A flourless chocolate cake is decadent. It’s a delectable way to enjoy a combination of healthy fats: pasture-raised eggs, grass-fed butter, dark chocolate and cocoa powder  (ideally, unsweetened and 100% cocoa)—all gently sweetened with maple syrup. You can use 1/2 cup raw honey if you wish, but I prefer using maple syrup that is labelled “Grade A, Dark Color, Robust Taste”, which is from a late-season syrup run and more nutrient-dense than the standard Grade A light-colored, Amber maple syrup.

Berries make a pretty garnish. Since fresh berries are out-of-season in February, you’re better off using frozen berries, which were picked at the peak of harvest. Simply warm frozen berries in a saucepan, and once they’ve thawed, spoon over each slice of flourless chocolate cake.

Dark chocolate (containing at least 70% cocoa; ideally, 80% cocoa or more) is a source of healthy fat. The fat is from the cocoa butter and consists of modest amounts of monounsaturated fat (also found in olive oil) and saturated fat (stearic and palmitic acids).

Over the last 60 years, saturated fat has gotten a bad rap. However, incorporating high-quality real food sources of saturated fat has myriad health benefits. It can be good for heart health by lowering lipoprotein (a), a substance associated with increased risk of heart diseases) and raise your HDL, or “good” cholesterol.

Am I saying it’s OK to eat a Big Mac, fried chicken or store-bought ice cream? Nope. Those are processed foods high in unhealthy saturated fats. Quality counts when it comes to saturated fat.

With chocolate, it’s important to be mindful of choosing a high-quality dark chocolate with an 80% cocoa content (or more) and consume it in moderation. Indulge wisely.

A Word About Dairy

I have a dairy sensitivity. I absolutely cannot tolerate any kind of milk product, from milk and yogurt, to cheese and ice cream. I am highly sensitive (and I have been tested for this) to the proteins in milk: casein and whey.  Butter IS made from cream (a milk product) and contains apx. 80% fat; however, it contains just tiny amounts of carbs, milk proteins (like casein) and lactose. Yet, butter does not trigger me. If butter is called for in a baked good recipe, I only use high-quality grass-fed butter….the end result is worth it!

So…the good news is that even if you are dairy-sensitive, you may be able to tolerate butter. Every person is different. If you are highly sensitive, you may not be able to tolerate butter.

Experiment…and see what works for you. Your body will let you know.

I don’t eat butter on a regular basis—not even infrequently—so, I am happy that my body allows me to tolerate grass-fed butter without issue.

If you make this flourless chocolate cake—savor and enjoy!

Flourless Chocolate Cake

4 oz. 100% cacao unsweetened chocolate bar, chopped or unsweetened 100% cacao baking chips
3 eggs, ideally pasture-raised
1/2 cup unsalted grass-fed butter OR unrefined coconut oil
1/4 cup organic cacao powder
1/3 cup organic maple syrup, labeled Grade A, Dark Color + Robust Taste
Optional garnish: berries (fresh or frozen)
 
Preheat the oven to 375˚F.

Using butter, coconut oil or olive oil, grease an 8-inch (or 9-inch) stainless steel round cake pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper; then, grease the parchment paper.

Slice the butter into a medium stainless steel bowl, and add the chopped chocolate or chocolate chips. Place this bowl over a pot of simmering water (you can also use a double boiler) and stir butter and chocolate together until melted; carefully remove bowl from the pot.

Using an electric mixer or standing mixer with a whisk attachment, whisk maple syrup into the melted butter-chocolate mixture. Add the eggs and combine well. Finally add in the cocoa powder, whisking well, until smooth and creamy.

Pour batter into the parchment-lined pan, making sure batter is evenly distributed. Smooth top with a spatula.

Bake cake for 15 to 20 minutes until firm, or a knife inserted the center comes out clean.  **Note: If using a larger than 9-inch round pan, the cake will take less time to bake, apx. 15 minutes.

Let cake cool in pan  for apx.  15 minutes. Remove from pan and invert onto a plate.

Cut into slices and garnish each slice with a spoonful of warmed frozen berries, if desired.

Red and heart-shaped, the strawberry could be considered the perfect fruit for Valentine’s Day because it actually does help protect the heart.  (And a healthy cardiovascular system is key for sexual arousal and responsiveness.)

Anthocyanin, a phenol in strawberries, is what gives strawberries their distinct red color; anthocyanin can also help protect against oxidative stress. Studies suggest that regular consumption of anthocyanins (about 3 to 4x / week) reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, the #1 cause of death among both men and women.

