Low-Carb Gluten-Free Sugar-Free Apple Banana Cake version 2.0

I have made an upgraded version of the last apple banana cake. So I am calling it version 2.0 :)

To add texture to this totally healthy cake, I made a banana cream cheese filling.

When the baked cake is cooled to room temperature, cut it in half horizontally.  Mix 2 tablespoons of cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of natural unsweetened yogurt and a drop of vanilla extract. Put it into a plastic sandwich bag. Cut a small opening at the bottom corner of the bag and squeeze the cream cheese filling nicely onto the cake.

I prefer putting slices of banana between cream cheese fillings rather than blending banana with cream cheese. I think it looks better, and gives a more profound banana flavor.

And instead of red apple topping, I used green apple for the refreshing sourness.

For all of us who love to cook, and to cook healthily, creativity is the key. Apparently everything can taste like heaven being loaded with butter, sugar and gluten, deep fried and serve with super sweet chocolate sauce.  But we are willing to take up the challenge to make things healthy and delicious at the same time. It's also the most fascinating part about cooking: to experiment, adventure and create something awesome :)

Happy cooking everyone!

XOXO

Low-Carb Gluten-Free Sugar-Free all natural apple banana cake

I have been experimenting different gluten-free flour mixes and I think this one works best for banana cake or carrot cake. Besides being gluten-free and sugar-free, it's also oil free and sweetener-free ("natural" or artificial sweetener alike). The cake is TRULY ALL NATURAL and the sweetness comes only from fruits.

This 4 inch cake is good to serve 2 people. There are only 190 Kcal and 36g carbs per serving. 20% of total carbs comes from dietary fiber. (normal banana cake has 330 Kcal and 61g carb per serving, only 2% of total carbs is from fiber)

Besides being extremely healthy, the cake is dense, moist and sweet just like any good banana cake you'll find. The coconut flour added a delicate creamy flavor to the cake that compliments the taste of banana nicely. You probably can't taste the apple at all but it's the key to make the cake sweet and moist.

I have a 4 inch springform pan. If you are using a standard 8 inch pan, multiply all ingredients by 4. Cooking time should be adjusted as well. But it's always important to check your cake from time to time because the temperature of every oven varies slightly.

Ingredients:

1 large egg
1 large ripened banana (darker the better)
1 apple (I use Envy apple. It's the sweetest and perfect for dessert Read Here! )
1 table spoon of raisin
2 table spoons cornmeal (or you can use almond meal)
2 table spoons coconut powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
A pinch of nutmeg powder
A pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup of water

Instructions:

Peel and finely chop an apple. Heat in a saucepan with 1/2 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of raisin and a pinch of cinnamon. Cook until almost all the moisture is absorbed. You may use a spoon to smash the apple while cooking to speed up.

When it's done, let the cooked apple to cool to room temperature and pour it into a food processor. Blend until smooth.

Add an egg, a banana, a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the food processor.

Add the remaining dry ingredient (cornmeal, coconut flour, baking power, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt) to the food processor. Mix well.

Pour the cake mix into a greased springform pan, bake in an oven at 180 degree for 15mins, and 150 degree for 10mins.

If you're making a large cake, bake at 180 degree for 35mins, check your cake. And bake at 150 degree for 40 to 60 mins depends on how large your cake is. The cake should look beautifully golden brown when done.

If you're feeling fancy, thinly slice an apple and nicely line them on top of the cake when it's almost done (turns lightly brown and smells awesome). And bake for another 5-10 mins.

Nutrition: 4-inch cake, serves 2

Per serving 
Energy                    190Kcal
Protein                    6g
Carbs                      36g
    Dietary Fiber      7g
    Sugar                  18g
Fat                          4g 


Happy Baking! <3

XOXO

More delicious Gluten-Free Sugar-Free Guilt-Free Dishes!!

