Healthy Recipes, Balanced Wellness Masha Liokumovich Healthy Recipes, Balanced Wellness Masha Liokumovich

Kefir Cranberry & Apricot Cake

Dried fruits are nutritious, yummy and convenient, but look for dried fruits that have been dehydrated naturally and contain no sugar.  Dried fruits also contains more fiber than the same-sized serving of their fresh counterparts. And as we all know fiber helps keep your digestive system running smoothly. Dried apricots, for example, contain 6.5 grams per cup, while fresh apricots contain just 3.1 grams.

For this recipe, I used dried apricots and cranberries for the topping, however you can use anything you like: dried cherries, blueberries, mango, fig, plum, pear etc.

This recipe also calls for kefir, which is a great way to add some pro-biotic into your diet.

Cakes generally are not associated with health, however I'm a strong believer in the "spoil yourself once in a while instead of overindulging later". Plus, there is always a way to modify a dessert recipe for guilt free indulgence. For example, there are ways to substitute for the butter, like apple sauce or even an avocado. Also, there are many ways to substitute your flour: almond flour is my favorite.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 1.5 cups of kefir (I used a flavored Wildberry kind, but you can use whatever flavor or plain kefir)
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 2 eggs
  • 1.5 cups of brown sugar
  • 1 stick of melted organic pasture-raised butter (substitute apple sauce or even avocado here)
  • 3 tbsp. of olive oil
  •  1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • Zest of an orange
  • 2 cups of all purpose or cake flour (you can substitute for almond flour if you are brave and verse in your conversions)
  • ½ cup of dried cranberries
  • ½ cups of dried apricots (diced)

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350
  • In a medium bowl, combine kefir and baking soda. Set aside
  • In a large bowl, mix eggs and sugar on high for 2 minutes, add butter (apple sauce or avocado), olive oil, vanilla, orange zest and mix well.
  • Add the kefir mixture. Mix to combine
  • Add flour. Mix well, making sure there are no clumps
  • Fold in the dried fruit
  • Pour into a beautiful cake mold pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean

Enjoy!

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