When there’s no flour, the recipe instantly feels a lot “healthier.” And there are good reasons for that. Modern refined white flour contains none of the nutrients originally present in grains. Complete processing turns it into something comparable to eating paper. Cutting out this empty source of calories is definitely a good idea.
Here, the binding ingredient is ground almonds or walnuts. The recipe calls for 50 g of cocoa, but I usually add more — it makes the cake even more chocolatey. I’ve also swapped out 50% of the cocoa for carob (powder from the pods of the carob tree, easy to find in health food stores; it’s naturally sweet and has a wonderful coffee-chocolate flavor). That way you can almost completely cut out the honey, since carob is sweet on its own. Alternatively, you can replace honey with syrups like Jerusalem artichoke, agave, or maple.
- 150 ml olive oil (can be replaced with your favorite unrefined: coconut, walnut, sesame or sunflower) or 75 ml olive and 75 ml coconut
- 50 g cocoa powder (more if you like bitter chocolate)
- 125 ml of boiling water
- 150 g almonds or walnuts
- ½ tsp. soda
- pinch of salt
- 100-150 g honey (or unrefined sugar)
- 3 eggs
Dissolve the cocoa in hot water. Whisk the eggs, sugar, and oil. Add the cocoa mixture and whisk again. Stir in the salt, ground almonds (finely crushed in a blender), and baking soda. Mix well. Grease a round baking tin (22 cm or larger) with oil, pour in the batter, and bake at 170°C for 45 minutes. Let it cool completely — otherwise, the cake will stay too wet; it needs to rest.
For a twist: replace almonds with cashews and cocoa with vanilla bean seeds, and add a bit of grated tofu or goat cheese — you’ll get a delicate cashew cake.
Simplified version: in a blender, whisk the eggs with honey, then add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth.
Now, about my other discovery: Bangkok
There are places in Bangkok where everything seems to pause. Wat Arun is one of them. Among Buddha statues, blooming trees, pagodas, and steps of ceramic magic (as if painted tea sets from Britain had been transported to Bangkok and turned into palaces), you can wander for hours—until the river comes into view.
On one hand, it’s one of the most popular tourist spots, listed in every guidebook. You read Lonely Planet and move on. On the other, 300 years ago the Chao Phraya River was just as busy as it is today: the city’s artery, its very vein. Life happens where there is water, and here in Bangkok, it’s especially obvious. The city itself was once born on one of this river’s tiny islands.
Choose what appeals to you: the cheapest way to get around Bangkok (river ferries), the most expensive dinners (in hotels and condominiums by the water), floating markets, water streets. From here, the options multiply. Head to Chinatown (from 6 pm onward). Go down to the river and take a boat, stroll along the water, search for Chatuchak (a market the size of a small city; if you’re after beautiful things, ask for the local designers’ quarters—otherwise you’ll be lost in piles of Chinese plastic goods). Relax on the lawns in the park, visit the night market near the railway station (10 minutes from Chatuchak), and finally, check out Khao San Road (find the hostel where The Beach was filmed and get a massage at the parlor next door :), or enjoy a meal in the Muslim quarters.
Dissolve the cocoa in hot water. Whisk the eggs, sugar, and oil. Add the cocoa mixture and whisk again. Stir in the salt, ground almonds (finely crushed in a blender), and baking soda. Mix well. Grease a round baking tin (22 cm or larger) with oil, pour in the batter, and bake at 170°C for 45 minutes. Let it cool completely — otherwise, the cake will stay too wet; it needs to rest.
For a twist: replace almonds with cashews and cocoa with vanilla bean seeds, and add a bit of grated tofu or goat cheese — you’ll get a delicate cashew cake.
Simplified version: in a blender, whisk the eggs with honey, then add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth.
Now, about my other discovery: Bangkok
There are places in Bangkok where everything seems to pause. Wat Arun is one of them. Among Buddha statues, blooming trees, pagodas, and steps of ceramic magic (as if painted tea sets from Britain had been transported to Bangkok and turned into palaces), you can wander for hours—until the river comes into view.
On one hand, it’s one of the most popular tourist spots, listed in every guidebook. You read Lonely Planet and move on. On the other, 300 years ago the Chao Phraya River was just as busy as it is today: the city’s artery, its very vein. Life happens where there is water, and here in Bangkok, it’s especially obvious. The city itself was once born on one of this river’s tiny islands.
Choose what appeals to you: the cheapest way to get around Bangkok (river ferries), the most expensive dinners (in hotels and condominiums by the water), floating markets, water streets. From here, the options multiply. Head to Chinatown (from 6 pm onward). Go down to the river and take a boat, stroll along the water, search for Chatuchak (a market the size of a small city; if you’re after beautiful things, ask for the local designers’ quarters—otherwise you’ll be lost in piles of Chinese plastic goods). Relax on the lawns in the park, visit the night market near the railway station (10 minutes from Chatuchak), and finally, check out Khao San Road (find the hostel where The Beach was filmed and get a massage at the parlor next door :), or enjoy a meal in the Muslim quarters.
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