Recipe: Healthy Sugar-Free Chia Seed Cake

I love to bake… well, I love to eat cake, so they’re part and parcel of the same interest. However I’m a bit of a sugar addict and I’m actively trying to eliminate as much of the bad stuff from my diet as I can. So, I experimented in the kitchen and came up with this cake; it’s yummy if I do say so myself.

I’ve replaced the sugar with agave syrup which has a Glycaemic Index that is 5 times lower than sugar, meaning you don’t get blood sugar spikes. I also added healthy chia seeds that not only add a delicious crunch to the cake but are packed full of Omega 3s.

Ingredients.
4 Organic eggs
200g Natural Agave Syrup
225g Self-raising flour
2 tsp Baking powder
1 tbs Vanilla essence
10g Chia Seeds
225g Butter or Margarine

For filling.
Sugar-free raspberry jam, or make a coulis by reducing the a punnet of raspberries in a pan and adding agave to taste
Mascarpone or cream – add some powdered artificial sweetener to sweeten, or icing sugar if you feel naughty.

Method. 
1. Pre-heat oven to about 170c
2. Grease 2 baking tins
3. Blend all ingredients together (doesn’t matter about the order, just bung them in)
4. Bake for about 20-25mins or until a golden brown. *The agave will result in a darker colour than normal sugar, so don't worry if it looks overdone
5. Leave cakes to cool on a wire rack
6. Spread jam and cream filling on cakes and sand which together
7. Finish with a dusting of icing sugar or vanilla powder
8. Enjoy!!


I’d encourage you to mess around with this recipe, substituting what you like, trying to make it healthier… or more sinful. The basic recipe is a good base though, but mainly it tastes delicious!