Do you like chocolate cake? I assume you do. Most people I know like chocolate cake… I mean who could say no to a delicious, extremely rich chocolate cake? Nobody! Oh and don’t worry about the avocado and banana in the picture… they belong there.
I like my chocolate cakes rich and with loads of chocolate. They don’t have to be sweet though. Just with a good and strong chocolate flavor. So strong you want to drink a glass of milk with each piece you take in your mouth.
The reduction of chocolate is not an option, but reducing sugar definitely is. Lately, I try to reduce sugar in my bakes a bit. When using American recipes I tend to reduce the sugar anyway because those recipes are normally very sweet. A bit less sugar on top of that is always possible I’d say without getting a boring tasting bake.
The supermarket chain REWE** did something similar with one of their products. They sold a package of chocolate pudding with different amounts of sugar added. One pudding in the package had the original amount of sugar and the other ones had 20%, 30%, and 40% less sugar in them. That way they wanted to find out, which one the customers like the most… the result will be sold in stores in the future.
Dunno much about pudding making, but when it comes to baking, reducing sugar has certain consequences. A less sweet result is quite obvious, but normally not a big problem – normally cakes still taste fine. The reduction of certain amounts of sugar can result in more »structural« difficulties. If you reduce the sugar in a bake big time, you also reduce the volume big time. That can lead to an entirely different texture. The bake can get rubbery, dry or crumbly, depending on how the rest of the ingredients work together.
The only thing you can do – try and see what happens. After some testing, you probably know already how much sugar you can leave out without changing the texture. You can also add some other ingredients to help you… The cake here had 1 1/2 cups of sugar in the original recipe. I gradually reduced the amount of sugar in several test bakes and also changed the type of sugar used. At some point the texture was a bit off, but by adding avocado, it got better. Now I have a recipe where the sugar is reduced to 1/3 of the original amount, where coconut flower sugar is used instead of white sugar (that’s better for the sugar levels in your body) and the result is plain delicious.
Are you reducing sugar in your bakes sometimes? Do you have any tricks others should know? Share with me/us in the comments!
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the cake batter:
1 ripe avocado
2 large ripe bananas
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract (sugar-free)*
1 cup (130g) stronger all-purpose flour*
1/3 cup (40g) cocoa powder*
1/2 cup (100g) coconut blossom sugar*
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
4 tbsp. milk
2/3 cup (80g) walnuts*, chopped
1.7 oz. (50g) semi-sweet chocolate*, chopped
For the decoration:
3 oz. (85g) semi-sweet chocolate*
1/2 cup (120g) heavy cream
some chopped walnuts*
Für den Teig:
1 mittelgroße Avocado (reif)
2 große Bananen (sehr reif)
1 Ei (L)
1 TL Vanille Extrakt (ohne Zucker)*
130g Mehl (Type 550)*
40g Kakaopulver*
100g Kokosblütenzucker*
1 TL Natron
1 TL Zimt*
4 EL Milch
80g Walnüsse*, gehackt
50g Zartbitterschokolade*, gehackt
Für die Dekoration:
85g Zartbitterschokolade*, gehackt
120g Schlagsahne
einige gehackte Walnüsse*
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Lightly grease a 23x13cm loaf tin* or line it with baking parchment. Set aside.
2. Add the avocado and bananas to a large bowl and mash with a fork or potato masher. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well. Mix the flour with cocoa powder, coconut blossom sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon until well combined. Add together with the milk to the bowl with the avocado and banana and mix until just combined. Do not overmix! Fold in the chopped walnuts (keep some for decorations) and chocolate.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for about 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Take it out of the oven and let it cool down in the tin for about 15 minutes, then carefully remove it and let it cool down completely on a wire rack.
4. Chop the chocolate and add it to a heatproof bowl. Heat up the heavy cream (either in a pot on the stove or in the microwave) and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let it cool down and thicken – this takes about an hour. Spread the thick ganache on the cake and sprinkle with some chopped walnuts.
1. Den Ofen auf 180°C (350°F) Ober-/Uterhitze vorheizen. Eine Kastenform* mit etwa 23x13cm leicht einfetten oder mit Backpapier auslegen und zur Seite stellen.
2. Die Avocado und die Bananen in einer großen Schüssel mit einer Gabel oder einem Kartoffelstampfer zerdrücken. Das Ei und den Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und gut unterrühren. Das Mehl mit Kakao, Kokosblütenzucker, Natron und Zimt vermischen und dann zusammen mit der Milch in die Schüssel geben und nur kurz unterrühren. Die gehackten Walnüsse (ein paar für die Deko zurückbehalten) und die Schokolade unterheben.
3. Den Teig in die vorbereitete Form füllen und dann für etwa 45-48 Minuten backen – mit einem Zahnstocher testen, ob noch Teig kleben bleibt, und erst herausnehmen, wenn der Zahnstocher sauber herauskommt. Aus dem Ofen nehmen und etwa 15 Minuten in der Form abkühlen lassen, dann vorsichtig herauslösen und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett auskühlen lassen.
4. Die Schokolade hacken und in eine hitzebeständige Schüssel geben. Die Sahne erhitzen (in einem kleinen Topf auf dem Herd oder in der Mikrowelle) und dann über die Schokolade schütten und für etwa 10 Minuten stehen lassen, dann glatt rühren und so lange stehen lassen, bis die Ganache wieder fester geworden ist – dauert etwa eine Stunde. Auf dem Kuchen verteilen und mit ein paar gehackten Walnüssen bestreuen.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Avocado Banana Walnut Chocolate Cake
- Prep Time: 00:25
- Cook Time: 00:48
- Total Time: 02:30
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: -
- Cuisine: International
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Delicious, sugar-reduced chocolate cake with avocado, bananas, and walnuts. A great combination that gives the cake a great texture. You will love it!
Ingredients
For the cake batter:
1 ripe avocado
2 large ripe bananas
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract (sugar-free)*
1 cup (130g) stronger all-purpose flour*
1/3 cup (40g) cocoa powder*
1/2 cup (100g) coconut blossom sugar*
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
4 tbsp. milk
2/3 cup (80g) walnuts*, chopped
1.7 oz. (50g) semi-sweet chocolate*, chopped
For the decoration:
3 oz. (85g) semi-sweet chocolate*
1/2 cup (120g) heavy cream
some chopped walnuts*
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Lightly grease a 23x13cm loaf tin* or line it with baking parchment. Set aside.
2. Add the avocado and bananas to a large bowl and mash with a fork or potato masher. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well. Mix the flour with cocoa powder, coconut blossom sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon until well combined. Add together with the milk to the bowl with the avocado and banana and mix until just combined. Do not overmix! Fold in the chopped walnuts (keep some for decorations) and chocolate.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for about 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Take it out of the oven and let it cool down in the tin for about 15 minutes, then carefully remove it and let it cool down completely on a wire rack.
4. Chop the chocolate and add it to a heatproof bowl. Heat up the heavy cream (either in a pot on the stove or in the microwave) and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let it cool down and thicken – this takes about an hour. Spread the thick ganache on the cake and sprinkle with some chopped walnuts.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
Links marked with an asterisk (*) are affiliate links (advertising/Werbung) to Amazon Germany. If you click on one of those links and buy something via this link, I will get a commission for that sale. The price of whatever you buy is not affected in any way by this.
**I have partnered with REWE to bring you this delicious chocolate cake. That is why I have to declare this here in Germany as Advertising (WERBUNG). All I wrote in this article is still based on my own opinion and has not been affected by anybody.