Ladies, take note: the results of a recent Harvard study published in Circulation link a high intake of anthocyanin-rich foods (like strawberries and blueberries) with a reduced risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) in women ages 25 to 42.  CLICK HERE here to read my SheKnows.com article about the health benefits of strawberries.

An excellent source of Vitamin C, strawberries are also a good source of minerals, such as manganese, iodine and potassium—good to know if you plan on engaging in intensive “cardio” on Valentine’s Day (excuse me, “weekend”, this year!).

Right now, you won’t find fresh, local strawberries at winter markets, especially in the Northeast.  The “fresh” strawberries on display at the supermarket are usually from California, like the conventionally grown (and completely tasteless) Driscoll strawberries. Buying organic frozen strawberries is the next best thing.  It’s worthwhile to buy organic strawberries because according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), conventionally grown strawberries rank at the top of their “Dirty Dozen” list of produce containing the most pesticide residue.

You can enjoy a healthy dose of strawberry goodness in this ethereal soufflé—a virtual paean to strawberries: it’s light but satisfying, with a hint of natural sweetness.  And, happily, it’s very easy to make!

Strawberry Souffle
Adapted from original recipe at perrysplate.com
20 ounces (two 10-ounce bags) of frozen organic strawberries, thawed
5 pastured egg whites, divided (2 egg whites in a small bowl; 3 egg whites in a medium bowl)
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon lemon juice
6 tablespoons raw honey

Preheat oven to 350˚F.

Fill a kettle with water and bring to a boil. Set aside.

Place thawed strawberries in a blender or food processor; puree well.

In a standing mixer or a large mixing bowl, place pureed strawberries, lemon juice, raw honey and 2 egg whites.  Beat on medium-high speed for 15 minutes (use high speed with an electric mixer), or until light and frothy.  (The volume of the strawberry mixture will expand).

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites at high speed.  After 2-3 minutes, add 3 tablespoons raw honey and continue beating until egg whites form stiff peaks.

Using a large spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the strawberry mixture.

Spoon strawberry mixture into 12 8-ounce ramekins, filling to the top.

Place ramekins into a large 15” x 10” x 2” glass baking dish (or two separate smaller ones).  Pour about 1-inch of hot water into the baking dish holding the ramekins and place on the center rack in the oven.

Bake on the lower third of the oven for 5 minutes.  Then place on center rack and bake another 13 minutes, or, until the souffles have risen well above the rim, and the tops are golden brown.  Serve immediately.

To reheat: Cover ramekins with aluminum foil and warm in oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

I know it was for me…

Take these delicious Paleo vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting, for example.  (By the way, this classic “yellow cake-chocolate frosting” combo was a winner with everyone who sampled them!)

Before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, I had an enduring love affair with sugar and flour.  My weakness?  Muffins, scones, croissants, scones, chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes, bread, and…oh, I so loved homemade fruit pies with a rich buttery crust.

I’m a foodie, so the baked goods that I ate were either homemade (for example, I used to ritually bake my own oatmeal bread every Sunday), or during my weekends upstate, they came from an old-fashioned bakery where the owner produced his own baked goods on-site.

In the City, I was a regular at a bakery three blocks north of my apartment, where I indulged my 3:00pm craving for chocolate buttercream-frosted chocolate cupcakes, or, for a hefty wedge of old-fashioned three-layer chocolate cake bound with chocolate buttercream frosting.  That “slice” of cake, by the way, weighed nearly a pound (!!), but I ate it ALL in one sitting!  These treats always set everything right in my world again.

Until they didn’t.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, I had hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid). As my hypothyroidism progressed, my body began rebelling against the treats that I loved.  Within minutes of eating, say, a chocolate chip cookie, I would have crazy heart palpitations that left me wired, anxious and unsettled.  That cookie would also leave me so foggy and exhausted that I, literally, could not keep my eyes open!

After my hypothyroidism diagnosis, my functional medicine doctor advised me to stop eating gluten and wheat.  In many cases, there is also a relationship between hypothyroidism (or autoimmune Hashimoto’s thyroiditis) and candida, or yeast overgrowth.  Many factors, including a high sugar diet, alcohol, chronic stress and poor immune health, can feed candida overgrowth.  And, despite the fact that I was mindful of making “healthy”, “organic” and “high quality” food choices, I suspected that I had candida.

For these reasons, I decided to eliminate sugar for 30 days.  “No sugar” meant no gluten, no grains, no fruit and no dairy.  I won’t pretend…it wasn’t easy, initially.  After white-knuckling through a few tough days, however, my body adjusted.  And my mental fog lifted!