Besides reading extensively, I have also been cooking too (when I was not dancing in my studio or twisting my spine in the yoga classes : P)

Here is a glimpse of what I have been cooking these 2 weeks. I don't have time to put together the recipes yet. Let me know if you're interested in any of these below, I will post the recipes as soon as I can. :)

There are 3 golden rules in whatever things that I cook:
1) There must be no sugar, sweetener, syrups added. All the sweetness comes naturally from fruits.
2) There must be no refined carbs (bread, pasta, noodles alike), and gluten. To fill my stomach I eat potatoes, sweet potatoes, quinoa and sometimes, brown rice.
3) There must be no artificial flavoring. I use only garlic cloves, onion, black pepper, chili flakes, herbs to add natural flavor.

Stay healthy (and hungry) my friends

XOXO

Sugar-Free Gluten-Free Dark Chocolate Pie

Healthy Full Breakfast  

Gluten-Free Salmon Potato Pizza

Easy Cheesy Salmon lunchbox 

Pomegranate - another superfood that you should include in your diet

Oatmeal with apple, pomegranate, blueberry, yogurt and cashew

I have modified my last fruity oatmeal recipe by adding one more magic ingredient: Pomegranate seeds. And I used red instead of green apple this time, for the sweetness (and colour lol). Pomegranate is a very healthy fruit. If you want to know more, read until the end of the post. Otherwise just remember pomegranate is good for you.

With blueberry and pomegranate seeds in a bowl, it has to be the most anti-oxidizing breakfast EVER.

How to deal with a pomegranate

If you search the internet a lot of "tips" will tell you to cut a pomegranate in half to start with. NEVER! And don't even think of digging a spoon into the fruit, unless you have someone else to clean the kitchen (and your clothes) for you. Pomegranate seeds are very juicy, and the juice is intensely red. I can guarantee, any attempt to cut through a pomegranate will result in something like a murder scene.

For me I will score the skin of the fruit horizontally 8 times, peel the skin as carefully as I can, and take the exposed seeds out one by one. I have very steady hands and I find it quite fun to do so, although it took me around 10 mins to deseed the whole fruit. It's not at all difficult, but just be patient and gentle.

There are websites teaching you how to open a pomegranate in 10 sec, and it often involves "gently pry open" the fruit. Hmmm...to be honest I don't think this is technically possible. Prying open a pomegranate has to be violent. Some suggests you can submerge the fruit in water to make it easier. I haven't tried it before but I guess it makes sense. I will try next time and let you know if it works. :)

A perfect job done. Yes, I know : P

Why pomegranate is good for you

Pomegranate is tremendously anti-oxidizing, beating even blueberry and green tea. Punicalagin is a substance that can only be found in pomegranate. Research suggests it can help lower blood pressure, protect blood vessels, prevent heart diseases, fight cancers, and it is extremely good for our skin. There are skincare products that claimed to contain pomegranate extract. But I guess the effectiveness do not even come close to consuming the fruit directly.

Beyond the fruit

Interestingly, pomegranate was featured in a lot of famous paintings in history, not only because it is beautiful, but also its unique symbolic meanings.

Source: Wikipedia

• If it's a baby boy holding the fruit, he's very likely to be Jesus Christ. Pomegranate represents life, death, and resurrection in Christian symbolism. (shown above is Botticelli's "Madonna of the Pomegranate")

• If pomegranate is associated with a woman in mythological paintings, it represents fertility and marriage. This is borrowed from the story of the Greek Goddess Persephone, the Queen of the underworld. [ Read here ]

• Other fruits commonly seen in paintings with a symbolic meaning include grapes (the sacred blood of Jesus) and Apple (sin)

Next time when you walk into a museum and see a painting of a table of fruits, chances are this is a religious painting with a great deal of hidden messages for viewers to decode. (Below is Caravaggio's painting "Still life with fruits")

Source: Wikipedia

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As a side note, I will be travelling to Paris in the last week of September. I know a lot of friends may be travelling around the same time too. If you happen to be going to Paris or Amsterdam please do let me know. May be we can meet up and enjoy a nice French dinner together ;-)

The Perfect Sugar-Free Oatmeal Recipe - with green apple, blueberry, cashew and yogurt!!

