself some organic chicken and make up a batch or two of chicken nuggets. Make sure to serve them with some yummy sauce and dip those perfect little crispy bites in some honey mustard, ketchup or any other homemade sauce. 
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1. Cut chicken into 1″ pieces with kitchen scissors or a sharp knife. Set aside. 
2. In a shallow dish, combine arrowroot flour, sea salt, garlic powered, and thyme. Stir to combine. [Note: If you have a spice grinder or blender like a Twister Jar, you can throw all of these ingredients in and pulse it really quick to finely grind up all ingredients. I like to do this in Twister Jar, it helps turn the thyme into a powder. This is completely optional.] 
3. Add pieces of chicken, one at a time, to the flour mixture. Toss them around until they are evenly coated on each side. Set aside.
4. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, add avocado oil, about 1/4-1/3″ inch deep. Allow avocado oil to get hot, about 2 minutes. Add a single layer of chicken, being sure not to crowd them and reduce heat to medium. Fry on each side over medium heat until golden brown and completely cooked through. Depending on the size of your sauté pan, you might have to do this in two batches. (Note: If you like them extra crispy, like my family does, cook the chicken nuggets a little longer.) 
5. Serve hot with your favorite dipping sauce.

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• Servings: 2-3
• Serving Suggestions: Serve with you favorite dipping sauce like honey mustard, BBQ sauce, organic ketchup or homemade ranch. My family loves to eat these with honey mustard dipping sauce.
• How to Make a Simple Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce: Combine equal parts raw honey and organic Dijon mustard {or horseradish mustard}. Stir until fully incorporated.

Recipe by Emily Sunwell-Vidaurri, founder and author of Recipes to Nourish