After my 30-day sugar detox, I decided to reintroduce a little forbidden sweetness back into my life by way of these Paleo vanilla cupcakes with a Fleur de Sel coconut-chocolate frosting. I wanted to see how my body would react to flour (albeit coconut) and sugar (maple syrup, a natural, nutrient dense sweetener).

For the frosting, I used unsweetened cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate chips. I favor 100% unsweetened Valrhona cocoa powder, an intensely dark cocoa with a deep, bittersweet flavor.

Based in France, Valrhona makes a Dutch process cocoa powder, where cocoa beans are first treated with a potassium solution to neutralize their acidity, then dried and ground.  Compared to “natural” cocoa where cocoa beans are simply roasted before being ground into a powder, Valrhona is considered a more “processed” cocoa powder.  But since it is 100% unsweetened, and I love the depth of its bittersweet flavor, I’m not overly concerned about losing antioxidants in my cocoa.

And I use melted coconut oil for the chocolate frosting.

So, how do these wheat-free, gluten-free Paleo cupcakes taste?

According to my husband, who ate five in one sitting(!):  “Not a strong vanilla taste.  But the cupcakes have an appealing yellow cake texture and flavor that complements the bittersweet Valrhona-coconut frosting.  The dark chocolate flavor resonates, especially with a tiny sprinkle of Celtic sea salt on top!”

If I do say so, myself….these cupcakes are delicious!  With six eggs and coconut oil, they also contain plenty of blood sugar-stabilizing healthy fat and protein.  A little sprinkle of mineral-rich Celtic sea salt (coarse-ground) on the chocolate frosting adds delicious contrast to the bittersweet of the chocolate and the gentle sweetness of the maple syrup.  But it’s up to you—you can add or omit the Celtic sea salt.

These cupcakes are a lovely and pleasurable occasional indulgence. I found that post-sugar detox, I felt completely full and satisfied eating three cupcakes (they’re small!). In fact, five hours passed before I felt the first twinges of hunger again.

Everyone is different.  Your ability to tolerate sugar will be different than mine.  For me, the cupcakes were just sweet enough, just indulgent enough to satisfy my physiological, emotional and psychological desire for sugar.

Turns out: I hadn’t missed sugar as much as I thought I had.  Often, we are more nostalgic for the memory of how a favorite food made us feel—whether comforted, happy, or “high”—than the reality of how that food may actually make us feel (in my case, brain-fogged, exhausted, yet wired).

Fast forward to NOW:  I no longer crave cupcakes—not even gluten-free, wheat-free ones!  If I did, however, I would bake up a batch and enjoy them 100%. Without apology.
What got me to this place was allowing myself to enjoy healthy versions of the treats I once loved.  I savored.  I enjoyed.  And, without trying, I found myself saying “good-bye” to cupcake cravings!

Paleo Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

Makes 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1/2 cup organic coconut flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
6 large eggs, ideally from organic or local cage-free, free-roaming hens
1/2 cup organic unrefined coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup organic maple syrup, labeled Grade A, Dark Color, Robust Taste
1 tablespoon organic vanilla extract

For the frosting:
1/2 cup Valrhona 100% (unsweetened) cocoa powder
3/4 cup organic unrefined coconut oil
2-1/2 tablespoons organic maple syrup, labeled Grade A, Dark Color, Robust Taste
1 tablespoon organic vanilla extract
Celtic sea salt, a pinch or two to sprinkle over each cupcake

To make the cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a muffin tin with parchment baking cups; set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together coconut flour, sea salt and baking soda.

Melt the coconut oil over low heat (you do not want the oil to burn or smoke) and remove immediately; before pouring into eggs, make sure it is cool to touch.

In another bowl, use an electric mixer and beat together eggs, maple syrup, vanilla extract, adding cooled coconut oil.

Add dry ingredients into the wet (egg mixture) and blend gently with mixer until batter is smooth, taking care not to over-mix.

Transfer batter to a 4-cup (64 ounce) glass Pyrex measuring cup and carefully pour into the parchment baking cups in the muffin tin.  (*If you don’t have a 64-oz measuring cup, scoop up apx. 1/4 cup batter and carefully add to the parchment baking cups in the muffin tin.)

Place on center rack and bake15-18 minutes.  To avoid overbaking (they’ll get tough!), check after 12 minutes for doneness and every 2-3 minutes after that.

Cool completely.  Top with frosting and sprinkle with Celtic sea salt.

To make the frosting:
Using an electric mixer, mix the cocoa and coconut oil (do NOT melt!) until well blended; add vanilla and maple syrup.  You may need to add a little more coconut oil until frosting is soft and spreadable.