Trust me. I know better than anyone that oatmeal is boring. When I was doing my part-time finance master I fed myself enough oatmeal for dinner that I thought I would never touch it again for the rest of my life.

Well, never say never.

I now have an awesome way to transform regular oatmeal into something really exciting. And this is the magic ingredient.

Here is all you need:

• a green apple
• half a cup of plain yogurt
• a cup of milk (you can use soy milk but I think milk tastes a lot better)
• 1/4 cup of blueberry
• a handful of cashew nuts
• 1/4 cup of instant oatmeal
• honey and vanilla extract are optional

 Step 1 - Transform the texture of your instant oatmeal  

I believe one of the reasons why people don't like oatmeal is its texture. It's extremely dry if you don't give it enough time to soak up the water. But if you give it too much time, it will end up being really thick and slimy.

The trick here is, soak 1/4 cup of oatmeal in 1/4 cup of milk the night before and pop it into the fridge. By doing so you will let the oatmeal absorb just enough milk to become soft. We will later add in more milk for a thinner and smoother consistency. 

 Step 2 - Chop, Chop and Chop  

Did I mention I am obsessed with chopping fruits and veggies? One of my favorite morning activities is to chop things lol. Chop a green apple anyway you like. There is no right way to do it, just make sure you are not making apple puree. You want the apple to remain crispy and fresh to compliment the creamy oatmeal. 

If you haven't already realized, the blue background of my pictures, is in fact my chopping board...LOL

 Step 3 - and Chop Chop Chop  

Now it's time to chop some nuts. You can use any nuts you like. But I prefer cashew nuts because they are sweet and go well with fruits and yogurt. 

Don't try to put the nuts in a food processor, they will just lose the texture and flavor altogether. You just need them to be coarsely chopped. You want them to be crunchy so you can taste them.

 Step 4 - Mix them all!!  

Toss the yogurt, blueberry, green apple, cashew nuts, soaked oatmeal and the remaining 3/4 cup of milk into a large bowl and mix them using a spoon (not mixer, not blender). If you happen to have vanilla extract at home, add a few drops and it will do magic. Sprinkle flaxseeds on top to finish. 

If you don't have a sweet tooth, this fruity oatmeal mix is already perfect to serve. Since the fruits are not blended, you will be able to taste their natural sweetness. Otherwise you can also drizzle honey on top. 

This is by far the best oatmeal I have ever had. You will be amazed by how the green apple adds texture and flavor to plain oatmeal. The result is crispy, crunchy, smooth, creamy, sweet and fresh. Don't forget it's SUGAR-FREE, very nutritious and really fun to make too!

I hope you all enjoy it :)

XOXO

  Nutritional Information :  

Protein     19 g

Fat           11 g
Carb         70 g
Sugar       36 g (naturally from fruits, milk and yogurt. Low GI)  
Calories   397 kcal

Sugar-Free Gluten-Free Blueberry Yogurt Cashew Smoothie

 

I have been having the chocolate smoothie almost the whole week. There is no reason not to make myself a new smoothie today since it's Saturday! Yay!!

There are lots of blueberry yogurt smoothie recipes around. Of course! everybody knows yogurt goes really well with berries: strawberry, blueberry, raspberry... you name it. But there is one problem with it: both (natural, plain) yogurt and berries are sour. When you put them together, especially without adding sugar (or honey), you can imagine it will taste REALLY sour. So, besides blueberry, I put a banana as well. I don't normally put 2 fruits together because there can be too much sugar, even if it's from fruits. But, 1.  it's still better than putting refined sugar and, 2.  it's SATURDAY!  :)

My formula for healthy smoothies goes like this 

a) protein:  this time it's from yogurt  

b) anti-oxidant: blueberry!

c) healthy fats: cashew

d) as much as possible, minimize sugar 

e) limit the number of ingredients to not more than 5, because there is no point tossing everything in and tastes like nothing

I picked cashew for 2 reasons  1.  it's creamy with a natural sweetness, which can help balance out the sourness of yogurt and blueberry and,  2. it matches the colour of the other ingredients... yes I am serious, I am obsessed with colours ... : P

One important point to note is, you will have to get unsalted cashew that is not roasted, but steamed. And make sure you don't get raw, unprocessed cashew, it is TOXIC! I soaked the cashew in water overnight to make it softer and easier to blend.  

I sprinkle chia seed instead of flax seed on top to finish because, again, for the colour. I want it to look pastel blue/ lilac. The result is creamy, sweet and sour, just like the frozen yogurt you get in town but of course 10 times healthier.

You can add ice cubes to this smoothie too and I guess it will taste even more like frozen yogurt. Yum Yum Yum...

  Ingredients :  

1 medium sized banana

1 cup of blueberry (or other berries like raspberry and strawberry)

A cup of plain, unsweetened yogurt

A handful of cashew nuts, soaked in water overnight

Around 100 ml of soy milk (milk, almond milk... or anything you like. Ice cubes are optional)

  Nutritional Facts :  

Protein     15 g

Fat           11 g
Carb         51 g
Sugar       34 g * 
Calories   356 kcal

*half of this actually comes from lactose, which naturally exists in plain yogurt. It has no fructose by composition and has only half the GI of glucose. Unless you're lactose intolerant, I think it's alright to have lactose in your diets, especially from yogurt.

All about bananas

I love bananas, probably ever since I was a kid. If it is not the most delicious fruit in the world, it has to be the most convenient. You don't need any tools to crack a banana, you don't even need to wash it. Sometimes I am just amazed by God's perfect design. Don't agree? Read the Banana Fallacy.

Brilliant, isn't it?  LOL

I do not totally agree with the last point, though. Yellow alone is not just right, yellow with black spots is.

  Fact #1:   Ripe banana (sort of) helps prevent cancer  

If you don't believe me, read this. Banana produces TNF as it ripens which can trigger apoptosis via the extrinsic pathway, and promote the proliferation of leukocytes. Simply speaking, ripe banana contains a substance that is essential to get rid of unwanted cells in the body, which can be cancer cells. But is the amount significant enough to prevent cancer? very likely not. However, consider you are having one ripe banana a day, together with other anti-oxidizing super-foods and a healthy lifestyle, it may make a difference in the long run.  

  Fact #2:   Banana quenches thirst  

No, it is not a joke. I am sure you have experienced the thirst after salty meals before, and no matter how much water you drink, it doesn't help. This is because our body depends on an accurate balance of sodium and potassium to function properly (Wonder why? Read this). Even the smallest increase in the concentration of plasma sodium triggers signal to the brain for us to feel thirst, which intends to bring in more free water to the body. Ideally we should take in just as much sodium as potassium in our diet. However, modern diets often contain waaaaay more sodium (from salt) than potassium. To maintain the balance, we should eat more fruits as a natural source of potassium. A medium-sized banana alone contains more than 400 mg of potassium, doubles that of orange and apple.

  Fact #3:   Banana makes you happy  

Banana is known to help combat depression. It contains tryptophan something that can be converted into serotonin and melatonin, both neuro-transmitters something else that regulate(s) sleep and happy mood.

  Fact #4:   Banana does not make you fat  

Many people do not eat banana because they think it will make them fat. No it will not! because

1) it's filling, so you don't want to snack that often

2) there is no fat in bananas

3) there is only around 100 kcal in a medium sized banana

4) it contains both "simple" and "complex" sugar that will be broken down and released into the blood stream steadily. It's also very high in fibre and is often considered as a low GI food (Read this). If you don't bother to read about GI, just remember it's lower the better

  So...What to do with bananas?  

The bananas you get in supermarkets are usually green. To make it ripen faster I usually leave bananas with apples in the same bag. I love putting bananas in my morning smoothies, for the sweetness and the creamy texture. 

For me I don't have a problem finishing one banana at a time. But in case you have a tiny appetite, this can be your life-saver... 

* NANA SAVER *

Despite its usefulness, I am giving this product 2 thumbs up....lol